Dianne Bergant, C.S.A.

Dec 13 2024

Scripture Study for

Isaiah announces the good news of salvation in various ways. First, the moment of proclamation resembles a messenger who swiftly runs to announce that exile and displacement are over. Zion’s God has been victorious over their enemies and is coming to dwell among the people. In a second picture, the arm of God is bared, revealing the source of the divine power. This demonstration of strength reminds the people of the might of their protector. Just as the messenger heralds peace and salvation to Zion, so the deliverance of the city heralds the mighty power of God to the ends of the earth.

The passage from Hebrews acclaims Christ as the agent of revelation, creation, and salvation. As a reflection of God’s glory and an exact representation of God’s being, Christ could rightly be called the revelation of God. As Son of God, Christ is the heir of all things and the agent through whom the world was made and through whom it continues to be sustained. Besides preeminence, this assertion suggests preexistence. Since it was through Wisdom that God created, and Wisdom is the pure emanation of the glory of God, the author concludes that Christ is also the Wisdom of God.

The Gospel of John characterizes Christ as the preexistent Word. Furthermore, like Wisdom, the Word was actively involved in creation. Finally, the Word is the true light that comes into the world. This Word resided in some primordial place, but now has entered human history. Though several translations state that the Word “made his dwelling among us,” a better reading of the Greek might be “tented.” It calls to mind the tabernacle in the wilderness where God dwelt or tented among the people (Exodus 40:34) as well as the tradition about Wisdom establishing her tent in the midst of the people (Sirach 24:8). The Word of God, who is also the holiness and the wisdom of God, now dwells in our midst.

Dec 13 2024

Scripture Study for

Micah’s prophecy states that salvation will come from an insignificant village rather than from the royal city; the power of the ruler comes from God; and a time of trial will be followed by a time of security and peace. Since Bethlehem was the place of David’s origin, the reference is rich in early royal importance that is quite distinct from any association with Jerusalem, the dynastic capital of the present reigning royal family. The new ruler promised will be called forth for God and strengthened by God. His rule will be like that of a shepherd who leads, protects, and provides for those in his care.

The passage from Hebrews contains a contrast between the ancient sacrificial ritual and the sacrifice of Christ. Though compliance to the will of God is clearly stated, the specific focus is Christ’s offering of his body. The author argues that Christ annuls the first kind of sacrifice (external adherence to law) in order to establish the second (internal obedience). By freely offering his body in sacrifice, Christ identifies his own will with the will of God. We are sanctified through this same sacrifice, not through any sacrifice required by law. For it was through his human body, a body like ours, that he demonstrated his obedience.

In the Gospel passage, Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit and proclaims her faith in the child that Mary is carrying. Elizabeth realizes that she is in the presence of God, and so she rejoices. It is as if Mary is the ark and the child within her is the glory of God. In response to this wondrous experience, Elizabeth exalts first Mary and then her child. She does not pronounce a blessing over them. Instead, she recognizes the blessedness that they possess and she praises it. This blessedness is derived from the dignity of the child, a dignity that Elizabeth acknowledges by referring to him as her Lord (kýrios).

Dec 13 2024

Scripture Study for

Zephaniah’s oracle of salvation directs the people to “Shout! . . . Sing! . . . Be glad and exult!” The reason for this rejoicing is their deliverance from enemies. The misfortune they endured may have been punishment for their sins, but God has removed that judgment and now dwells in their midst as King of Israel and as a mighty savior. “On that day” is an allusion to the day of the Lord, a time in the future when the justice of God will be executed throughout the world. This passage describes the tenderness God has for this restored people and the joy that their restoration evokes in God.

The joy that Paul advocates is not merely the happiness that comes from enjoyment of life. It is joy in the Lord, joy that is grounded in faith in Jesus Christ. Paul calls the believers to live lives of kindness, of gentle forbearance, of willingness to forego retaliation. Such genuine Christian behavior should be visible to all. “The Lord is near” is an end-of-time watchword, acclaiming the future coming of the Lord to set all things right. If the people have lived righteously, the Lord will come to them as a compassionate savior rather than as a severe judge. Finally, the fruit of such righteousness is peace.

