Reading 1
Sir 3:2-6, 12-14 or 1Sm 1:20-22, 24-28

God sets a father in honor over his children;
a mother’s authority he confirms over her sons.
Whoever honors his father atones for sins,
and preserves himself from them.
When he prays, he is heard;
he stores up riches who reveres his mother.
Whoever honors his father is gladdened by children,
and, when he prays, is heard.
Whoever reveres his father will live a long life;
he who obeys his father brings comfort to his mother.

My son, take care of your father when he is old;
grieve him not as long as he lives.
Even if his mind fail, be considerate of him;
revile him not all the days of his life;
kindness to a father will not be forgotten,
firmly planted against the debt of your sins
—a house raised in justice to you.

In those days Hannah conceived, and at the end of her term bore a son
whom she called Samuel, since she had asked the LORD for him.
The next time her husband Elkanah was going up
with the rest of his household
to offer the customary sacrifice to the LORD and to fulfill his vows,
Hannah did not go, explaining to her husband,
“Once the child is weaned,
I will take him to appear before the LORD
and to remain there forever;
I will offer him as a perpetual nazirite.”

Once Samuel was weaned, Hannah brought him up with her,
along with a three-year-old bull,
an ephah of flour, and a skin of wine,
and presented him at the temple of the LORD in Shiloh.
After the boy’s father had sacrificed the young bull,
Hannah, his mother, approached Eli and said:
“Pardon, my lord!
As you live, my lord,
I am the woman who stood near you here, praying to the LORD.
I prayed for this child, and the LORD granted my request.
Now I, in turn, give him to the LORD;
as long as he lives, he shall be dedicated to the LORD.”

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 128:1-2, 3, 4-5

(cf. 1) Blessed are those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.
Blessed is everyone who fears the LORD,
   who walks in his ways!
For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork;
   blessed shall you be, and favored.
Blessed are those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
   in the recesses of your home;
your children like olive plants

   around your table.
Blessed are those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.
Behold, thus is the man blessed
   who fears the LORD.
The LORD bless you from Zion:
   may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
   all the days of your life.
Blessed are those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.

(cf. 5a) Blessed are they who dwell in your house, O Lord.
How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts!
My soul yearns and pines for the courts of the LORD.
My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.
Blessed are they who dwell in your house, O Lord.
Happy they who dwell in your house!
Continually they praise you.

Happy the men whose strength you are!
Their hearts are set upon the pilgrimage.
Blessed are they who dwell in your house, O Lord.
O LORD of hosts, hear our prayer;
hearken, O God of Jacob!
O God, behold our shield,
and look upon the face of your anointed.

Brothers and sisters:
Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved,
heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience,
bearing with one another and forgiving one another,
if one has a grievance against another;
as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do.
And over all these put on love,
that is, the bond of perfection.
And let the peace of Christ control your hearts,
the peace into which you were also called in one body.
And be thankful.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly,
as in all wisdom you teach and admonish one another,
singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs
with gratitude in your hearts to God.
And whatever you do, in word or in deed,
do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Wives, be subordinate to your husbands,
as is proper in the Lord.
Husbands, love your wives,
and avoid any bitterness toward them.
Children, obey your parents in everything,
for this is pleasing to the Lord.
Fathers, do not provoke your children,
so they may not become discouraged.

Beloved:
See what love the Father has bestowed on us
that we may be called the children of God.
And so we are.
The reason the world does not know us
is that it did not know him.
Beloved, we are God’s children now;
what we shall be has not yet been revealed.
We do know that when it is revealed we shall be like him,
for we shall see him as he is.

Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us,
we have confidence in God and receive from him whatever we ask,
because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.
And his commandment is this:
we should believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ,
and love one another just as he commanded us.
Those who keep his commandments remain in him, and he in them,
and the way we know that he remains in us

Each year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the feast
of Passover,
and when he was twelve years old,
they went up according to festival custom.
After they had completed its days, as they were returning,
the boy Jesus remained behind in Jerusalem,
but his parents did not know it.
Thinking that he was in the caravan,
they journeyed for a day
and looked for him among their relatives and acquaintances,
but not finding him,
they returned to Jerusalem to look for him.
After three days they found him in the temple,
sitting in the midst of the teachers,
listening to them and asking them questions,
and all who heard him were astounded
at his understanding and his answers.
When his parents saw him,
they were astonished,
and his mother said to him,
“Son, why have you done this to us?
Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety.”
And he said to them,
“Why were you looking for me?
Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”
But they did not understand what he said to them.
He went down with them and came to Nazareth,
and was obedient to them;
and his mother kept all these things in her heart.
And Jesus advanced in wisdom and age and favor

Pray a Rosary each day for our nation.

Pray the Rosary

1. Sign of the Cross: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

2. The Apostles Creed: I BELIEVE in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day He rose again. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty. From thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

3. The Lord's Prayer: OUR Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

4. (3) Hail Mary: HAIL Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now, and in the hour of our death. Amen. (Three times)

5. Glory Be: GLORY be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

Fatima Prayer: Oh, my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, lead all souls to heaven, especially those in most need of your mercy.

Announce each mystery, then say 1 Our Father, 10 Hail Marys, 1 Glory Be and 1 Fatima prayer. Repeat the process with each mystery.

End with the Hail Holy Queen:

Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our life, our sweetness and our hope! To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve! To thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears! Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy towards us; and after this, our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus!

O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary! Pray for us, O holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Final step -- The Sign of the Cross

The Mysteries of the Rosary

By tradition, Catholics meditate on these Mysteries during prayers of the Rosary.
The biblical references follow each of the Mysteries below.

The Glorious Mysteries
(Wednesdays and Sundays)
1.The Resurrection (Matthew 28:1-8, Mark 16:1-18, Luke 24:1-12, John 20:1-29) [Spiritual fruit - Faith]
2. The Ascension (Mark 16:19-20, Luke 24:50-53, Acts 1:6-11) [Spiritual fruit - Christian Hope]
3. The Descent of the Holy Ghost (Acts 2:1-13) [Spiritual fruit - Gifts of the Holy Spirit]
4. The Assumption [Spiritual fruit - To Jesus through Mary]
5. The Coronation [Spiritual fruit - Grace of Final Perseverance]

immaculate_conception.jpg (155743 bytes)

December Devotion: The Immaculate Conception

Since the 16th century Catholic piety has assigned entire months to special devotions. The month of December is traditionally dedicated to the Immaculate Conception. The Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first moment of her conception, by a singular privilege of Almighty God, and in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, our Savior and hers, was preserved from all stain of original sin. This age-old belief of the Church was defined by Pope Pius IX in 1854 as an article of revealed truth.

Mary was in need of redemption and she was indeed redeemed by the Precious Blood of Jesus Christ. The manner of Mary's redemption, however, was unique. Instead of being freed from original sin after having contracted it, she was preserved from contracting it. This was a most fitting favor for the Mother of the Redeemer.

INVOCATION
O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.

TO THE VIRGIN IMMACULATE
O Virgin Immaculate, Mother of God and my Mother, from thy sublime height turn upon me thine eyes of pity. Filled with confidence in thy goodness and knowing full well thy power, I beseech thee to extend to. me thine assistance in the journey of life, which is so full of dangers for my soul. And in order that I may never be the slave of the devil through sin, , but may ever live with my heart humble and pure, I entrust myself wholly to thee. I consecrate my heart to thee for ever, my only desire being to love thy divine Son Jesus. Mary, none of thy devout servants has ever perished; may I too be saved. Amen.

