Second Sunday of Advent
Lk 3:1-6

In today’s gospel we see that Luke introduces the political leader at first, then the religious leadership and then places the call of John the Baptist. By doing this he emphasizes the importance of John’s call. The Jewish historian Josephus describes Pontius Pilate as a greedy and Ruthless leader. It is in the midst of this chaos John is called to baptize the people with the Baptism of repentance and to prepare the way for the Lord.

In Lk3::2 we hear that the world of God came to John. By saying this, Luke identifies John with prophets whose ministries began with similar calls. In Lk7:26 John will be described as “more than a prophet”. He is also the precursor of Jesus (Lk7:27), a traditional figure inaugurating the period of fulfillment of prophecy and promise.
Lk3:3 speak of the Baptism of Repentance. John’s Baptism was not a proselyte Baptism, converting gentiles in to Jews. Instead, it was a baptism for the forgiveness of sins, and it required repentance, which implied turning around to proceed in a new direction. Baptism itself is a purification ritual, and John was inviting the people to be purified of the unholy elements in their lives.

In Lk3:5 John calls the people to prepare for the Lord’s visitation. If a king were planning to travel, work crews would repair the roads. Ideally, the road for the king’s journey would be straight, level and smooth. John considered himself as the courier of the king. But the preparation on which he insisted was a preparation of heart: change of heart and conduct, a turning of one’s life from rebellion to obedience toward God. “Making straight the path of the Lord” means clearing the path of sin, which is the major obstacle preventing the Lord from coming into our lives.

In 3:6 the quote “all flesh will see the salvation of God” emphasizes the universal nature of salvation. Having begun the section with a list of rulers who did not bring wholeness or salvation, Luke ends with the expectation of a true Lord who can bring this about. He invites us to look at Jesus: his presence in the scripture, in the sacraments, in our coming together in His name, in the lives of his followers and in our neighbors. If we begin to see Jesus in each other, and treat each other as we would treat Jesus, more of the world might come to see God’s salvation.

In the first part of verse 3 Luke presents river Jordan, which represented the eastern border of the Promised Land, separating it from the desert, where Jews wandered aimlessly for 40 years after centuries of slavery in Egypt. By preaching his message there, John was inviting the Jews of his time to come out of the bondage of slavery, to leave their faults, their wandering and their sinful lives behind, and to enter into the Promised Land full of God’s blessings.

The Fathers of the Church called the Sacrament of Reconciliation as our “second Baptism” in which we are brought back to Jordan and cleansed interiorly. Advent, like Lent, is a season given to us so that we may repent of our sins and be reconciled with God and His Church by receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

John the Baptist invites us to prepare the way of the Messiah in our hearts, to fill in the valleys of our Souls which have resulted from the shallow prayer life, dishonest practices, failing to be reconciled with others, deep-seated resentment , persistent fault-finding. He calls us to level the mountains of our pride and egocentrism, to repent and seek forgiveness from God and fellow-human beings. John’s message calls us to confront and confess our sins. Is there someone I need to forgive today? Is there someone to whom I need to ask for forgiveness today?