[CatherineTorpey]

Hi all, I’m posting this on behalf of Marty.

This is the Second Sonday of Advent which traditionally focuses on the Old Testament Prophets and we light the candle of Peace on the Advent wreath.

Luke 3:1-6
New International Version
John the Baptist Prepares the Way
3 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar—when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, Herod tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and Traconitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene— 2 during the high-priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. 3 He went into all the country around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 4 As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet:
“A voice of one calling in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
make straight paths for him.
5 Every valley shall be filled in,
every mountain and hill made low.
The crooked roads shall become straight,
the rough ways smooth.
6 And all people will see God’s salvation.
Luke is quoting Isaiah 40: 1-5

Isaiah 40
Comfort for God’s People

40 Comfort, comfort my people,
says your God.
2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
and proclaim to her
that her hard service has been completed,
that her sin has been paid for,
that she has received from the Lord’s hand
double for all her sins.
3 A voice of one calling:
“In the wilderness prepare
the way for the Lord[a];
make straight in the desert
a highway for our God.[b]
4 Every valley shall be raised up,
every mountain and hill made low;
the rough ground shall become level,
the rugged places a plain.
5 And the glory of the Lord will be revealed,
and all people will see it together.
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
I can’t read these without hearing this: https://youtu.be/7NCO6UzZ2R8

Links to commentaries

Commentary on Luke 3:1-6

Of the four Evangelists, Luke operates with the most self-conscious sense of himself as a historian. For this reason, he at several points situates his characters in the larger historical framework and narrative of the Roman world. Hence, John is born “in the days of King Herod of Judea” (1:5), and Mary and Joseph set out for Bethlehem because of the census ordered by Emperor Augustus, “when Quirinius was governor of Syria” (2:1-2). While the details of Luke’s history are far from precise, factual accuracy is not his concern. Rather, Luke is making a confession of faith: the events he narrates, though apparently small on the world stage — the birth of a son to a priest and his barren wife, the fortunes of a pregnant young woman and her fiancé — are of global significance.

The same is true of today’s reading where Luke pulls out all the stops and names not just one or two historical figures to anchor his story, as in previous scenes, but rather lists seven leaders both secular and religious. Alongside this august company, John is nothing, the son of a small-town priest. Further, he is nowhere, out in the wilderness. But readers of the biblical saga will recognize that this is the setting for prophecy, as it is to this John, rather than to the mighty, to whom, as Luke narrates simply, “the word of God came.”

Commentary on Luke 3:1-6

John proclaims a baptism of repentance that leads to release from sins. Release (Greek aphesis) is the same word that Jesus uses twice in Luke 4:18 to describe his mission: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me … to proclaim release to the captives and … to let the oppressed go free … ” The release or forgiveness that follows repentance does not undo past sins, but it does unbind people from them. It opens the way for a life lived in God’s service. By proclaiming such release, John fulfills his father’s prophecy: “you, child, … will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness (aphesis) of their sins” (Luke 1:77). This salvation looks like a new dawn for those trapped in darkness and death’s shadow. It is light that reveals a new path, the way toward peace (Luke 1:78–79).

The Greek word translated repentance is μετάνοια (metanoia) which means
to change one’s mind, repent, from meta- + noein to think. It is used in the New Testament 22 times.

Metanoia is related to metamorphoō which is translated transformed as in Romans 12: 2 “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind,” and is where we get the word metamorphosis. It is also translated as transfigured in Mt 17:2 and Mk 9:2

See you tomorrow, looking forward to another great conversation.
Marty

[Marty Miller]

An interesting article I found on Facebook today concerning this reading:
https://www.ncronline.org/news/spirituality/scripture-life/second-sunday-advent-take-road-transformation?fbclid=IwAR1jbrRyfXMQ6qtnvrqK6niLwjwmSlkyAlOtALO3gZwMX8YMv7DIeW1g0GM

[LawrenceSwan]

You think of Handel when you read Luke 3:4, but I think of Godspell: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1SiaCV26aQ

[Author]

Posts