Читать книгу Ortus Christi: Meditations for Advent - St. Paul Mother - Страница 9

His Preparation

"This is he of whom it is written: Behold I send my Angel before Thy face, who shall prepare Thy way before Thee."

(St. Matt. xi. 10).

1st. Prelude. Picture of the Naming Day of St. John the Baptist who is on Our Lady's knee, while Elizabeth and the kinsfolk are discussing the name and Zachary is writing on a tablet; St. Joseph is looking on.

2nd. Prelude. The spirit of penance.

Often during Advent the Church directs our thoughts to the great Precursor of Jesus Christ, to him who was sent to prepare His ways. On four occasions she chooses for the "Gospel" in the Mass, passages which relate to St. John the Baptist and his work of preparation. If we would prepare well for the coming of our King, we cannot do better than meditate on St. John the Baptist and try in our small measure to prepare as he did.

Point I. The Preparation before his birth

(1) A prophecy. Four hundred years before the Precursor's birth, Malachias prophesied of him: "Behold I send My angel," that is My messenger; and Our Lord tells us expressly (His words are noted by three of the Evangelists, St. Matthew, St. Mark and St. Luke) that this messenger was John the Baptist, who was sent by God to prepare the ways of the Messias.

(2) His miraculous conception– for his parents were both "well advanced in years." Both his father and mother were "just before God walking in all the commandments and justifications of the Lord without blame;" and they had their cross to bear – the "reproach" of having no son and therefore no hope of the Messias being born to them; but this did not prevent them from praying, as all fervent Israelites prayed, for the coming of the Messias. The answer to their prayer was nearer than they thought. One day as Zachary was performing the most solemn part of his priestly office – offering incense on the golden altar that stood "over against the veil" which separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies – he saw an angel standing on the right side of the altar, who, after he had calmed his fear, told him that his prayer was heard, that the Messias was coming, and that his wife Elizabeth was to bear him a son who was to be His Precursor, "he shall go before Him." The angel then prophesied many things about this child, which all show how careful was God's preparation of His Precursor: