Isaiah 35:1-6a, 10; Psalm 146:6-10;James 5:7-10; Matthew 11:2-11
In the 1980 movie, Urban Cowboy, John Travolta played the character Bud Davis. After moving from a small town in rural Texas to a Houston suburb, Bud falls in love with Sissy (whom he met at a local honky-tonk) and marries her.
Lovers' quarrels, bar fights, a separation in which they each move in with someone else, and an eventual reconciliation comprise the plot of the film.
At one point in the movie, a song is playing in the background and Bud cries out, "Hey! Turn that up! That's my favorite song!"
The song, "Lookin' for Love" sung by Johnny Lee, went on to become the number one song on the country music charts in 1980.
The famous lines of the chorus go, "I was lookin' for love in all the wrong places / Lookin' for love in too many faces, / searchin' their eyes and lookin' for traces / of what I'm dreamin' of."
In this weekend's Gospel, John the Baptist isn't exactly lookin' for love, but he does send his disciples to find out whether Jesus really is the One to come.
Jesus' response uses the prophetic vision of Isaiah to describe what is happening.
The dream of restoration is being fulfilled: the blind see, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor hear the good news.
Advent is the season of hopes and dreams.
Throughout the season we hear the prophetic visions of Isaiah, filled with hope for a renewed creation and the fulfillment of God's promises.
Next Sunday we'll hear the story of Joseph's dream about a child who will save people from their sins.
During these weeks, children dream of Christmas gifts that will appear under the tree. And many parishes fulfill the hopes of the needy through the collection of gifts and food to help them at this time of year.
The baptized act as Christ in the world, having been anointed priest, prophet, and king at their baptism.
And so like Christ in the Gospel, members of the church today are called to help the blind see, the lame walk, the deaf hear, and to actively pursue the coming of God's kingdom whose fulfillment we await in joyful hope.
In his first encyclical, Deus Caritas Est, Pope Benedict XVI reflected on the work of charity by the church.
He said, "Christian charity is first of all the simple response to immediate needs and specific situations: feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, caring for and healing the sick, visiting those in prison, etc." (#31a).
In Urban Cowboy Bud Davis and Sissy eventually return to each other and find their love in the right place, in the reconciliation of their hearts.
John the Baptist wanted to know if Jesus was the One, and the answer was found in the actions of the Messiah: restoring sight, cleansing lepers, proclaiming the good news.
The hope of so many at this time of year finds fulfillment in the loving actions of Christians.
They look for love in the service we offer and the charity we give.
But what we do during this Advent season cannot be the only expression of love we give.
If it is, those in need really have been "lookin' for love in all the wrong places."
But if our love continues through Christmas and into the New Year,
if our dedication to acting like Christ endures, then the needy will have found "what [they're] dreamin' of."
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