LETTER AND ACTIVITY SHEET
JAN 7 - 26, 2020
Link to PDF document of Activity Sheet and Letter
Monday, January 6, 2020
Home Visit Letter & Activity Sheet @ St. Vincent
HOME VISIT
LETTER AND ACTIVITY SHEET
JAN 7 - 26, 2020
Link to PDF document of Activity Sheet and Letter
LETTER AND ACTIVITY SHEET
JAN 7 - 26, 2020
Link to PDF document of Activity Sheet and Letter
Sunday, January 5, 2020
Epiphany @ St. Vincent
HOMILY - EPIPHANY
JANUARY 5, 2020
7:30 AM, 10:30 AM (SUN) ORDINARY FORM MASS
Henry Van Dyke - a Presbyterian minister, author, and statesman - was born in 1830 in Germantown, Pennsylvania. He taught English Literature at Princeton University and lectured at the University of Paris. President Woodrow Wilson appointed him Minister to the Netherlands and Luxembourg. He also wrote the lyrics for the hymn “Joyful Joyful We Adore Thee,” which many of us are familiar with.
Van Dyke wrote two Christmas stories: The First Christmas Tree - in 1897; and before that The Other Wise Man - in 1896.
In the story, The Other Wise Man, Van Dyke writes about a fictional fourth wise man who it would seem was always a little bit behind schedule.
On his way to rendezvous with the three magi, he stops to help a dying man - and so is late. By the time he arrives, the caravan has set out across the desert. He is forced to sell 1/3 of his treasure to finance his own journey to Bethlehem.
When he arrives in Bethlehem, it is in the midst of the slaughter of the innocents by King Herod - which we commemorated three days after Christmas. The Holy Family has already fled to Egypt; and this wise man again uses 1/3 of his treasure to save the life of a child by paying off the troops sent to kill the children.
For thirty-three years he travels around - always just a few steps behind Jesus - living his life as a pilgrim and as one seeking for Jesus. When he finally finds Jesus, it is in Jerusalem ... on Good Friday. He is again distracted, using the last 1/3 of his treasure to ransom a young woman from being sold into slavery.
At the death of Jesus, the earth shakes, and our wise man is trapped under a falling stone at the temple. He feels that he has failed in his life’s quest - never meeting Jesus ... and spending his treasure which was intended for the Christ Child so many years before.
As he is dying - besot with remorse - he hears a voice that tells him:
As we approach this altar to receive the Sacred Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ; let us pray for the graces to truly be renewed by God’s presence among us. May we recognize Christ in our daily lives … in the people that we encounter … and may we be His hands and His feet … His mouth and His ears … in the world in which we live.
JANUARY 5, 2020
7:30 AM, 10:30 AM (SUN) ORDINARY FORM MASS
Henry Van Dyke - a Presbyterian minister, author, and statesman - was born in 1830 in Germantown, Pennsylvania. He taught English Literature at Princeton University and lectured at the University of Paris. President Woodrow Wilson appointed him Minister to the Netherlands and Luxembourg. He also wrote the lyrics for the hymn “Joyful Joyful We Adore Thee,” which many of us are familiar with.
Van Dyke wrote two Christmas stories: The First Christmas Tree - in 1897; and before that The Other Wise Man - in 1896.
In the story, The Other Wise Man, Van Dyke writes about a fictional fourth wise man who it would seem was always a little bit behind schedule.
On his way to rendezvous with the three magi, he stops to help a dying man - and so is late. By the time he arrives, the caravan has set out across the desert. He is forced to sell 1/3 of his treasure to finance his own journey to Bethlehem.
When he arrives in Bethlehem, it is in the midst of the slaughter of the innocents by King Herod - which we commemorated three days after Christmas. The Holy Family has already fled to Egypt; and this wise man again uses 1/3 of his treasure to save the life of a child by paying off the troops sent to kill the children.
For thirty-three years he travels around - always just a few steps behind Jesus - living his life as a pilgrim and as one seeking for Jesus. When he finally finds Jesus, it is in Jerusalem ... on Good Friday. He is again distracted, using the last 1/3 of his treasure to ransom a young woman from being sold into slavery.
