Today marks the end of the Liturgical season of Christmas as we celebrate the beginning of the public ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. Throughout the Christmas season we have heard the titles and honorifics: Messiah, Wonder Counselor, Prince of Peace; but today, we hear the simple most intrinsic of all. This day the gospel proclaims the identity of Jesus: “This is my beloved Son.” (Mt 3:17). Continue reading
This coming Sunday is the 2nd Sunday of Ordinary Time in Lectionary Cycle A during which the Gospel of Matthew is the primary source of Sunday gospel readings. Having made that point, our gospel for today is taken from the Gospel of John. It is a well chosen gospel that follows our celebration of the Epiphany of the Lord in which the epiphenia or revelation of Jesus was the primary theme – one shared with our Sunday gospel. Continue reading
“We three kings of Orient are. Bearing gifts we traverse so far, field and fountain, moor and mountain, following yonder star.” So begins one of our familiar Christmas carols. At the end of the gospel account we are simply told that warned in a dream left by another way, not returning to Jerusalem and King Herod. They came expecting to find a newborn child within the settings of the royal court. They found a child born among the poor on the margins of life. The followed the light of a star to come before the One for whom the first reading proclaims: “Nations shall walk by your light, and kings by your shining radiance.” (Is 60:3) Now that the magi have encountered the Light of Christ, how will they walk into their unfolding future? What light will mark the pathway of their lives? I wonder if they no longer looked to the night sky for direction in their lives, but somehow looked to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob for how to live. What did their encounter with the Christ Child reveal to them? Continue reading
“Mary treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart” (Lk 2:19). I think there are times in our lives when the world comes at us relentlessly. There is a part of us that wants to understand the situations, dissect them, get to the core of it, so that we can be in control. In St. Luke’s telling of the coming of the Christ child, the events unfold at what may have been a frightening pace for Mary who was likely just a teenager. Once Mary gave her consent to God’s plan, the waves and tidal forces of salvation history swept her along at what must have been a dizzying pace. The events of the Annunciation and Visitation – had something similar happened in my life, I don’t think I would have treasured all these things and pondered them in my heart. But she did. Continue reading
Today’s gospel for the Saturday in the Octave of Christmas is the Prologue from the Gospel of John (1:1-18). The words are familiar and are the gospel for Christmas Mass during the Day. When musing about what to write, I kept coming back to opening lines of books or first chapters that made me want to read the rest. For me the most memorable comes from Norman Maclean and his masterpiece A River Runs Through It: Continue reading
Is your family holy? What makes a family holy? Most often when we think of families, we think of what makes them healthy – and that too is a good question, a good goal, and something worth time and energy to ensure. A family should want to be a place where its members feel welcomed, warm, embraced, safe, supported, loved and so much more. But do all those things – as good as they are – make a family holy? Continue reading
…Representative-elect George Santos of New York? His self-described actions are “embellishments.” According to Merriam Webster the word “embellish” means “to make something more appealing or attractive with fanciful or decorative details.” That is the core of advertising – using words to make the product more appealing, desirable, economic or some other key attribute to garner the potential buyer’s interest and ultimately for them to purchase the item. We might disagree with a product’s description, the embellishment, but we can agree their is an actual product. Back to George Santos. Continue reading
The gospel for today is one of my favorite passages: Luke 2, the Nunc Dimitis, or the encounter with Simeon in the Temple. The moniker of the passage comes from the opening words in the Latin Vulgate translation of the Bible: “Nunc dimittis servum tuum Domine, secundum verbum tuum in pace” – “Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared in sight of all the peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel.” (Luke 2:29-32)
The Nunc Dimittis is part of Night Prayers/Compline in the Divine Office of the Church. It is perhaps my favorite prayer of the day. They are may last words of every day.
It would be hard to follow the news and not be aware of the upcoming contentious election of the Speaker of the House of Representatives. The stew pot of politics is ripe with intrigue, posturing and backroom dealings. The Republican party has but a slim majority and within its own ranks there is deep division. There are at least six candidates who have indicated they plan to stand for election. Those that are “in the know” (and does not include me, not in this or any imaginable universe) assure us that this is likely to go into a contested ballot – despite assurances from the supposed front runner that he had adequate votes to clinch a first round victory of a simple majority. But happens if he does not? Continue reading
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