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Saturday of the Fourth Week of Advent

Today's Lectionary Readings
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Today's gospel from Luke 1:67-79, known as "The Canticle
of Zechariah," is a hymn of praise to God. Zechariah was
jubilant that he and his wife, Elizabeth, would finally have a child.
The couple had all but given up on being parents, but God had other
plans. Not only would they have a child, but this child would play a
prophetic role in the great plan of salvation. This child would
literally "prepare the way" for the long-expected Messiah.

Zechariah's hymn recalled God's promises that God's
people would be freed from oppression and be able to live their lives
without fear. Scripture scholars see that this hymn is not about
foretelling the future, but rather about the specific role that
prophetic people would play in welcoming the Messiah. In short, the
hymn references the role that their child, John, would play:
initiating a movement of readiness-making - that is, preparing
the way for the Messianic Era of equity, justice, security and
self-determination for God's people. 

In the full context of Luke's gospel, we come to understand that
discipleship is about preparing the way of the Lord. The prophetic
words of Zechariah and the words of John the Baptist are as prophetic
as they are aspirational: that disciples of the Messiah are to create
a world in which all feel safe. In which all are fed, housed, and
loved.  In which all are welcomed.  And this is where we,
Catholic Charities, comes in.

Catholic Charities "prepares the way of the Lord" for
those who literally "dwell in darkness and the shadow of
death."

When we create pathways to recovery whether for those seeking sobriety
or those rebuilding after a disaster, we prepare the way of the
Lord. 

When our immigration legal service team helps clients get work
permits; our refugee team gets housing placement for refugee families;
clinicians attend to the wounds of trauma in therapy and group work;
our juvenile probation team provides safe spaces for young people to
grow and learn from their past; and our chaplaincy team provides
sacraments and pastoral counseling to the incarcerated, we prepare the
way of the Lord.

We prepare the way of the Lord when our economic development
department helps returning citizens find jobs, our family resource
center and educational enhancement teams provide warm and stimulating
learning environments for young families to grow together, and our
parish-based teams work to strengthen neighborhood leadership and
build up communities one neighborhood at a time. 

Our preparation for the way of the Lord has led us to a manger and
there, in the darkest of nights, we kneel before a baby whose life
will literally be in our hands. And thus, the work of preparing the
way of the Lord continues.

Blessed Christmas to all!

Fr. Jon Pedigo is assigned to work at Catholic Charities by the
Diocese of San José. Ordained in 1991, Fr. Pedigo served in
many parishes and has been involved in justice and peace ministry,
interfaith relations, and community organizing. He serves as the
Director for Advocacy and Community Engagement for Catholic Charities
of Santa Clara County.




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