At the death of Jesus, the earth shakes, and our wise man is trapped under a falling stone at the temple. He feels that he has failed in his life’s quest - never meeting Jesus ... and spending his treasure which was intended for the Christ Child so many years before.
As he is dying - besot with remorse - he hears a voice that tells him:
Verily I say unto thee,That is, despite what appeared to be failures to achieve his own life’s goal, he had lived out the Beatitudes in his acts of mercy and charity. And in that sense, had not only met Jesus - but had served as the hands and feet of Christ in the world.
Inasmuch as thou hast done it
unto one of the least of these my brethren,
thou hast done it unto me.
As we approach this altar to receive the Sacred Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ; let us pray for the graces to truly be renewed by God’s presence among us. May we recognize Christ in our daily lives … in the people that we encounter … and may we be His hands and His feet … His mouth and His ears … in the world in which we live.
Wednesday, January 1, 2020
Octave Day of the Nativity @ St. Eugene Cathedral
HOMILY - THE OCTAVE DAY OF THE NATIVITY OF OUR LORD
JANUARY 1, 2020
5:30 PM (WED) EXTRAORDINARY FORM MASS
Leon Allatius was the librarian of the Vatican Library from 1661 until his death in 1669. He was a convert from Greek Orthodoxy, having been born on the island of Chios – a Greek territory situated off the coast of what is now Turkey. These days, it is famous for its production of “mastic gum,” a natural resin that is used in chewing gum and various other health care products.
Today is the Octave Day of the Nativity of Our Lord.
Several years ago, my sainted mother asked me, “What ever happened to the Feast of the Circumcision?”
And indeed, it remained on the Roman Calendar from the Council of Trent until 1962 – a period of 392 years. While it originally rose to prominence as a feast day in the 13th and 14th century.
One can presume from the writings of the council Fathers and the liturgists of the 1950s and 1960s that there was a desire to cast away anything that was not considered “modern” or “up to date.” In many cases, what ended up was the proverbial throwing out the baby with the bathwater. One need only view science fiction from that era and compare it to something the likes of Star Wars to realize that the perceived future from the midcentury point of the 20th century comes across as extremely dated.
So, in an effort to “update” things, after a venerable period of at most 600 years and at least just under 400 years, the name of the feast was changed; although the Gospel was not. Thus the one line in the entire Gospel is about naming of Our Lord on the eighth day following His Circumcision.
So much for updates.
And, in the calendar promulgated in 1969, in order to try to keep things tidier, the concilium chose to resurrect a feast dating from the 7th century – namely the revered title of Our Lady, Mother of God.
Oddly, it seemed to escape those esteemed fathers that this was one of the four Marian Dogma. And we all know that there’s nothing less controversial than Marian Theology, let alone dogma.
And for the record, as recently as 14 years ago, in the Italian town of Calcata in Viterbo, a relic of this feast was paraded through the streets on January 1st. Sadly, in 2006, the reliquary – and the enclosed relic – were stolen by thieves; and a 2013 National Geographic documentary was unable to find any remaining relics related to today’s feast.
And what about Leon Allatius, the Vatican librarian in the 17th century?
In his own efforts to be “up to date,” Allatius allegedly proposed the theory that at Our Blessed Lord’s Ascension, all of those cast away bits of His body – fingernail clippings, hair clippings, baby teeth, and indeed the after product of the feast we celebrate today – ascended with Him, and took orbit around the planet Saturn as its rings.
So much for being modern, or in Allatius’s case – a Renaissance man.
Nonetheless, the Fathers of the Church point out that Our Lord fulfilled every letter of the Mosaic Law. And here, eight days after Christmas we celebrate that fact.
The early fathers also point out that Our Lord, even as an infant, was not opposed to shedding His Most Precious Blood for our sins. And that this feast of His Circumcision was one of His first opportunities to do so.
As we approach this altar to receive the Sacred Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ – let us remember that what has been given to us in tradition and custom forms a logical whole. And while not all that glitters is gold, not all that seems modern to us will be so in the future.
May you have a blessed and happy New Year.
