Dear Friends,

The prophecy of Isaiah stands as one of those great symbols of Advent: “Then the wolf shall be a guest of the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; the calf and the young lion shall browse together, with a little child to guide them. The cow and the bear shall be neighbors, together their young shall rest; the lion shall eat hay like the ox. The baby shall play by the cobra’s den, and the child lay his hand on the adder’s lair. There shall be no harm or ruin on all My holy mountain; for the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the LORD, as water covers the sea.” It sounds a bit childish, illogical, upside-down, inside-out; however, what Isaiah is telling us is that the Messianic promise will not be evident to those who maintain a strictly worldly-view. The Creator of the world has made manifest His wonders in His creation, and the Redeemer is to beckon us not to return to our childhood innocence, but to a whole new perspective of the world; one of trust in God alone, infused with the joy of the Redeemer’s love, which may at times seem reckless or even childish. The score of J.S. Bach’s inspired hymn, Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring, seems to musically pull us upward from wherever we might find ourselves into the transcendent realm of the beyond, while the lyrics, more poetically, make my point: “Jesu, joy of man's desiring; Holy wisdom, love most bright. Drawn by thee, our souls aspiring soar to Uncreated Light. Word of God, our flesh that fashioned, with the Fire of Life impassioned; striving still to Truth unknown. Soaring, dying 'round Thy throne.” Maybe the following story says it even better?

“A little girl had been shopping with her mom at J. C. Penney. She must have been 6 years old … a beautiful red-haired, freckled-faced image of innocence. It was pouring outside. The kind of rain that gushes over the top of rain gutters, so much in a hurry to hit the earth, it has no time to flow down the spout. We all stood there under the awning and just inside the door of the store. We waited, some patiently, others irritated because nature messed up their hurried day. I am always mesmerized by rainfall. I got lost in the sound and sight of the heavens, washing away the dirt and dust of the world. Memories of running, splashing so carefree as a child, came pouring in as a welcome reprieve from the worries of my day. The little voice was so sweet as it broke the hypnotic trance we were all caught in ‘Mom let’s run through the rain, she said ‘What?’ Mom asked. ‘Let’s run through the rain!’ she repeated. ‘No, honey. We’ll wait until it slows down a bit,’ Mom replied. This young child waited about another minute and repeated: ‘Mom, let’s run through the rain.’ ‘We’ll get soaked if we do,’ Mom said. ‘No, we won’t, Mom. That’s not what you said this morning,’ the young girl said as she tugged at her Mom’s arm. ‘This morning? When did I say we could run through the rain and not get wet?’ ‘Don’t you remember? When you were talking to Daddy about his cancer, you said, ‘If God can get us through this, He can get us through anything!’ The entire crowd stopped dead silent. I swear you couldn’t hear anything but the rain. We all stood silently. No one came or left in the next few minutes. The young Mother paused and thought for a moment about what she would say. Now, some would laugh it off and scold her for being silly. Some might even ignore what was said. But this was a moment of affirmation in a young child’s life—a time when innocent trust can be nurtured so that it will bloom into faith. ‘Honey, you are absolutely right. Let’s run through the rain. If GOD lets us get wet, well, maybe we just needed a good washing,’ Mom said. Then, off they ran. We all stood watching, smiling and laughing as they darted past the cars and yes, through the puddles. They held their shopping bags over their heads just in case. They got soaked. But they were followed by a few who screamed and laughed like children all the way to their cars.”

Sometimes, we all need to stop and re-evaluate where we are; get a new perspective on our relationships: with God, with others, and even with ourselves. People or circumstances can take away our possessions, they may take away our health, and they can even make us stop breathing, but no one can ever take away the gift of our precious life, for that remains in the hands of our loving God. So, don’t forget to make time and take the opportunities to approach the Throne of Grace, with awe and trust, in prayer daily. He's waiting for us. And, take the time to run through and sing in the rain.

Be of good cheer and have a blessed week!

Msgr. Grous