Catholic Caucus: Sunday Mass Readings, 10-21-03

Thus says the LORD: You, Bethlehem-Ephrathah too small to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel; whose origin is from of old, from ancient times. Therefore the Lord will give them up, until the time when she who is to give birth has borne, and the rest of his kindred shall return to the children of Israel. He shall stand firm and shepherd his flock by the strength of the LORD, in the majestic name of the LORD, his God; and they shall remain, for now his greatness shall reach to the ends of the earth; he shall be peace.

R. (4) Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved. O shepherd of Israel, hearken, from your throne upon the cherubim, shine forth. Rouse your power, and come to save us. R. Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved. Once again, O LORD of hosts, look down from heaven, and see; take care of this vine, and protect what your right hand has planted the son of man whom you yourself made strong. R. Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved. May your help be with the man of your right hand, with the son of man whom you yourself made strong. Then we will no more withdraw from you; give us new life, and we will call upon your name. R. Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.

Brothers and sisters: When Christ came into the world, he said: "Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; in holocausts and sin offerings you took no delight. Then I said, 'As is written of me in the scroll, behold, I come to do your will, O God.'"

First he says, "Sacrifices and offerings, holocausts and sin offerings, you neither desired nor delighted in." These are offered according to the law. Then he says, "Behold, I come to do your will." He takes away the first to establish the second. By this "will," we have been consecrated through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, "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."

From: Hebrews 10:5-10

Christ's Offering of Himself Has Infinite Value

[5] Consequently, when Christ came into the world, He said,
"Sacrifices and offerings Thou hast not desired, but a body hast Thou
prepared for Me; [6] in burnt offerings and sin offerings Thou hast
taken no pleasure. [7] Then I said, `Lo, I have come to do Thy will, O
God,' as it is written of Me in the roll of the book." [8] When He
said above, "Thou hast neither desired nor taken pleasure in
sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings" (these
are offered according to the law), [9] then He added, "Lo, I have come
to do Thy will." He abolishes the first in order to establish the
second. [10] And by that will we have been sanctified through the
offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

*
Commentary:

5-10. This passage carries a quotation from Psalm 40:7-8, but one
taken from the Greek translation, the Septuagint, not from the Hebrew.
Where the Hebrew says, "Thou hast opened My ears", the Greek reads, "a
body Thou hast prepared for Me". The difference is not substantial,
because the Hebrew expression points to the docility and obedience of
the speaker, who is the Messiah Himself. The Greek translation gives
the sentence a more general meaning: God has not only opened the ears
of the Messiah; He has given Him life as a man (cf. Philippians 2:7).
The words of this Psalm "allow us as it were to sound the unfathomable
depths of this self-abasement of the Word, His humiliation of Himself
for love of men even to death on the Cross [...]. Why this obedience,
this self-abasement, this suffering? The Creed gives us the answer:
'for us men and for our salvation' Jesus came down from Heaven so as
to give man full entitlement to ascend (to Heaven) and by becoming a
son in the Son to regain the dignity he lost through sin [...]. Let
us welcome Him. Let us say to Him, `Here I am; I have come to do Your
will'" ([Pope] John Paul II, "General Audience", 25 March 1981).

The author of the letter, elaborating on the text of the psalm,
asserts that the Messiah's sacrifice is greater than the sacrifices of
the Old Law, unbloody as well as bloody, sin-offerings as well as
burnt offerings as they were called in the liturgy (cf. Leviticus 5;6;
7:27). The sacrifice of Christ, who has "come into the world", has
replaced both kinds of ancient sacrifice. It consisted in perfectly
doing the will of His Father (cf. John 4:34; 6:38; 8:29; 14:31), even
though He was required to give His life to the point of dying on
Calvary (Matthew 26:42; John 10:18; Hebrews 5:7-9). Christ "came into
the world" to offer Himself up to suffering and death for the
redemption of the world. "He knew that all the sacrifices of goats
and bulls offered to God in ancient times were incapable of making
satisfaction for the sins of men; He knew that a divine person was
needed to do that [...]. My Father (Jesus Christ said), all the
victims offered You up to this are not enough and never will be enough
to satisfy Your justice; You gave Me a body capable of experiencing
suffering, so that You might be placated by the shedding of My blood,
and men thereby saved; `"ecce venio", here I am, ready; I accept
everything and in all things do I submit to Your will'. The lower
part of His human nature naturally felt repugnance and reacted against
living and dying in so much pain and opprobium, but its rational part,
which was fully subject to the Father's will, had the upper hand; it
accepted everything, and therefore Jesus Christ began to suffer, from
that point onwards, all the anguish and pain which He would undergo in
the course of His life. That is how our Divine Redeemer acted from
the very first moments of His coming into the world. So, how should
we behave towards Jesus when, come to the use of reason, we begin to
know the sacred mysteries of Redemption through the light of faith?"
(St. Alphonsus, "Advent Meditations", II, 5).

The Psalm speaks of "the roll of the book": this may refer to a
specific book or else to the Old Testament in general (cf. Luke 24:27;
John 5;39, 46, 47).

*
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text
taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries
made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of
Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock,
Co. Dublin, Ireland.