JANUARY 1, 2020
5:30 PM (WED) EXTRAORDINARY FORM MASS
Leon Allatius was the librarian of the Vatican Library from 1661 until his death in 1669. He was a convert from Greek Orthodoxy, having been born on the island of Chios – a Greek territory situated off the coast of what is now Turkey. These days, it is famous for its production of “mastic gum,” a natural resin that is used in chewing gum and various other health care products.
Today is the Octave Day of the Nativity of Our Lord.
Several years ago, my sainted mother asked me, “What ever happened to the Feast of the Circumcision?”
And indeed, it remained on the Roman Calendar from the Council of Trent until 1962 – a period of 392 years. While it originally rose to prominence as a feast day in the 13th and 14th century.
One can presume from the writings of the council Fathers and the liturgists of the 1950s and 1960s that there was a desire to cast away anything that was not considered “modern” or “up to date.” In many cases, what ended up was the proverbial throwing out the baby with the bathwater. One need only view science fiction from that era and compare it to something the likes of Star Wars to realize that the perceived future from the midcentury point of the 20th century comes across as extremely dated.
So, in an effort to “update” things, after a venerable period of at most 600 years and at least just under 400 years, the name of the feast was changed; although the Gospel was not. Thus the one line in the entire Gospel is about naming of Our Lord on the eighth day following His Circumcision.
So much for updates.
And, in the calendar promulgated in 1969, in order to try to keep things tidier, the concilium chose to resurrect a feast dating from the 7th century – namely the revered title of Our Lady, Mother of God.
Oddly, it seemed to escape those esteemed fathers that this was one of the four Marian Dogma. And we all know that there’s nothing less controversial than Marian Theology, let alone dogma.
And for the record, as recently as 14 years ago, in the Italian town of Calcata in Viterbo, a relic of this feast was paraded through the streets on January 1st. Sadly, in 2006, the reliquary – and the enclosed relic – were stolen by thieves; and a 2013 National Geographic documentary was unable to find any remaining relics related to today’s feast.
And what about Leon Allatius, the Vatican librarian in the 17th century?
In his own efforts to be “up to date,” Allatius allegedly proposed the theory that at Our Blessed Lord’s Ascension, all of those cast away bits of His body – fingernail clippings, hair clippings, baby teeth, and indeed the after product of the feast we celebrate today – ascended with Him, and took orbit around the planet Saturn as its rings.
So much for being modern, or in Allatius’s case – a Renaissance man.
Nonetheless, the Fathers of the Church point out that Our Lord fulfilled every letter of the Mosaic Law. And here, eight days after Christmas we celebrate that fact.
The early fathers also point out that Our Lord, even as an infant, was not opposed to shedding His Most Precious Blood for our sins. And that this feast of His Circumcision was one of His first opportunities to do so.
As we approach this altar to receive the Sacred Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ – let us remember that what has been given to us in tradition and custom forms a logical whole. And while not all that glitters is gold, not all that seems modern to us will be so in the future.
May you have a blessed and happy New Year.
Saturday, December 28, 2019
Holy Family @ St. Vincent
HOMILY - THE HOLY FAMILY OF JESUS, MARY, AND JOSEPH
DECEMBER 28/9, 2019
5:00 PM (SAT), 9:00 AM (SUN) ORDINARY FORM MASSES
Born in 1894 in Surrey, England; Aldous Huxley was the author of nearly 50 books – both fiction and non-fiction.
He was a humanist and a pacifist, with interests in mysticism and universalism. In all, he was nominated for a Nobel Prize seven times; and widely acknowledged as one of the foremost intellectuals of his day.
His fifth and most famous novel, and his first dystopian work, was titled Brave New World.
In this work, a World State has created an imposed stability through genetic engineering, and medical and psychological manipulation. Yet, it maintains order by obliterating the individual, and destroying and discouraging strong bonds and relationships with others.
Words such as family, mother, father, brother, or sister have become obsolete; and their use is even considered perverse and obscene.
While we may consider family as our some of our strongest bonds and our family relations have given us the roots of our identities; in Huxley’s novel, the World State demands quite the opposite. And by manipulating language, individuals thoughts and ideas are manipulated; and ultimate control is exerted.
Today is the Sunday after Christmas, since 1969 known as The Feast of the Holy Family.
