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Dear Preachers: AN END OF THE YEAR APPEAL In our liturgical celebrations and daily prayer, we frequently pray for vocations. I live in a novitiate community of the Southern Dominican Province, USA. I can say that I have seen visible evidence that our prayers have been heard, for we have four vibrant novices spending their first year in the Order with us. Please join us in praying for them as they discern their vocations.
"First Impressions” is a free weekly preaching ministry. If you can help support this ministry, as well as help with the training of our novices, we would appreciate it. We pray for you, our friends and benefactors daily. If you have someone, or something special you would like us to pray for, please let us know
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"First Impressions" Dominican Friars 3150 Vince Hagan Dr. Irving, Texas 75062-4736
Or: For an online donation go to: Thank you.
Isaiah’s image of a stump might well describe the condition of our world today. The news this morning reported that 30,000 women and children have been killed in Gaza, and 1.2 million Gazans have become refugees. The “stump” could also describe some part of our own lives – the death of a loved one, the loss of a job, declining health, a broken relationship. A stump is something cut down, lifeless, and seemingly beyond renewal.
Israel must have appeared like such a stump to the prophet. Her monarchy had failed, and her people were in exile. Yet Isaiah speaks of a new shoot springing forth, symbolizing God’s power to bring life out of ruin. Could God really do that for Israel? It did not seem possible. Can God bring forth a new shoot from the “stump” of our lives?
That is the Advent hope. We wait for God to bring new life into a weary world – and into our own hearts – even in situations that seem hopeless. God has made a promise, and God is a Promise Keeper. The prophet reminds us that the new ruler will not judge by appearances – the usual measure of the world – but with righteousness, defending the poor and striking down oppression. Ours is not a passive waiting, but a longing for the day when all will live in God’s truth and love.
In Advent, the Church becomes both a sign and an instrument of that hope. Advent is a season of waiting – but not idle waiting. Isaiah’s vision of the shoot springing from the stump of Jesse reminds us that God is always at work, even when life feels barren. Isaiah sees new life pushing through hard, dry ground. He promises that from Israel’s failed kingship, God will raise a new kind of king – one filled with the Spirit, ruling with justice, compassion, and peace. In today’s Gospel, John the Baptist cries out in the wilderness, calling people to prepare the way of the Lord: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” He demands an immediate response. We must change to make room for God’s justice.
John is like a gardener turning the soil so that the new shoot Isaiah saw can grow. The shoot of Jesse grows quietly, but it transforms everything. God’s reign begins in small acts of repentance, mercy, and reconciliation – in the places where we allow the Spirit, who dwells within us, to soften the hardened ground of our hearts. “Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful, and kindle in them the fire of your love.”
Advent is a season of hope – not the shallow kind that merely wishes things would get better, but a deep and quiet trust that God is working even when we cannot see how. We live in a world, both large and personal, that often feels like a field of stumps – war, animosity, moral confusion, and personal loss. These can leave us disheartened. Picture an Advent banner in the sanctuary reading: “God has not finished with us yet.” From what looks barren, God can raise new life.
Can you hear the familiar voice calling to us this Second Sunday of Advent? It is John the Baptist: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight God’s paths.” His cry is urgent and hopeful, reminding us that God’s coming is not far off or abstract. It is near – very near.
But for God’s new life to take root, something must change within us. Advent is not merely a time for decorations and shopping. As good as those things may be, they can also distract us from what truly matters. We must clear away the clutter of our hearts, focus, and make room for Christ to enter.
Notice where we find John today – in the wilderness. In Scripture, the wilderness is the place where God speaks to a wandering people: freed from slavery, yet unsure where they are going. It is there that they learn to depend on God day by day. The wilderness strips away false securities and distractions, teaching the heart to listen.
Click here for a link to this Sunday’s readings: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/120725.cfm
“REVISIONING SPIRITUALITY - Human Transformation and the Communal Imagination” by John Markey, O.P. and Michael Ceragioli; New York/Paulist Press, 2025. 228pp. A review by R. B. Williams, O.P. Go to: https://preacherexchange.com/ And click on “Book Reviews” on the left.
Therefore, every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. Matthew 3: 10
There is no doubt that the prophets could be harsh in their proclamations. In his words above, the prophet John the Baptist leaves no room for gray areas. So, while it is understood that salvation always comes from God, God does expect and await human cooperation. As we see in today’s readings, Matthew underscores the human role in bringing about a world ruled by divine values.
One of the documents of the Second Vatican Council is the “Decree on the Apostolate of Lay People.” This document calls for the laity to exercise their cooperation as agents of God’s saving grace and help create a new human community of justice based on right relationships with God, with other humans, and with the material world. The document states:
Lay people, sharing in the priestly, prophetical and kingly office of Christ, play their part in the mission of the whole people of God in the church and in the world. In the concrete, their apostolate is exercised when they work to evangelize people and make them holy; it is exercised, too, when they endeavor to have the Gospel spirit permeate and improve the temporal order, going about it in a way that bears clear witness to Christ and helps forward the salvation of humanity (2).
Echoing the words of John of the Baptist in a kinder fashion, the document states. . .members who fail to do their best to promote the growth of the body must be considered unhelpful both to the church and to themselves (2).
As you light the second Advent candle, reflect a moment on what the world would look like if we all participated in bringing about God’s vision of a just world. In the broad strokes of an artist’s brush, people would work together to meet the needs of all, the physical world would function as a peaceful unity, and all kinds of artificially created boundaries would dissolve. On the lines below, write down one brush stroke that you could do as a visible act to help in the creation of a just world.
Producing a work of art takes many brush strokes. Producing a good crop of fruit takes a community working together. Producing a better world takes living our faith to a whole new level. Prepare this Advent to give the gift of yourself.
Barbara Molinari Quinby, MPS, Director Office of Human Life, Dignity, and Justice Ministries Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral, Raleigh, NC
Mini-reflections on the Sunday scripture readings designed for persons on the run. “Faith Book” is also brief enough to be posted in the Sunday parish bulletins people take home. From today’s Isaiah reading:
“On that day, a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom.”
Reflection:
Isaiah’s image of a stump might well describe the condition of our world today. The news this morning reported that 30,000 women and children have been killed in Gaza, and 1.2 million Gazans have become refugees. The “stump” could also describe some part of our own lives – the death of a loved one, the loss of a job, declining health, a broken relationship. A stump is something cut down, lifeless, and seemingly beyond renewal.
So, we ask ourselves:
POSTCARDS TO DEATH-ROW INMATES
“One has to strongly affirm that condemnation to the death penalty is an inhuman measure that humiliates personal dignity, in whatever form it is carried out.” ---Pope Francis
Inmates on death row are the most forgotten people in the prison system. Each week I am posting in this space several inmates’ names and locations. I invite you to write a postcard to one or more of them to let them know that: we have not forgotten them; are praying for them and their families; or whatever personal encouragement you might like to give them. If the inmate responds, you might consider becoming pen pals.
Please write to:
--Central Prison P.O. 247 Phoenix, MD 21131
Please note: Central Prison is in Raleigh, NC., but for security purposes, mail to inmates is processed through a clearing house at the above address in Maryland.
For more information on the Catholic position on the death penalty go to the Catholic Mobilizing Network: http://catholicsmobilizing.org
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Our passage from Isaiah today is
one of the most beloved readings of Advent. It is rich in hope and promise,
portraying the coming of a new king from David’s line: “On that day, a shoot
shall sprout from the stump of Jesse.”
