Today begins the final days of Advent leading up to Christmas. We have the “Great ‘O’s” during the liturgy of the Mass and Vespers between now and December 24th. Even though we haven’t started the fourth week of Advent, we already begin the final preparation. We cry out today, “O Sapientia,” or ” Oh Wisdom!” and beg Him to come. We are of course more familiar with the hymn “O Come O Come Emmanuel,” but each of the verses of that hymn are the translations of the antiphons sung during Vespers and assigned to one of the days between December 17th and 23rd, with O Emmanuel coming last.
Tuesday of the Third Week in Advent
Saint Hilary of Poitiers gives us an interesting interpretation of today’s Gospel. The saying of “Yes” represents the consent of faith, the act of obedience to the Word of God. The group who said, “no” but later did as the father commanded represents the Pharisees and scribes who did not convert at the words of John the Baptist, but later, after Jesus’ resurrection from the dead and the opening of the way of salvation they began to do the works of faith. The other group represents the prostitutes and publicans who repented when they heard John the Baptist but were unable to perform the works of obedience that father commanded. Saint Hilary gives the proof of this interpretation in the fact that the Gospel simply says the son didn’t do what he said. Saint Hilary suggests that the son who didn’t do the father’s bidding was actually prevented by something. In other words, the lives of the prostitutes and publicans did not change even though they believed and repented. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to do God’s will, but that the way of Salvation had not yet been opened.
Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception
The liturgy provides us with the story of the fall of our first parents and the Annunciation. The scriptures, especially Paul, talks about Christ as the new Adam. The Fathers of the Church help us understand that Mary is the new Eve, and today’s liturgy invites us to meditate upon this great mystery. In the beginning, when God created men and women, He created us subject to a law. He gave us paradise with the single condition of obedience. We know, again from Saint Paul, that if our first parents, Adam and Eve, had obeyed the voice of God none of us would have ever known sin. Adam’s obedience would have been enough to prevent any of the rest of us from falling. We fell in Adam. In other words, Adam’s disobedience caused us all to become naturally disobedient.