PRAYER OF PRAISE
O pure and immaculate and likewise blessed Virgin, who art the sinless Mother of thy Son, the mighty Lord of the universe, thou who art inviolate and altogether holy, the hope of the hopeless and sinful, we sing thy praises. We bless thee, as full of every grace, thou who didst bear the God-Man: we all bow low before thee; we invoke thee and implore thine aid. Rescue us, 0 holy and inviolate Virgin, from every necessity that presses upon us and from all the temptations of the devil. Be our intercessor and advocate at the hour of death and judgment; deliver us from the fire that is not extinguished and from the outer darkness; make us worthy of the glory of thy Son, O dearest and most clement Virgin Mother. Thou indeed art our only hope, most sure and sacred in God's sight, to whom be honor and glory, majesty and dominion for ever and ever world without end. Amen.
Saint Ephrem the Syrian

PRAYER OF POPE PIUS XII
This prayer, dedicated to Mary Immaculate, was composed by the Pope for the Marian Year (December 8, 1953-December 8, 1954), which was proclaimed to mark the centenary of the definition of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception.

Enraptured by the splendor of your heavenly beauty, and impelled by the anxieties of the world, we cast ourselves into your arms, 0 Immacuate Mother of Jesus and our Mother, Mary, confident of finding in your most loving heart appeasement of our ardent desires, and a safe harbor from the tempests which beset us on every side.

Though degraded by our faults and overwhelmed by infinite misery, we admire and praise the peerless richness of sublime gifts with which God has filled you, above every other mere creature, from the first moment of your conception until the day on which, after your assumption into heaven, He crowned you Queen of the Universe.

O crystal fountain of faith, bathe our minds with the eternal truths! O fragrant Lily of all holiness, captivate our hearts with your heavenly perfume! 0 Conqueress of evil and death, inspire in us a deep horror of sin, which makes the soul detestable to God and a slave of hell!

O well-beloved of God, hear the ardent cry which rises up from every heart. Bend tenderly over our aching wounds. Convert the wicked, dry the tears of the afflicted and oppressed, comfort the poor and humble, quench hatreds, sweeten harshness, safeguard the flower of purity in youth, protect the holy Church, make all men feel the attraction of Christian goodness. In your name, resounding harmoniously in heaven, may they recognize that they are brothers, and that the nations are members of one family, upon which may there shine forth the sun of a universal and sincere peace.

Receive, O most sweet Mother, our humble supplications, and above all obtain for us that, one day, happy with you, we may repeat before your throne that hymn which today is sung on earth around your altars: You are all-beautiful, O Mary! You are the glory, you are the joy, you are the honor of our people! 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

St. John Neumann and the Doctrine of the Immaculate Conception (Catholic Caucus)
Our Jewish Roots: The Immaculate Conception [Ecumenical]
I Love that Woman! My Unworthy Reflections on The Immaculate Conception
Mary Immaculate: Patroness of the United States [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
Catholic/Orthodox Caucus: The Immaculate Conception: A Marvelous Theme - Novena Starts Nov. 30

THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION - Satan's Mighty Foe(Catholic Caucus)
Historian reveals how Pius IX decided to proclaim dogma of Immaculate Conception (Catholic Caucus)
The Immaculate Vs. the Proud
Immaculate Conception Novena -- starts November 30th [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
Blessed John Duns Scotus Champion Of Mary's Immaculate Conception (CATHOLIC CAUCUS)

The Crusade of Mary Immaculate - St. Maximilian Kolbe (Catholic Caucus)
The Early Church Fathers on the Immaculate Conception - Catholic/Orthodox Caucus
Three Reasons the Church’s Enemies Hate The Immaculate Conception
Her saving grace - the origins of the Immaculate Conception
Mary Is a Model Who Works With Us and in Us

U.S. Catholic bishops to renew consecration of nation to Immaculate Conception
Catholic Meditation: To the Immaculate Conception on this Election Day
My visit to the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception
On Solemnity of Immaculate Conception - "In Mary Shines the Eternal Goodness of the Creator"
Pope makes pilgrimage to Mary statue in Rome, marking the feast of the Immaculate Conception

Pope: Mary the Immaculate Conception... (text of BXVI speech)
"Tota pulchra es, Maria, et macula originalis non est in te" (The Immaculate Conception)
The Immaculate Conception — Essential to the Faith
"Who Are You, Immaculate Conception?"
TURKEY Ephesus: The Feast of the Immaculate Conception at Mary’s House
Coming Dec 8th. Feast of the "Immaculate Conception"

Why the Immaculate Conception?
Catholic Encyclopedia: Immaculate Conception (The Doctrine and Its Roots)
The Immaculate Conception of Our Lady December 8
Mary's Immaculate Conception: A Memorable Anniversary
Ineffabilis Deus: 8 December 1854 (Dogma of the Immaculate Conception)

Why do we believe in the Immaculate Conception?
John Paul II goes to Lourdes; reflections on the Immaculate Conception
Your Praises We Sing--on the Dogma of the Proclamation of the Immaculate Conception, Dec. 8th
Eastern Christianity and the Immaculate Conception (Q&A From EWTN)
Memorandum on the Immaculate Conception [Newman]

From: Sirach 3:2-7, 12-14

Duties Towards Parents

[2] For the Lord honored the father above the children, and he confirmed the
right of the mother over her sons. [3] Whoever honors his father atones for sins,
4] and whoever glorifies his mother is like one who lays up treasure. [5] Who-
ever honors his father will he gladdened by his own children, and when he prays
he will he heard. [6] Whoever glorifies his father will have long life, and whoever
obeys the Lord will refresh his mother; [7] he will serve his parents as his
masters.

[12] 0 son, help your father in his old age, and do not grieve him as long as he
lives; [13] even if he is lacking in understanding, show forbearance; in all your
strength do not despise him. [14] For kindness to a father will not be forgotten,
and against your sins it will be credited to you.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

3:1-16:23. Throughout the book each doctrinal passage is followed by a section
to do with practical applications, sapiential thoughts on moral conduct, eulogies
of virtues and sapiential advice on where to seek things that are truly good, etc.
This is the first such section. In it the reader will find an exhortation to prudence
in all its various forms.

3:1-16. Traditional wisdom encourages people to be observant and to reflect on
life in order to discover the best route to happiness. Here it focuses on the
relationship between children and their parents: honoring one’s parents brings
blessings.

However, Ben Sirach’s viewpoint is primarily a religious one. “Whoever fears the
Lord will honor his father” (v. 7, RSV note m). The Decalogue laid this down very
clearly: “Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God commanded
you; that your day may be prolonged, and that it may go well with you, in the
land ...” (Deut 5:16; cf. Ex 20:12), and these verses are a valuable commentary
that is generous in its praise of those who attend to that commandment. Very
appropriately, the Church uses these verses as the first reading on the feast of
the Holy Family, for God honors Mary and St Joseph by entrusting Jesus to
their care.

Finally (cf. vv. 12-26), the passage dwells on children’s duties to their parents
when they can no longer look after themselves: The fourth commandment re-
minds grown children of their “responsibilities toward their parents”. As much
as they can, they must give them material and moral support in old age and in
times of illness, loneliness or distress. Jesus recalls this duty of gratitude (cf.
Mk 7:10-12)” (”Catechism of the Catholic Church”, 2218).

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

From: 1 Samuel 1:20-22, 24-28

Birth of Samuel (conclusion)

[20] [A]nd in due time Hannah conceived and bore a son, and she called his
name Samuel, for she said, “I have asked him of the LORD.”

