15 — THE LORD IS NEAR

Third Sunday of Advent

Presence of God. — The Lord comes ever closer to my soul with the invitation of His grace; I too want to draw near to Him by rekindling my desires and my faith.

Meditation

1 — “We have waited for You, O Lord: Your name and Your remembrance are the soul’s desire. My soul has desired You in the night, and with my spirit and my heart I will turn to You from early morning” (BR.).

If you too, consecrated soul, are preparing to commemorate the Incarnation of the Word in this loving and vigilant expectation, more joyfully than ever will today’s glad announcement sound in your ear: “The Lord is already near, come let us adore Him!” All today’s liturgy invites you to rejoice at the approach of the Redeemer: “Rejoice always in the Lord, again I say, rejoice... the Lord is near!” Thus today’s Holy Mass begins, thus the Epistle repeats (Phil. 4, 4-7); and the reason for joy is one: “the Lord is near!” For the soul that with sincerity and commitment, with lively desire and love, awaits and seeks only Jesus, there can be only one reason for its gladness: to know that Jesus is near to it, ever nearer. St. Paul too warns us not to desire anything else: “The Lord is near. Be anxious about nothing... And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts.”

The more the soul concentrates its desires and affections on God, the more it is freed from earthly anxieties; it no longer troubles itself over anything, since it knows that one thing alone is necessary: “to seek God,” and that in God it will find all it needs; therefore the approach of the Lord is for it a source not only of lively joy but also of peace: in Him it has everything, God is enough for it.

2 — “The Lord is in your midst” is the second glad message of today’s liturgy. It is addressed to us, in today’s Gospel (Jn. 1, 19-28), by the mouth of the Baptist: “In your midst stands One whom you do not know.” John addressed these words to the Jews who did not know Jesus, who had not yet manifested Himself by miracles, and yet, for about thirty years already, He had been living in their midst; the Baptist—man of faith—points Him out to them with full certainty.

His words also apply to us; Jesus is present in our midst as well: present in His tabernacles in the Eucharist, present in our souls in grace. But who knows Him? Only those who believe. Rekindle, then, your faith: you will find Jesus, you will know Jesus according to the measure of your faith in Him. Jesus sometimes hides from your interior gaze, it seems He no longer lets Himself be found, no longer lets Himself be felt: then it is the time to double your faith, to walk “in naked faith.” “Blessed are those who have believed and have not seen” (Jn. 20, 29). Such was the faith of the Baptist who had not seen Jesus’ miracles, yet believed. Such was the faith of the Most Holy Mary, to whom today’s Vespers antiphon alludes: “Blessed are you, O Mary, who believed the Lord; the things spoken to you shall be fulfilled in you!”

Our Lady too lived by faith; she had to believe the Angel’s words and, accepting to become Mother of God, had to face a mystery she did not understand. But Mary believed and through her faith God’s words were fulfilled in her. So it will be for you: you will see your hopes fulfilled, you will be able to realize your ideal of intimate union with God if you have faith in Him and in His promises.

Colloquy

“My soul sighs for You, my God, mighty God, living God. I keep watch and yearn for You from dawn. My soul thirsts for You; my flesh longs for You, like a land dry and without water. It is You whom I seek, O Lord; without You this world is a desert scorched by sun and thirst, where nothing can satisfy me. You alone are my salvation, my refuge, my Savior and Redeemer. To You I sigh night and day, to You I continually direct my desires, my affections. As the eyes of a handmaid are always turned to the hands of her mistress, so my eyes are always seeking Your face. Show me Your face, O Lord, and with Your gaze illumine my path; be my light and my strength.

“Come, Lord, and delay no longer; stir up Your power and come to save us. Come, as You have promised, and be our salvation. You are our Savior, You will blot out all our iniquities and cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. You will descend like rain on the fleece and bring us justice and peace... You will be my guide and my shepherd, You will teach me Your ways and I will walk in Your paths. Your coming near fills me with joy and my soul exults in You, my God and my Savior. O Lord, You gladden me by all that You do and I exult in Your work. How magnificent are Your works, how great is Your mercy!” (BR.).

I believe in You, I trust in You, my God and Savior. I seek You, but I know that You are already near me, in me. Near me, hidden under the eucharistic veils; in me, by grace. O Lord, grant that I may know You! Do not allow to be verified in me what happened to the Jews: You lived in their midst and they did not know You. Grant that my soul may always be awake in faith; increase my faith, because faith is the light through which I can know You on this earth. You are in me, Lord, I know it, I believe it, even if I do not feel You; but if You will, You can illumine my soul with Your light and make me know Your divine, mysterious presence. “You are that light above every light, by which You give the eye of the intellect supernatural light, with such abundance and perfection that You clarify the light of faith. In faith my soul has life, and in this it receives and knows You. In the light of faith I acquire wisdom in the wisdom of the Word. In the light of faith I am strong, constant, and persevering. This light does not let me fail on the way; it teaches me the path, and without it I would go in darkness. Therefore I ask You, O Lord, to enlighten me in the light of most holy faith” (St. Catherine of Siena).