domingo
21 de diciembre^st

4^th Sunday of Advent

Peter Canisius

First Day of Winter

1^st Reading: Is 7:10-14:
Once again Yahweh addressed Ahaz, “Ask for a sign from Yahweh your God, let it come either from the deepest depths or from the heights of heaven.”

But Ahaz answered, “I will not ask, I will not put Yahweh to the test.”

Then Isaiah said, “Now listen, descendants of David. Have you not been satisfied trying the patience of people, that you also try the patience of my God? Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The Virgin is with child and bears a son and calls his name Immanuel.”

2^nd Reading: Rom 1:1-7:
From Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, an apostle, called and set apart for God’s Good News, the very promises he foretold through his prophets in the sacred Scriptures, regarding his Son, who was born in the flesh a descendant of David, and has been recognized as the Son of God, endowed with Power, upon rising from the dead, through the Holy Spirit.

Through him, Jesus Christ, our Lord, and for the sake of his name, we received grace, and mission in all the nations, for them to accept the faith. All of you, the elected of Christ, are part of them, you, the beloved of God in Rome, called to be holy: May God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ, give you grace and peace.

Gospel: Mt 1:18-24:
This is how Jesus Christ was born: Mary his mother had been given to Joseph in marriage, but before they lived together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Then Joseph, her husband, made plans to divorce her in all secrecy. He was an upright man, and in no way did he want to disgrace her.

While he was pondering over this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. She has conceived by the Holy Spirit, and now she will bear a son. You shall call him ‘Jesus’ for he will save his people from their sins.”

All this happened in order to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: The virgin will conceive and bear a son, and he will be called Emmanuel, which means: God-with-us. When Joseph awoke, he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do, and he took his wife to his home.

Reflexión:
Today’s gospel reading, often called “The annunciation to Joseph,” has been interpreted very diversely in the course of time. Three main interpretations have been proposed, all very ancient.

According to the first one, Joseph supposes that Mary is adulterous (the translation of most Bibles reflects this theory). According to the second interpretation, Joseph is convinced of Mary’s innocence and suspects a mystery. According to the third interpretation, Joseph knows that Mary has conceived of the Holy Spirit (because she told him) and, not knowing what could be his role in all this, respectfully withdraws in awe: how could he take as his wife a woman whom God has chosen as his sacred vessel?

This interpretation was defended by Origen already in the third Century, by St. Basil, St. Bernard, St. Thomas Aquinas, etc. Today it is defended by dozens of first-class exegetes. Unfortunately, the arguments in favor of each of these interpretations are quite technical. If we accept the third interpretation, we now understand that Joseph was so humble that he could not imagine himself playing a role in the history of salvation–until finally an angel enlightened him on that score.

Let us earnestly ask God to make us as humble and as flexible as Joseph. Today let us courageously listen to God’s call and embrace the responsibilities of our state of life.

lunes
22 de diciembre^nd

1^st Reading: 1 S 1:24-28:
When the child was weaned, Hannah took him with her along with a three-year-old bull, a measure of flour and a flask of wine, and she brought him to Yahweh’s house at Shiloh. The child was still young. After they had slain the bull, they brought the child to Eli.

Hannah exclaimed: “Oh, my lord, look! I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, praying to Yahweh. I asked for this child and Yahweh granted me the favor I begged of him. I think Yahweh is now asking for this child. As long as he lives, he belongs to Yahweh.”

Gospel: Lk 1:46-56:
And Mary said, “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit exults in God, my savior! He has looked upon his servant, in her lowliness, and people, forever, will call me blessed. The Mighty One has done great things for me, Holy is his Name! From age to age, his mercy extends to those who live in his presence.

“He has acted with power and done wonders, and scattered the proud with their plans. He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and lifted up those who are downtrodden. He has filled the hungry with good things, but has sent the rich away empty.

“He held out his hand to Israel, his servant, for he remembered his mercy, even as he promised to our fathers, to Abraham and his descendants forever.”

Mary remained with Elizabeth about three months, and then returned home.

Reflexión:
It is always a risky undertaking to attempt to read another’s mind. Only the humblest and the wisest can do this with some hope of deciphering a person’s inner world. And the task is even more daunting when we attempt to plumb Mary’s soul, the soul of a sinless human. We, who are sinners, how can we begin to imagine what it is to be sinless?

In today’s gospel reading we hear Mary make two astonishing statements which, uttered by anybody else, would be judged to be crass boasting. “People, forever, will call me blessed. The Mighty One has done great things for me.” But on the lips of Mary these two statements simply express the naked, unadorned truth.

