22. December 17

Meditations no. 22 (unofficial computer-aided translation)

The great antiphons: let us be united to the prayer of the Church.

Our longings during Advent for the coming of Christ are expressed all the more fervently in the liturgy during the days leading up to Christmas. The Lord is coming from afar, we proclaimed at the start of this season. The Lord will come and will not delay, we said on the following Sunday. The Lord is already near is the good news addressed to us now. Today we start reciting the seven greater antiphons. They represent a sort of clamour rising up from the human race, in the form of a series of noble and glorious titles addressed to the Messiah whom we await.

These Advent antiphons express the desires and the hopeful impatience of mankind, which is so in need of redemption, and which yearns to contemplate the Redeemer’s face. The antiphons are a reminder that, all around us, millions of men and women want to hear God’s message, even though outwardly they may not show it. Some perhaps have forgotten Christ’s teachings. Others, through no fault of their own, have never known them and they think that religion is something odd. But of this we can be sure, that in every man’s life there comes a time sooner or later when his soul draws the line. He has had enough of the usual explanations. The lies of the false prophets no longer satisfy. Even though they may not admit it at the time, such people are longing to quench their thirst with the teachings of our Lord.

In these days when we are so close to Christ’s Birth, the Church, under the Holy Spirit’s inspiration, with sighs too deep for words, prays in the name of every person, voicing the hunger for redemption present in the depths of every heart. Our personal prayer should be one with that of the Church. We share in her clamour and her expectation. That is how we prepare our souls, so that when the Messiah arrives, he may find us awake and alert, in profound adoration, our hearts burning with apostolic zeal.

The Sapientia antiphon. Wisdom and supernatural prudence in apostolate.

O Wisdom, you came forth from the mouth of the Most High, and you ordered all things mightily and sweetly. Come, and teach us the way of prudence! we pray in today’s antiphon.

The divine, fatherly and holy dialogue which God initiated with man at the start of creation was interrupted by original sin. But how wonderfully it has been renewed by the Incarnation of the Word. Wisdom came forth from the mouth of the Most High, and once again men and women are invited to an intimate conversation with their Creator.

God intervened from the beginning of time, speaking to man’s heart, calling him in hundreds of ways and making him feel his need for the divine. He intervened in a special way through the prophets, and then finally through Jesus Christ. And through Jesus’ words he calls us friends: Iam non dicam vos servos… vos autem dixi amicos. No longer do I call you servants… but friends.

Even more, he calls us his children: Unus est enim Pater vester qui in caelis est. You have but one true Father, who is in heaven. And as a pledge of God’s love, Jesus makes known to us his plans, what is hidden in the Father’s heart. Deum nemo vidit unquam: unigenitus Filius, qui est in sinu Patris, ipse enarravit. No one has ever seen God; it is the only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, who has made him known to mankind.

Since then, God’s conversation with mankind has been constant and uninterrupted. This “dialogue of salvation”, for which we express our wonder and thankfulness during these days, is our model for every apostolic action. Thus our concern for souls will be wise and prudent as well as loving.

As Paul VI wrote: The dialogue of salvation was opened spontaneously on God’s initiative: “He first loved us”. It is up to us to take the initiative in extending to men this same dialogue, without waiting to be summoned to it.

The dialogue of salvation began with charity, with divine goodness: “God so loved the world as to give his only-begotten Son”; nothing but fervent and unselfish love should motivate our dialogue.

The dialogue of salvation was not conditioned by the merits of those to whom it was addressed, nor by the results it would achieve: “Those who are well have no need of a physician.” So too our dialogue should be without limits and not as though bargaining.

The dialogue of salvation was made accessible to all; it was destined for all without distinction. Likewise our own dialogue should be universal, that is to say, all-embracing and capable of reaching everyone.

The dialogue of salvation experienced a gradual growth; it went through successive stages, humble beginnings, before reaching its full development. Our dialogue too will take into account the slowness with which people and things mature and will await the moment when God makes it effective. This will not be a reason for our dialogue to put off till tomorrow what it can accomplish today; it ought to be eager for the opportune moment; it ought to sense the value of time. Today, that is every day, our dialogue should begin again.

Apostolate: doctrine and love in practice.

Following the example of the divine dialogue which Christ has re-established between God and men, our apostolate should be an exercise of intellect and will, a combining of truth with charity.

My daughters and sons, Christians, those of us who have received the gift of faith from God, have the mission of speaking to others in God’s name: They should everywhere on earth bear witness to Christ and give an answer to everyone who asks a reason for the hope of an eternal life which is theirs.

By our witness and our word, by our example and our teaching, we have to make Christ known and loved; and, through Christ and in the Holy Spirit, we have to make God the Father known and loved too. Him we proclaim, warning every man - by our witness - and teaching every man in all wisdom -by our doctrine -that we may present every man mature in Christ. For this I toil, striving with all the energy which he mightily inspires within me.

Human conversation becomes divine when we act in this way. Then we can make our own the words of the Psalmist, because our conversations become praise given to God: In the presence of the angels I will sing your praise; I will worship at your temple and give thanks to your name. With my mouth I will proclaim your faithfulness.

Christian preaching requires two basic elements: fidelity to the truth, and human friendship. There can be no fruitful dialogue without an atmosphere of real friendship, honesty and certainty, or until such an atmosphere is engendered.

One needs to be honest, to accept the consequences of genuine dialogue. I have often thought about the different reactions of the early Christians, in their “dialogue” with their persecutors. Some professed Christ; they were consistent, and martyrdom was the penalty - and the prize - for their honesty. Others, the lapsi, gave way. And this fall was the penalty for their lack of love for the truth, for their lack of love for Christ.

In dialogue we must learn first of all to value the truth. The ability to grasp the truth is one of the greatest gifts God has given man. Truth is light to the mind, and a guide and energy for the will. It is a guarantee of peace and a stimulus to progress. In our day, it may be all the more necessary to remember this, because in their mutual dealings people so often show those deficiencies I mentioned at the beginning, which can deform the wonderful reality of human dialogue.

Together with Mary most Holy, we await the Birth of Jesus, the greatest proof of God’s loving dialogue with man. Meanwhile, the ancient liturgical prayer can be the channel for our confident prayer: O Wisdom, you came forth from the mouth of the Most High, and reaching from beginning to end, you ordered all things mightily and sweetly. Come and teach us the way of prudence.