Devotion to the Holy Family can be traced to the 16th century. By the end of the 19th century, Pope Leo XIII approved this feast, and encouraged Christian families to dedicate and consecrate themselves to the Holy Family.
Pope Benedict XV extended the celebration of the feast to the entire Church in 1921, as the Sunday after Epiphany. And in 1969, it assumed its current location in the liturgical calendar.
In the early 12th century, St. Bernard of Clairvaux wrote,
Our First Reading from the Book of Sirach is a commentary on the Fourth Commandment, namely:
We hear in St. Paul’s Epistle to the Colossians, the text leading up to the parallel of Ephesian’s chapter 5. While the text may sound old-fashioned to our modern ears, twenty-five years ago in my Naval training, we were taught:
The key to any of this is relationship. The term ‘family’ can be considered and examined through both macroscopic and microscopic lenses. Whether it’s a nuclear family, an extended family, a community – large or small – the family of the Church, or the human race … we are all part of some sort of family.
Considering that the roots of the English word ‘holy’ are the same as the words ‘whole’ and ‘healthy’ – our membership(s) in the various families to which we may belong … complete us and make us whole.
Through the intercession of the Holy Family – Jesus, Mary, and Joseph – may we obtain the grace to give and take in a ordered way … and grow in our human relationship. And may the Eucharist we receive today – Body, and Blood; Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ – unite us ever more closely with God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
DECEMBER 28/9, 2019
5:00 PM (SAT), 9:00 AM (SUN) ORDINARY FORM MASSES
Born in 1894 in Surrey, England; Aldous Huxley was the author of nearly 50 books – both fiction and non-fiction.
He was a humanist and a pacifist, with interests in mysticism and universalism. In all, he was nominated for a Nobel Prize seven times; and widely acknowledged as one of the foremost intellectuals of his day.
His fifth and most famous novel, and his first dystopian work, was titled Brave New World.
In this work, a World State has created an imposed stability through genetic engineering, and medical and psychological manipulation. Yet, it maintains order by obliterating the individual, and destroying and discouraging strong bonds and relationships with others.
Words such as family, mother, father, brother, or sister have become obsolete; and their use is even considered perverse and obscene.
While we may consider family as our some of our strongest bonds and our family relations have given us the roots of our identities; in Huxley’s novel, the World State demands quite the opposite. And by manipulating language, individuals thoughts and ideas are manipulated; and ultimate control is exerted.
Today is the Sunday after Christmas, since 1969 known as The Feast of the Holy Family.
Devotion to the Holy Family can be traced to the 16th century. By the end of the 19th century, Pope Leo XIII approved this feast, and encouraged Christian families to dedicate and consecrate themselves to the Holy Family.
Pope Benedict XV extended the celebration of the feast to the entire Church in 1921, as the Sunday after Epiphany. And in 1969, it assumed its current location in the liturgical calendar.
In the early 12th century, St. Bernard of Clairvaux wrote,
God, to whom angels submit themselves and who principalities and powers obey, was subject to Mary; and not only to Mary but Joseph also for Mary’s sake [….]. God obeyed a human creature; this is humility without precedent. A human creature commands God; it is sublime beyond measure.
Our First Reading from the Book of Sirach is a commentary on the Fourth Commandment, namely:
Honor your father and your mother.Our Lord exemplifies this commandment through His humble submission to his human parents. Humility is a difficult concept for anyone, and it would do us good to contemplate the immense sublimity “humility without precendent” of Christ.
We hear in St. Paul’s Epistle to the Colossians, the text leading up to the parallel of Ephesian’s chapter 5. While the text may sound old-fashioned to our modern ears, twenty-five years ago in my Naval training, we were taught:
To be a good leader, you must know how to be a good follower.
The key to any of this is relationship. The term ‘family’ can be considered and examined through both macroscopic and microscopic lenses. Whether it’s a nuclear family, an extended family, a community – large or small – the family of the Church, or the human race … we are all part of some sort of family.
Considering that the roots of the English word ‘holy’ are the same as the words ‘whole’ and ‘healthy’ – our membership(s) in the various families to which we may belong … complete us and make us whole.
