Epiphany of the Lord

Today's feast speaks of the manifestation or revelation of the Lord to the Gentiles which is what the overwhelming majority of Catholics are. This, technically speaking, is our Christmas moment whereas the messianic Jews, who adhere to the Mosaic law while recognising Jesus to be the Messiah promised in the Scriptures, have for themselves the epiphany made to the shepherds on Christmas night. Their epiphany was brought about through the angels who announced the birth of the Lord. The wise men, for their part, begin their journey to Jesus through their use of ancient science and natural reason. Crucially they recognise the limits on their knowledge and their need of supernatural revelation through the prophecies of the Jewish Scriptures. Herod, who was son of an Idumean father and an Arab mother, uses the Scripture also but for evil ends in his attempt to locate and kill the infant Jesus - born to be King of the Jews. When we look at our own journey of faith we can see that people encounter God and come to faith in Jesus Christ in different ways: prayer, moral conduct, reading the Bible, teachings of the Pope, lives of the saints, the example given by Catholics of their acquaintance, Catholic schools, personal revelation, etc. All of them, regardless of the ways in which they came to faith, need to have the courage to journey so as to find and encounter Christ for themselves, acknowledge him with joy and pay him homage. The gifts we bring are the assent of the faith, the love of our hearts and the bouquet of good deeds.

Mary, Mother of God

The Second Reading today is admirable for its brevity yet profundity. In four verses of text the process of Incarnation, adoption and divinisation is summarized. All of these were necessary so the damage inflicted on humans relationship with God, inflicted by the disobedience of our first parents, might be not only healed but transformed. Jesus is born of a woman, thereby taking on our nature, pours out from the Cross the Holy Spirit, also manifested at Pentecost, so that we might take on the divine nature. Already created in the "image and likeness of God" (Gen 1: 26) we are offered the gift of sharing in the life of God, with its power over sin and death, revealed in the Resurrection. This happens through faith: "But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he (Christ) gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God." (Jn 1: 12) 

The consent of Mary of Nazareth was vital to this whole mystery as God would not force salvation upon us. Rather, he willed to save us out of an obedience and love freely given. Mary's "yes" was a form of death for her as she willingly gave up control of her life by submitting completely to God's plan such that she stood at the foot of the Cross to suffer with him. Since she became Mother of God, by conceiving her divine Son, it means, as St Paul points out, that we can cry out "Abba! Father!" (Gal. 4: 6). The corollary of this is that we can therefore cry out "Mary, Mother" and thus share in Mary's joy and love. In baptism we are made children of God: "Dearly beloved, this child has been reborn in baptism. He (she) is now called the child of God, for so indeed he (she) is." (Liturgy for the Baptism of an Infant). Mary's role does not end in her physical/spiritual motherhood since through her virtues she is our exemplar and through her intercession she is our most powerful spiritual aid. 

Pope Paul VI wrote when he declared Mary Mother of the Church: "Mary is the Mother of the Church not only because she is the Mother of Christ and His most intimate associate in "the new economy when the Son of God took a human nature from her, that He might in the mysteries of His flesh free man from sin," but also because "she shines forth to the whole community of the elect as a model of the virtues."... The Holy Virgin, in fact, though rejoicing in the union of the august Trinity, does not forget her Son's advancing, as she herself did in the "pilgrimage of the faith". Indeed, contemplating them in God and clearly seeing their necessities, in communion with Jesus Christ, "who continues forever and is therefore able at all times to intercede for them," she makes herself their Advocate, Auxiliatrix, Adjutrix and Mediatrix." (Signum Magnum, Part I). Rightly, then, we honour her with great filial affection on this Solemnity.

Christmas Message

Recently I was driving in my car and I heard on the radio the song Santa Claus is Coming to Town sung by Bruce Springsteen. Some of the lyrics go like this:

You better watch out
You better not cry
You better not pout
I'm telling you why
Santa Claus is coming to town

He's making a list,
He's checking it twice,
He's gonna find out who's naughty or nice
Santa Claus is coming to town

He sees you when you're sleeping
And he knows when you're awake
He knows if you've been bad or good
So be good for goodness sake

As jolly as the music may be the lyrics are opposed to the Christian idea of Christmas. The inspiration for Santa Claus, Saint Nicholas, was famous for giving gifts to the poor and undeserving anonymously. The Gospel speaks of God as the best of fathers: “If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” (Mtt 7: 10-11) Not only that, he sends his gifts on people regardless of their worthiness: “... for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” (Mtt 5: 45)