Consecration of Samuel

[21] And the man Elkanah and all his house went up to offer to the LORD the
yearly sacrifice, and to pay his vow. [22] But Hannah did not go up, for she said
to her husband, “As soon as the child is weaned, I will bring him, that he may
appear in the presence of the LORD, and abide there for ever.”

[24] And when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, along with a
three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour, and a skin of wine; and she brought him to
the house of the LORD at Shiloh; and the child was young. [25] Then they slew
the bull, and they brought the child to Eli. [26] And she said, “Oh, my lord! As
you live, my lord, I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, pra-
ying to the LORD. [27] For this child I prayed; and the LORD has granted me my
petition which I made to him. [28] Therefore I have lent him to the LORD; as long
as he lives, he is lent to the LORD.”

And they worshipped the LORD there.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

1:1-7:17. The books of Samuel begin with an account of the birth of the man from
whom they take their name, that is, Samuel, who will become a judge of Israel
and a prophet. The beginning is like the book of Exodus, which also begins with
a birth — that of Moses. In fact, many of Moses’ features apply to Samuel: just
as Moses inaugurated a new and very important stage in the history of the peo-
ple, so Samuel marks the start of the monarchical period, which will forever leave
its imprint on the religious profile of Israel.

The story of Samuel comprises only the first part of 1 Samuel, the first seven
chapters, which also contain the history of the ark. The narrative includes three
distinct accounts arranged in such a way that the first and last have the same
protagonist — the birth, calling and activity of Samuel as a prophet (chaps. 1-3),
the history of the ark (chaps. 4-6), and then Samuel’s activity as a judge (chap.
7). Although these narratives may have been independent originally, in the final
biblical text they form a perfect unity in doctrinal terms, from the point of view of
the setting of events (the shrine at Shiloh), and in the identity of their protago-
nists, Samuel and the priests, the sons of Eli. The shrine at Shiloh, which was
located between Bethel and Shechem and which was a main centre of worship
in the era of the judges (Judg 21:19-21), acquires special importance at this
point: Shiloh will be where the monarchical power begins, and its splendour will
transfer to the temple of Jerusalem when the ark moves there.

The sons of Eli were the last priests of Shiloh. Whereas Samuel was perfectly
faithful to the will of God, the Sons of Eli had gradually corrupted the practices
of their priestly function; with their death, the temple at Shiloh ceases to have
any importance.

The doctrinal thread moving through the three episodes is God’s active interven-
tion in all these important events in the life of the people: to him is due the prodi-
gy of Samuel’s birth (1:1-20) — Samuel, the man chosen to open the way to the
monarchy; it is God who exposes the sin of the sons of Eli (chap. 2) and initiates
the charming dialogue in which Samuel receives his calling (chap. 3). In the epi-
sode of the ark, it is the Lord who punishes his people by taking away the ark,
the sign of his presence (chap. 4); it is he who visits countless misfortunes on
the Philistines who have taken possession of the ark (chap. 5) and it is he who
forces them to return it to Israel, which receives it with delight (chap. 6). Finally,
the Lord makes Samuel a judge over his people (chap. 5), able to exercise his
function at all the shrines of Israel — in Bethel, Gilgal and Mizpah (7:15).

>From the very start, the book of Samuel is a sort of religious interpretation of his-
tory, in the sense that it puts more emphasis on the meaning of the events it nar-
rates than on their chronological order or their geographical situation. Samuel is
a figure of Christ who will initiate the final stage of salvation through his complete
obedience to the will of God (cf. Phil 2:8).

1:1-28. Samuel’s birth is described with all the elements denoting a miraculous
event, emphasizing divine intervention and the child’s importance. With no hope
of a human solution, a childless woman, humiliated by her husband’s (other) fer-
tile wife, seeks a way out of her anguish by asking God, her only hope, to give
her a son. Her husband loves her, but he cannot understand her (v. 8); Eli, the
priest and head of the shrine at Shiloh, comes to bless her but even he cannot
understand her (vv. 15-17). God is the only one who listens to her, and he ac-
cepts the vow she has made to him (v. 11). Hannah follows in the line of Sarah,
Rachel and the mother of Samson — other women in whom the action of God
could be seen very clearly when he took away the stigma of their barrenness.
But, above all, she is the prototype of the devout woman who perseveres in pra-
yer, convinced that it will be heard. “Why is it necessary to list here all those
who, by praying as they ought to do, won from God the greatest gifts? For it
would be easy for anyone to take an abundant sample of cases based in holy
Scripture. Hannah gave birth to Samuel, who was to be compared with Moses
himself (cf. Jer 15:1), because although she was sterile, she had faith and
prayed to the Lord (1 Sam 1:9ff). [...]

How many favours each of us could tell of if we recalled with gratitude the gifts
we have received in order to praise God for them! Once they have been watered
by the grace of the Holy Spirit through constant prayer, souls that have gone for
a long time without bearing fruit, sterile in the most noble part of their being and
with the signs of death on their souls, think wholesome thoughts and are filled
with the knowledge of the truth” (Origen, “De Oratione”, 13, 2-3). Hannah, who
will bear Samuel in her womb, is a figure of Mary and also “a symbol of the
Church which carries the Lord. Her prayer is not clamorous, rather it is calm
and refined; she prays in the depths of her heart because she knows that God
listens to her there” (St Cyprian, “De Oratione Dominica”, 5).

Samuel comes into the world as a gift from God; he is the one who was “asked
for of the Lord” (cf. v. 20), according to a popular etymology of his name. His
mission on earth will be as exceptional as his birth; Hannah presents him at the
shrine: “as long as he lives he is lent to the Lord” (v. 28). Samuel is brought up
by the priest at the shrine of Shiloh (cf. Judg 18:31; 21:19), that is, within the
ancient institutions of the time of the judges; thus, the new institutions he will
establish do not imply any break with or rejection of what went before.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

From: Colossians 3:12-21

Progress in the Spiritual Life

[12] Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassion, kindness,
lowliness, meekness, and patience, [13] forbearing one another and, if one has a
complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so
you also must forgive. [14] And above all these put on love, which binds everything
together in perfect harmony. [15] And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to
which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. [16] Let the word
of Christ dwell in you richly, as you teach and admonish one another in all wisdom,
and as you sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your
hearts to God. [17] And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the
name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Morals in Family Life

[18] Wives, be subject to your husband as is fitting in the Lord. [19] Husbands,
love your wives, and do not be harsh with them. [20] Children, obey your parents
in everything, for this pleases the Lord. [21] Fathers, do not provoke your children,
lest they become discouraged.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

12-13. Putting on the new nature is not just an external action, like putting on
different clothes. It is a transfiguration involving the whole person—soul and body,
mind and will. This interior change begins to operate when one makes a firm re-
solution to lead a fully Christian life; but it calls for an on-going effort, day in day
out, to practice all the virtues. “Conversion is something momentary; sanctifica-
tion is the work of a lifetime. The divine seed of charity, which God has sown in
our souls, wants to grow, to express itself in action, to yield results which con-
tinually coincide with what God wants. Therefore, we must be ready to begin
again, to find again—in new situations—the light and the stimulus of our first con-
version” (St. J. Escriva, “Christ Is Passing By”, 58).

The virtues which the Apostle lists here as characteristic of the new man are all
expressions, in one way or another, of charity, which “binds everything together
in total harmony” (v. 14). Meekness, patience, forgiveness and gratefulness all
reflect an essential virtue —humility. Only a humble person can be forgiving and
truly appreciative, because only he realizes that everything he has comes from
God. This realization leads him to be understanding towards his neighbor, forgi-
ving him as often as needs be; by acting in this way he is proving the genuine-
ness of his faith and love.

