The two were in love. Madly in love. Like any young couple their age, they made plans together. They dreamt of family, of a future, of a house which would become home. Then the unexpected happened. The girl gets pregnant. Only God knows what went through the young man’s mind when he got the news. A whole cacophony of feelings and emotions: anger, disappointment, confusion. In spite of everything, he still loved her, but he knew that the baby was not his. He did not know what to do, how to react. A number of options came to his mind, none of which had ever been contemplated before when things were running smooth. Publicly shame her? He was not able to do that. His love for her was too strong. Listen to his faith-fathers and let her be stoned to death, as their religious law suggested (Deut. 22:23-27)? Out of the question. Go on with business as usual and pretend nothing happened? This was too hard for any man with a minimum of self-worth.

Eventually Joseph made a choice - a painful one for him but probably the least harmful one for her. Difficult though it may be, he would quietly let her free to go.

Separation was not, however, God’s plan for them. The Son of God was to be born in a normal family, one with a mother and a father. So God sends his angel to speak to Joseph and give him some light. As often happens in the bible, the angel of God speaks to Joseph in a dream. “Do not be afraid”, were the first words that he told him. God knows that fear paralyses us. Moved by fear, we cannot do any good. Do not be afraid, not by being naïve or not taking into account the consequences or dangers of one’s actions. It is rather an invitation to trust God. If God wants something from you, He is going to help you to see it through. Like Mary, Joseph probably did not understand how all this was happening. All he knew was that God was asking something from him, something beyond any human comprehension. And he believed, and he trusted.

We do not hear much more about Joseph in the gospel after this story. It seems that, for the evangelists, this is enough. This is all we need to know about St Joseph, and this is what he wants to teach us. In a nutshell, we can say that Joseph is a man who wanted to do God’s will in his life, and trusted God when he understood what this was.

​In times of difficulty we too, like St Joseph, might feel tempted to let everything go. In those moments let us allow those words of the angel to echo in our hearts: do not be afraid. After all, what we are celebrating these days is the feast of the Emmanuel - God is with us. It is the celebration of a God who became one like us, in everyway but sin, as St Paul would say, never to abandon us alone.

John the Baptist is confused. Indeed, he is probably in deep crisis. In prison, he knows that his end is probably near. He spent his life preparing his people for the coming of the Messiah. He had been so sure that Jesus of Nazareth was to be the one they were waiting for. Even before his birth, he had rejoiced inside his mother’s womb when he felt the presence of Jesus alive inside his own mother. However, the way this Jesus is acting is not exactly how John had envisioned it. We remember him, from last Sunday’s gospel, telling the Pharisees and Sadducess that there was no way for them of escaping God’s wrath. We remember him preaching about the “axe” ready to chop off all that is not good.

And now, from prison, news is reaching him of a Jesus who is quite different to the one he had envisioned. Rather than chopping off and destroying, this Jesus is all about reconciliation, love, forgiveness, and giving sinners another chance. The question for John comes natural: is he really the one, or should we wait for someone else? Has John been mistaken all the way? Has he lead the people down the wrong path? So, he sends some of his followers straight to Jesus, to ask him directly whether or not he is the expected messiah.

Rather than answering yes or no, Jesus tells those messengers to refer to John what they have seen Jesus doing. Actions speak louder than words! The report must have been a very positive one: the blind see, the lame walk, lepers are healed, deaf people hear, and even the dead are raised, Indeed, Jesus’s is a life of good news to all who may be considered “poor”, in so many different ways. This is after all, what Isaiah had prophesized so many years before, as we read in the first reading. If we were to answer John, where he was wrong was not about whether Jesus was the messiah or not, but about what kind of messiah Jesus was going to be.

Maybe we too, like John the Baptist, are prone to judge and condemn all who do evil, all who are not as good as we make ourselves to be. We may find it hard to be like Jesus, who was quite comfortable to eat with sinners, to forgive those who hurt him, to give a second chance to those who were so obviously leading a sinful life. This is the good news that Jesus is all about. This 3rd Sunday of Advent is traditionally known as the “Gaudete” Sunday, the Sunday of joy. As we approach the celebration of Christmas, it is good to remember that Jesus’ message is not about punishment, fire and brimstone. It is about life, love, forgiveness and peace.

​As we enter into this third week of Advent, let us start focusing on the good news that Jesus came to bring to the world. Let us never forget that, no matter what our past has been, he is always there wanting to love us, ready to embrace us in his merciful arms. It is only when we manage to fully accept this message that we, then, can love and forgive others in return.

John the Baptist. Everything about him speaks of a person who is distant from people. He has a message to proclaim, and yet he goes into the desert. This is not what normal people usually do. Normal people, when they have an important message to convey to as many people as possible would go to social media, such as twitter and facebook, naturally on numerous groups! Not so John the Baptist. He went into the desert. His cry was in the wilderness, where crowds are not the norm. And yet, there was something special about John. People flocked to listen to him.

Johns’ message was plain and simple. Unlike many of today’s great orators and politicians who claim large audiences, he did not promise a better and easier life, neither did he speak of wealth, affluence or easy money. Rather, his was a simple instruction: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight”.

This is the message the Church presents to us, as we begin our second week of Advent. Prepare the way of the Lord. In John’s time many people were expecting the coming of the Messiah, the one promised many years before. Now, it seemed that the time had come. The long-awaited Saviour was coming, and people were being urged by John to prepare for him the way. Many heeded John’s invitation. They had a good look at their lives, they recognized weaknesses and mistakes, and they went into the water confessing their sins, openly expressing their desire for a better life.

Some, however, came just for the show, or not to be left out. The Pharisees and Sadducees, Matthew tells us in his gospel, also came to receive John’s baptism. Two very different groups who were at odds on so many issues! And yet, here they were together, and John did not miss the opportunity. This was not meant to be a spectacle. Unless people really desired a moral change in their lives, there was no point of coming to him. Rather than a spiritual experience, these people were making a mockery out of it. John knew that there was not a gram of repentance in their lives. Both groups were so sure of themselves, that both believed they were righteous. John, who was never short of harsh words, called them “brood of vipers” and assured them that they had no chance of escaping God’s wrath!

In the midst of all this John makes one of the most beautiful promises. He tells his people that he is baptizing them with water, a symbol of their repentance and their desire of a better life. Soon there was to come another one, obviously referring to Jesus, who would baptize them with the Holy Spirit. Both John and the people around him knew that, no matter how strong their desire of conversion is, they cannot do it on their own. The Holy Spirit, who will be gifted to the people by Jesus, will make this possible. It is the same Spirit envisioned by Isaiah in our first reading - a Spirit of wisdom, understanding, and counsel which will help the people discern what is truly right in their lives. A Spirit of might who will give them the strength necessary to live the desired conversion.

​This is the Spirit you and I have received in our baptism. As we prepare ourselves for Christmas, let us, too prepare the way for the Lord to really come into our lives. Let us ask the Holy Spirit to show us what needs to be changed or improved in our lives, and to give us the strength to do it.