Rev. Kathleen Russell

This bit of spiritual wisdom speaks to today’s readingsand to the meaning of Advent.
 

Advent does have Christmas as its destination, just as the Babylonian exiles had their homeland as theirs, and the paralytic wanted to be in the presence of Jesus. But today’s reading from Isaiah is less about the place of arrival and more about the path to get there. “A highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Holy Way....” This holy way is kept safe by God. It is a path that even the weak and feeble can traverse, a path adorned with flowers and beauty, a path of joyful expectation. The paralytic was on such a path, not one that he could walk himself, but one adorned with the kindness and fidelity of his friends and a healing presence who awaited him as he made his journey.