And here we are given an opportunity to revise once and for all our notion of humility. Taking our cue from Mary, the humblest creature who ever lived, we discover (finally!)that truth and humility are the two sides of the same coin. If you are a genius and you deny it from fear of appearing boastful, then you area liar!

Humility consists in acknowledging the truth, but also in praising God as the source of your brains.

martes
23 de diciembre^rd

John of Kanty

1^st Reading: Mal 3:1-4, 23-24:
“Now I am sending my messenger ahead of me, to clear the way; then, suddenly, the Lord, for whom you long, will enter the Sanctuary.

“The envoy of the Covenant which you so greatly desire, already comes, says Yahweh of hosts. Who can bear the day of his coming and remain standing when he appears? For he will be like fire in the foundry and like the lye used for bleaching. He will be as a refiner or a fuller. He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them, like gold and silver.

“So Yahweh will have priests who will present the offering as it should be. Then Yahweh will accept with pleasure the offering of Judah and Jerusalem, as in former days. I am going to send you the prophet Elijah before the day of Yahweh comes, for it will be a great and terrible day. He will reconcile parents with their children, and the children with their parents, so that I may not have to curse this land when I come.”

Gospel: Lk 1:57-66:
When the time came for Elizabeth, she gave birth to a son. Her neighbors and relatives heard that the merciful Lord had done a wonderful thing for her, and they rejoiced with her. When, on the eighth day, they came to attend the circumcision of the child, they wanted to name him Zechariah after his father. But his mother said, “Not so; he shall be called John.”

They said to her, “But no one in your family has that name!” and they made signs to his father for the name he wanted to give him.

Zechariah asked for a writing tablet, and wrote on it, “His name is John;” and they were very surprised. Immediately, Zechariah could speak again, and his first words were in praise of God.

A holy fear came on all in the neighborhood, and throughout the hill country of Judea the people talked about these events. All who heard of it, pondered in their minds, and wondered, “What will this child be?” For they understood that the hand of the Lord was with him.

Reflexión:
In his play Romeo and Juliet (II, 1-2), Shakespeare makes Juliet ask: “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”

This view of things is thoroughly Western, for in the Bible a name is considered very important. It is not a mere identity tag. It has a mysterious affinity with its bearer, it can even predict the kind of person he or she will be. It often expresses religious belief or a prayer of petition.

Today’s gospel reading revolves around what name should be given to Zechariah’s child. Zechariah in Hebrew means “Yahweh remembers.” But in the Bible this name is ambiguous. In some contexts it refers to a remembrance by God of a person’s sins and with a view to punishing that person.

On the other hand, the name John (Yehohanan in Hebrew) means “Yahweh is gracious,” a name much more fitting in the circumstances than the name Zechariah.

Besides, the orders of the angel Gabriel were clear: “You shall name him John” (Lk 1:13) What’s in a name? A lot. Do you know why you were given your name? Any connection with God, by chance?

miércoles
24 de diciembre^th

Nochebuena

1^st Reading: 2 S 7:1-5, 8b-12, 14a, 16:
When the king had settled in his palace and Yahweh had rid him of all his surrounding enemies, he said to Nathan the prophet, “Look, I live in a house of cedar but the Ark of God is housed in a tent.”

Nathan replied, “Do as it seems fit to you for Yahweh is with you.”

But that very night, Yahweh’s word came to Nathan, “Go and tell my servant David, this is what Yahweh says: … I took you from the pasture, from tending the sheep, to make you commander of my people Israel. … Now I will make your name great, as the name of the great ones on earth. I will provide a place for my people Israel and plant them that they may live there in peace. They shall no longer be harassed, nor shall wicked men oppress them as before. … Yahweh also tells you that he will build you a house. … Your house and your reign shall last forever before me, and your throne shall be forever firm.”

Gospel: Lk 1:67-79:
Zechariah, filled with the Holy Spirit, sang this canticle: “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has come and redeemed his people. In the house of David his servant, he has raised up for us a victorious Savior; as he promised through his prophets of old, salvation from our enemies and from the hand of our foes.

“He has shown mercy to our fathers; and remembered his holy Covenant, the oath he swore to Abraham, our father, to deliver us from the enemy, that we might serve him fearlessly, as a holy and righteous people, all the days of our lives.

“And you, my child, shall be called Prophet of the Most High, for you shall go before the Lord, to prepare the way for him, and to enable his people to know of their salvation, when he comes to forgive their sins. This is the work of the mercy of our God, who comes from on high, as a rising sun, shining on those who live in darkness and in the shadow of death, and guiding our feet into the way of peace.”