See the note on Eph 4:20-24.

14. The comparison of the new nature to a new outfit is extended here by a furt-
her metaphor: charity is the belt which keeps everything together. Without it the
other virtues would fall apart: supernatural virtue could not survive (cf. 1 Cor 13:1-
3). St Francis de Sales uses simple examples to explain this truth: “Without ce-
ment and mortar, which knits the bricks together and strengthens the walls, the
entire building is bound to collapse; a human body would simply disintegrate un-
less it had nerves, muscles and tendons; and if charity were absent, virtues sim-
ply could not stay together” (St Francis de Sales, “Treatise on the Love of God”,
11, 9).

“Love, as the bond of perfection and fullness of the law (cf. Col 3:14; Rom 13:10),
governs, imbues, and perfects all the means of sanctification” (Vatican II, “Lumen
Gentium”, 42). Therefore, “if we want to achieve holiness—in spite of personal
shortcomings and miseries which will last as long as we live—we must make an
effort, with God’s grace, to practice charity, which is the fullness of the law and
the bond of perfection. Charity is not something abstract, it entails a real, com-
plete, self-giving to the service of God and all men —to the service of that God
who speaks to us in the silence of prayer and in the hubbub of the world and of
those people whose existence is interwoven with our own. By living charity —
Love — we live all the human and supernatural virtues required of a Christian” (St.
J. Escriva, “Conversations”, 62).

15. The “peace of Christ” is that which flows from the new order of grace which
he has established; grace gives man direct access to God and therefore to that
peace he so much yearns for. “Thou has made us for thyself and our hearts are
restless till they rest in thee” (St Augustine, “Confessions”, 1, 1). This is not a
peace the world can give (cf. Jn 14:27), because it is not a function of purely
material progress or well-being, nor does it derive from the sort of peace that
should obtain among nations. “Peace on earth, which men of every era have
most eagerly yearned for, can be firmly established only if the order laid down
by God is dutifully observed” (John XXIII, “Pacem In Terris”, 1).

The peace of Christ, then, is “a peace that comes from knowing that our Father
God loves us, and that we are made one with Christ. It results from being under
the protection of the Virgin, our Lady, and assisted by St Joseph. This is the
great light that illuminates our lives. In the midst of difficulties and of our personal
failings, it encourages us to keep up our effort” (St. J. Escriva, “Christ Is Passing
By”, 22).

16. “The word of Christ”: the whole corpus of our Lord’s teachings, of which the
Apostles are accredited witnesses. This should be ever-present to the Christian’s
soul and “dwell...richly” in him, imbuing everything he does: the word of Christ is
the best nourishment of one’s life of prayer and an inexhaustible source of practi-
cal teaching; and it is to be found in the first instance in the books of the New
Testament. St John Chrysostom says that these writings “are teachers which
never cease to instruct us [...]. Open these books. What a treasury of good re-
medies they contain! [...]. All you need do is look at the book, read it and re-
member well the wise teachings therein. The source of all our evils is our igno-
rance of the sacred books” (”Hom. on Col, ad loc.”).

St Paul also reminds us that our appreciation should lead us to glorify the Lord
with songs of joy and gratitude. We can use ready-made hymns for this purpose,
and also the Psalms, which the Church has always used in its liturgy to praise
God and to nourish the spiritual life. “Just as the mouth savors good food, so
does the heart savor the Psalms” (St Bernard, “Sermons on the Song of Songs”,
7, 5).

See the note on Eph 5:19.

17. All genuinely human things can and should be sanctified (cf. 1 Cor 10:31),
by being done perfectly and for love of God.

The Second Vatican Council has recalled this teaching: “Lay people [...], while
meeting their human obligations in the ordinary conditions of life, should not se-
parate their union with Christ from their ordinary life; through the very performance
of their tasks, which are God’s will for them, they actually promote the growth of
their union with him. This is the path along which lay people must advance, fer-
vently, joyfully” (”Apostolicam Actuositatem”, 4).

This teaching was very much part of the message and life of the founder of Opus
Dei: “I assure you, my children, that when a Christian carries out with love the
most insignificant everyday action, that action overflows with the transcendence
of God. That is why I have told you repeatedly, and hammered away once and
again on the idea, that the Christian vocation consists in making heroic verse
out of the prose of each day. Heaven and earth seem to merge, my children, on
the horizon. But where they really meet is in your hearts, when you sanctify your
everyday lives” (”Conversations”, 116).

The Second Vatican Council also sees in this passage of Colossians a basis for
ecumenical dialogue with non-Catholics: “And if in moral matters there are many
Christians who do not always understand the Gospel in the same way as Catho-
lics, and do not admit the same solutions for the more difficult problems of mo-
dern society, they nevertheless want to cling to Christ’s word as the source of
Christian virtue and to obey the command of the Apostle: [Col 3:17 follows]”
(”Unitatis Redintegratio”, 23).

18-19. In the period when this epistle was written, especially in the East, women
were regarded as inferior to men. St Paul does not make a direct attack on the
customs of his time, but the way he focuses the question of the role of women
provides the elements of an answer to it. He identifies what a woman’s role in the
family should be: it is true that the husband has an important part to play, but the
wife also has a role to perform and one which is non-transferable. The wife is not
the husband’s slave: she is his equal in dignity and must be treated by him with
respect and sincere love. It is taken for granted that the family needs a center
of authority, and that this authority belongs to the husband, in accordance with
God’s design (cf. 1 Cor 11:3, 12-14). “The place and task of the father in and for
the family is of unique and irreplaceable importance [...]. In revealing and in re-
living on earth the very fatherhood of God (cf. Eph 3:15), a man is called upon to
ensure the harmonious and united development of all the members of the family”
(John Paul II, “Familiaris Consortio”, 25).

God gave Eve to Adam as his inseparable companion and complement (cf. Gen
2:18); she was therefore duty-bound to live in peace with him. Man and woman
have different, though complementary, roles in family life; they are equal in digni-
ty, by virtue of the fact that they are human persons: “The unity of marriage, dis-
tinctly recognized by our Lord, is made clear in the equal personal dignity which
must be accorded to man and woman in mutual and unreserved affection” (Vati-
can II, “Gaudium Et Spes”, 49).

Therefore, a husband should make a special effort to love and respect his wife:
“You are not her master”, writes Saint Ambrose, “but her husband; she was not
given to you to be your slave, but your wife [...]. Reciprocate her attentiveness
to you and be grateful to her for her love” (”Exameron”, 5, 7, 19 quoted in “Fami-
liaris Consortio”, 25).

See the note on Eph 5:22-24 and 5:25-33.

20-21. Children should obey their parents in everything, as God has commanded
(cf. Ex 20:12; Sir 3:8ff)—a commandment which shows that this is something
which is part of human nature. Obviously for a child’s obedience to “please the
Lord” it must not involve doing anything that is opposed to God’s will, for Jesus
taught that “he who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me”
(Mt 10:37).

For their part, parents must do everything they can to bring up their children well.
In every family there should be an “educational exchange between parents and
children (cf. Eph 6:1-4; Col 3:20f) in which each gives and receives. By means of
love, respect and obedience towards their parents, children offer their specific and
irreplaceable contribution to the construction of an authentically human and Chris-
tian family (cf. “Gaudium Et Spes”, 48). They will be aided in this if parents exer-
cise their unrenounceable authority as a true and proper ‘ministry’, that is, as a
service to the human and Christian well-being of their children, and in particular
as a service aimed at helping them acquire a truly responsible freedom” (”Fami-
liaris Consortio”, 21).

