Author Archives: Friar Musings

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About Friar Musings

Franciscan friar and Catholic priest at St. Francis of Assisi in Triangle, VA

Being Bethlehem

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I wasn’t too sure what to expect for my first Advent/Christmas in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya. Certainly, the slum in which I lived was devoid of any of the commercial excess.  There were no malls, no black Friday, none of the things mark the run-up to Christmas.  Occasionally, you could hear Christmas carols, traditional and tribal, float out of one of the wood sheds/tin roofed stores.  But most of the familiar western signs and markers that Christmas was coming were missing. Continue reading →

Benedictus

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Yesterday’s gospel asked of John the Baptist as a newborn: “What, then, will this child be?” For surely the hand of the Lord was with him.” (Luke 1:66) Today’s gospel answers the question: “Then Zechariah his father, filled with the holy Spirit, prophesied, saying: “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, … The praises to God are captured in Zechariah’s song, traditionally called the Benedictus from its first word in Latin. Continue reading →

Welcoming at Christmas

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The days of Christmas are quickly approaching, your shopping isn’t finished (…. maybe not started!), the end-of-year activities at work are reaching deadlines, the tree is not up, the kids have a school Christmas play tomorrow night (… “Mom, is my costume ready?”…what costume?), the toy drive at the church is ready to wrap and deliver packages (I think we signed up to help as a family? …. maybe?), and…and… oh my gosh, the in-laws are coming to stay with us this Christmas. Even amidst the momentary panic of “how will all this get done,” there is an ever-present awareness that we want to be hospitable, warm, and welcoming – not only to the in-laws but to all who come to our door during the holidays. Continue reading →

Birth of the Herald

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In today’s gospel we encounter the arrival of the son of Zechariah and Elizabeth into the world – the one who we know as John the Baptist. The account of John’s birth follows the pattern: birth + response + circumcision + naming + response. Represented in the structure and content of this sketch are the fulfillment of Gabriel’s words and Zechariah’s obedience to the angel. But it is the last verse that is the center of the story: “What then will this child become?” All the other verses lead up to and raise this question. Tomorrow’s gospel begins the process of answering it, locating John in the story of God’s redemption via Zechariah’s canticle, the Benedictus. Continue reading →

Celebrating Christmas

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crowds-at-mass

If your parish is like mine, Christmas Mass can be a bit crowded with most of the Masses standing-room-only and the parking situation about the same. So this Christmas, if you’re frustrated by crowded Masses, or packed parking lots, take a moment and pray for Catholics who long for the Eucharist. Our brothers and sisters for whom public celebration of our Holy Day makes them targets of additional persecution. May our Christmas prayers and wishes be with them.

Covenant and Kingdom

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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 →