"Glory to God in the highest and peace to his people on earth." We pray these words on most Sundays of the year when we recite the Gloria together at the beginning of Mass  During Advent and Lent we forgo this hymn of praise as we concentrate on our need for God’s mercy and forgiveness in our lives  One of the expressions we use to describe Jesus during this season and during the Christmas season is "Prince of Peace." Looking at our world and the daily destruction of war and death, we sorely long for peace so all this suffering and destruction will end  So far no earthly ruler has been able to establish a true and lasting peace  Only Jesus is the source and hope for peace.

The first reading last Sunday and this Sunday present visions of peace that seem so beautiful and, at the same time, so far from becoming realities  Last week the prophet Isaiah spoke of how God’s people would be so peaceful that weapons of war would be melted down and molded into implements for farming  As we listen to debates of those seeking to run for the president of our nation next November one of the big issues is gun control  One of the amendments of our Constitution gives us the right to bear arms  Do we still need arms to protect ourselves from one another? Our society is much more "advanced" from the time of our founding fathers, yet we still have fear the threat of potential criminals  But the one thing that human history tries to teach us over and over again, seemingly to no avail, is that weapons of destruction in no way lead the way to peace  The foundation of peace is not "out there" somewhere  It is not in the power of any world or political leader to make it happen  The power for peace is centered in Jesus and builds from the inside out  In today’s gospel, John the Baptist calls the people of his time and us to repentance  What is it that is blocking us from being one with God and each other? Unless and until we put aside our literal and figurative weapons we will never have peace in our hearts nor will we have it in our world  As it says in one of the hymns we sing at Mass at times, "Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me." Peace cannot be imposed on us from others who are more powerful or persuasive  Peace comes from the inside out, it comes from our hearts.

It is fruitless and unrealistic to long and pray for peace if we do not have the peace of Jesus in our hearts  In the first reading today Isaiah presents a vision of peace that recreates the original paradise at the beginning of creation. Even the fierce animals lie down with the weaker ones who were previously their prey  At times we are fierce with our words, attitudes and actions  Instead of looking for the kingdom of God which John the Baptist says is at hand, we push ourselves and tempt others to walk further and further away from it  John the Baptist is an Advent figure. His call to repentance is as appropriate and needed today as it was when he first spoke 2,000 years ago  With all the preparations we have for Christmas, do we hear his voice?

Repentance which leads us to seek God’s mercy and love in the sacrament of penance is not something we do as frequently as we should  Repentance begins with self confrontation, but quickly leads us beyond what is wrong, sinful and not good in our hearts to seek the mercy and love of God in the Sacrament of Penance  Through repentance we honestly look into our hearts and humbly seek God’s mercy and forgiveness for our sins, faults and weaknesses  On Monday, December 17th all the priests of our parish will offer the Sacrament of Penance for three hours, from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM  What better way to prepare for the celebration of Christmas than by seeking the love and peace of the Prince of Peace in this sacrament of hope and healing  God sees and knows us as we are and loves us more than we can comprehend  Come and experience the joy of his mercy and become more and more like THE GIFT we celebrate at Christmas - Jesus the Prince of Peace.

Father Walden