See the note on Eph 6:1-4.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

From: 1 John 3:1-2, 21-24

We are Children of God

[1] See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of
God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did
not know him. [2] Beloved, we are God’s children now; it does not yet appear
what we shall be, but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, for
we shall see him as he is.

Loving One Another (Continuation)

[22] and we receive from him whatever we ask, because we keep his com-
mandments and do what pleases him. [23] And this is his commandment, that
we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another,
just as he has commanded us. [24] All who keep his commandments abide in
him, and he in them. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit
which he has given us.

*******************************************************************************************
Commentary:

1-24. This entire chapter shows how moved the Apostle is when he contem-
plates the marvelous gift of divine filiation. The Holy Spirit, who is the author of
all Sacred Scripture, has desired John to pass on to us this unique revelation:
we are children of God (v. 1).

It is not easy to divide the chapter into sections, because the style is very cy-
clic and colloquial and includes many repetitions and further thoughts which
make for great vividness and freshness. However, we can distinguish an ope-
ning proclamation of the central message (vv. 1-2) and emphasis on two re-
quirements of divine filiation — rejection of sin in any shape or form (vv. 3-10),
and brotherly love lived to the full (vv. 11-24).

1. “We should be called children of God”: the original Hebrew expression,
which reads “we are called...”, is also used by our Lord in the Beatitudes (cf.
Mt 5:9): “to be called” means the same as “to be called by God”; and in the
language of the Bible, when God gives someone a name he is not simply con-
ferring a title but is causing the thing that the name indicates (cf., e.g., Gen
17:5), for the word of God is efficacious, it does what it says it will do; hence,
St John’s adding: “and so we are.”

Therefore, it is not just a matter of a metaphorical title, or a legal fiction, or
adoption human-style: divine filiation is an essential feature of a Christian’s life,
a marvelous fact whereby God gratuitously gives men a strictly supernatural
dignity, an intimacy with God whereby they are “domestici Dei”, “members of
the household of God” (Eph 2:19). This explains the tone of amazement and
joy with which St John passes on this revelation.

This sense of divine filiation is one of the central points in the spirituality of
Opus Dei. Its founder wrote: “We do not exist in order to pursue just any hap-
piness. We have been called to penetrate the intimacy of God’s own life, to
know and love God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, and to
love also—in that same love of the one God in three divine Persons—the angels
and all men.

“This is the great boldness of the Christian faith—to proclaim the value and dig-
nity of human nature and to affirm that we have been created to obtain the dig-
nity of children of God, through the grace that raises us up to a supernatural
level. An incredible boldness it would be, were it not founded on the promise
of salvation given us by God the Father, confirmed by the blood of Christ, and
reaffirmed and made possible by the constant action of the Holy Spirit” (”Christ
Is Passing By”, 133).

“The world does not know us, (because) it did not know him”: these words are
reminiscent of our Lord’s at the Last Supper: “the hour is coming when whoever
kills you will think he is offering service to God. And they will do this because
they have not known the Father, nor me” (Jn 16:2-3). Divine filiation brings with
it communion and a mysterious identification between Christ and the Christian.

2. The indescribable gift of divine filiation, which the world does not know (v. 1),
is not fully experienced by Christians, because the seeds of divine life which it
contains will only reach their full growth in eternal life, when we see him “as he
is”, “face to face” (1 Cor 13:12); “this is eternal life, that they know thee the on-
ly true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent” (Jn 17:3). In that direct
sight of God as he is, and of all things in God, the life of grace and divine filia-
tion achieve their full growth. Man is not naturally able to see God face to face;
he needs to be enlightened by a special light, which is given the technical theo-
logical name of “lumen gloriae”, light of glory. This does not allow him to “take
in” all God (no created thing could do that), but it does allow him to look at God
directly.

Commenting on this verse, the “St Pius V Catechism” explains that “beatitude
consists of two things—that we shall behold God such as he is in his own na-
ture and substance; and that we ourselves shall become, as it were, gods.
For those who enjoy God while they retain their own nature, assume a certain
admirable and almost divine form, so as to seem gods rather than men” (I, 13,
7).

“When he appears”: two interpretations are possible, given that in Greek the
verb has no subject: “when (what we shall be) is revealed we shall be as he is”;
or, as the New Vulgate translates it, “when he (Christ) is revealed we will be
like him (Christ)”. The second interpretation is the more likely.

19-22. The Apostle reassures us: God knows everything; not only does he
know our sins and our frailties, he also knows our repentance and our good
desires, and he understands and forgives us (St Peter, on the Lake of Tiberias,
made the same confession to Jesus: “Lord, you know everything, you know
that I love you”: Jn 21:17).

St John’s teaching on divine mercy is very clear: if our conscience tells us we
have done wrong, we can seek forgiveness and strengthen our hope in God; if
ur conscience does not accuse us, our confidence in God is ardent and bold,
like that of a child who has loving experience of his Father’s tenderness. The

love of God is mightier than our sins, Pope John Paul II reminds us: “When we
realize that God’s love for us does not cease in the face of our sin or recoil be-
fore our offenses, but becomes even more attentive and generous; when we rea-
lize that this love went so far as to cause the Passion and Death of the Word
made flesh who consented to redeem us at the price of his own blood, then we
exclaim in gratitude: ‘Yes, the Lord is rich in mercy’, and even: ‘The Lord is mer-
cy”’ (”Reconciliatio Et Paenitentia”, 22).

This confidence in God makes for confidence in prayer: “If you abide in me, and
my words abide in you, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you” (Jn
15:7; cf. 14:13f; 16:23, 26-27).

23-24. The commandments of God are summed up here in terms of love for
Jesus and love for the brethren. “We cannot rightly love one another unless we
believe in Christ; nor can we truly believe in the name of Jesus Christ without
brotherly love” (St Bede, “In I Epist. S. Ioannis, ad loc.”). Faith and love cannot
be separated (cf. Gal 5:6); our Lord himself told us what would mark his disci-
ples out—their love for one another (Jn 13:34-35).

Keeping the commandments confirms to the Christian that he is abiding in God:
“If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love” (Jn 15:10). Moreover,
it ensures that God abides in his soul, by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit: “If
you love me you will keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and
he will give you another Counselor, to be with you for ever” (Jn 14:15-16).

“May God be your house and you God’s; dwell in God that God may dwell in
you. God dwells in you to support you; you dwell in God in order not to fall.
Keep the commandments, have charity” (”In I Epist. S. loannis, ad loc.”).

*******************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

From: Luke 2:41-52

The Finding in the Temple

[41] Now his (Jesus’) parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the
Passover. [42] And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to
custom; [43] and when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy
Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it, [44 but suppo-
sing him to be in the company they went a day’s journey, and they sought him
among their kinsfolk and acquaintances; [45] and when they did not find him,
they returned to Jerusalem, seeking him. [46] And after three days they found
him in the temple sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them
questions; [47] and all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his
answers. [48] And when they saw him they were astonished; and his mother said
to him, “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been
looking for you anxiously.” [49] And he said to them, “How is it that you sought
me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house ?” [50] And they did
not understand the saying which he spoke to them.

