Monthly Archives: December 2022

Covenant and Kingdom

Posted on by
Reply

There is a story that is unfolding before our eyes as we turn the pages of the daily readings for Mass. On December 17, even as Matthew holds forth the genealogy of Jesus, he reminded us, that it was of Mary that Jesus was born. The liturgies of December 18 and 19 pointed to the parallelism of the Angel’s announcements to Joseph and Zechariah. On December 20 we encounter the core of the Annunciation gospel which is connected with Isaiah’s prophecy about the Virgin’s child. Yesterday, the unfolding story is told in the meeting of the two pregnant holy women: Elizabeth and Mary. We listened to Elizabeth’s characterization of Mary: she, who trusted, is to be called blessed. In today’s gospel we hear Mary’s response, the canticle known to us as the Magnificat. Continue reading →

Winter Weather Ahead…

Posted on by
1

Most places in the United State are facing a rough patch of weather leading up to Christmas. Here in Northern Virginia tomorrow (Thursday 12/22) will bring rain and a plunging of the temperatures from the 40s into the low teens. Christmas Day will be sunny!…with a high of 29 degrees. In case you wondering the Christmas Day forecast for Honolulu is a high of 82 degrees and mostly sunny. Los Angeles will be mostly sunny with a high of 79 degrees. Partly sunny and 74 in San Diego. Phoenix will be sunny and 70 degrees. Orlando/Disney World…. yeah, bring mittens, hat and jacket. Wherever you are or what ever destination is in your plans, have a safe, warm, and Merry Christmas.

Singing Angels?

Posted on by
5

Stores, offices, and all kinds of places are filled with the sound of familiar and heartening Christmas carols. Some local radio stations are all Christmas music all the time with classic and modern renditions of the secular and religious carols and songs – sometimes recorded by singing chipmunks. It becomes part of the ambiance of our Advent season; part of what readies us for the celebration of Christmas. Continue reading →

To whom the Word came

Posted on by
Reply

Today’s gospel is a familiar part of the Christmas story – the Angel Gabriel inviting Mary into the plans of God for redemption and salvation of the world. Given its proximity to Christmas, I suspect we quickly want to jump the 9 months and have our thoughts move quickly to the Nativity of Jesus. But let us put things on “pause” for a moment and savor the scene on its own – as have Da Vinci, Rembrandt, El Greco and countless iconographers over the ages. Continue reading →

It’s complicated

Posted on by
Reply

When I was younger, I didn’t mind complicated and messy – especially things that were puzzles to explore, solve, or unravel. I enjoyed things that provided creative moments in which new, imaginative solutions might emerge. But alas, I am no longer as young as I once was. I feel a part within me that longs for quiet, uncomplicated, resolved, still interesting, but not so messy and complicated as before. Continue reading →

Some Reflections

Posted on by
Reply

This coming Sunday is the 4th Sunday of Advent and includes the traditional gospel passage from Matthew in which we encounter the “annunciation” of Jesus’ birth to Joseph. The virginal conception of Jesus can not stand as a proof of the Christian claim that Jesus is the “Son of God.” It is not a matter of “proof” but trust.  Nor does Matthew seem to intend it as such. Matthew bases no theological claims upon the virgin birth and the birth is never again a reference in his gospel. Yet the claim of supernatural conception is not incidental. It is one of the ways Matthew has of confessing that Jesus is the Son of God. Matthew has others, e.g. the Apostle Peter confesses the fundamental Christian faith that Jesus is “the Christ, the son of the living God” (16:16) because it was revealed to him by God in heaven. In the whole of Scripture, for Matthew, the story of Jesus is speaking about God – that God is with us.

Matthew begins and ends his narrative with the fragile human life of Jesus surrounded by God in both the birth story and the Passion account – each of which points to God as the hidden actor of the deeper story. While the Passion narrative is essential, the birth story as a miracle is not. As provocative as that sounds, the virginal conception is not the proof or even the meaning of the Christian claim that Jesus is the “Son of God.” 

Image credit: Dream of St Joseph, c. 1625–1630, by Gerard Seghers | Kunsthistorisches Museum | Public Domain

For all that tomorrow brings…

Posted on by
Reply

There are lots of different ways to wait. Scripture has over 162 verses that describe all sorts and manners of waiting. I suspect you are familiar with a good portion of the different kinds of waiting – after all, we all wait. In the military, the common experience was to “hurry up and wait.” We all wait. It is a common experience, and yet there are differences in waiting. There is a difference between expectant, on the edge of your seat, waiting; the patient “it will happen in its own good time and there is nothing I can do about it” waiting; and the waiting of dread, tedium, and despair. I think our, “Are we ever gonna’ get there waiting,” because a flight to Europe can take 8+ hours, would fall on deaf ears for our ancestors who traveled months on boats to reach these distant shores. But things change, the world has sped up. Our culture demands fast food, fast cars, and fast answers. We are accustomed to having a world of information at our fingertips with laptops and smart phones. We expect pills that will immediately take the pain away…yesterday. We are not accustomed to waiting, and we do not like it. Continue reading →