[Image Credit: Ted]

“Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down” (Is 64:1); “A shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, father of David” (Is 11:1). For us Christians, these words of Isaiah are charged with an Advent fragrance and turn our eyes to the coming of God’s Son into our world.

Prophet Isaiah has a prominent place in our journey towards Christmas. We will listen to him for 14 days out of the 22 that Advent 2023 has. This is probably because of the role that the book of this prophet played in the understanding of the event of Jesus Christ in the early Christian communities and by the New Testament writers.

Isaiah is the prophet of messianic oracles that are fulfilled in Jesus, the prophecies of the Emmanuel found in Is 7:14-17; 9:1-6; 11:1-5 are good examples. Their New Testament reception is highlighted in our Advent liturgical calendar.

Isaiah is the prophet of consolation (Is 40) and of the hope of a better world: the weapons of war that sow death will be transformed into agricultural tools that produce life (2:1-5); The opposing forces will share the same space and live in peace (11:1-10).

Prophet Isaiah is remarkably relevant to our contemporary Society . The world he dreamed of in the context of the geopolitics of his time is within our reach if we let the Emmanuel come in our hearts and dwell therein. Then “the wolf will dwell with the lamb” and the lion will cease to be a predator because it will become a vegetarian. 

Rev. Fr. Rémi FATCHEOUN, SMA