Sunday
December 25th

Christmas Day

1st Reading: Is 52:7-10:
How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who herald peace and happiness, who proclaim salvation and announce to Zion: “Your God is King!” Together your watchmen raise their voices in praise and song; they see Yahweh face to face returning to Zion. Break into shouts of joy, O ruins of Jerusalem, for Yahweh consoles his people and redeems Jerusalem. Yahweh has bared his holy arm in the eyes of the nations; all the ends of the earth, in alarm, will witness God’s salvation.

2nd Reading: Heb 1:1-6:
God has spoken, in the past, to our ancestors, through the prophets in many different ways, although never completely; but, in our times, he has spoken definitively to us, through his Son. He is the one God appointed heir of all things, since, through him, he unfolded the stages of the world. He is the radiance of God’s glory, and bears the stamp of God’s hidden being, so that, his powerful word upholds the universe. And after taking away sin, he took his place, at the right hand of the divine Majesty, in heaven. So he is now far superior to angels, just as the name he received sets him apart from them. To what angel did God say: You are my son, I have begotten you today? And to what angel did he promise: I shall be a father to him and he will be a son to me? On sending his Firstborn to the world, God says: Let all the angels adore him.

Gospel: Jn 1:1-18:
In the beginning was the Word. And the Word was with God and the Word was God; he was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him nothing came to be. Whatever has come to be, found life in him; life, which for human beings, was also light, light that shines in darkness, light that darkness could not overcome. A man came, sent by God; his name was John. He came to bear witness, as a witness to introduce the Light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the Light, but a witness to introduce the Light; for the Light was coming into the world, the true Light that enlightens everyone. He was in the world, and through him the world was made, the very world that did not know him.

He came to his own, yet his own people did not receive him; but to all who received him, he empowers to become children of God, for they believe in his name. These are born, but not by seed, or carnal desire, nor by the will of man: they are born of God. And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us; and we have seen his glory, the glory of the only Son of the Father: fullness of truth and loving-kindness. John bore witness to him openly, saying, “This is the one who comes after me, but he is already ahead of me, for he was before me.” From his fullness we have all received, favor upon favor. For God had given us the law through Moses, but Truth and Loving-kindness came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but God-the-only-Son made him known: the one, who is in and with the Father.

Reflection:
Exegesis is defined “explanation……of a text, esp. of the Bible” (Collins), and an exegete is “a person who practices exegesis.” Today’s gospel reading features the prologue of John’s gospel and ends with these words: “No one has ever seen God, but God-the-only-Son made him known: the one who is in and with the Father.” The translation “made him known” is too weak here. The Greek verb used, exēgēsato comes from exēgeomai, which really means: explain. Explain is much stronger than “make known,” for I can “make known” to you, say, the existence of something as yet unknown; but without “explaining” what that something is, you are not much better off.

Jesus did not “dwell among us” (in Greek “planted his tent among us”) just to “make known” to us that there is a God (as the Greek philosophers had already told us). He came among us to “explain” God, to tell us what kind of God he is, v.g. a loving Father. Until he came and “explained” God to us, we thought he was a vengeful and angry deity, killing babies (cf. the Great Flood, the 10th plague of Egypt, etc.). But no, Jesus tells us, “the Father judges no one” (Jn 5:22). Now that’s Good News! Let us admire the Child’s utter weakness in the manger and let us ask to enter into this beautiful mystery of God’s disarming simplicity. Today let us share with others the utter good news that “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son” (Jn 3:16)

Monday
December 26th

St. Stephen

1st Reading: Acts 6:8-10; 7:54-59:
Stephen, full of grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people. Some persons then came forward, who belonged to the so-called Synagogue of Freedmen, from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia and Asia. They argued with Stephen. But they could not match the wisdom and the spirit with which he spoke. When they heard this reproach, they were enraged; and they gnashed their teeth against Stephen.