The Hidden Life of Jesus at Nazareth

[51] And he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to
them; and his mother kept all these things in her heart. [52] And Jesus increased
in wisdom and in stature, and in favor with God and man.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

41. Only St Luke (2:41-50) reports the event of the Child Jesus being lost and
then found in the temple, which we contemplate in the “Fifth Joyful Mystery” of
the Rosary.

Only males aged twelve and upwards were required to make this journey. Naza-
reth is about 100 km (60 miles) from Jerusalem as the crow flies, but the hilly
nature of the country would have made it a trip of 140 km.

43-44. On pilgrimages to Jerusalem, the Jews used to go in two groups—one of
men, the other of women. Children could go with either group. This explains how
they could go a day’s journey before they discovered the Child was missing when
the families regrouped to camp.

“Mary is crying. In vain you and I have run from group to group, from caravan to
caravan. No one has seen him. Joseph, after fruitless attempts to keep from
crying, cries too.... And you.... And I. ‘Being a common little fellow, I cry my
eyes out and wail to heaven and earth..., to make up for the times when I lost
him through my own fault and did not cry” (St. J. Escriva, “Holy Rosary”, Fifth
Joyful Mystery).

45. The concern which Mary and Joseph show in looking for the Child should
encourage us always to seek Jesus out, particularly if we lose him through sin.

“Jesus, may I never lose you again.... Now you and I are united in misfortune
and grief, as were united in sin. And from the depths of our being comes sighs
of heartfelt sorrow and burning phrases which the pen cannot and should not re-
cord” (”Holy Rosary”, Fifth Joyful Mystery).

46-47. The Child Jesus must have been in the courtyard of the temple, which
was where the teachers usually taught. Listeners used to sit at their feet, now
and again asking questions and responding to them. This was what Jesus did,
but his questions and answers attracted the teachers’ attention, he was so wise
and well-informed.

48. Ever since the Annunciation our Lady had known that the Child Jesus was
God. This faith was the basis of her generous fidelity throughout her life—but
there was no reason why it should include detailed knowledge of all the sacrif-
ices God would ask of her, nor of how Christ would go about his mission of re-
demption: that was something she would discover as time went by, contempla-
ting her Son’s life.

49. Christ’s reply is a form of explanation. His words—his first words to be recor-
ded in the Gospel—clearly show his down Sonship; and they also show his de-
termination to fulfill the will of his Eternal Father. “He does not upbraid them —
Mary and Joseph—for searching for their son, but he raises the eyes of their
souls to appreciate what he owes him whose Eternal Son he is” (St Bede, “In
Lucae Evangelium Expositio, in loc.”). Jesus teaches us that over and above
any human authority, even that of our parents, there is the primary duty to do
the will of God. “And once we are consoled by the joy of finding Jesus — three
days he was gone! — debating with the teachers of Israel (Lk 2:46), you and I
shall be left deeply impressed by the duty to leave our home and family to serve
our heavenly Father” (St. J. Escriva, “Holy Rosary”, Fifth Joyful Mystery”). See
note on Mt 10:34-37.

50. We must remember that Jesus knew in detail the whole course his earthly
life would take from his conception onwards (cf. note on Lk 2:52). This is shown
by what he says in reply to his parents. Mary and Joseph realized that his reply
contained a deeper meaning which they did not grasp. They grew to understand
it as the life of their Child unfolded. Mary’s and Joseph’s faith and their reverence
towards the Child led them not to ask any further questions but to reflect on
Jesus’ words and behavior in this instance, as they had done so on other occa-
sions.

51. The Gospel sums up Jesus’ life in Nazareth in just three words: “erat subdi-
tus illis”, he was obedient to them. “Jesus obeys, and he obeys Joseph and
Mary. God has come to the world to obey, and to obey creatures. Admittedly
they were very perfect creatures—Holy Mary, our mother, greater than whom
God alone; and that most chaste man Joseph. But they are only creatures, and
yet Jesus, who is God, obeyed them. We have to love God so as to love his will
and desire to respond to his calls. They come to us through the duties of our or-
dinary life — duties of state, profession, work, family, social life, our own and
other people’s difficulties, friendship, eagerness to do what is right and just” (St.
J. Escriva, “Christ Is Passing By”, 17).

Jesus lived like any other inhabitant of Nazareth, working at the same trade as
St Joseph and earning his living by the sweat of his brow. “His hidden years are
not without significance, nor were they simply a preparation for the years which
were to come after—those of his public life. Since 1928 I have understood clearly
that God wants our Lord’s whole life to be an example for Christians. I saw this
with special reference to his hidden life, the years he spent working side by side
with ordinary men. Our Lord wants many people to ratify their vocation during
years of quiet, unspectacular living. Obeying God’s will always means leaving our
selfishness behind, but there is no reason why it should entail cutting ourselves
off from the normal life of ordinary people who share the same status, work and
social position with us.

“I dream—and the dream has come true—of multitudes of God’s children, sancti-
fying themselves as ordinary citizens, sharing the ambitions and endeavors of
heir colleagues and friends. I want to shout to them about this divine truth: If you
are there in the middle of ordinary life, it doesn’t mean Christ has forgotten about
you or hasn’t called you. He has invited you to stay among the activities and con-
cerns of the world. He wants you to know that your human vocation, your profes-
sion, your talents, are not omitted from his divine plans. He has sanctified them
and made them a most acceptable offering to his Father” (St. J. Escriva, “Christ
Is Passing By”, 20).

52. As far as his human nature was concerned Jesus matured like anyone else.
His growth in wisdom should be seen as referring to experiential knowledge —
knowledge acquired by his mind from sense experience and general experience
of life. It can also be taken as referring to the external expression of his wisdom;
in this sense everything he did was done perfectly, in keeping with whatever age
he was at the time.

As man Jesus had three kinds of knowledge: 1. “The knowledge of the blessed”
(vision of the divine essence) by virtue of the hypostatic union (the union of his
human nature with his divine nature in the one person of the Word). This know-
ledge did not allow of any increase. 2. “Infused knowledge”, which perfected his
intellect and which meant that he knew everything, even hidden things; thus he
was able to read men’s hearts. Here again his knowledge was complete; it could
not grow. 3. “Acquired knowledge”: he acquired new knowledge through sense
experience and reflection; logically, this knowledge increased as time went by.

As far as grace, in the strict sense of the word, was concerned, Jesus could not
grow. From the first instant of his conception he possessed grace in all its full-

ness because he was true God by virtue of the hypostatic union. As St Tho-
mas explains: “The end of grace is the union of the rational creature with God.
But there can neither be nor be conceived a greater union of the rational creature
with God than that which is in the person of Christ [...]. Hence it is clear that the
grace of Christ cannot be increased on the part of grace. But neither can it be in-
creased on the part of Christ, since Christ as man was a true and full ‘compre-
hensor from the first instant of his conception. Hence there could have been no
increase of grace in him” (”Summa Theologiae”, Ill, q.7, a.12).

However, we can speak of his growing in grace in the sense of the “effects” of
grace. In the last analysis, this matter is one of the mysteries of our faith, which
our minds cannot fully grasp. How small God would be if we were able fully to fa-
thom this mystery! That Christ should conceal his infinite power and wisdom by
becoming a Child teaches our pride a great lesson.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

Mass Readings

First reading	Ecclesiasticus 3:3-7,14-17 ©

The Lord honours the father in his children,

and upholds the rights of a mother over her sons.

Whoever respects his father is atoning for his sins,

he who honours his mother is like someone amassing a fortune.

Whoever respects his father will be happy with children of his own,

he shall be heard on the day when he prays.

