Advent 3 B (2011) (Thanks to Fr T)

Today, our advent readings

encourage us to recognise that the Spirit of the Lord is at work.

We are to open our hearts to respond to this work

with rejoicing and thanksgiving.

John the Baptist says

there stands among you,

unknown to you,

the one who is coming after me

This is not a rather abstract prediction:

John knows who he is talking about;

he recognises Jesus the man

as the Lord’s anointed,

filled with the Spirit of the Lord.

Through God’s guidance,

John can see

what those around him cannot.

We, through the gift of faith,

see what others cannot.

We, like John the Baptist,

are to recognise the effects of the Spirit –

the Spirit John saw powering what Jesus did.

We are to recognise

Jesus made present through the work of the Spirit,

here and now,

in this time and place,

–‘standing among us’–

in the circumstances of our own lives.

This is not some kind of self-congratulation,

it is acknowledging the wonderful work God does

through real ordinary people.

For us in St William’s, for the last fifteen years,

Fr Terry has been part and parcel of those

circumstances of our lives.

Each of us, including Fr Terry himself,

will have our own experience of his ministry here:

Masses, baptisms, first communions, confirmations, reconciliation, anointing, funerals, instruction, weddings,

with the wealth of human interactions that go along with all these:

– call them to mind –

in all these, use the eyes of faith

to see the Holy Spirit

making Jesus present and active.

Fr Terry’s ministry was not just priestly,

but parish-priestly.

For fifteen years,

he was tied in to this community,

to this local church,

and ministered to us as a leader.

To see the influence of a leader

you have to look at the community being led.

We can look at who we are,

and, if you have been here long enough,

how we have changed, under his guidance –

looking for the Spirit of God at work

in our midst,

anointing us,

transforming us to be more fully the image of Jesus.

Today I will mention three areas of change.

First, undeterred by potential practical difficulties,

Fr Terry introduced communion from the chalice at Sunday Mass,

with a corresponding increase

in the number of ministers of Holy Communion,

and that increase enabled growth

in communion with the sick and housebound

– surely a work of the Spirit.

Second, children’s liturgy of the Word started at 9.30 Mass

not long after Fr Terry came,

with his support.

Personally, I was pretty sceptical about this,

but I could not have been more wrong.

Now, for those who do not know,

there is nothing unusual about 60 children going out, and,

and this is where I most especially see the Spirit at work,

numerous different adults prepare and lead the sessions.

Third, again not so long after Fr Terry arrived,

exposition started on Friday from 2-8pm,

based on people committing to taking

half-hour slots for prayer.

Jesus went off to a quiet place to pray.

In Friday Exposition, the community,

moved by the Spirit, does the same.

In our second reading today, St Paul says

For all things give thanks to God,

because this is what God expects you to do in Christ Jesus.

We are to be a thankful people –

the central action of our Christian life together is the Eucharist:

and Eucharist comes from the Greek for ‘thanksgiving’.

We offer thanks for the work of the Spirit,

shaping us and transforming us into the image of Jesus.

We become aware of the work of God within.

That allows us to join whole heartedly with Mary’s words

my soul glorifies the Lord,

my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour

And, today, we offer special thanks,

special rejoicing,

for Fr Terry’s ministry among us,

for the working of the Spirit in and through him.

We allow our hearts to be filled with gratitude:

gratitude to Fr Terry,

and gratitude to God.

We bring that acknowledgement of blessings received

that gratitude,

that thanksgiving,

to this Eucharist.