The violent are taking it by force.

Beloved in Christ,
Our readings today reveal the surprising way God brings salvation—not through earthly power, but through divine strength made visible in human weakness. In Isaiah, the people of Israel are at the end of their long exile in Babylon. They are discouraged, humiliated, and powerless. God calls them “worm Jacob” and “maggot Israel”—not to insult them, but to acknowledge their helplessness. And to this wounded, tiny people, God declares: “Fear not, I will help you… your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.”
This is the Advent paradox: God comes first to the weak, the small, the forgotten. Just as He chose Mary—poor, unknown, living in little Nazareth—to carry the Savior, so He chooses the humble of heart today. Our true value does not come from our circumstances, our economic strength, or our social position. It comes from the God who looks upon us with love, even in our lowest moments. If we keep our eyes on Him, we will always stand tall.
Jesus then adds a mysterious statement in the Gospel: “The violent are taking the kingdom by force.” The Church has always understood this not as physical violence, but as holy spiritual determination. It is the inner courage that refuses to let sin, discouragement, fear, or spiritual laziness steal the kingdom from us. It is the “violence” of a person who wrestles in prayer, who fights for virtue, who strives to rise each time they fall. It is the boldness of those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, who take God seriously and pursue Him with their whole heart.
This spiritual strength is born precisely in moments of weakness—when we depend on God because we have no strength of our own. Israel’s poverty became the place of God’s power. Mary’s humility became the birthplace of the Messiah. Our wounds, when offered to God, become channels of grace.
Isaiah also says: “The afflicted and the needy seek water in vain… their tongues are parched with thirst.” God sees the thirst of the poor—not just for water, but for dignity, for kindness, for companionship, for justice. Many around us still thirst today: the lonely, the elderly, the forgotten, the unemployed, the immigrant, the anxious young person. Advent is the season when we allow God to use us to quench this thirst.
Therefore, our calling today is twofold:
Seize the kingdom with holy courage.
Return to prayer, seek reconciliation, break unhealthy patterns, fight for holiness. Advent invites us to move with determination toward Christ.
Become water for the thirsty.
Offer kindness, attention, generosity, forgiveness, or simple presence to someone in need. Our small gestures become God’s streams in the desert.
Brothers and sisters, Advent reminds us that God draws close to the lowly and strengthens the humble. May we, with courageous hearts, take hold of the kingdom—and with generous hearts, lift the poor and thirsty of our time.

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