Long life comes to him who honours his father,

he who sets his mother at ease is showing obedience to the Lord.

My son, support your father in his old age,

do not grieve him during his life.

Even if his mind should fail, show him sympathy,

do not despise him in your health and strength;

for kindness to a father shall not be forgotten

but will serve as reparation for your sins.

Alternative first reading	1 Samuel 1:20-22,24-28 ©

Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son, and called him Samuel ‘since’ she said ‘I asked the Lord for him.’

When a year had gone by, the husband Elkanah went up again with all his family to offer the annual sacrifice to the Lord and to fulfil his vow. Hannah, however, did not go up, having said to her husband, ‘Not before the child is weaned. Then I will bring him and present him before the Lord and he shall stay there for ever.’

When she had weaned him, she took him up with her together with a three-year old bull, an ephah of flour and a skin of wine, and she brought him to the temple of the Lord at Shiloh; and the child was with them. They slaughtered the bull and the child’s mother came to Eli. She said, ‘If you please, my lord. As you live, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you, praying to the Lord. This is the child I prayed for, and the Lord granted me what I asked him. Now I make him over to the Lord for the whole of his life. He is made over to the Lord.’

Psalm	Psalm 127:1-5

Alternative psalm	Psalm 83:2-3,5-6,9-10

Second reading	Colossians 3:12-21 ©

You are God’s chosen race, his saints; he loves you, and you should be clothed in sincere compassion, in kindness and humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with one another; forgive each other as soon as a quarrel begins. The Lord has forgiven you; now you must do the same. Over all these clothes, to keep them together and complete them, put on love. And may the peace of Christ reign in your hearts, because it is for this that you were called together as parts of one body. Always be thankful.

Let the message of Christ, in all its richness, find a home with you. Teach each other, and advise each other, in all wisdom. With gratitude in your hearts sing psalms and hymns and inspired songs to God; and never say or do anything except in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Wives, give way to your husbands, as you should in the Lord.

Husbands, love your wives and treat them with gentleness. Children, be obedient to your parents always, because that is what will please the Lord. Parents, never drive your children to resentment or you will make them feel frustrated.

Alternative second reading	Colossians 3:12-17 ©

Alternative second reading	1 John 3:1-2,21-24 ©

Think of the love that the Father has lavished on us,

by letting us be called God’s children;

and that is what we are.

Because the world refused to acknowledge him,

therefore it does not acknowledge us.

My dear people, we are already the children of God

but what we are to be in the future has not yet been revealed;

all we know is, that when it is revealed

we shall be like him

because we shall see him as he really is.

My dear people,

if we cannot be condemned by our own conscience,

we need not be afraid in God’s presence,

and whatever we ask him,

we shall receive,

because we keep his commandments

and live the kind of life that he wants.

His commandments are these:

that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ

and that we love one another

as he told us to.

Whoever keeps his commandments

lives in God and God lives in him.

We know that he lives in us

by the Spirit that he has given us.

Gospel	Luke 2:41-52 ©

Every year the parents of Jesus used to go to Jerusalem for the feast of the Passover. When he was twelve years old, they went up for the feast as usual. When they were on their way home after the feast, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem without his parents knowing it. They assumed he was with the caravan, and it was only after a day’s journey that they went to look for him among their relations and acquaintances. When they failed to find him they went back to Jerusalem looking for him everywhere.

Three days later, they found him in the Temple, sitting among the doctors, listening to them, and asking them questions; and all those who heard him were astounded at his intelligence and his replies. They were overcome when they saw him, and his mother said to him, ‘My child, why have, you done this to us? See how worried your father and I have been, looking for you.’ ‘Why were you looking for me?’ he replied ‘Did you not know that I must be busy with my Father’s affairs?’ But they did not understand what he meant.

He then went down with them and came to Nazareth and lived under their authority. His mother stored up all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom, in stature, and in favour with God and men.

Zenit -- "The Future of Humanity Passes Through the Family"

"The Future of Humanity Passes Through the Family"

Reflection for Feast of Holy Family Year C

By Father Thomas Rosica, CSB

TORONTO, DEC. 22, 2009 (Zenit.org).- In the afterglow of Christmas, the Church celebrates the feast of the Holy Family, inviting the faithful to reflect on the gift and mystery of life, and in particular the blessing of family.

Today's Gospel story (Luke 2:41-52) relates an incident from Jesus' youth that is unique in the New Testament. Luke's infancy Gospel, however scarce in details concerning the first part of Jesus' life, mentions that "his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the Passover" (2:41), an indication of their piety, their fidelity to the law and to the tradition of Israel.

"When [Jesus] was 12 years old, they went up according to custom" (2:42). "When they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, without his parents knowing it" (2:43). After searching for three days "they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions" (2:46).

Jesus' mysterious words to his parents seem to subdue their joy at finding him: "How is it that you sought me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?" (2:49). This phrase can also be translated, "I must be immersed in my Father's work." In either translation, Jesus refers to God as his Father. His divine sonship, and his obedience to his heavenly Father's will, take precedence over his ties to his family.

Apart from this event, the whole period of the infancy and youth of Jesus is passed over in silence in the Gospel. It is the period of his "hidden life," summarized by Luke in two simple statements: Jesus "went down with [Mary and Joseph] and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them" (Luke 2:51); and "He progressed steadily in wisdom and age and grace before God and men" (Luke 2:52). With this episode, the infancy narrative ends just as it began, in the setting of the Jerusalem temple.

We learn from the Gospels that Jesus lived in his own family, in the house of Joseph, who took the place of a father in regard to Mary's son by assisting and protecting him, and gradually training him in his own trade of carpenter. The people of the town of Nazareth regarded him as "the carpenter's son" [Matthew 13:55].

When he began to teach, his fellow citizens asked with surprise: "Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary?" (Mark 6:3). Besides his mother, they mentioned also his "brothers" and his "sisters," who lived at Nazareth. It was they who, as the evangelist Mark mentions, sought to dissuade Jesus from his activity of teaching (Mark 3:21). Evidently, they did not find in him anything to justify the beginning of a new activity. They thought that Jesus was just like any other Israelite, and should remain such.

School of Nazareth

The words of Pope Paul VI spoken in Nazareth on Jan. 5, 1964, are a beautiful reflection on the mystery of Nazareth and of the Holy Family. His words inspire all of us to imitate God's family in their beautiful values of silence, family life and work.

He said: "Nazareth is a kind of school where we may begin to discover what Christ's life was like and even to understand his Gospel. Here we can observe and ponder the simple appeal of the way God's Son came to be known, profound yet full of hidden meaning.

"And gradually we may even learn to imitate him. Here we can learn to realize who Christ really is. And here we can sense and take account of the conditions and circumstances that surrounded and affected his life on earth: the places, the tenor of the times, the culture, the language, religious customs, in brief everything which Jesus used to make himself known to the world. [...]

"First we learn from its silence. If only we could once again appreciate its great value. We need this wonderful state of mind, beset, as we are, by the cacophony of strident protests and conflicting claims so characteristic of these turbulent times. The silence of Nazareth should teach us how to meditate in peace and quiet, to reflect on the deeply spiritual, and to be open to the voice of God's inner wisdom and the counsel of his true teachers. Nazareth can teach us the value of study and preparation, of meditation, of a well-ordered personal spiritual life, and of silent prayer that is known only to God.

"Second, we learn about family life. May Nazareth serve as a model of what the family should be. May it show us the family's holy and enduring character and exemplifying its basic function in society: a community of love and sharing, beautiful for the problems it poses and the rewards it brings -- in sum, the perfect setting for rearing children -- and for this there is no substitute.