Reflexión:
In psychiatry, we learn that one way for the psyche to protect itself from pain is to project on others the psyche’s inner fears, guilt, shame, desires or any painful and inadmissible impulse. We find something of this defense mechanism operating in all the people connected with Jesus (except possibly Mary). They all see Jesus as a great king who will free Israel of the detested Roman forces occupying Palestine.

For example, in today’s gospel reading, which features Zechariah’s canticle, Zechariah refers to the coming Messiah as to “a victorious Savior” who will provide “salvation from our enemies” and who will “deliver us from the enemy.” All this is true of Jesus, except that the enemy he has come to war against is sin. He has come to rid us of our pride, our selfishness, our hypocrisy, and so on.

That is the inner enemy that we have problem recognizing and confessing. Instead we project our inner enemy onto a political enemy, much easier to deal with. As the comic strip character Pogo (author: Walt Kelly) says, “We have met the enemy and he is us.”

jueves
December 25th

día de Navidad

1^st Reading: Is 52:7-10:
How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings glad tidings, announcing peace, bearing good news, announcing salvation, and saying to Zion, “Your God is King!”

Hark!  Your sentinels raise a cry, together they shout for joy, for they see directly, before their eyes, the Lord restoring Zion. Break out together in song, O ruins of Jerusalem! For the Lord comforts his people, he redeems Jerusalem. The Lord has bared his holy arm in the sight of all the nations; all the ends of the earth will behold the salvation of our God.

2^nd Reading: Heb 1:1-6:
Hermanos y hermanas:
In times past, God spoke in partial and various ways to our ancestors through the prophets; in these last days, he has spoken to us through the Son, whom he made heir of all things and through whom he created the universe, who is the refulgence of his glory, the very imprint of his being, and who sustains all things by his mighty word.

When he had accomplished purification from sins, he took his seat at the right hand of the Majesty on high, as far superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs. For to which of the angels did God ever say: You are my son; this day I have begotten you? Or again: I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me? And again, when he leads the firstborn into the world, he says: Let all the angels of God worship 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 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. (…) 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. (…)

Reflexión:
As we greet each other today “Merry Christmas”, it is good to remember the coming into flesh or the incarnation of the Word. The eternal word of God becomes flesh and dwells in us. This is a reinforcement of his promise to redeem His people. The first reading from Isaiah tells us: “the Lord comforts his people, he redeems Jerusalem”. This indeed is truly realized in the mystery of incarnation.

 “God has spoken to us through His Son, whom he made heir of all things” (2nd Reading). Heavenly father, in you, who have revealed yourself through Your Son Jesus, we have received our redemption and opened up the gates of eternal life. May we be conscious that we who have been gifted with salvation, may also become a sign of Your Son’s presence- a testimony of the God’s presence in our midst.

viernes
26 de diciembre^th

Stephen

1^st Reading: Acts 6:8-10; 7:54-59:
Stephen, filled with grace and power, was working great wonders and signs among the people. Certain members of the so-called Synagogue of Freedmen, Cyrenians, and Alexandrians, and people from Cilicia and Asia, came forward and debated with Stephen, but they could not withstand the wisdom and the spirit with which he spoke. When they heard this, they were infuriated, and they ground their teeth at him.

But he, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked up intently to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” But they cried out in a loud voice, covered their ears, and rushed upon him together. They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him. The witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul.   As they were stoning Stephen, he called out “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.

Reflexión:
The disciple of the Apostles (which we technically call Church Father) by the name of Tertullian wonderfully describes “the blood of martyrs is the seed of Christianity”. Nowadays, we hear of persecuted Christians everywhere. Some are killed, some are judged, some are displaced and some are maligned. This is the same story we hear from the first reading today. St. Stephen, our first martyr, was stoned to death after preaching to the Jews the good news of Jesus.

They “cried out in a loud voice, covered their ears and rushed upon him together”. Jesus, in the gospel, inspires his disciples, that even in sufferings, the Spirit would come to their aid. The Spirit of Christmas reminds us that “God is on the side of the suffering” (JPII, Crossing the Threshold of Hope) and that “God who became flesh and dwelt among us would know understand the pangs of human suffering. Indeed, the blood of St. Stephen encourages us to look at Jesus. With Jesus, we may be persecuted, but we are not crushed (cf 1 Corinthians).

sábado
27 de diciembre^th

Juan

1^st 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.

Reflexión:
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…