On this second Sunday of Advent we are introduced again to John the Baptist.  John was a scary man.  He was the very image of the fierce Old Testament prophet Elijah. Dressed in animal skins and leather straps, hair and beard gone wild, he lived in the desert far away from all that could distract him from his mission.  John proclaimed that the day of the ancient and all-powerful God of Israel was coming. 
For John there was no time to waste. God's anointed was coming.  No more business as usual.  John's message was clear.  Every individual heart must be laid bare and opened up to the coming holy one of God! 
    John's preaching turned the hearts of fathers to their children. He insisted that God's coming meant real change in the lives of God's people.  It was the time to share with the poor.  It was the time to treat others with justice.  It was the time to put the faith into practice.
    This Advent is our time to turn back to the Lord!  We have no time to waste.  We cannot continue business as usual.  We begin with repentance.  We have this marvelous and underused sacrament of Reconciliation.  This is the healing sacrament that removes everything that separates us from the love of Christ. “Come now, let us set things right, says the Lord: though your sins be like scarlet, they may become white as snow…” (Is 1:18a). And again, “Come to me all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Mt 11:28) Why do we hesitate?  What could give us more comfort than to hear those words of absolution, “through the ministry of the Church may God give you pardon and peace.  And in his name I absolve you from all of your sins, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.”
    It is my prayer that this Advent every parishioner of St. Hilary Parish will make a good confession and experience again the healing power of this wonderful sacrament of Reconciliation.