The two figures of Isaiah and John the Baptist dominate the reading throughout much of Advent. Today we read the opening passage of that section of Isaiah which we call the "Book of Consolation". John the Baptist made these words of Isaiah the tenor of his life: "In the desert prepare the way of the Lord! Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God!" The most terrible deserts on earth are not those of nature. They are, rather, those created by war. We looked upon the last century as a century of war, and we hoped that this new century and new millennium would see our longing for peace and justice move a little closer to its fulfilment. The three years that have passed so far seem to teach us that we can only hope against hope. As Christians, we must make the hope of Advent an even stronger theme in our prayer. We must believe that, where there is little human hope, God is still Emmanuel, still "God with us" in Jesus Christ.