A Reading of the Good News of Jesus to the people of the State of Connecticut
(a paraphrase of Luke 3: 1-8)
In the second year of the presidency of Donald J. Trump,
in the final days of the governorship of Dannel Malloy
as Ned Lamont was waiting to take office as governor of the state of Connecticut
and Luke Bronin served was mayor of Hartford
while Leonard Blair was metropolitan of the church of Connecticut, archbishop of the church of Hartford, Litchfield and New Haven counties,
with Juan Miguel Betancourt as auxiliary and Peter A Rosazza as auxiliary emeritus and
Frank J. Caggiano was bishop of Fairfield County, Connecticut, and Michael R. Cote was bishop of Middlesex, New London, Tolland and Windham and Fishers Island, NY
and various pastors were in their parishes in those churches,
the word of God came to many people—descendants of immigrants—
who heard of thousands of people crossing toward the desert at the southern
border of the country.
They went throughout the whole region of their land,
proclaiming a call to be faithful to the baptism of change of heart
that overcomes that narrow spirit of misguided nationalism and seeks instead
a spirit of justice and compassion
as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet:
A voice of one crying out in the desert:
Prepare the compassionate way of our God,
make straight the paths made devious by mis-guided U.S. foreign policy
in Latin America with its considering lands as “our backyard”
where we call the shots, interfering in the affairs of sovereign nations.
Every valley of prejudice and racism shall be filled
and every mountain and hill of arrogance and misplaced pride shall be made low.
The devious roads of the obfuscation of immigration law shall be made straight,
and the rough ways of obstruction offered the asylum-seeking made smooth,
and all flesh shall see the spirit of justice and compassion of God
and of a nation that seeks to become great with the generosity of its better angels.
