(Please read this Scripture passage first, before the homily.)
One of the themes of Advent is joyful anticipation. I therefore asked myself what this reading from the Gospel was doing here in Advent. Jesus climbed a mountain. People came to him. He healed their diseases and brokenness. Then he fed them.
Then I glanced at the first reading, from Isaiah. Isaiah saw, as only prophets can see, that the day would come when the Lord would prepare in the mountain an extravagant meal and destroy the web of death and infirmity that blinds us. That future time is what Matthew presents in the Gospel.
We have just finished our Thanksgiving banquets and we are looking forward to our Christmas dinners. Advent is also a time for joyful celebration. Our partying and feasting can help announce the joy of the coming of the Lord.
Our feasting, however, must give us opportunity to invite into our lives and groups those who cannot feast, those who can only wait in hope because they have nothing left but hope. These include those with COVID19, those fighting discrimination in any form, such as race, color, religion, gender orientation, those bullied by others, those with physical, mental, psychological or moral handicaps. Refugees, migrants, those without green cards or citizenship, and those with low paying jobs or no jobs are included. The hand of the Lord rested on the mountain where Jesus sat down and healed the nations and then fed them.
The Lord went up the mountain and cured “the lame, the blind, the deformed, the mute, and many others.” They all “ate and were satisfied.”
I did not expect to find a banquet when I first encountered this reading for a day in Advent. I have found, however, the rational for this reading. I did find an Advent meaning. The bread and fish Jesus used provided a banquet of fine rich food and choice wine for those on that mountain. When we provide food for the needy or invite those outside our group into our lives, we provide the bread and fish that turns into rich food and choice wine. If we only feast with ourselves, then we have a lousy meal no matter how rich the food we eat. It is in sharing our blessings that makes our meals banquets on the mountain of the Lord. This is what announces the coming of the Lord. This makes our festive gatherings Advent celebrations of the Lord.
sikis
Wonderful post! We are linking to this great post on our site. Veradis Barr Missi
dvincent
Are there two of persons working under the name of sikis?
sikis
Some really nice and useful information on this web site, besides I think the layout has got great features. Jenine Gilburt Ceporah
dvincent
Thank you for your comments. I appreciate them. I try to be as accurate as possible in what I write since I am commenting on the Word of God. D Vincent
bedava
Marvelous, what a web site it is! This weblog presents useful information to us, keep it up. Elizabet Jock Pappas
dvincent
Thank you for your comments. I appreciate them. I try to be as accurate as possible in what I write since I am commenting on the Word of God. I wonder what you are doing to turn your days into banquets of fine rich food and choice wine for others. D Vincent
web-dl
Pretty! This was a really wonderful post. Thank you for providing these details. Courtney Nowell Chane
dvincent
Thank you for your comments. I appreciate your comments. I try to be as accurate as possible in what I write since I am commenting on the Word of God. I wonder what you are doing to turn your days into banquets of fine rich food and choice wine for others. D Vincent
yify
You made some decent points there. I looked on the internet for the issue and found most individuals will agree with your site. Sibeal Oran Dominik
dvincent
Thank you for your comments. I appreciate them. I try to be as accurate as possible in what I write since I am commenting on the Word of God. I wonder what you are doing to turn your days into banquets of fine rich food and choice wine for others. D Vincent
torrent
Well we obviously thought hold up to one GB of data. Hanna Neall Melantha
dvincent
1 GB is a lot of data. Thanks for moving the message along.
download
Here are some links to web-sites that we link to due to the fact we think they are worth visiting. Elissa Ave Fae
dvincent
Thanks for linking me up so that others hear the message. I appreciate your comments. I try to be as accurate as possible in what I write since I am commenting on the Word of God. I wonder what you are doing to turn your days into banquets of fine rich food and choice wine for others. D Vincent
web-dl
Utterly indited written content , regards for information. Rea Chaddy Aday
dvincent
Thank you for your comments. I appreciate your comments. I try to be as accurate as possible in what I write since I am commenting on the Word of God. I wonder what you are doing to turn your days into banquets of fine rich food and choice wine for others. D Vincent
bedava
Some really choice articles on this site, saved to favorites . Devan Arnuad Tsan
dvincent
I feel flattered, but I have a need to comment on the Word of God. I wonder what you are doing to turn your days into banquets of fine rich food and choice wine for others. D Vincent
torrent
There is perceptibly a bundle to identify about this. I assume you made certain good points in features also. Josie Roderick Wulf
dvincent
I try to be as accurate as possible in what I write since I am commenting on the Word of God.I wonder what you are doing to turn your days into banquets of fine rich food and choice wine for others. D Vincent
bluray
Good article! We are linking to this particularly great post on our website. Keep up the great writing. Britt Meredith Terbecki
dvincent
W
dvincent
Where is your website? I could not read filmmodu.org. I wonder what you are doing to turn your days into banquets of fine rich food and choice wine for others. D Vincent
download
Great blog! I am loving it!! Will come back again. I am bookmarking your feeds also. Ruthe Leonhard Quirk
dvincent
So, I wonder what you are doing to turn your das into banquets of fine rich food and choice wine for others. D Vincent