Posted on 01/01/2007 9:17:40 AM PST by Salvation
Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, The Mother of God
Reading 1
Nm 6:22-27
The LORD said to Moses:
“Speak to Aaron and his sons and tell them:
This is how you shall bless the Israelites.
Say to them:
The LORD bless you and keep you!
The LORD let his face shine upon
you, and be gracious to you!
The LORD look upon you kindly and
give you peace!
So shall they invoke my name upon the Israelites,
and I will bless them.”
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8
R. (2a) May God bless us in his mercy.
May God have pity on us and bless us;
may he let his face shine upon us.
So may your way be known upon earth;
among all nations, your salvation.
R. May God bless us in his mercy.
May the nations be glad and exult
because you rule the peoples in equity;
the nations on the earth you guide.
R. May God bless us in his mercy.
May the peoples praise you, O God;
may all the peoples praise you!
May God bless us,
and may all the ends of the earth fear him!
R. May God bless us in his mercy.
Reading II
Gal 4:4-7
Brothers and sisters:
When the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son,
born of a woman, born under the law,
to ransom those under the law,
so that we might receive adoption as sons.
As proof that you are sons,
God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts,
crying out, “Abba, Father!”
So you are no longer a slave but a son,
and if a son then also an heir, through God.
Gospel
Lk 2:16-21
The shepherds went in haste to Bethlehem and found Mary and Joseph,
and the infant lying in the manger.
When they saw this,
they made known the message
that had been told them about this child.
All who heard it were amazed
by what had been told them by the shepherds.
And Mary kept all these things,
reflecting on them in her heart.
Then the shepherds returned,
glorifying and praising God
for all they had heard and seen,
just as it had been told to them.
When eight days were completed for his circumcision,
he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel
before he was conceived in the womb.
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Feast of Mary, Mother of God (not a Holy Day of Obligation this year)
MARIAN DEVOTION - Akathist Hymn to the Mother of God
A Homily on the Dormition of Our Supremely Pure Lady Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary
The month of January is traditionally dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus. This feast is also celebrated on January 3. Here is an explanation of the devotion.
Since the 16th century Catholic piety has associated entire months to special devotions. The devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus has been traditionally associated with the month of January, due to its celebration on January 3. The name Jesus was given to the Holy Child at God's command (Luke 1:31). The Holy Name is all-powerful because of the Person who bears it; we honor it because of the command of Christ, that we should pray in His Name and because it reminds us of all the blessings we receive through our Holy Redeemer. Hence St. Paul was able to write to the Philippians: ". . . at the name of Jesus every knee should bend of those in heaven, on earth, and under the earth" (Phil. 2:10). By means of this devotion we also make amends for improper use of the Holy Name.
Prayer Source: Prayer Book, The by Reverend John P. O'Connell, M.A., S.T.D. and Jex Martin, M.A., The Catholic Press, Inc., Chicago, Illinois, 1954
Prayer/Hymn in Honor of the Most Holy Name of Jesus - Iesu, Dulcis Memoria
Jesus, the very thought of Thee
With sweetness fills the breast!
Yet sweeter far Thy face to see
And in Thy presence rest.
No voice can sing, no heart can frame,
Nor can the memory find,
A sweeter sound than Jesus' name,
The Savior of mankind.
O hope of every contrite heart!
0 joy of all the meek!
To those who fall, how kind Thou art!
How good to those who seek!
But what to those who find? Ah! this
Nor tongue nor pen can show
The love of Jesus, what it is,
None but His loved ones know.
Jesus! our only hope be Thou,
As Thou our prize shalt be;
In Thee be all our glory now,
And through eternity. Amen.
---Roman Breviary
Prayer Source: Prayer Book, The by Reverend John P. O'Connell, M.A., S.T.D. and Jex Martin, M.A., The Catholic Press, Inc., Chicago, Illinois, 1954
O Divine Jesus, Thou hast promised that anything we ask of the Eternal Father in Thy name shall be granted.
O Eternal Father. In the name of Jesus, for the love of Jesus, in fulfillment of this promise, and because Jesus has said it, grant us our petitions for the sake of Jesus, Thy Divine Son. Amen.
