Third Saturday of Advent
Is 7: 1-14; Lk 1: 26-38
The Trustworthy Lord with us!
The world today seems lost and dissipated because by and large it has lost any solid foundation on which to base itself. Everything and everybody seems so flimsy and fragile that the moment you begin to feel secure things fall apart. And there is only one thing that we can stand firm on: Christmas says it all - the promises of God!
We stand on the promises of God. They alone do not fail us, come what may. The readings today bring this out in such vivid fashion that we do not need any interpretation to it. The first reading presents the promise made in King Ahaz's time and the Gospel presents the realisation of that promise. And in all this, Mary finds a special role. Her yes did not stop with the Angel disappearing but it continued all her life; she founded herself on the promises of God and as Elizabeth declares, "Blessed is the one who believes that what God promised will come true!"
Emmanuel, the Lord with us, is the foundation living with us. It is the Lord who resides with us and strengthens our confidence in this life through the promises and through the trust we have that the promises will come true. May this Christmas be a moment for us to rediscover this trustworthy Lord with us!