Readings from the Bible precede the Gospel at Mass. In this instance, this blogger thinks that the Gospel of Mark ought to be read first, so that the readings make sense to him, and probably only to him.
The Gospel of Mark brings attention to what was prophesied by Isaiah, that there would be a messenger, who turned out to be John the Baptist, who would prepare people through baptism for their encounter with the Lord. Quoting from the Gospel of Mark, in part [1]:
John the Baptist appeared in the desert
proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
People of the whole Judean countryside
and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem
were going out to him
and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River
as they acknowledged their sins.
...
And this is what he proclaimed:
"One mightier than I is coming after me.
I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals.
I have baptized you with water;
he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."
After knowing from John the Baptist Who would be coming, the words in the Book of Isaiah in the first reading (the first paragraph) give depth. First they tell of Jerusalem, "that her service is at an end, [that] her guilt is expiated; [that] indeed, she has received from the hand of the LORD double for all her sins." [2]
With the birth of Christ (the new Adam), Jerusalem, quite possibly the old Garden of Eden, was no longer needed. Jerusalem's guilt, the sin of Eve and Adam, and the collective guilt everywhere since the fall of man, would be expiated by the suffering and death of Christ. Unique to Jerusalem, and some other places, among them Bethlehem, Egypt and Nazareth, was the presence of the Son of God Whose holy feet walked upon earth's dirt as man. This gift "received [by Jerusalem] from the hand of the LORD" [3] was "double" that of Jerusalem's sins, obviously a metaphor, since the gift of Christ's physical presence must necessarily be infinitely greater than Jerusalem's sins.
On the other hand, perhaps it is not a metaphor. Since the gift of Christ's physical presence cannot be quantified, because it is infinite, then half of that, which amounted to Jerusalem's sins, which include the Original Sin, is therefore half of infinite. That is a lot. The Original Sin and all the sins that follow are sins for which only the Son of God can make reparation. It was Jerusalem, the old Garden of Eden, and the surrounding areas, that Jesus chose to do His work.
An account of Jesus in Jerusalem entitled Jesus In Jerusalem is quoted in part below [4]:
The Gospel of John gives the most detailed accounts concerning different appearances of Christ in Jerusalem. John also depicts Jesus' ministry in Jerusalem more than any other Gospel.
The number of times Jesus journeyed to Jerusalem, and the total amount of time He spent there throughout His life is impossible to know for certain.
Despite the different accounts and details each Gospel portrays it is evident He spent time there, and journeyed to Jerusalem for many of the Jewish feasts. Scripture makes it plain He taught in the Temple precincts, spreading His gospel to all who would listen. Jesus frequently appeared in Jerusalem during celebrations and feasts where throngs of people would have been present to hear His message. These times would have also been under heightened watch by both the Jewish and Roman authorities.
How accurate the above account is, is not for this blogger to know because he is not educated enough to know these things. The point here is that Christ was most likely in Jerusalem, so that the Book of Isaiah makes sense.
The second paragraph of the first reading from the Book of Isaiah talks about John the Baptist. It is followed by the third that talks about Christ Himself. Quoting from USCCB [5]:
A voice cries out:
In the desert prepare the way of the LORD!
Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God!
Every valley shall be filled in,
every mountain and hill shall be made low;
the rugged land shall be made a plain,
the rough country, a broad valley.
Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,
and all people shall see it together;
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.
Go up on to a high mountain,
Zion, herald of glad tidings;
cry out at the top of your voice,
Jerusalem, herald of good news!
Fear not to cry out
and say to the cities of Judah:
Here is your God!
Here comes with power
the Lord GOD,
who rules by his strong arm;
here is his reward with him,
his recompense before him.
Like a shepherd he feeds his flock;
in his arms he gathers the lambs,
carrying them in his bosom,
and leading the ewes with care.
Then in the second reading, from 2 Peter, chapter 3, the focus shifts to the people, cautioning everyone to be prepared, quoting USCCB in part [6], [7]:
The Lord does not delay his promise, as some regard "delay,"
but he is patient with you,
not wishing that any should perish
but that all should come to repentance.
But the day of the Lord will come like a thief,
and then the heavens will pass away with a mighty roar
and the elements will be dissolved by fire,
and the earth and everything done on it will be found out.
Since everything is to be dissolved in this way,
what sort of persons ought you to be,
conducting yourselves in holiness and devotion,
waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God,
because of which the heavens will be dissolved in flames
and the elements melted by fire.
But according to his promise
we await new heavens and a new earth
in which righteousness dwells.
Therefore, beloved, since you await these things,
be eager to be found without spot or blemish before him, at peace.
How the heavens will be dissolved in flames and how the elements will be melted can only be imagined. The passage does not speak of Heaven that would be set aflame but the "heavens" which this blogger thinks refer to the entire universe or perhaps many universes that would be on fire, and with this conflagration, the whole earth would be melted, and "new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells" [8] would be the replacement.
Before this takes place, a time which no one can predict, 2 Peter, chapter 3 seems to recommend that one be found "at peace" "without spot or blemish" of sin because it is not the Lord's wish that "any should perish." [9]
[1] http://www.usccb.org/bible/mark/1:1, 1-8.
[2] Ibid.
[3] Ibid.
[4] http://www.israel-a-history-of.com/jesus-in-jerusalem.html
[5] http://www.usccb.org/bible/mark/1:1, 1-8.
[6] Ibid.
[7] http://www.usccb.org/bible/2peter/3:8
[8] http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/121017.cfm
[9] Ibid.
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