12/8/2024 -2nd Sunday of Advent C

Rock Blocks and Metanoia

Every year on the second Sunday of Advent, the Church has us ponder the words and deeds of Saint John the Baptist, who prepared the way for the coming of the Lord. Luke introduces John in a way similar to how the Hebrew Bible introduces the prophets, with a full reference to who was in power at the time. Luke is careful to include the full list of Roman and Jewish officials in office (secular and religious) at the time of John's debut around 27 AD and Jesus' movement from his hidden life to his public ministry. Jesus' emergence in Israel, emphasized through a genealogy that stretches not only past Abraham but all the way back to Adam, has implications for everyone everywhere.

John’s baptism was a call to repentance but not yet a “sacrament” as ours is today; still, it is key to our understanding of being born again. The water of baptism is connected to two theories: first, the water “washes away” our sins; second, the water represents the water of the womb. In this second view, we, as it were, are re-submerged, die to our past life, and emerge into a new life in Christ. This is rooted in John’s Gospel: “How can a man be born again once he is old?” retorted Nicodemus. “Can he return to his mother’s womb and be born over again?” Jesus replied: “I solemnly assure you; no one can enter into God’s kingdom without being begotten of water and spirit.”

Neither the washing nor the drowning explanation of baptism deals with the inner process involved in a true change of heart. John the Baptist saw himself in the role of a road builder. He wanted to take crooked sections and make them straight, fill in the low parts, the valleys, and remove the peaks of the hills and mountains. What does this mean? He wanted to clear the way for the Lord to approach us. John was addressing everyone in the crowd: the religiously fastidious Pharisees, the scrupulous Scribes, the power-wielding Sadducees, and the common folk. He invited everyone to repent.

The word “metanoia” is a familiar Greek word to us. Metanoia means, as we know, “beyond or beneath the mind.” Metanoia, going beyond or beneath the mind, indicates that we must move beyond what AA would call “stinking thinking.” What is this thinking? It is our experience of our mind. We like to think that we are in control of it, but we well know from experience how distracted we can be when we try to concentrate. How often it frustrates us! Stinking thinking refers to negative thought patterns that can lead down a destructive path, or, in biblical terms, the road of sin. Recognizing and addressing stinking thinking can be seen as a step towards achieving metanoia, as both involve a shift in mental perspective and a move towards more positive, constructive ways of thinking—to have “the mind of Christ,” as St. Paul would put it.

Another groove of stinking thinking is the attitude of being offended and offending back. With the passing of the years, many came to see that cycle as part of their identity. It may be one that we project onto God. That is where the word “metanoia” comes in. This way of thinking is a huge obstacle to Our Lord’s approaching us. We well know that we have been wronged—and we also know that we have done wrong. We may see Jesus not as “He who is to come” into our lives, but as the one whom our sins keep away. Like Peter, we may say, almost unconsciously, “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.”

If we recognize that this is the way our mind works, we are well on the way to wholeness, to healing. It is a big part of what we call “the human condition.” With real metanoia, we can move beyond this wrong-headed thinking and focus on the unconditional forgiveness God offers each of us. When we can break through our mindset, forgiveness follows. Just ask yourself: What prevents me from approaching the throne of grace in the sacrament of reconciliation? An honest answer can help us identify the ‘rock blocks’ of our spiritual life.

What transpired with the preaching of the Baptist and the appearance of the Lord was the restoration of the human race to divine likeness. This had been lost by the fall of humankind, who turned from God, in whose image all are created. Now, in the final times, with the coming of Jesus and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, humans can regain the likeness to God, which ultimately means sharing intimately in the life of God, who offers perfect peace and wholeness for all eternity.  Fr Tom Kunnel, C.O