Prayer Source: Prayer Book, The by Reverend John P. O'Connell, M.A., S.T.D. and Jex Martin, M.A., The Catholic Press, Inc., Chicago, Illinois, 1954
| First reading | Numbers 6:22 - 27 © |
|---|---|
| The Lord spoke to Moses and said, ‘Say this to Aaron and his sons: “This is how you are to bless the sons of Israel. You shall say to them: May the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord let his face shine on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord uncover his face to you and bring you peace.” This is how they are to call down my name on the sons of Israel, and I will bless them.’ | |
| Psalm or canticle: Psalm 66 |
| Second reading | Galatians 4:4 - 7 © |
|---|---|
| When the appointed time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born a subject of the Law, to redeem the subjects of the Law and to enable us to be adopted as sons. The proof that you are sons is that God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts: the Spirit that cries, ‘Abba, Father’, and it is this that makes you a son, you are not a slave any more; and if God has made you son, then he has made you heir. | |
| Gospel | Luke 2:16 - 21 © |
|---|---|
| The shepherds hurried away and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. When they saw the child they repeated what they had been told about him, and everyone who heard it was astonished at what the shepherds had to say. As for Mary, she treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds went back glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen; it was exactly as they had been told. When the eighth day came and the child was to be circumcised, they gave him the name Jesus, the name the angel had given him before his conception. |
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O God, come to my aid.
O Lord, make haste to help me.
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. Alleluia.
A suitable hymn may be inserted at this point.
| Psalm 23 (24) |
|---|
| The Lord comes to his temple |
| The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness, the world and all who live in it. He himself founded it upon the seas and set it firm over the waters. Who will climb the mountain of the Lord? Who will stand in his holy place? The one who is innocent of wrongdoing and pure of heart, who has not given himself to vanities or sworn falsely. He will receive the blessing of the Lord and be justified by God his saviour. This is the way of those who seek him, seek the face of the God of Jacob. Gates, raise your heads. Stand up, eternal doors, and let the king of glory enter. Who is the king of glory? The Lord of might and power. The Lord, strong in battle. Gates, raise your heads. Stand up, eternal doors, and let the king of glory enter. Who is the king of glory? The Lord of hosts – he is the king of glory. 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. |
| Psalm 86 (87) |
|---|
| Jerusalem, mother of all nations |
| Its foundations are set on the sacred mountains – the Lord loves the gates of Sion more than all the tents of Jacob. Glorious things are said of you, city of God! I shall count Rahab and Babylon among those who acknowledge me. The Philistines, Tyrians, Ethiopians – all have their birthplace here. Of Sion it will be said “Here is the birthplace of all people: the Most High himself has set it firm”. The Lord shall write in the book of the nations: “Here is their birthplace”. They will sing as in joyful processions: “All my being springs from 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. |
| Psalm 98 (99) |
|---|
| The Lord our God is holy |
| The Lord reigns! let the peoples tremble. He is enthroned on the cherubim: let the earth shake. The Lord is great in Sion, he is high above all the peoples. Let them proclaim his name – great and terrible it is, let them proclaim his holy name, the powerful king, who loves justice. The laws you establish are just: you have given Jacob uprightness and right judgement. Praise the Lord, our God, worship at his footstool, for he is holy. Moses and Aaron were among his prophets, Samuel one of those who called on him. They called on the Lord and he listened, and from the pillar of cloud he spoke to them. They kept his decrees and the commands he gave them. Lord our God, you listened to them; O God, you were gracious to them, but you punished their wrongdoing. Praise the Lord, our God, worship on his holy mountain, for the Lord our God is holy. 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. |
| Reading | © |
|---|---|
| We see in Jesus one who was for a short while made lower than the angels and is now crowned with glory and splendour because he submitted to death; by God’s grace he had to experience death for all mankind. As it was his purpose to bring a great many of his sons into glory, it was appropriate that God, for whom everything exists and through whom everything exists, should make perfect, through suffering, the leader who would take them to their salvation. For the one who sanctifies, and the ones who are sanctified, are of the same stock; that is why he openly calls them brothers in the text: I shall announce your name to my brothers, praise you in full assembly; or the text: In him I hope; or the text: Here I am with the children whom God has given me. Since all the children share the same blood and flesh, he too shared equally in it, so that by his death he could take away all the power of the devil, who had power over death, and set free all those who had been held in slavery all their lives by the fear of death. For it was not the angels that he took to himself; he took to himself descent from Abraham. It was essential that he should in this way become completely like his brothers so that he could be a compassionate and trustworthy high priest of God’s religion, able to atone for human sins. |