"Finally, in Nazareth, the home of a craftsman's son, we learn about work and the discipline it entails. I would especially like to recognize its value -- demanding yet redeeming -- and to give it proper respect. I would remind everyone that work has its own dignity. On the other hand, it is not an end in itself. Its value and free character, however, derive not only from its place in the economic system, as they say, but rather from the purpose it serves."

Challenges for today

Today we are witnesses to a worrisome lack of educational environments not only outside the Church, but even within the Church. The Christian family is no longer capable on its own of passing on the faith to the next generation, and neither is the parish, even though it continues to be the indispensable structure for the Church's pastoral mission in any given place.

As a Christian community and as a society in general, we must do more to encourage the committed relationship of man and woman that remains so basic to all civilizations, and has proven to be the best support for the rights and needs of children. We must reflect carefully on the social consequences involved in the redefinition of marriage, examining all that is entailed if society no longer gives a privileged place and fundamental value to the lifelong union of a man and a woman in marriage.

As the keystone of society, the family is the most favorable environment in which to welcome children. At the same time, freedom of conscience and religion needs to be ensured, while also respecting the dignity of all persons, whatever their sexual orientation.

Two distinct challenges emerge from this great debates of our times surrounding marriage and family life. Today's feast of the Holy Family issues an urgent invitation, especially to lay people, to uphold the dignity of the important institution and sacrament of Marriage. Support the Marriage Preparation Programs in your parish communities. Insist that in your parishes and dioceses, there are solid vocational programs for young adults and young people. Parishes, dioceses and lay movements that do not have creative pastoral strategies and vocational programs about marriage for young people leave the door open to tremendous moral confusion and misunderstanding, misinformation, emptiness.

At the same time, we cannot forget that other bonds of love and interdependency, of commitment and mutual responsibility exist in society. They may be good; they may even be recognized in law. They are not the same as marriage; they are something else. No extension of terminology for legal purposes will change the observable reality that only the committed union of a man and a woman carries, not only the bond of interdependency between the two adults, but the inherent capacity to bring forth children.

On this feast of the Holy Family, let us recommit ourselves to building up the human family, to strengthening and enshrining marriage, to blessing and nurturing children, and to making our homes, families and parish communities holy, welcoming places for women and men of every race, language, orientation and way of life.

Foundation of society

"The future of humanity passes through the family," as the Venerable Pope John Paul II would say so often. Today's readings remind us that the family has a vital impact on society.

The foundation of society is the family. And the foundation of the family is marriage. The vocation to marriage is written in the very nature of man and woman. As the keystone of society, the family is the most favorable environment in which to welcome children.

We need young adults to say their "I do" with joy, conviction, faith and hope. They are our future and our hope. Without married people, we cannot build the future of society and the Church. Without committed, married people, we will not have holy families today.

[The readings for the feast of the Holy Family are Sirach 3:2-6, 12-14 or 1 Samuel 1:20-22, 24-28; Colossians 3:12-21 or 3:12-17 or 1 John 3:1-2, 21-24; and Luke 2:41-52]

* * *

Basilian Father Thomas Rosica, chief executive officer of the Salt and Light Catholic Media Foundation and Television Network in Canada, is a consultor to the Pontifical Council for Social Communications.

A Gift Worth Giving

December 26th, 2009 by Fr. Paul Grankauskas

What kind of image do we have of the Holy Family? Do we imagine that, because they were holy, that they just drifted along free from worry and harm? Maybe we see the sinless virgin and her divine Son as almost ethereal, otherworldly creatures that we cannot possibly relate to because we have no hope of ever being so perfect ourselves. We might imagine that they had it easy.

If we consider the scant details the Gospels give us about the early life of Jesus, we might be surprised to find the contrary. Jesus, Mary and Joseph faced struggles and challenges, too. Some were challenges common to all families; others were unique to their situation. We can learn much from contemplating the lives of the Holy Family, from the “school of Nazareth” as it were.

First, we learn from Jesus, Mary and Joseph that saying “yes” to God’s will in our lives does not mean we will be free from trial and tribulation. It does not mean that our faith will not be tried and tested in some way. Our Lord makes it quite clear during His public ministry that if we wish to follow him we must be prepared to take up a cross. This lesson is driven home by the lives of Joseph and Mary.

Both listen and respond to a message from an angel. With humility, faith, and even fortitude, they say “yes” to God’s will for them. That “yes” has its consequences. The Child of Mary, conceived by the Holy Spirit and whose birth was announced by an archangel, will come into the world in a stable. His family will be forced to flee their home and settle in a foreign country to escape a jealous, power-hungry, homicidal king. Mary’s Son is supposed to inherit the throne from the line David and His kingdom is not supposed to have an end … and yet Jesus’ life does not get off to an auspicious start. The “yes” of Mary and Joseph was just the start of a life that had its peaks and valleys, just like many others. They moved forward with faith and hope, knowing that God’s will was being done even though it must have seemed like such a strange and circuitous path.

That brings us to the second lesson: God works even in the midst of the chaos that is family life. As this week’s Gospel relates, the Holy Family traveled to Jerusalem for the Passover, the most important and sacred of Jewish feasts, established in the days of Moses. Jerusalem would have been thronging with pilgrims, many traveling in large groups from their homes outside the city. It is no surprise that Our Lord, as a 12-year-old child, might get lost in the crowd. What follows is three days of searching and worrying. The anguish of Mary and Joseph is something that any loving parent can identify with.

That anxiety would be enough for any parent to handle, but there is more to come. When they finally find Jesus, He makes a startling declaration: “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”

Joseph is standing right there and Our Lord makes the distinction between His foster father and His heavenly Father. This is a startling revelation, and Mary ponders it in her heart. She is given a little glimpse of her Son’s unique relationship with the Father, a revelation that would eventually have a profound impact on their own relationship. Mary and Joseph are taking their first steps in understanding that Jesus is true God and true man. He has come into the world not for them, but to save all men from sin.

The point is that the Holy Family had their frustrating and anxious moments, but God reveals Himself to them even in those moments. Sometimes it just takes a while to grasp that. Family life in the modern world is chaotic, with parents and children running in different directions and its complex weave of interpersonal relationships. In the midst of that chaos, however, we can learn something about how God loves each of us. Mother Teresa used to say that the family that prays together stays together because such a family learns something about how God loves each one of us.

When spouses are able to forgive one another, when parents love their children despite the fact that the little ones can drive them up the wall; or, perhaps most challenging and painful of all, when parents or siblings love each other despite having that love unrequited, we learn something about unconditional love - the same kind of love God has for each of us. Strong family life is so important and critical to us because it is the first and best place to learn how to love unconditionally. If we do not learn how to love there, we may be hard-pressed to learn how to love at all. It is not impossible, but it is more difficult if we do not have a strong family to help guide us along our way.

In other words, in the midst of all that chaos, God may be working in ways that we may not see or appreciate right away. But, if families strive to practice the love and mutual respect that formed the heart of the Holy Family, God’s love can become visible and concrete. It may not be a gift that is always appreciated or understood, but sacrificial, unconditional love is a gift that is still worth giving.

Fr. Paul Grankauskas is parochial vicar at St. Mary of Sorrows Parish in Fairfax, Virginia.

(This article courtesy of the Arlington Catholic Herald.)

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The Holy Family of Nazareth

Mass Readings

"The Future of Humanity Passes Through the Family"

A Gift Worth Giving