Bethlehem

Readings for the Fourth Sunday of Lent, December 20, 2009

The readings today focus on the humility of God and the fulfillment of David in the Gospel. According to the Prophet Micah, the Christ-child was to be born in the little town of Bethlehem, one of the least regarded among the people of Israel, yet the humble town of the child shepherd who would become King David. This seemingly ignoble destiny was slated for the Son of God, "whose origin is from of old, from ancient times." The psalms call our minds to David's humble origins by referring to God as the "Shepherd of Israel." The second reading tells us of Jesus Christ, who took a body by humbly accepting the will of God. Through His Incarnation, He placed Himself under the law, so that He might fulfill the Law in His perfect sacrifice, and replace it with God's will for man, that we might be saved in Him. The Gospel carries this theme of humility, telling us that Christ traveled in the womb of Mary to a town in the hill country of Judah, but even more so points out to us the fulfillment of King David and the Ark of the Covenant. The Lord is carried in the womb of the Immaculate Virgin, as the Law of Moses (which He replaces through His humble obedience to the will of God) was carried in the Ark of the Covenant (cf. 2 Sam 6). As the Blessed Virgin approaches, her cousin Elizabeth inquires, sharing many of the words of David, "And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me" (cf. 2 Sam 6:9)? The infant in her womb, John the Baptist, leaps in her womb just as David leaped before the Ark (cf 2 Sam 6:14-15).

Through the humility of Christ, He overthrows domination of the Law. Through becoming as an obedient slave, He does away with the slavery of the Old Testament. Through offering Himself as a sacrifice, He does away with all the sacrifices of the Mosaic Covenant. Christ makes salvation possible for us, and with His example to guide us through His work, we are able to follow humbly the will of God. This Advent, let us look to Him who comes to save us, the Shepherd of Israel and the Servant who teaches all to be servants.

His Servant and Yours,

Micah