12/2/2014 – Tuesday of First Week of Advent – Isaiah 11:1-10

       Once again, we have entered the holy season of Advent.  Once again, we prepare for the birth of Christ into our world. During this season, we hear oracles and prophecies about what his birth will bring.  Today, we hear one of the most famous prophecies about the birth of Christ from the prophet Isaiah – a prophecy of peace. Yet, in the news, a few weeks ago, we heard about another American hostage who was beheaded by ISIS – a Catholic American in fact. We hear of the violence in Ferguson, Missouri over the grand jury’s decision regarding the shooting of Michael Brown by Police Officer Darren Wilson.  We hear of wars and violence in many corners of the earth, in places like Syria and Palestine and the Ukraine and Africa.  In our world, the metaphor of the lion laying down with the lamb seems like something beyond the realm of reality. But isn’t that what our faith is calling us to – to an ideal toward which we strive and dream?  We might think of ways we can incorporate God’s peace into our daily lives: reaching out to someone to whom we need to be reconciled, letting a car into traffic and waving to the driver rather than cursing or acting out in road rage, doing an act of kindness for which we don’t need to be recognized. May the proclamation of peace that we hear in the Advent season make a difference in our lives. We may become disheartened about the violence and turmoil in the world to which we have no control.  But there are some things we have control over – especially our own personal responses.