Comfort, O comfort my people,
     says your God.
 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
     and cry to her
 that she has served her term,
     that her penalty is paid,
 that she has received from the Lord’s hand
     double for all her sins.

A voice cries out:
 “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord,
     make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
 Every valley shall be lifted up,
     and every mountain and hill be made low;
 the uneven ground shall become level,
     and the rough places a plain.
 Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed,
     and all people shall see it together,
     for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

A voice says, “Cry out!”
     And I said, “What shall I cry?”
 All people are grass,
     their constancy is like the flower of the field.
 The grass withers, the flower fades,
     when the breath of the Lord blows upon it;
     surely the people are grass.
 The grass withers, the flower fades;
     but the word of our God will stand forever.
 Get you up to a high mountain,
     O Zion, herald of good tidings;
 lift up your voice with strength,
     O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings,
     lift it up, do not fear;
 say to the cities of Judah,
     “Here is your God!”
 See, the Lord God comes with might,
     and his arm rules for him;
 his reward is with him,
     and his recompense before him.
 He will feed his flock like a shepherd;
     he will gather the lambs in his arms,
 and carry them in his bosom,
     and gently lead the mother sheep.

New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved.

When we hear "glad tidings," chances are the first image that comes to mind is a group of festive carolers singing Christmas songs on a snowy night. But is this what Isaiah had in mind when he speaks of the "herald of good tidings"?

In the buzz of the Christmas season and the constant pressure to perform and act a certain way, we might find ourselves in a similar position as the prophet when he asks, "What shall I cry out?", “What is this good tiding that I am to proclaim?” The Divine voice replies with this enduring message: tell the people that the joys and sorrows of life fade; but God’s covenant endures.

So to be a "herald of good tidings" means to be an evangelizer, someone who proclaims comfort to the burdened and challenges the comfortable, hope to the suffering and a call to conversion for the proud. Both are in need of a shepherd, both need to be reminded that flesh is like grass, withering and fading, and both need never fear for “behold your God who comes with might” and gathers us all in his arms. 

—Benjamin Rogers, SJ, is a Jesuit scholastic of the Midwest Province studying philosophy at Loyola University Chicago. 

Lord, today let me be a herald of good tiding to all I meet. Whether it is through word, action, or deed I desire that everything proclaims you. In this season of waiting, grant me the grace to recognize and accept that my life is like a breath; it comes and goes but you in your love and mercy give me the chance to live forever with you. By your grace, I await the advent of your kingdom with hope, I proclaim your message with faith, and I serve your people with love. 

—Benjamin Rogers, SJ