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| Reading | A letter of St Athanasius |
|---|---|
| The Word took our nature from Mary | |
| The Word took to himself the sons of Abraham, says the Apostle, and so had to be like his brothers in all things. He had then to take a body like ours. This explains the fact of Mary’s presence: she is to provide him with a body of his own, to be offered for our sake. Scripture records her giving birth, and says: She wrapped him in swaddling clothes. Her breasts, which fed him, were called blessed. Sacrifice was offered because the child was her firstborn. Gabriel used careful and prudent language when he announced his birth. He did not speak of “what will be born in you” to avoid the impression that a body would be introduced into her womb from outside; he spoke of “what will be born from you”, so that we might know by faith that her child originated within her and from her. By taking our nature and offering it in sacrifice, the Word was to destroy it completely and then invest it with his own nature, and so prompt the Apostle to say: This corruptible body must put on incorruption; this mortal body must put on immortality. This was not done in outward show only, as some have imagined. This is not so. Our Saviour truly became man, and from this has followed the salvation of man as a whole. Our salvation is in no way fictitious, nor does it apply only to the body. The salvation of the whole man, that is, of soul and body, has really been achieved in the Word himself. What was born of Mary was therefore human by nature, in accordance with the inspired Scriptures, and the body of the Lord was a true body: It was a true body because it was the same as ours. Mary, you see, is our sister, for we are all born from Adam. The words of St John, the Word was made flesh, bear the same meaning, as we may see from a similar turn of phrase in St Paul: Christ was made a curse for our sake. Man’s body has acquired something great through its communion and union with the Word. From being mortal it has been made immortal; though it was a living body it has become a spiritual one; though it was made from the earth it has passed through the gates of heaven. Even when the Word takes a body from Mary, the Trinity remains a Trinity, with neither increase nor decrease. It is for ever perfect. In the Trinity we acknowledge one Godhead, and thus one God, the Father of the Word, is proclaimed in the Church. |
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| Canticle | Te Deum |
|---|---|
| God, we praise you; Lord, we proclaim you! You, the Father, the eternal – all the earth venerates you. All the angels, all the heavens, every power – The cherubim, the seraphim – unceasingly, they cry: “Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of Hosts: heaven and earth are full of the majesty of your glory!” The glorious choir of Apostles – The noble ranks of prophets – The shining army of martyrs – all praise you. Throughout the world your holy Church proclaims you. – Father of immeasurable majesty, – True Son, only-begotten, worthy of worship, – Holy Spirit, our Advocate. You, Christ: – You are the king of glory. – You are the Father’s eternal Son. – You, to free mankind, did not disdain a Virgin’s womb. – You defeated the sharp spear of Death, and opened the kingdom of heaven to those who believe in you. – You sit at God’s right hand, in the glory of the Father. – You will come, so we believe, as our Judge. And so we ask of you: give help to your servants, whom you set free at the price of your precious blood. Number them among your chosen ones in eternal glory. Bring your people to safety, Lord, and bless those who are your inheritance. Rule them and lift them high for ever. Day by day we bless you, Lord: we praise you for ever and for ever. Of your goodness, Lord, keep us without sin for today. Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy on us. Let your pity, Lord, be upon us, as much as we trust in you. In you, Lord, I trust: let me never be put to shame. 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. |
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| Concluding Prayer |
|---|
| God, it was by means of blessed Mary, virgin and mother, that you gave the human race the gift of eternal salvation. Grant that we may feel the effects of her intercession for us, for it is through her that we have received your Son, the source of life. He lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for ever and ever. Amen. |
Sancta Maria,
ora pro nobis.
Holy Mary,
pray for us,
your children here upon the earth,
sinful, sorrowful,
so often lost and lone.
Come to us when our hearts are heavy,
when we most need our mother,
and lead us to the fruit of your womb,
Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us now and at the hour of our death, Amen.
Sancta Dei Genetrix,
ora pro nobis.
