These reflections are a result of more than 40 years of ministry as a Roman Catholic priest. Most of these years I spent in the Diocese of Charlotte which covers Western North Carolina. Now I am retired, and live in Medellín, Colombia where I continue to serve as a priest in the Archdiocese of Medellín.
Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, "Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled." (Lk 1:39-45)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/122124.cfm
Elizabeth speaks for us all when she asks why “the mother of my Lord should come to me?” Yet Mary comes bearing the most precious gift. May we share Mary’s faith who trusted “that what was spoken by the Lord would be fulfilled.”
Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word." Then the angel departed from her. (Lk 1:26-38)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/122024.cfm
Like Zechariah, Mary also had a question about how all this was to take place. Unlike Zechariah who is punished with being unable to speak, Mary responds to the angel Gabriel with: May it be done to me according to your word. It’s probably best NOT to tick off Gabriel!
I am Gabriel, who stand before God. I was sent to speak to you and to announce to you this good news. But now you will be speechless and unable to talk until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled at their proper time. (Lk 1:5-25)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/121924.cfm
What a perfect punishment for a priest . . . Zechariah will be mute until the birth of John the Baptist! As we continue to read the Infancy Gospels in Matthew and Luke in this last part of Advent, the time of the O Antiphons, we hear again the promise that God fulfills in the coming of the Christ. In honor of the Root of Jesse, today’s photo is of the Duffee Oak in Mobile, Alabama.
Responsorial Psalm (Psalm 72)
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
For he shall rescue the poor when he cries out, and the afflicted when he has no one to help him.
He shall have pity for the lowly and the poor; the lives of the poor he shall save.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/121824.cfm
In a world run by billionaires, justice for the poor has never been very popular. Yet, it is precisely the poor, the lowly and the afflicted who have the heart of the One whose coming we await. Perhaps this Season of Advent offers us the opportunity to open our hearts as well.
The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. (Mt 1:1-17)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/121724.cfm
Today begins the second part of Advent, the time of the O Antiphons. I remember one of the catechists in Mexico whose last name was very liturgical: De la O (of the O Antiphons!). Doing the family genealogy is always fascinating and sometimes shocking because of the little details that are discovered. Even the Lord has grandparents, great grandparents and great great grandparents with stories to tell! Today's photo is of my family tree.