But he, full of the Holy Spirit, fixed his eyes on heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus at God’s right hand; so he declared: “I see the heavens open, and the Son of Man at the right hand of God.” But they shouted and covered their ears with their hands, and rushed together upon him. They brought him out of the city and stoned him; and the witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul. As they were stoning him, Stephen prayed saying: “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”

Gospel: Mt 10:17-22:
Be on your guard with people, for they will hand you over to their courts, and they will flog you in their synagogues. You will be brought to trial before rulers and kings because of me, so that you may witness to them and the pagans. But when you are arrested, do not worry about what you are to say, or how you are to say it; when the hour comes, you will be given what you are to say. For it will not be you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father, speaking through you. Brother will hand over his brother to death, and a father his child; children will turn against their parents and have them put to death. Everyone will hate you because of me, but whoever stands firm to the end will be saved.

Reflection:
Today’s first reading describes the heroic death of the first martyr or protomartyr, Stephen. One of the striking things about Stephen is his close resemblance to Jesus. He died as Jesus died, namely, falsely accused of blasphemy (Mt 26:65; Acts 6:11), yet like Jesus he merely spoke the truth. Like Jesus, too, he prayed and recommended his spirit at the moment of his death. And, always like Jesus, he forgave his enemies: “Lord, do not hold this sin against them” (Acts 7:60). Another striking thing about this story is the mention of the future apostle Paul (then still called Saul).

The text says that the ones stoning Stephen to death “laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul,” and that “Saul was consenting to (Stephen’s) execution” (Acts 7:58; 6:1). It is as if God was already preparing the replacement of Stephen by another intrepid preacher of the Gospel. And, like Stephen, Saul/ Paul will seal his proclamation of Jesus with martyrdom some 30 years later. Why the feast of a martyr on the day following Christmas? Perhaps to tell us that, if we choose the Baby of Bethlehem, we also choose his Cross…

Tuesday
December 27th

St. John

1st Reading: 1 Jn 1:1-4:
This is what has been, from the beginning, and what we have heard, and have seen with our own eyes, what we have looked at, and touched with our hands, I mean the Word who is Life… The Life made itself known. We have seen Eternal Life and we bear witness; and we are telling you of it. It was with the Father and made himself known to us. So, we tell you, what we have seen and heard, that you may be in fellowship with us, and us, with the Father, and with his Son, Jesus Christ. And we write this, that our joy may be complete.

Gospel: Jn 20:1a & 2-8:
Now, on the first day after the Sabbath, Mary of Magdala came to the tomb early in the morning while it was still dark, [s]he ran to Peter, and the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and she said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb and we don’t know where they have laid him.” Peter then set out with the other disciple to go to the tomb. They ran together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down and saw the linen cloths lying flat, but he did not enter. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and entered the tomb; he, too, saw the linen cloths lying flat. The napkin, which had been around his head, was not lying flat like the other linen cloths, but lay rolled up in its place. Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in; he saw and believed.

Reflection:
Many human beings on this planet have a best friend. What is a best friend? The person to whom you tell your darkest secrets, confident that your secrets will be safely kept. The person you would trust with your life. The person who would be ready to die for you. The person you consider to be another you. That is what a best friend is—someone especially close to your heart. Well, John was Jesus’ best friend. This is often expressed in the Fourth Gospel by a Semitic reference: “the disciple whom Jesus loved.”

And, no doubt the love was mutual. For John at the Last Supper leaned on Jesus’ chest in a gesture of affectionate abandon. And, in today’s gospel reading, we see that he is the first disciple to believe in the resurrection. He is also the first to recognize Jesus after the miraculous catch of fish (cf. Jn 21:7). He is the one to whom Jesus entrusts his greatest treasure, Mary, his mother (Jn 19:27). Today perhaps more than on any other day, if we have a special favor to ask of Jesus, it might be a good idea to ask it through the intercession of Jesus’ best friend…

Wednesday
December 28th

The Holy Innocents

1st Reading: 1 Jn 1:5–2:2:
We heard his message, from him, and announce it to you: God is light and there is no darkness in him. If we say we are in fellowship with him, while we walk in darkness, we lie, instead of being in truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we are in fellowship with one another; and the blood of Jesus, the Son of God, purifies us from all sin. If we say, “We have no sin,” we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he, who is faithful and just, will forgive us our sins, and cleanse us from all wickedness. If we say that we do not sin, we make God a liar, his word is not in us. My little children, I write to you, that you may not sin. But if anyone sins, we have an intercessor with the Father, Jesus Christ, the Just One. He is the sacrificial victim, for our sins, and the sins of the whole world.

