Second Sunday of Advent
St Mary's Cathedral
Isaiah 40:1-5,9-1 2 Peter 3:8-14 Mark 1:1-8
+ Cardinal George Pell, Archbishop of Sydney
8 Dec 2002
The Advent readings continue today and we have introduced to us again the traditional Advent figure of John the Baptist, announcing the Christ who was to come and calling his listeners to repentance "a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins."
John the Baptist is one of the strangest and fiercest of the New Testament figures. More distant to our sensibilities than Our Lord and almost any other New Testament character, except perhaps the author of the book of Revelations.
However, we should not be misled, because John is offering forgiveness and the consolations, which follow asking for and receiving forgiveness. We have Isaiah, the Old Testament prophet citing God himself "Console my people, console them. The sin of Jerusalem has been atoned; the double punishment for her crimes has finished.
Recently at a gathering of some young people who had been a World Youth Day we heard a number of impressive testimonies from them of their own religious journey during the pilgrimage.
One young fellow recognized that he had changed; apparently his friends had told him this, giving as an example that he now seemed to be happier. When we find increased meaning and purpose in our lives, when we ask forgiveness for our sins, when we knowingly decide to follow the truth, we often experience genuine consolation, deep personal contentment.
John the Baptist's followers confessed their sins. We are called to do the same.
A good friend of mine alleged to me that in my Sunday sermons I did not preach frequently enough on moral matters, on the need to do good and avoid evil, on the importance of repentance and forgiveness. I have not set out to do this, but there is probably some truth in the accusation and certainly during Advent and Lent we are called to face up to our moral responsibilities.
Advent is a special time for an examination of our conscience, first of all to see whether we are living up to the ideals, which we cherish in our heart of hearts.
Conscience is a personal inbuilt capacity to recognize moral truths and so to do good and avoid evil. This is not infallible; in fact it can be notoriously unreliable when our self-interest is involved and perhaps too in matters of sexuality.
Our conscience should develop and become more sensitive as the years pass. Our early family environment is vital here, and our schooling and friendship. The story about one bad apple turning all apples bad embodies a profound truth.
As adults too our conscience can be changed over time, slowly improved or slowly darkened and poisoned. A good conscience once achieved can never be a permanent and automatic possession or faculty. But, as I mentioned, the first task is to examine our lives, our thoughts, words, deeds and omissions against the standards enshrined by our conscience.
It is, of course, possible to be spiritually blind. One has only to recognize the significant moral differences between people of good will on all sorts of issues e.g. on war and peace, euthanasia and embryonic stem cell research, marriage, divorce, legitimate sexual activity.
Christians believe that there are objective moral norms, written into nature and made more explicit by biblical moral teaching. Some, perhaps many people, honestly disagree about these standards and God will not punish those who honestly disagree while honestly searching for truth.
However, it is possible to be culpably ignorant, even when we do not recognize this at the time. An extreme example of this is a drunk person killing or injuring someone in a traffic accident. They never intended to cause this damage, but by deciding to drive while drunk, they are culpable.
So in a similar, less obvious way, people can decide on a course of action which deepens their blindness. They might refuse to study an issue, frightened about what they might discover. Or they might refuse to make a correct moral choice because of the personal costs that would follow. The list could go on.
Being clear in our own mind is not an infallible guarantee that we are doing good. We need to check our list of right and wrong against Christ's moral teachings, against the Ten Commandments and against the traditional list of virtues and vices. Especially at Advent and Lent, we should prayerfully examine our activities and priorities against Our Lord's moral standards.
Society around us is regularly advertising against some of our Christian values, cleverly and efficiently. We should be aware of this. We need regularly to turn to the Lord, face away from evils, small and large.
Let us decide to turn our gaze towards the Lord more explicitly this Advent, because the Day of the Lord could come like a thief in the night and find us unprepared, proposing to turn to the Lord tomorrow!
To adapt St Peter's prayer: as we await the new heavens and new earth, where righteousness will be triumphant, may we live our lives without spot or stain so that God will find us at peace when He comes.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