The Gospel reading recounts instructions given by John the Baptist to those who came out to see and hear him and to be baptized. In response to their question “What should we do?” he challenges them to carry out their daily responsibilities with concern for others, honesty, and integrity. The people were looking for the Christ, the “anointed one.” Lest they mistake him for this Christ, John contrasts himself with the one who is to come, insisting that he is not worthy to undo the sandals of that long-awaited one. John’s baptism with water was a ritual of repentance and cleansing. The Christ’s baptism of the Spirit will purge and transform our very souls.

Dec 13 2024

Scripture Study for

Jerusalem is portrayed as a grieving mother. Her sorrow is for her children carried off and scattered both east and west. Since this meant the loss of any future, Jerusalem faced extinction. This is why she is clothed in the traditional garments of mourning. The prophet directs the city to “Take off your robe of mourning and misery!” Transformed by the glory of God, Jerusalem is told to stand on the heights and witness a reversal of fortune: the captives will return rejoicing; led away on foot, they will be carried back on royal thrones. The splendor that God bestows upon Jerusalem will be revealed to all the earth.

The affection that Paul has for the Philippians flows from his appreciation of their faithfulness to the righteousness that God is accomplishing in them. Although Paul brought the good news of the gospel to these people, he acknowledges that it was really God who made it take root in their hearts, and it is God who will oversee its maturation until it is brought to completion at the day of Christ Jesus. Paul prays that their mutual love will increase, and that they will be pure and blameless for the coming day of Christ.

John the Baptist is a most fascinating figure. He comes from a priestly family (see Luke 1:5), yet he is found in the desert, a place that calls to mind the wandering of the people in the wilderness as they moved out of Egyptian bondage. His activity occurred in the region of the Jordan, the gateway to the Promised Land, the very river crossed by the people as they entered the land. Thus crossing became a symbol of their entrance into a new life. All of this somehow marks John as an agent of momentous transformation. Just as both the Exodus and the return from exile involved a desert crossing, so the end-times renewal proclaimed by John begins in the desert.

Dec 13 2024

Scripture Study for

Contrary to the Marian interpretation captured in many depictions of the Immaculate Conception, the Genesis story states that it is the offspring of the woman who will have his heel on the serpent’s head, not the woman herself. This part of the story is really about the antagonism that will always exist between human beings and the forces of evil. Human beings will always have to battle temptation. However, this feast that celebrates Mary assures us that, regardless of the cunning nature of temptation, good will ultimately triumph.

Paul insists that the blessing of God comes to us through the agency of Christ. The blessings themselves are distinctively of a spiritual, even cosmic, nature. First is election in Christ. Though Paul suggests a kind of primordial predestination, there is no sense here that some are predestined for salvation and others are not. The point is that salvation in Christ is not an afterthought; it was in God’s plan from the beginning. The salvation ordained by God through Christ is the cause and not the consequence of righteousness. Adoption, redemption, forgiveness of sin, and the gifts of wisdom and insight are all pure grace, gifts from God, bestowed on us through Christ.

Mary’s Immaculate Conception sets her apart so that she might miraculously conceive Jesus, the event described in today’s Gospel reading. The opening angelic greeting, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you,” emphatically states her extraordinary dignity. She is here invited to be the vehicle of salvation for God’s people. As in other stories of angelic appearances to women (Hagar, in Genesis 16:7–16; the mother of Samson, Judges 13:2–7), Mary interacts directly with God’s messenger, without the mediation of her father or intended husband. She is not only free of patriarchal restraints; her words show that hers is a free response to God. The expectations of the past are now being fulfilled; God’s plan is being accomplished through Mary.