Through the intercession of the Holy Family – Jesus, Mary, and Joseph – may we obtain the grace to give and take in a ordered way … and grow in our human relationship. And may the Eucharist we receive today – Body, and Blood; Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ – unite us ever more closely with God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Tuesday, December 24, 2019
Christmas @ St. Vincent
HOMILY - THE NATIVITY OF THE LORD
DECEMBER 24/5, 2019
10:00 PM (TUE), 9:00 AM (WED) ORDINARY FORM MASSES
In his 2008 book A Portrait of the Brain, British neurologist Dr. Adam Zeman uses neurological case histories to illustrate the various layers of the brain; zooming out from atoms, to genes; proteins; to organelles; neurons to synapses; neural networks and lobes; ending with the psyche and soul. In all he provides an interesting introduction to neurology for a general audience.
In the Epilogue, titled O Magnum Mysterium, Dr. Zeman reflects on how “music speaks so directly to our feelings … [and] keys readily and powerfully into the brain’s activity.” Concluding that because music is both “mathematical and mindful” that we are enraptured by it because “we, ourselves, are music.” And at least because “our brains are governed by a constant interplay of rhythms.”
Indeed, even with all that science – the complex processes and complicated wiring of (this thing up here) – the human brain remains a mystery.
As an example Dr. Zeman refers to his own euphoric intoxication upon hearing Morton Lauridsen’s 1994 setting of O Magnum Mysterium. Lauridsen has been called “the only American composer in history who can be called a mystic”.
For the record, O Magnum Mysterium is the fourth responsory, occuring in the second nocturn of Christmas Matins. The text and it’s chant are at least 1,000 years old. It has been set in choral polyphony by both Palestrina and Victoria in the 16th century, as well as Ivo Antognini in the 21st century.
Translated into English it reads:
Today is Christmas.
And whether you are hear because gramma said so, or because it’s your annual trek to the 100 year old hard pews of St. Vincent’s. In the very least, I hope that the rhythms and melodies of the familiar carols have brought you here.
As the music speaks to your feelings; allow the prayers and chant; the incense and bells to key into your brain’s activity and stir you into a heightened mindfulness.
Because today is Christmas. The culmination of 4,000 years of divine promise and mystery; played out in the liturgical rhythms of the Mass in Word and Sacrament. For the past 2,000 years.
Tune into this magnificent mystery. Encounter Christ Jesus in this admirable Sacrament.
For,
Merry Christmas.
Visuals used to highlight points in homily graphically.
DECEMBER 24/5, 2019
10:00 PM (TUE), 9:00 AM (WED) ORDINARY FORM MASSES
In his 2008 book A Portrait of the Brain, British neurologist Dr. Adam Zeman uses neurological case histories to illustrate the various layers of the brain; zooming out from atoms, to genes; proteins; to organelles; neurons to synapses; neural networks and lobes; ending with the psyche and soul. In all he provides an interesting introduction to neurology for a general audience.
In the Epilogue, titled O Magnum Mysterium, Dr. Zeman reflects on how “music speaks so directly to our feelings … [and] keys readily and powerfully into the brain’s activity.” Concluding that because music is both “mathematical and mindful” that we are enraptured by it because “we, ourselves, are music.” And at least because “our brains are governed by a constant interplay of rhythms.”
Indeed, even with all that science – the complex processes and complicated wiring of (this thing up here) – the human brain remains a mystery.
As an example Dr. Zeman refers to his own euphoric intoxication upon hearing Morton Lauridsen’s 1994 setting of O Magnum Mysterium. Lauridsen has been called “the only American composer in history who can be called a mystic”.
For the record, O Magnum Mysterium is the fourth responsory, occuring in the second nocturn of Christmas Matins. The text and it’s chant are at least 1,000 years old. It has been set in choral polyphony by both Palestrina and Victoria in the 16th century, as well as Ivo Antognini in the 21st century.
Translated into English it reads:
O great mystery, and wonderful sacrament, that animals should see the newborn Lord,lying in a manger.