From: Luke 1:39-45

The Visitation

[39] In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill
country, to a city of Judah, [40] and she entered the house of
Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. [41] And when Elizabeth heard the
greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was
filled with the Holy Spirit [42] and she exclaimed with a loud cry,
"Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!
[43] And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should
come to me? [44] For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to
my ears, the babe in my womb leaped for joy. [45] And blessed is she
who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to
her from the Lord."

*
Commentary:

39-56. We contemplate this episode of our Lady's visit to her cousin
St. Elizabeth in the Second Joyful Mystery of the Rosary: "Joyfully
keep Joseph and Mary company...and you will hear the traditions of the
House of David.... We walk in haste towards the mountains, to a town
of the tribe of Judah (Luke 1:39).

"We arrive. It is the house where John the Baptist is to be born.
Elizabeth gratefully hails the Mother of her Redeemer: Blessed are you
among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be
honored with a visit from the mother of my Lord? (Luke 1:42-43).

"The unborn Baptist quivers...(Luke 1:41). Mary's humility pours
forth in the "Magnificat".... And you and I, who are proud--who were
proud--promise to be humble" ([St] J. Escriva, "Holy Rosary").

39. On learning from the angel that her cousin St. Elizabeth is soon
to give birth and is in need of support, our Lady in her charity
hastens to her aid. She has no regard for the difficulties this
involves. Although we do not know where exactly Elizabeth was living
(it is now thought to be Ain Karim), it certainly meant a journey into
the hill country which at that time would have taken four days.

From Mary's visit to Elizabeth Christians should learn to be caring
people. "If we have this filial contact with Mary, we won't be able
to think just about ourselves and our problems. Selfish personal
problems will find no place in our mind" ([St] J. Escriva, "Christ Is
Passing By,"
145).

42. St. Bede comments that Elizabeth blesses Mary using the same words
as the archangel "to show that she should be honored by angels and by
men and why she should indeed be revered above all other women" ("In
Lucae Evangelium Expositio, in loc.").

When we say the "Hail Mary" we repeat these divine greetings,
"rejoicing with Mary at her dignity as Mother of God and praising the
Lord, thanking Him for having given us Jesus Christ through Mary"
("St. Pius X Catechism", 333).

43. Elizabeth is moved by the Holy Spirit to call Mary "the mother of
my Lord", thereby showing that Mary is the Mother of God.

44. Although he was conceived in sin--original sin--like other men,
St. John the Baptist was born sinless because he was sanctified in his
mother's womb by the presence of Jesus Christ (then in Mary's womb)
and of the Blessed Virgin. On receiving this grace of God St. John
rejoices by leaping with joy in his mother's womb--thereby fulfilling
the archangel's prophecy (cf. Luke 1:15).

St. John Chrysostom comments on this scene of the Gospel: "See how new
and how wonderful this mystery is. He has not yet left the womb but
he speaks by leaping; he is not yet allowed to cry out but he makes
himself heard by his actions [...]; he has not yet seen the light but
he points out the Sun; he has not yet been born and he is keen to act
as Precursor. The Lord is present, so he cannot contain himself or
wait for nature to run its course: he wants to break out of the prison
of his mother's womb and he makes sure he witnesses to the fact that
the Savior is about to come" ("Sermo Apud Metaphr., Mense Julio").

45. Joining the chorus of all future generations, Elizabeth, moved by
the Holy Spirit, declares the Lord's Mother to be blessed and praises
her faith. No one ever had faith to compare with Mary's; she is the
model of the attitude a creature should have towards its
Creator--complete submission, total attachment. Through her faith,
Mary is the instrument chosen by God to bring about the Redemption; as
Mediatrix of all graces, she is associated with the redemptive work of
her Son: "This union of the Mother with the Son in the work of
salvation is made manifest from the time of Christ's virginal
conception up to His death; first when Mary, arising in haste to go to
visit Elizabeth, is greeted by her as blessed because of her belief in
the promise of salvation and the Precursor leaps with joy in the womb
of his mother [...]. The Blessed Virgin advanced in her pilgrimage of
faith and faithfully persevered in her union with her Son unto the
cross, where she stood (cf. John 19:25), in keeping with the Divine
Plan, enduring with her only-begotten Son the intensity of His
suffering, associating herself with His sacrifice in her mother's
heart, and lovingly consenting to the immolation of this Victim which
was born of her" (Vatican II, "Lumen Gentium", 57f).

The new Latin text gives a literal rendering of the original Greek
when it says "quae credidit" (RSV "she who has believed") as opposed
to the Vulgate "quae credidisti" ("you who have believed") which gave
more of the sense than a literal rendering.

Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text
taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries
made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of
Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock,
Co. Dublin, Ireland.

Sunday, December 21, 2003

Meditation
Luke 1:39-45

Readings

We all know people who try to guess what is in a present before opening it. Shaking the package, feeling its shape, even smelling it, can provide clues that heighten the anticipation. When Elizabeth saw Mary, the unseen gifts of the children in their wombs responded to one another’s presence. The baby in Elizabeth’s womb leaped for joy, and she herself was filled with the Holy Spirit. This was one case where there was no need to guess about the gift that Mary brought with her. In her heart, Elizabeth recognized that Mary was bearing her Messiah.