Gospel: Mt 2:13-18:
After the wise men had left, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod will soon be looking for the child in order to kill him.” Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and left that night for Egypt, where he stayed until the death of Herod. In this way, what the Lord had said through the prophet was fulfilled: I called my son out of Egypt. When Herod found out that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was furious. He gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its neighborhood who were two years old or under. This was done, according to what he had learned from the wise men about the time when the star appeared. In this way, what the prophet Jeremiah had said was fulfilled: A cry is heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation: Rachel weeps for her children. She refuses to be comforted, for they are no more.

Reflection:
The Church always safeguards life, even of the unborn. Even in the early life of the Church, we have consistently protected life from “womb to tomb”. The letter to Diognetus, a non Christian, explained that Christians “do not kill babies”. The martyrdom of the Holy Innocents reminds us of the sacredness of life, especially of the unborn. We recall today the infants who were killed at the order of Herod the Great, who was not so comfortable with the thought of a “messiah” or by and large, to his perceived competitor. Indeed the first reading is right, “God is light and in his there is no darkness”. We cannot allow darkness to rule, injustice to ruin the truth and “Rachel weeping again for her children”. The Christmas season brings us to a perspective of life. We are agents of light and life and not people of darkness and sin.

Thursday
December 29th

St. Thomas Becket

1st Reading: 1 Jn 2:3-11:
How can we know that we know him? If we fulfill his commands. If you say, “I know him,” but do not fulfill his commands, you are a liar and the truth is not in you. But if you keep his word, God’s love is made complete in you. This is how we know that we are in him: he who claims to live in him, must live as he lived. … If you claim to be in the light, but hate your brother, you are still in darkness. If you love your brothers and sisters, you remain in the light, and nothing in you will make you fall. But if you hate your brother, you are in the dark, and walk in darkness, without knowing where you go, for the darkness has blinded you.

Gospel: Lk 2:22-35:
When the day came for the purification according to the law of Moses, they brought the baby up to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord, as it is written in the law of the Lord: Every firstborn male shall be consecrated to God. And they offered a sacrifice, as ordered in the law of the Lord: a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons. There lived in Jerusalem, at this time, a very upright and devout man named Simeon; the Holy Spirit was in him. He looked forward to the time when the Lord would comfort Israel; and he had been assured, by the Holy Spirit, that he would not die before seeing the Messiah of the Lord.

So, he was led into the temple by the Holy Spirit at the time the parents brought the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the law. Simeon took the child in his arms, and blessed God, saying, “Now, O Lord, you can dismiss your servant in peace, for you have fulfilled your word and my eyes have seen your salvation, which you display for all the people to see. Here is the light you will reveal to the nations, and the glory of your people Israel.” His father and mother wondered at what was said about the child. Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary, his mother, “Know this: your son is a sign; a sign established for the falling and rising of many in Israel, a sign of contradiction; and a sword will pierce your own soul, so that, out of many hearts, thoughts may be revealed.”

Reflection:
Today’s gospel reading presents us with what our text describes as being “a very upright and devout man named Simeon,” and it adds, “the Holy Spirit was upon him.” So we are not talking of a priest or a Levite, of a prophet or ascetic, we are talking about an ordinary man, probably married and having children. But the difference with Simeon is that, as the gospel text tells us “he had been assured by the Holy Spirit, that he would not die before seeing the Messiah”. What does that mean “he was assured?” By a vision?

Probably not, because such an event would be recorded here. So, by what? Presumably by a deep inner conviction, as in the case of the Spirit’s motion in us. So here we have a man convinced that one day he would see the Messiah. And the years pass. But nothing happens. He goes to the temple every day, despite the bad weather and his occasional bad health. People begin to laugh at him. Sometimes he begins to doubt: maybe he had imagined the whole miserable business? Yet, Simeon, an old man now, keeps going to the temple every day—until his faithfulness is rewarded. Doubts should never stop us.