Holy Mother of God,
who was graced to know Jesus
like no other human,
whose kind and gentle advice is
Do whatever he tells you,
pray for us
now and at the hour of our death, Amen.
Mater dolorosa,
ora pro nobis.
Mother of sorrows,
You understand grief in that special way
that comes from offering up
the best and the brightest
gift of your heart,
without anger,
without curses.
Seeing your son in his sorrow and pain,
you suffered
like a woman in labor,
martyred alive
to become our mother.
Pray for us
now and at the hour of our death, Amen.
Refugium peccatorum,
ora pro nobis.
Refuge of sinners,
Thank you, o sweet Mary,
You who come looking for us,
lost in the night,
like a worried mother
seeking her lost child
In this time where the twlight grows so dim,
and so much is so confusing,
we need our mother,
take us by the hand,
and bring us to the foot of the Cross,
to Jesus your son,
where we may find the true light.
Sancta Maria,
Mater Dei,
ora pro nobis peccatoribus, nunc,
et in hora mortis nostrae.
Amen.
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January 1, 2007
Mary, Mother of God
Mary’s divine motherhood broadens the Christmas spotlight. Mary has an important role to play in the Incarnation of the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity. She consents to God’s invitation conveyed by the angel (Luke 1:26-38). Elizabeth proclaims: “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?” (Luke 1:42-43, emphasis added). Mary’s role as mother of God places her in a unique position in God’s redemptive plan.
Without naming Mary, Paul asserts that “God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law” (Galatians 4:4). Paul’s further statement that “God sent the spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying out ‘Abba, Father!’“ helps us realize that Mary is mother to all the brothers and sisters of Jesus. Some theologians also insist that Mary’s motherhood of Jesus is an important element in God’s creative plan. God’s “first” thought in creating was Jesus. Jesus, the incarnate Word, is the one who could give God perfect love and worship on behalf of all creation. As Jesus was “first” in God’s mind, Mary was “second” insofar as she was chosen from all eternity to be his mother. The precise title “Mother of God” goes back at least to the third or fourth century. In the Greek form Theotokos (God-bearer), it became the touchstone of the Church’s teaching about the Incarnation. The Council of Ephesus in 431 insisted that the holy Fathers were right in calling the holy virgin Theotokos. At the end of this particular session, crowds of people marched through the street shouting: “Praised be the Theotokos!” The tradition reaches to our own day. In its chapter on Mary’s role in the Church, Vatican II’s Dogmatic Constitution on the Church calls Mary “Mother of God” 12 times. Quote:
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Thank you!
From: Numbers 6:22-27
Blessing by Priests
From: Galatians 4:4-7
Divine Sonship
| Lk 2:16-21 | ||
|---|---|---|
| # | Douay-Rheims | Vulgate |
| 16 | And they came with haste: and they found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in the manger. | et venerunt festinantes et invenerunt Mariam et Ioseph et infantem positum in praesepio |
| 17 | And seeing, they understood of the word that had been spoken to them concerning this child. | videntes autem cognoverunt de verbo quod dictum erat illis de puero hoc |
| 18 | And all that heard wondered: and at those things that were told them by the shepherds. | et omnes qui audierunt mirati sunt et de his quae dicta erant a pastoribus ad ipsos |
| 19 | But Mary kept all these words, pondering them in her heart. | Maria autem conservabat omnia verba haec conferens in corde suo |
| 20 | And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them. | et reversi sunt pastores glorificantes et laudantes Deum in omnibus quae audierant et viderant sicut dictum est ad illos |
| 21 | And after eight days were accomplished, that the child should be circumcised, his name was called JESUS, which was called by the angel before he was conceived in the womb. | et postquam consummati sunt dies octo ut circumcideretur vocatum est nomen eius Iesus quod vocatum est ab angelo priusquam in utero conciperetur |
Happy New Year everyone! May you have a health-filled, happy and prosperous New Year!
Mary is True Theotokos.
Folks! I am back! It was a nice vacation. I'll be able to post some pictures soon. In the meantime, let's talk about Our Lady, the Blessed Mother of our Lord, Mary, since today is the Solemnity of her dignity as Mother. That's why we call her Theotokos.
