believing that the impossible will become possible: 4th sunday of advent B 2011

I have been speaking for at least three times now about the impossibilities surrounding the birth of the God made man. In our Christmas greetings with the bishops I spoke about the impossibilities of the incarnation in the sense that it is easier to believe that a God can raise his dead body to life, than to believe that a God, a pure spirit can become a body, a man. The mystery of the incarnation is just too amazing, too impossible a fact. Last Friday I talked about the impossibilities of the prophecy of Isaiah - how can a little child lead a young lion and a calf to graze together in the field, how can a lion eat grass with a cow - it is not just a lion eating grass but with a cow? The impossibilities presented by the season of advent are building up as we move on towards Christmas and I am afraid this might turn out into another Lito Lapid movie or Mission Impossible itself.
Now these impossibilities are today acknowledged by Mary herself in our gospel. When the angel announced to her “Hail highly favoured daughter, hail full of grace.” The reaction of Mary was as described by Matthew - greatly disturbed. When one is highly disturbed something is going on in the heart and in the head trying to make sense of everything that was being said - why this greeting, why am I called highly favored, I’m just a woman, coming from an unknown town of Nazareth, I am merely ordinary, why. When the angel explained to her what would happen, Mary articulated this perplexity, this incredulity that is happening inside her - how can this be? As I said the impossibilities surrounding Christmas is beginning to build up. How can this be, Mary asked, how can a virgin produce a son? And how did the angel answer her disbelief? The angel answered her with another impossibility, she who was thought to be barren is now in her sixth month. So the logic of the angel is like this, the virgin shall be with child because 6 months ago a barren, sterile woman became pregnant.


Advent is full of impossibilities and unless we have resolved these impossibilities with faith and trust, unless we resolved these impossibilities with openness of heart and mind, unless we resolved these impossibilities with generosity - be it done unto me, Christmas will have no meaning. Unless these impossibilities are believed as possibilities within the ambit of the divine sphere and intervention, we will never get excited about Christmas. We can never accept with openness and generosity the words of the angel for nothing is impossible with God. A virgin became a mother, a barren wife becomes pregnant, an ordinary woman becomes the mother of God because they believed or at the very least they were open to the impossibilities in their lives that can become possible with the help and intervention of the most high God.
For how can we get excited with Christmas when we could not come to believe that the impossible in our lives will become possible? How can we be surprised with Christmas if we cannot trust that God will make possible the impossibilities in our lives, in our dreams, in our visions and in our aspirations?
Last Friday I revealed to them my list of impossibilities that I will continue to hold on to as a possibility with the help of God. And this is what I said.
From that perspective of on that day I am hoping against hope that Denmark would become a good priest, what with his jolly demeanour and infectious joy. From the perspective of on that day I will not give up on Kherwin convincing myself that he can be a great priest who can command a good deal of respect. From the perspective of on that day, I will not yet give up on Rhett becoming a good canon lawyer priest, a Judicial vicar perhaps because he can raise questions even when we thought that everything is settled. From the perspective of on that day, and I am crossing my fingers, Mark Soriano because he is a good secretary to the rector, will become in a few years time the secretary of the good bishop Jay Michael Cordero. I could add to this list and it will be a long list. I have included in my list of impossibilities that will become possible, this seminarian who with seven failures in his card ran up to me one day excitedly announcing, father, father I have only three failures left, where is my snacks. My list of impossibilities includes people whose main preoccupation during recreation is in the telephone booth, making PLDT richer by the day, calling their girlfriends. And how do I know? Because when I come nearer the booth to eavesdrop, the whispering would automatically become one clear voice, Ay Ma nakaabot na gali si papa? Tuod ma? Hahay daw kamo lang kaagi soltero sa seminaryo ba.
But why this list? Because, and this is my point, because if I could not hold on to the promise of the future believing that the impossible will become possible with God, then why am I still here anyway, and why are you a parent by the way, and why are you still teaching in a way? For this is our primary task - to see an impossibility and believe, to see an impossibility and say be it done.
This is one of the greatest problems of this seminary - the greatest problem being that we formators, we teachers, we parents, have stopped believing that our sons and wards will become priests one day with the help and overshadowing of the most high God. And sometimes without meaning to, we communicate this disbelief and this impossibility to them.
Advent is always a time to take stock as to how far the prospect of an impossibility in our lives and call, can make us persist and persevering in our belief and trust on its possibility. Advent is a time to enliven the virtue of hope, a time to strengthen our trust in the God who has only to overshadow the virgin and the barren to make the impossible possible.
Can we do that?
Can you believe, ordinary and simple as you are, that God is working in you and through you for the good of this child who will one day become a priest and will bring so much good to those around him? Can you still bring yourself to believe that with so many failures in your card and so insignificant and untalented as you are, you will one day bring about so much good to God’s people in this part of the world? Can you persist in believing that after two or three or even four tries in your family, Juan Carlo, Kristian and Carl, Mark John, Kyle and Caesar will one day finally make what was seemingly impossible possible when they finally decide to become priests? Do you have and can you hold on to your lists of impossibilities in your life that one day God will make possible in you and through you? If so then you have entered advent and are prepared to celebrate Christmas where the barren wife becomes pregnant, where a virgin becomes with child and God becomes flesh and human. Advent prepares us for the surprises of Christmas, advent prepares us to believe that the impossible will become possible in our lives with the help that comes from God. Can you persist in believing, can you go beyond your incredulity and disbelief, can you say to the impossible, be it done unto me according to your word?