Friday
December 30th

The Holy Family

1st Reading: Sir 3:2-6, 12-14:
For the Lord established that children should respect their father; he confirmed the right of the mother over her children. Whoever honors his father atones for his sins; he who gives glory to his mother prepares a treasure for himself. Whoever honors his father will receive joy from his own children and will be heard when he prays. Whoever glorifies his father will have a long life. Whoever obeys the Lord gives comfort to his mother. My child, take care of your father in his old age, do not cause him sorrow as long as he lives. Even if he has lost his mind, have patience; do not be disrespectful to him while you are in full health. For kindness done to one’s father will never be forgotten, it will serve as reparation for your sins.

2nd Reading: Col 3:12-21

Gospel: Mt 2:13-15, 19-23:
After the wise men had left, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod will soon be looking for the child in order to kill him.” Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and left that night for Egypt, where he stayed until the death of Herod. In this way, what the Lord had said through the prophet was fulfilled: I called my son out of Egypt.

After Herod’s death, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and go back to the land of Israel, because those who tried to kill the child are dead.” So Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. But when Joseph heard that Archilaus had succeeded his father Herod as king of Judea, he was afraid to go there. Joseph was given further instructions in a dream, and went to the region of Galilee. There he settled, in a town called Nazareth. In this way, what was said by the prophets was fulfilled: He shall be called a Nazarene.

Reflection:
There is a song that has remained well known in the West over 150 years (lyrics by John Paine, music by Sir Henry Bishop) and which goes like this: Mid pleasures and palaces though we may roam Be it ever so humble, there’s no place like home; A charm from the skies seems to hallow us there, Which seek thro’ the world, is ne’er met elsewhere. Home! Home! Sweet, sweet home! There’s no place like home There’s no place like home. Such a song evokes the serene tranquility of a family living serenely together in a peaceful dwelling.

Alas, that was not the case of the Holy Family, whom we are remembering today. To begin with, just as Mary was about to give birth, she and Joseph had to take to the road, leave Galilee and go to Bethlehem to be enrolled there following a decree of the emperor. There Mary gave birth in a stable. Shortly after that, the Holy Family had to flee to Egypt because of Herod. They stayed there, displaced persons not knowing the language, for about two years. Those are rough beginnings for any family… But they never affected the love bind of Jesus, Mary and Joseph.

Saturday
December 31st

New Years’ Eve
St. Sylvester I

1st Reading: 1 Jn 2:18-21:
My dear children, it is the last hour. You were told, that an antichrist would come; but several antichrists have already come, by which, we know, that it is, now, the last hour. They went out, from us, though they did not really belong to us. Had they belonged to us, they would have remained with us. So, it became clear, that, not all of us were really ours. But you have the anointing from the Holy One, so that all of you have true wisdom.

Gospel: Jn 1:1-18:
In the beginning was the Word. And the Word was with God and the Word was God; he was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him nothing came to be. Whatever has come to be, found life in him; life, which for human beings, was also light, light that shines in darkness, light that darkness could not overcome. A man came, sent by God; his name was John. He came to bear witness, as a witness to introduce the Light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the Light, but a witness to introduce the Light; for the Light was coming into the world, the true Light that enlightens everyone. He was in the world, and through him the world was made, the very world that did not know him.

He came to his own, yet his own people did not receive him; but to all who received him, he empowers to become children of God, for they believe in his name. These are born, but not by seed, or carnal desire, nor by the will of man: they are born of God. And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us; and we have seen his glory, the glory of the only Son of the Father: fullness of truth and loving-kindness. John bore witness to him openly, saying, “This is the one who comes after me, but he is already ahead of me, for he was before me.” From his fullness we have all received, favor upon favor. For God had given us the law through Moses, but Truth and Loving-kindness came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but God-the-only-Son made him known: the one, who is in and with the Father.

Reflection:
When disasters are about to happen, a government agency usually takes the lead to warn citizens of the ill effects of an impending calamity, either through media or other means of communication. They would gather the people, inform them and warn them. Today’s first reading explains to us an impending disaster in faith being witnessed by John. Thus, he warns the Christians of his time of the antichrist and defectors in the faith (cf 1 John 12). The early Christians needed to address the doctrinal concerns which bother them. The Gospel defines their faith in Jesus, in a very succinct and clear presentation. It says “and the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us”. May we always take comfort in the faith transmitted to us by the Church, study it in our hearts and be grateful for this faith forever.