This is how the Holy Spirit works. He meets us where we are and, as we allow him, draws us beyond ourselves into the divine life for which we were born. Our hearts can leap with joy when we move from knowing the truth of the gospel intellectually to experiencing it in our spirits. People who are loving caregivers for the elderly or for children with special needs realize the blessings that flow from embracing these responsibilities. When they speak about the way their work has taught and blessed them, we know they are speaking out of experience, not just theory. The same can happen for us as we press on to know the Lord.

At Mass, we can know in our minds that the bread and wine become the body and blood of Jesus. But God wants to give us more than an external observation of his miracle. As we let the Spirit move in us, we can experience Jesus personally at Communion. We can become engulfed in the overflowing love of a God who would send his only Son to die and rise for our salvation. An experience of this kind of love will move us to worship and adoration. It will also move us to love Christ in others by treating them with the same love he has shown to us.

The Holy Spirit doesn’t want us to just rattle and squeeze God’s gifts. He wants us to experience all that God has in store for us. Learning to recognize his movements will fill us with joy, just as it did for Elizabeth. Trust in God’s promises, and you too will see signs of the Spirit all around you.

“Father, I want to know you to the depth of my being. Help me to experience the joy your Holy Spirit wants to reveal in your presence.”

One Bread, One Body

<< Sunday, December 21, 2003 >> Fourth Sunday of Advent

Micah 5:1-4
Hebrews 10:5-10 Psalm 80
Luke 1:39-45
View Readings

READY OR NOT — HERE HE COMES

“Who am I that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” —Luke 1:43

Are you ready to meet Christ in a new, deep, personal, intimate, life-changing way this Christmas season? How do you know whether you have let the Lord prepare you this Advent for the real Christmas?

If you can truthfully say that you come to each day and each circumstance of life not to do your will but the Lord’s will (see Heb 10:9; Ps 40:8-9; Jn 6:38; Mt 26:39), then you are ready for Christ’s coming, Christmas, and life. If you are doing your own thing, then you’re not ready.

If you are like Mary, visiting others to share Christ and the Holy Spirit (see Lk 1:39ff), you are ready for Christ this Christmas. But if you’re keeping Christ to yourself, do you love Him? How can you fail to speak of someone you love?

If you’re not ready for Christ this Christmas, there is hope. There are four more days of Advent. In these precious days, you can receive the grace to repent, forgive, love, and obey. You can have Christmas, but you must first live to serve Him and to share His love.

Prayer: Father, send the Holy Spirit to make me like Mary, who will help me to be like Jesus.
Promise: “Therefore the Lord will give them up, until the time when she who is to give birth has borne.” —Mi 5:2
Praise: “O Radiant Dawn, Splendor of eternal light, Sun of justice: come, shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death.”

Homily of the Day

Title: The Emptiness Will Be Filled
Author: Monsignor Dennis Clark, Ph.D.
Date: Sunday, December 21, 2003

Lk 1:39-45

There was a terrible shipwreck and only one man survived, cast ashore on a tiny island with nothing but the clothes on his back. For a while he hoped for rescue. But in time he knew he had to make a life there on the island. And that is what he did. He taught himself to fish and hunt, to garden and cook, and he built himself a charming little cottage overlooking the bay. He even carved a tiny flute which he played every night after supper.

One day he hiked to the top of the mountain at the center of the island to see what he could see. As he reached the top, what he saw was a tower of smoke and his little cottage going up in flames.

He ran down the mountain as fast as he could. But it was too late. The cottage was in ashes — and his flute, his garden, his tools, his bow and arrows — everything he'd made with his own hands was gone, all gone!

He wept. He raged. He cursed God. He despaired. And finally, as night came, he collapsed on the sand and fell into a deep sleep.

The next morning he was awakened by sailors who had rowed ashore from a great ship to rescue him. "But," he exclaimed, "how
after all this time did you know I was here?"

"Ah," said the captain, "we saw the smoke from your signal fire."

+ + + +

When all seems lost and we can feel our emptiness and feel our aloneness, God has a way of surprising us. If our hearts are open, God has a way of filling us in a way we'd least expect.

That's the story of Sunday's gospel. Elizabeth, a childless old woman, and Mary, a peasant girl with no prospects, come together in a tiny country village to share a secret that no one else yet knows: God has not left them empty.

As they meet, God is filling the two of them with new life that will be a joy for all their people and that remains a joy for us today. And so they hug and kiss and cry for joy because they know that God has not forgotten His people or left them empty. And He never will.

Jesus is God's living promise never to abandon or forget us, but always to be a life giver for us. He can give us life even in the worst and emptiest of times, even when all seems lost, if we let Him — if we let go of the inner barriers of despair, anger, and distrust. He can open the doors of a new world for us and fill our emptiness full — just as He did for Mary and Elizabeth. He can do all that if we let Him.

So let us pray with confident hearts:

Come, Lord Jesus, come now.
Take away our emptiness.
Fill us with Your presence and make us Your own! Amen.

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