Blessed is the virgin whose wombwas worthy to bearthe Lord, Jesus Christ.It evokes the imagery so familiar to us, which has its roots in the third verse of the prophet Isaiah; and is tied in with the second verse of Philippians in St. Paul’s hymn to the humility of Our Lord.
Today is Christmas.
And whether you are hear because gramma said so, or because it’s your annual trek to the 100 year old hard pews of St. Vincent’s. In the very least, I hope that the rhythms and melodies of the familiar carols have brought you here.
As the music speaks to your feelings; allow the prayers and chant; the incense and bells to key into your brain’s activity and stir you into a heightened mindfulness.
Because today is Christmas. The culmination of 4,000 years of divine promise and mystery; played out in the liturgical rhythms of the Mass in Word and Sacrament. For the past 2,000 years.
Tune into this magnificent mystery. Encounter Christ Jesus in this admirable Sacrament.
For,
Today is born our Savior, Christ the Lord.Blessed are you, for your eyes have seen and your ears have heard,
good news of great joy that [is] for all the people.
Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.Welcome home.
Merry Christmas.
Visuals used to highlight points in homily graphically.
Sunday, December 22, 2019
4th Sunday of Advent @ St. Vincent
HOMILY - FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT
DECEMBER 22, 2019
7:30 AM, 10:30 AM (SUN) ORDINARY FORM MASSES
Based on a 15th century French funeral procession, the origins of the tune to the hymn O Come, O Come, Emmanuel were discovered in 1966 by an British Augustinian canoness and musicologist named Mother Thomas Moore Berry.
The text has more ancient origins – dating from perhaps well before the 9th century.
The Latin text as we know it comes from a 1710 hymnal, and the English translation from the middle 1800s.
Each of the seven verses contains a title for the coming Messiah, foretold in various Scriptural prophecies.
The titles are also featured in the Gospel (Magnificat) antiphons of Evening Prayer (Vespers) in the Liturgy of the Hours for the last seven days leading up to Christmas.
The titles, which begin the countdown to the Nativity, are: Wisdom from on High, Lord of Israel, Root of Jesse, Key of David, Rising Dawn (Sun), King of the Nations, and Emmanuel.
And so, today’s title is King of the Nations, and the text of the Evening Prayer antiphon for today is:
The last title, Emmanuel, which is in the final antiphon, comes from a Hebrew word meaning “God is with us.”
We hear this title repeated throughout the liturgy for this Sunday.
In the prophecy of Isaiah – where Isaiah confronts Ahaz, doing his own thing despite being told otherwise by the Lord. In an attempt to feign humility, Ahaz gets on Isaiah’s nerves … and according to Isaiah, God’s nerves.
If Ahaz keeps this up, he will be the last king in the line of David … until such time as:
St. Matthew, begins his Gospel with “the genealogy of Jesus” listing out 40 generations from Abraham to Joseph and Mary. In the section we heard today, he ties everything back to the one prophecy we heard in the first reading.
According to some Bible scholars, there are over 300 messianic prophecies in Scripture that are fulfilled in Jesus. The probability that all of these could be randomly fulfilled in one man is astronomical.
As we approach this altar to receive the Sacred Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, and as we move toward the completion of this holy season of Advent and into the Christmas season … let us recognize in Jesus Christ our desire, and our cornerstone; our Savior, and our newborn King.
DECEMBER 22, 2019
7:30 AM, 10:30 AM (SUN) ORDINARY FORM MASSES
Based on a 15th century French funeral procession, the origins of the tune to the hymn O Come, O Come, Emmanuel were discovered in 1966 by an British Augustinian canoness and musicologist named Mother Thomas Moore Berry.
The text has more ancient origins – dating from perhaps well before the 9th century.
The Latin text as we know it comes from a 1710 hymnal, and the English translation from the middle 1800s.
Each of the seven verses contains a title for the coming Messiah, foretold in various Scriptural prophecies.
The titles are also featured in the Gospel (Magnificat) antiphons of Evening Prayer (Vespers) in the Liturgy of the Hours for the last seven days leading up to Christmas.
The titles, which begin the countdown to the Nativity, are: Wisdom from on High, Lord of Israel, Root of Jesse, Key of David, Rising Dawn (Sun), King of the Nations, and Emmanuel.