What does the title Theotokos mean? The Greek word, Theotokos, means in literal translation "God - Birthgiver (Theos - God; tokos - birthgiver. It is translated directly into Slavonic as bogoroditsa, and into Latin as Dei Genitrix. Because the term translated directly into English, namely "God-Birthgiver" is awkward in English speech, the preferred translation is MOTHER OF GOD. We acknowledge, however, that birthgiver and mother are not identical. The Greek word, tokos, is limited to birthgiving, whereas the English word "mother" includes birthgiving and many other tasks. (Source)
During the late 4th and early 5th centuries the theological debates in the Church shifted from Trinitarian concerns to the very nature of Christ. Eventually the dispute over the nature of Christ was brought to a head by Nestorius, Archbishop of Constantinople, who championed the cause of those who claimed that the two natures of Christ, human and divine, were separate, distinct and independent. Nestorius declared that there existed between the two natures only a moral union, i. e. the two natures were united in love but separated in essence. This meant, of course, that there was no room for the divine maternity of Mary. If there are two distinct persons in Jesus Christ, Mary would be the mother of the human person only. Thus the reference to Mary as Mother of God (Theotokos) was anathema to the Nestorians who preferred to refer to Her as "Christotokos" (Mother of Christ). (Source)
The orthodox party led by St. Cyril, Patriarch of Alexandria, moved quickly to resolve the issue. Unable to convince Nestorius of his errors, St. Cyril appealed to Pope Celestine I who condemned the teachings of Nestorius at a Roman Council held in August, 430. Nestorius remain adamant , whereupon the Emperor Theodosius II summoned an ecumenical council of the Universal Church which met in Ephesus in Asia Minor in 431. The Council of Ephesus, the Third Ecumenical Council of the Church (see account thereof in OTHER SITES herein) was not a happy event; it was rife with real controversy and chicanery, but orthodoxy eventually triumphed with the Edict of Union in 433. This rested upon the principle that there is in Christ a union of two natures in one Lord and that the Holy Virgin is the Mother of God (Theotokos). (Source)
Following the Council, Nestorianism was condemned throughout the Empire, but took refuge in Persia where a heretical church was organized. Little remains of the Nestorian heresy today in the East. It remains, however, alive and flourishing in the West where it is an essential part of various Protestant and other deconstructionist theologies which reject the role of the Virgin Mary in the scheme of salvation. (Source)
The "formula of union" of the Council of Ephesus, 433, reads in pertinent part as follows:
So it is that the title "Mother of God" or Theotokos came to be applied to Mary, for if we use any other title -- except perhaps, "Mother of the Lord" -- we would be denying a central tenet of the Christian faith, namely, that Jesus Christ is True God and True Man, joined hypostatically in One Person. One would think that in this day and age is difficult for knowledgeable Christians to fall into such a basic error, but here you have many Protestants who can't ask, or don't want to ask these questions, much less answer them. Heck, I don't want to pick on Protestants, there are way too many Catholics who find themselves in the same situation, and therefore are equally spiritually impoverished as a consequence. Today's Antiphon for the Morning Prayer's Canticle of Zechariah summarizes the Mystery of Mary's Divine Motherhood:We profess therefore that Our Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, is true God and true man, constituted by a body and a rational soul: that He was engendered by the Father before all time as to His divinity, and as to His humanity, was born of the Virgin Mary in time for us and for our salvation; that He is consubstantial with the Father in His divinity, and consubstantial with us in His humanity; for one union was effected by the two natures, and we acknowledge only one Christ, one Son, one Lord. Because of this union, which is free from all admixture, we also acknowledge that the Blessed Virgin is the Mother of God, because God the Word was made flesh, was made man, coalesced with the Temple (His humanity), which He took from Her.(Source)
Marvelous is the mystery proclaimed today: man's nature is made new as God becomes man; he remains what he was and becomes what he was not. Yet each nature stays distinct for ever undivided.and the one from the Evening Prayer's Canticle of Mary:
Blessed is the womb which bore you, O Christ, and the breast that nursed you, Lord and Savior of the world, alleluia.This is the perennial faith of the Apostles, this is the faith of the Fathers, this is the faith of the Church.
Excellent post, T. Happy New year!
A blessed New Year to all!
Thanks, sad we have to post it here. I'm debating about another thread I want to post.
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| Monday, January 1, 2007 Octave Day of Christmas: Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God |
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