Bartolome Esteban Murillo, cir. 1655
Translation of the Holy Gospel According to Luke
Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and Philip his brother tetrarch of Iturea and the country of Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilina, under the high-priests Annas and Caiphas: the word of the Lord was made unto John, the son of Zachary, in the desert. And he came into all the country about the Jordan, preaching the baptism of penance for the remission of sins, as it was written in the book of the sayings of Isaias the prophet: A voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare ye the way of the Lord: make straight His paths: every valley shall be filled: and every mountain and hill shall be brought low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways plain: and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.
A Message From St. Bernard of St. Bernard of Clairvaux’s On the Miraculous Nature of the Nativity
Neither hath it entered into the heart of man what things God hath prepared for them that love him (1 Cor 2:9; and Isa, 64:4). Why cannot the thought of the good things God has prepared for us enter into our hearts? Is it that pride lifts up the heart and grace cannot flow in? It would seem so, for every proud spirit, like Satan, exalts itself above God. God wishes His will to be done; the proud man prefers to do his own. What folly! God desires His will to be carried out only in those things which reason approves; the proud man will have his will accomplished without reason, and even contrary to reason. This is a height to which the streams of grace cannot rise. Unless you be converted, and become as this little child, says our Lord, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven (Matt 18:3). He is Himself the little and humble Child whom He sets for our Model. He is the Fountain of life, in whom dwelleth and from whom floweth the fullness of all grace. Prepare, then, the way for the waters of grace. Cast down the heights of earthly and proud thoughts. Be conformed to the Son of man, not to the first and fallen man, for the streams of grace cannot “enter into’’ the heart of the proud and carnal—that is, of the earthly-minded man. Cleanse your “eye,” that you may be capable of beholding the most pure light of faith. Incline your “ear” to the call of obedience, that you may one day attain to perpetual rest and peace upon peace. That future life is called “light” because of its serenity, peace because of its tranquillity, a fountain because of its abundance and its eternity.
We may attribute the ‘‘fountain’’ to the Father, of Whom the Son is born, and from Whom the Holy Ghost proceeds; “light ’’ to the Son, Who is the brightness of eternal life, and the true light enlightening every man who cometh into this world; “peace,” to the Holy Ghost, Who rests upon the humble and peaceable. I do not mean to say that these names are proper to any of the three Divine Persons, for the Father is Light, since the Son is Light of Light; and the Son is Peace, as the Apostle says, he is our peace who hath made both one (Eph 2:14); and the Holy Ghost is the Fountain of Water springing up into life everlasting (1 John 4:14).
But when shall we attain to these wonderful truths? When, O Lord, wilt Thou fill us with joy by the sight of Thy countenance? We rejoice in Thee that Thou, the Orient from on high, hast visited us. We rejoice, too, “in the blessed hope ”’ of Thy second coming.
But when shall come that fullness of joy not in the memory of past blessings, but in actual possession of the eternal—joy, not in the expectation of good things, but in their present manifestation? Behold, He says, I am with you all days, even to the end of the world (Matt 28:20). The Lord is nigh, be nothing solicitous (Phil 4:5). He is at hand, and will soon appear. Faint not; be not weary. Seek him while he may be found, call upon him while he is near (Isa 55:6). He is near to them who are of a contrite heart; He is near to those who wait for Him, who expect Him in truth.
James Tissot, 1886–1894
Would you likewise know how near He is? Listen to the song of the Spouse to her Divine Bridegroom: Behold, he standeth behind our wall (Cant 2:9). This wall is our mortal body, which hinders our seeing Him Who is so near, and it is the reason why St. Paul himself desires to be dissolved and to be with Christ (Phil 1:23); and, crying out yet more piteously, he says: Unhappy man that I am, who will deliver me from the body of this death (Rom 7:24)? The Prophet also speaks in the Psalm: Lead my soul out of prison, that I may praise thy name (Psa 141:8).