Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary

The angel Gabriel said to Mary: “Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his Kingdom there will be no end.”

On today’s Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Gospel according to Luke describes a profound moment in human history, where Mary says yes to God. It is the quietest of meetings, Gabriel and Mary face to face. Is it possible that Gabriel knew of Mary’s immaculate conception, observing her life from the time she was born? Born without original sin, at the Annunciation, Mary was able to say yes wholeheartedly and without the same brokenness of spirit that we all confront because of sin. Mary’s yes undid that other conversation between an angel and a woman, the serpent and Eve, that took place in the Garden of Eden. Mary’s question—“How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?”—shows that for her it was not a question of whether God could make the incarnation happen but how it would happen. What would it take for me to give the same wholehearted response to God as Mary does?

Lord, as Gabriel tells Mary that Jesus will rule over the house of Jacob forever and that of his Kingdom there will be no end and that nothing is impossible for you, wouldn’t it have been understandable for Mary to question this? Wouldn’t any one of us say, “Wait; stop right there. I will bear a son whose kingdom will never end? I need a minute.” Instead, Mary simply says, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Almighty God, grant me the grace of complete confidence in your power and glory.

Thank you, God, for the Blessed Virgin Mary’s yes. Her fiat—“May it be done to me according to your word.”— is the royal road to the Incarnate Word, Jesus your Son. Lord, let me know and do your will for the praise of your glory. Blessed Mary, Mother of God, pray for us!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Readings

https://youtu.be/2W-KSOPWWBY

Memorial of Saint Ambrose, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

Jesus said to the crowds: “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus invites those who hear him to come to him for rest, to take his yoke upon them and learn from him. Jesus doesn’t say he will remove the burden. What, then, does he mean by asking us to take his yoke upon him? Traditionally, a yoke is a heavy beam placed between animals such as oxen to allow them to pull a load together. Jesus offers rest by sharing his yoke with us, to lighten the load, to learn from him to be meek and humble of heart. The yoke Jesus offers is easy; in it, there is no escape from daily burdens but room to come to know who it is that walks beside us. On the feast of Saint Ambrose, a Doctor of the Church, let me remember to be attentive to the word of God in the work I do today and bring Christ into the most burdensome moments. Saint Ambrose, pray for us!

My instinct is to try to escape the yoke of daily routines bring and to lay my burdens down and rest. God, help guide me with the wisdom to know that these inescapable burdens are an opportunity to learn that you are beside me and to rest in the peace of your presence. Give me the grace today to strive in that hope with the yoke you offer me.

Lord, thank you for the gift of the burdens of this day that you give me to draw me closer to you, to have me work beside you. Stay with me! In the words of Saint Ambrose, “Let us take refuge from this world. You can do this in spirit, even if you are kept here in the body. You can at the same time be here and present to the Lord.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Readings

Tuesday of the Second Week of Advent

Jesus said to his disciples, “In just the same way, it is not the will of your heavenly Father that one of these little ones be lost.”

In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus tells his disciples the parable of the lost sheep. He asks their opinion of whether a shepherd would leave his ninety-nine sheep to go in search of the one gone astray. And if he finds it, Jesus says, “he rejoices more over it than over the ninety-nine that did not stray.” He says this to teach the disciples about the extraordinary love of the Father for his beloved children. Rather than pity the ones who are lost, I have to think about the times that I have gone astray and waited for God to come in power to save me. As the Gospel acclamation says: “The day of the Lord is near; Behold, he comes to save us.” As we celebrate the feast of Saint Nicholas today, I’m reminded of his generosity through his life of service to the needy, the sick, and the suffering. Is Santa real, I have to ask myself? As long as we celebrate the life of Saint Nicholas among the communion of saints, yes, Santa is real.

