In our first reading this morning from the prophet Isaiah we hear expressed a basic aspect of our faith, which is that after man’s fall to sin in the Garden we had descended so far into the depths of sin, so far from his original design and plan for our dignity that only the coming of God himself into our world as man to redeem that which he assumed by his incarnation, i.e., human nature, only by his life, death and resurrection, could we once again be raised to the heights of God himself.
The depths to which we had fallen was to be radically changed. We were to be taken to the inexpressible heights of divine sonship.
This is why Isaiah is able to say of Israel (and we by extension) “worm Israel; maggot Jerusalem.” It is also why he immediately adds, “I (God) will help you!” It is also why Jesus himself said in today’s Gospel that John the Baptist was the greatest man ever born of a woman, yet the least in the Kingdom of God, the least of all men and women baptized into the Body of Christ is greater than John.
O, the depths to which we fell and the heights to which we are now called in Jesus Christ our Lord!
God loves us so much! He loves us so much that he humbled himself to take us who had fallen so low and raise us up to such dignity. He loves us so much that he wanted us to see his face through the face of his son Jesus. He loves us so much that he wanted to show us the way back to him, to his presence, to the original dignity which was part of his plan for us.
This is the great hope of Advent, for we know that God has come into our lives and into our world with the incarnation of Jesus Christ, and we now hope for his coming again at a time when he will take once again this lowly body of ours and raise it up in glory, a glory we will enjoy with him, if we are faithful to him.
Yes, we can this day pray with our Blessed Mother Mary, “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord! My spirit rejoices in God my savior for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. From this day forward, all generations will call me blessed!”