The coming of Christ is all about grace – the undeserved kindness of God: “But God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ – by grace you have been saved – and raised up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that  in the ages to come he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God – not the result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Eph. 2: 4-9)

Mass at Christmas gives us an opportunity to name grace at work in our lives and to give thanks for it. The primary place for this is in our families which are gifts from God since we do not choose them and yet, whether linked by blood ties or not, we feel profound love, nostalgia and gratitude at this time. In fact, many people who do not share in the Christian faith, would say that Christmas, for them, is all about family. Isn’t it amazing how these seemingly random collections of human beings are a cause for such deeply felt emotions?

We can also think of the grace we have experienced through our church family especially if we  are without relatives close to us at this time. In fact, we can be brought to know, in a very special way, how we are called to be instruments of grace to others and a dwelling place for the divine: “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together spiritually into the dwelling place of God” (Eph. 2: 19-22)

Thanks to Christ we all belong and we all matter. 

Happy Christmas everyone!

4th Sunday of Advent

Today we get two different responses to subjective revelation. One descendant of King David, King Ahaz in Jerusalem, receives a message from God and refuses to even contemplate it. The other, a humble builder/carpenter (Gk tekton) in Nazareth, encounters an angel from the Lord in a dream and acts on the information given him. In fact, the man we know as St Joseph is a man of action who does not utter a word in the whole of Scripture (note that it is Mary who speaks when they find Jesus in the Temple) yet his actions are pivotal in ensuring that Jesus is kept safe and grows up in a stable household. The major difference between the two men is that Joseph is a "righteous man." He has always sought to do God's will and he does so on this occasion even at considerable personal cost and anguish. He is humble yet decisive. Sometimes we feel prompted to do things yet we cannot understand what God is asking of us or what the consequences will be. Nevertheless, we must have the courage to act in accord with the Gospel and in good conscience when prompted by the Holy Spirit or other forms of spiritual influence. Spiritual direction is helpful but it is useless for me unless I have a desire to be obedient to the Lord.  

3rd Sunday of Advent

Today is often referred to in the liturgy as Gaudete Sunday. This is taken from the Entrance Antiphon from the Roman Missal for the Third Sunday of Advent: "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice. Indeed the Lord is near." (Lat. Gaudete in Domino semper. Iterum dico: Gaudete! ... Dominus prope) (Phil. 4: 4-5) It signals a change from the more penitential start to Advent, which focussed on the Second Coming of Christ, to look forward to the celebration of the Incarnation at Christmas. Hence, the rose colour of the vestments which moderates the severity of the purple. A question I can ask myself is whether I feel joy in my life? Also, where does that joy come from? Paul exhorts us to rejoice in the Lord. We are not told to rejoice in gifts, tinsel, large meals, Christmas trees, etc even family. The joy we feel in Christ cannot be taken from us. It is the gift of Christmas just as peace is the gift of the resurrection. Regardless of my personal circumstances I pray we can all join with Our Lady in saying: "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant." (Lk 1: 46-48) 

Feast of the Immaculate Conception

The Feast of the Immaculate Conception is one of the great celebrations of how God honoured Mary of Nazareth such that: "Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed." (Lk 1: 48) This feast affirms that Mary was conceived without the stain of Original Sin. This sin, incurred by our original parents, is part of the human condition and means that we are born with a damaged relationship with God and capacity to live according to his law. For most of us the healing of this wound is brought about through baptism. The Rite of Baptism for Infants states: "We pray for this child: set him (her) free from original sin, make him (her) a temple of your glory, and send your Holy Spirit to dwell with him (her)." For Mary this was a reality from the moment of her conception, which occurred in the usual way. This feast has a long history however it was made a Holy Day of Obligation as late as 1708 and declared to be a dogma of the Church on 8 December 1854. The mystery of God's grace and action in the world is indeed a profound one and this is the case in the life of Our Lady. The mystery is made even more awesome when we consider that the woman who appeared to the fourteen year old peasant girl, Bernadette Soubirous, at Lourdes on 25 March 1858, was asked the question: "Would you kindly tell me who you are?" "Bernadette repeated her question twice more, and then the Lady, joining her hands on her breast and raising her eyes to heaven answered: 'Que soy era Immaculado Conceptiou,' 'I am the Immaculate Conception.' " (Taken from Butler's Lives of the Saints, Vol I)