And so, today’s title is King of the Nations, and the text of the Evening Prayer antiphon for today is:
O King of the nations, and their desire,the cornerstone making both one:Come and save the human race, which you fashioned from clay.As a bit of medieval trivia, when read backwards in sequence, the first letter for the seven titles in Latin spells out the Latin phrase “I am coming tomorrow.”
The last title, Emmanuel, which is in the final antiphon, comes from a Hebrew word meaning “God is with us.”
We hear this title repeated throughout the liturgy for this Sunday.
In the prophecy of Isaiah – where Isaiah confronts Ahaz, doing his own thing despite being told otherwise by the Lord. In an attempt to feign humility, Ahaz gets on Isaiah’s nerves … and according to Isaiah, God’s nerves.
If Ahaz keeps this up, he will be the last king in the line of David … until such time as:
the virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel.
St. Matthew, begins his Gospel with “the genealogy of Jesus” listing out 40 generations from Abraham to Joseph and Mary. In the section we heard today, he ties everything back to the one prophecy we heard in the first reading.
According to some Bible scholars, there are over 300 messianic prophecies in Scripture that are fulfilled in Jesus. The probability that all of these could be randomly fulfilled in one man is astronomical.
As we approach this altar to receive the Sacred Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, and as we move toward the completion of this holy season of Advent and into the Christmas season … let us recognize in Jesus Christ our desire, and our cornerstone; our Savior, and our newborn King.
Sunday, December 15, 2019
3rd Sunday of Advent @ St. Vincent de Paul
HOMILY - THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT
DECEMBER 15, 2019
7:30 AM, 10:30 AM (SUN) ORDINARY FORM MASSES
In India, there is a story - perhaps it’s more of a parable - about six blind men and an elephant. Maybe you’ve heard it before ... or maybe you’ve heard the poem written by American Poet John Godfrey Saxe.
The premise is that each of the six blind men approach the elephant from a different perspective. One grabs a leg and reports that an elephant is like a pillar; another feels the tail says an elephant is like a rope; one feels the trunk says the elephant is like a snake; one feels the ear says the elephant is like a fan; another feels the side and says the elephant is like a wall; and the last who feels the tusk says the elephant is like a spear.
Each of them had a perspective, but none of them had the whole story.
Today is the Third Sunday of Advent.
In today’s Gospel, we hear that John the Baptist sends his disciples to figure out who Jesus is. Now, remember - John was the one who baptized Jesus, saw the Holy Spirit descend on Jesus like a dove, heard the voice of God the Father call Jesus His Son. And John himself called Jesus “the Lamb of God.”
So what’s going on here? Realize that at this point, John is locked away in prison, and we can only imagine what challenges he is experiencing in a first century middle-eastern prison cell. John’s faith, which came so easily with the vision of the Spirit, and hearing God’s voice ... is being tested. So he sends his disciples to check up on what he once was so sure of. Perhaps, too, some of his disciples were giving him bits and pieces of what Jesus was saying or doing ... and John wanted a better perspective ... that is, John wanted to get the whole story.
In the First Reading, Israel is overrun by the Assyrians. The Prophet Isaiah gives them a vision of what will happen when the Messiah - the Anointed One - the Christ - will come. And this is exactly the message Jesus sends back to John.
Yet this restoration ... this transformation by God’s grace to a new sort of wholeness ... which has never been seen before ... is more than a prosperous farm in the desert ... or a miraculous hospital for the infirm.
Rather, as St. James reminds us in the Epistle, it is also an inner transformation ... a transformation of our hearts ... and our minds ... and our souls.
A key thing to remember here, is that God doesn’t zap us into submission, but rather He patiently waits for us to catch up to His way of doing things, to become aware of His presence in our lives and in ourselves ... God waits for us to give Him permission ... to allow Him ... to change our hearts, and our minds, and our souls.
This is the ‘big picture’ of salvation ... the ‘whole story’ of holiness. And we know that the promises God made throughout Sacred Scripture are fulfilled in the Person of His Son Jesus Christ. That is why we celebrate this Four Week period of spiritual preparation each year in anticipation of the Great Feast of the Nativity of Our Lord ... that is, Christmas.
