HOMILY OF 2ND WEDNESDAY IN ADVENT — YEAR A

HOMILY OF 2ND WEDNESDAY IN ADVENT — YEAR A

HOMILY THEME: REST FROM CHRIST

BY: Fr. Paul Karabari 

Isa 40:25-31, 20; Psalm 102(103):1-4, 8, 10; Matt 11:28-30

‘You will find rest for your souls.’

One of the greatest promises Jesus has given us is, ‘Come to me, all you who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls’ (Matthew 11:28-29). A yoke is a harness that goes around the necks of two oxen so they can pull a load. How could Jesus talk about being yoked in a harness, which suggests hard work, and about rest in the same breath? To most of us, rest means sitting back with the TV on or maybe getting a few more hours of sleep. That is not the kind of rest Jesus is talking about.

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Accepting Jesus’ yoke is a picture of submission. It is also a picture of help because it means we are not pulling the load alone. In each team of oxen, one is the leader, and the other follows. Jesus will take the lead, but you must be yoked to Him to get the benefit. So, to enjoy intimacy with Jesus, we have to surrender to Him and His will. Jesus promises that His yoke won’t choke us. It won’t be wearisome or confining. In fact, the irony is that if we want to be truly free, we have to allow ourselves to be yoked to Jesus. Once we have accepted Jesus’ yoke, we can find ourselves starting to pull against it when life doesn’t go the way we want it to. We try and take back control. But peace and rest only come when we relax in the yoke and let Jesus lead the way. Our help is in the name of the Lord. Jesus is our helper.

If we do our work in yoke with Him, we will find fulfilment and experience good relationships with God and people. When God gave work to Adam in the Garden of Eden, the work was easy, and the burden light under God’s authority. When the human pair rebelled against their Maker, the character of work changed to hard labour against thorns and thistles (Genesis 3). Jesus invites us to work in yoke with Him with the promise of rest for our souls. We are all invited to come, and all are promised rest. GOD IS STILL ON THE THRONE. May God have mercy on us, heal our world, bless and protect us all through Christ, our Lord Amen. Please, stay safe.

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