Help me understand, Lord, the words of the Our Father in daily life: “Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.” Life passes quickly, and the strength and resolve of youth is transitory. Isaiah’s beautiful words in the first reading calls this to mind: “All flesh is grass, and all their glory like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower wilts, when the breath of the LORD blows upon it. So then, the people is the grass. Though the grass withers and the flower wilts, the word of our God stands forever.” Keep me in your care, God, and close to your word—to the word made flesh.

Jesus, Good Shepherd, help me stay close to you today. I know I will go astray. As Saint Paul says, “For I do not do the good I want, but I do the evil I do not want.” Through your grace, keep me from the temptation that leads to sin and let me instead see and do your will. And when I fail, come find me and bring me back to you.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

https://youtu.be/wAxUK1Kn64E

Readings

Monday of the Second Week of Advent

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke

But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”–he said to the one who was paralyzed, “I say to you, rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home.” He stood up immediately before them, picked up what he had been lying on, and went home, glorifying God. Then astonishment seized them all and they glorified God, and, struck with awe, they said, “We have seen incredible things today.”

In today’s reading, as Jesus is teaching the Pharisees and scribes, the friends of a man who was paralyzed lowered him through the roof because they couldn’t make their way through the crowd. As soon as Jesus sees the man, he says to him: “As for you, your sins are forgiven.” The scribes and Pharisees see this as blasphemy because only God can forgive sins. But Jesus says to them: “What are you thinking in your hearts? Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’?” And immediately the man stood up and walked. As the Son of God, Jesus speaks reality into existence. He said to the man “Rise and walk,” and he rose and walked. The same goes for sins. As he speaks, so it is done. Sins are forgiven.

God, help me understand the power and authority you gave to your Son to release me from sin. As the Gospel Acclamation says, “Behold the king will come, the Lord of the earth, and he himself will lift the yoke of our captivity.” Sin and death bind and enslave, but through your Son they no longer have the last word because he destroyed death and canceled sin, restoring us to communion with you. And just as the crowd recognizes in the last words of today’s Gospel, I can also take in and respond to with joy: “We have seen incredible things today.”

Lord, give me the grace to carry that joy with me throughout the day. As Jesus the Divine Physician spoke healing and forgiveness into reality out of great love and mercy, I can choose to recognize that as the events of today unfold. As Padre Pio prayed in his prayer after Holy Communion: “Stay with me, Lord, for it is You alone I look for, Your Love, Your Grace, Your Will, Your Heart, Your Spirit, because I love You and ask no other reward but to love You more and more.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Readings

Sunday of the Second Week of Advent

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew

When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “"”You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance. And do not presume to say to yourselves, “‘We have Abraham as our father.’”

In today’s Gospel reading, John the Baptist was preaching the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven, the coming of Christ. Matthew says that people from the whole region around the Jordan were coming to John to be baptized. John, known as the forerunner of Christ, chastises the Pharisees and Sadducees to repentance, to make a complete turnaround: “For I tell you,” John says to them, “God can raise up children to Abraham from these stones. Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees.” Some commentaries on this passage suggest that the stones and dust of the earth are the dust from which God created man and woman. Their reliance on Abraham as their father, then, is not to replace the coming of the Son of God. What are the tenuous beliefs I hold onto that keep me from an authentic relationship with God?

Help me see clearly, Lord, my own overreliance in what is not you—adherence to beliefs that fail to lead to you. I want to understand that the Pharisees and Sadducees are not so remote in world history that they are irrelevant. Help me learn from them that pride in my own particular path to holiness is a dead end, is sin, the chaff that you separate from the wheat. As John says of you, Lord: “Therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.” Guide me in keeping with Christ so that with one voice with one another I may glorify you.

Jesus, as I receive you in the Eucharist today, let me give glory to your name. Be with me so that I can keep today holy. As the first reading beautifully describes the Kingdom of Heaven, fill me with the gift of your presence: “There shall be no harm or ruin on all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the LORD, as water covers the sea.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Readings

https://youtu.be/2W-KSOPWWBY