We need to take this time ... so that through prayer, penance, and sacrifice ... we might be strengthened in Faith, Hope, and Love ... so that we can better persevere through the hardships of this life ... and wait on the Lord with patience, and with forbearance.
As we approach this altar to receive the Sacred Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ ... let us pray for the graces to be patient in waiting on the Lord ... and for the Lord’s time ... for the things we desire to receive from Him. And let us also pray that we might be made ready to receive the wholeness ... the holiness ... the whole package of Salvation in God through Jesus Christ. As we pass the half-way point, and head into the ‘home stretch’ of this time of prayer and preparation ... this Advent 2013 ... may we accept God’s grace to help us to be transformed from who we are ... into the holy people that God has called us to become in Christ Jesus Our Lord.
DECEMBER 15, 2019
7:30 AM, 10:30 AM (SUN) ORDINARY FORM MASSES
In India, there is a story - perhaps it’s more of a parable - about six blind men and an elephant. Maybe you’ve heard it before ... or maybe you’ve heard the poem written by American Poet John Godfrey Saxe.
The premise is that each of the six blind men approach the elephant from a different perspective. One grabs a leg and reports that an elephant is like a pillar; another feels the tail says an elephant is like a rope; one feels the trunk says the elephant is like a snake; one feels the ear says the elephant is like a fan; another feels the side and says the elephant is like a wall; and the last who feels the tusk says the elephant is like a spear.
Each of them had a perspective, but none of them had the whole story.
Today is the Third Sunday of Advent.
In today’s Gospel, we hear that John the Baptist sends his disciples to figure out who Jesus is. Now, remember - John was the one who baptized Jesus, saw the Holy Spirit descend on Jesus like a dove, heard the voice of God the Father call Jesus His Son. And John himself called Jesus “the Lamb of God.”
So what’s going on here? Realize that at this point, John is locked away in prison, and we can only imagine what challenges he is experiencing in a first century middle-eastern prison cell. John’s faith, which came so easily with the vision of the Spirit, and hearing God’s voice ... is being tested. So he sends his disciples to check up on what he once was so sure of. Perhaps, too, some of his disciples were giving him bits and pieces of what Jesus was saying or doing ... and John wanted a better perspective ... that is, John wanted to get the whole story.
In the First Reading, Israel is overrun by the Assyrians. The Prophet Isaiah gives them a vision of what will happen when the Messiah - the Anointed One - the Christ - will come. And this is exactly the message Jesus sends back to John.
Yet this restoration ... this transformation by God’s grace to a new sort of wholeness ... which has never been seen before ... is more than a prosperous farm in the desert ... or a miraculous hospital for the infirm.
Rather, as St. James reminds us in the Epistle, it is also an inner transformation ... a transformation of our hearts ... and our minds ... and our souls.
A key thing to remember here, is that God doesn’t zap us into submission, but rather He patiently waits for us to catch up to His way of doing things, to become aware of His presence in our lives and in ourselves ... God waits for us to give Him permission ... to allow Him ... to change our hearts, and our minds, and our souls.
This is the ‘big picture’ of salvation ... the ‘whole story’ of holiness. And we know that the promises God made throughout Sacred Scripture are fulfilled in the Person of His Son Jesus Christ. That is why we celebrate this Four Week period of spiritual preparation each year in anticipation of the Great Feast of the Nativity of Our Lord ... that is, Christmas.
We need to take this time ... so that through prayer, penance, and sacrifice ... we might be strengthened in Faith, Hope, and Love ... so that we can better persevere through the hardships of this life ... and wait on the Lord with patience, and with forbearance.
As we approach this altar to receive the Sacred Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ ... let us pray for the graces to be patient in waiting on the Lord ... and for the Lord’s time ... for the things we desire to receive from Him. And let us also pray that we might be made ready to receive the wholeness ... the holiness ... the whole package of Salvation in God through Jesus Christ. As we pass the half-way point, and head into the ‘home stretch’ of this time of prayer and preparation ... this Advent 2013 ... may we accept God’s grace to help us to be transformed from who we are ... into the holy people that God has called us to become in Christ Jesus Our Lord.
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