Bishop Richard J. Sklba
	Herald of Hope Herald of Hope is a weekly column started by former Milwaukee Archbishop Rembert G. Weakland in the Catholic Herald and written by the bishops of the Milwaukee Archdiocese. • past columns

One of the central themes of Advent is God's promise of sure and certain salvation for the whole world. The prophet Isaiah, for example, dreams of lambs saved from wolves and of all nations traveling to Zion in order to learn how to live in peace and harmony. The psalms sing and celebrate the God who saves. Gabriel decrees that the virgin's child shall be called "Jesus" because he will save his people from sin. The angels of Bethlehem announce to the shepherds the joyful birth of a Savior. Our Christmas carols turn that promise into the gorgeous hymns which fill our airwaves this time of the year (even if our Catholic hearts wish they would start later and sing longer ... ).

The ancient peoples of that time knew how profoundly they needed salvation ... from oppressive foreign power and domination, from crop failure and hunger, from the greed of the wicked, from the devastation of illness without remedy and a hundred other evils beyond their control. They prayed for a savior.

Unfortunately, there is something deep in the modern American psyche which isn't really convinced that we need one. Because of our history of such remarkable material progress over the centuries, especially with all the discoveries of recent decades, we live with the presumption that we can solve just about any human problem with a little more time, research, and money. We tend to live out of the heresy of "semipelagianism," namely, the suspicion that we can virtually save ourselves if we simply work harder and have good will about things. "Maybe," we admit to ourselves, "a little nudge from God's grace might help (and that's the "semi" part of it), but the rest can be handled nicely with our own effort and resources, thank you."

Literally, the Hebrew word for salvation comes from the root "yasha," which means to "be lifted out of a tight spot." The presumption buried in the concept is that we are jammed so tightly into a predicament that we can't free ourselves. Whenever I think of that idea, my mind inevitably goes back to Jessica, the little girl in Texas some years ago who fell into an abandoned well, and was wedged there for hours while rescue efforts labored intensively, her parents waited helplessly, and the entire nation watched in prayer. It was the perfect illustration.

The fact of the matter is that there still are countless situations, both natural and spiritual, from which we desperately need to be freed by someone other than ourselves ... from our ignorance, our fears, our frail health at times, our sins and all their consequences, and finally from death itself. In the last analysis we need to be saved from ourselves and from the destructive forces inherent in the world around us. That salvation began with Nazareth and Bethlehem. It flourished on the cross and in the upper room where the Spirit was given by the risen Lord. It blossoms into its final fulfillment in the joy of Pentecost and the full glory for all nations at Epiphany.

For four days last week I again met with the scholars of the national Evangelical Lutheran/Roman Catholic dialogue team. Our assigned topic was "the church as the communion which shares God's salvation." The technical term for that "shared possession in common" is koinonia, sometimes translated as "communion" or "fellowship." After almost four years of study and research we have the beginning of a final report to each of the religious bodies which authorized our work and awaits our conclusions.

The long semiannual meetings have been meticulous in their scholarship, deeply respectful in their discussions, and remarkably honest in their search for God's truth. It has become so clear that the church of Christ receives salvation from our risen Lord and shares that gift together while humbly offering to others salvation in God's name.

More importantly, we have come to see the ordained ministers of each tradition as called and authorized to be human instruments of that divine salvation for their congregations. Proclaiming the word of salvation in preaching and celebrating that salvation already present in our lives through the sacraments is the task of priests, pastors, and bishops in both our traditions. We have come to the point of professing clearly that each other is truly a community of salvation.

We still face much work to be done before the fullness of each other's ministry can be recognized and the reconciliation of our churches celebrated, but we are on the way ... by God's saving grace.

So I write about this summary of ecumenical discussions at this time of the year because the season of Advent is so filled with liturgical references to this very reality. Christ came to save us all, because we need saving. Moreover, we are saved, not as individuals alone, but as a people united in Christ. Exactly how the whole world fits into God's plans isn't very clear as yet, but we are confident that God will indeed take care of everyone if we cooperate and do our part.

Keep listening these days to all the ways in which the idea of "salvation" is part of the joyous season we celebrate. If you can't sing, at least hum!