Nov 29.pub

Isaiah 35:1-6A, 10

Psalm 146:6-7, 8-9, 9-10

James 5:7-10

MT 11:2-11

Summary

Patience, Strength, Fortitude and Faith – the readings and Gospel

invite us to believe in ourselves, in others and in the unwavering

commitment of our salvation through our Lord. The readings present

us with a promise from God that we will be saved and the Gospel de-

scribes the significance of John the Baptist the fulfillment of God’s

commitment to our salvation.

Reflection

The first reading, Isaiah 35:1-6A, 10 describes the joy we will feel

when we “see the glory of the Lord, the splendor of our God”. We

will no longer be deserted souls, we will “be strong” and “fear not”

and we will help others to do the same. Our eyes will be opened, we

will clearly hear, our hearts and minds will be cleansed and we will re-

joice in our arrival to God’s holy city of Zion. The second reading,

James 5:7-10, focuses on the importance of being patient and he

uses the illustration of the farmer to show how patience provides the

pathway to the ultimate objective, in the farmer’s case, the “precious

fruit of the earth”. James asks that we must be patient, we must en-

dure and we must work together to ultimately realize our “precious

fruit” of salvation. Finally, in the Gospel according to Matthew 11:2-

11 he describes John the Baptist’s con-

tinual effort to point others towards Jesus

the Messiah. While John is imprisoned,

he sends his disciples to visit Jesus and

strengthen their faith in Jesus as their

savior. Matthew also illustrates, through