Sunday, December 3 : A Greek 4th century homily

What is the coming of Christ? It is deliverance from slavery and casting aside of the ancient bondage, the beginning of freedom and honor of adoption, the origin of the remission of our sins and a truly immortal life for all. When the Word looked down on us from on high, under the tyranny of death, without form, bound by the bonds of dissipation, carried off along a road without return, he came by God’s design to take on the nature of Adam, the first man. Neither to angels nor archangels did he entrust our salvation, but in obedience to the Father’s command he himself took on himself the struggle on our behalf. (…) Incorporating and including in himself all the majesty of his divinity, he came according to the measure he had determined (…); by the Father’s power he lost nothing of what he had, but taking what he had not he came in such fashion as would delimit him. (…) See, he is Lord: “The Lord said to my Lord: ‘Sit on my right'” (Ps 110[109]:1) (…) See, he is Son: “He shall say to me ‘You are my Father’ and I will make him my first-born” (Ps 89[88]: 27-28) (…) See, too, he is God: “The great ones of the earth shall come; they shall bow down before you, saying in prayer: ‘God is in you'” (Is 45:14) (…) See, he is the eternal king: “A sceptre of justice is the sceptre of your kingdom; therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness” (Ps 45[44]:7-8) (…) See, the Lord of armies: “Who is the king of glory? He, the Lord of armies, he is the king of glory” (Ps 24[23]:8) (…) And see, he is the eternal high priest: “You are a priest for ever” (Ps 110[109]:4). But if he is Lord and God, Son and king, Lord and eternal high priest, when he willed it, “He is also man: who can grasp it?” (Jr 17:9 LXX) (…) Truly it was as God and man that this great Jesus came amongst us (…). He clothed himself with our wretched body and with death (…); he cleansed our bodies of their infirmities, healed every one of our wounds by his might, that the word might be fulfilled: “I am the Lord (…), I will take you by my right hand and uphold you; (…) I am the Lord, that is my name (…) And the last enemy, death, shall be destroyed. Death, where is your sting?” (Is 42:6; 1 Cor 15:26.55).

Roman Extraordinary (Tridentine) Daily Readings – rosary,team