Aspiring to Humility | ||
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Saints Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, bishops and doctors of the Church (January 2, 2012).
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January 2, 2012 John 1: 19-28 Introductory Prayer: Lord Jesus, I believe that you are the Son of God who came into this world to save us because you love us. Your Incarnation fills me with hope. The only response I can give is to love you with all my heart, soul, strength and mind. Petition: Jesus, help me to learn from St. John the Baptist how to bring others to you. 1. Making Jesus Known: The next few days have readings on John the Baptist. These lead up to this Sundays feast of the Epiphany, which celebrates the manifestation of Jesus to the world. Tradition has linked several similar events to Epiphany. Although the first one is the coming of the Magi to Bethlehem, Christs Baptism in the Jordan is also a key moment of revelation of epiphany of Jesus mission and divinity. Thus, although the Baptism of the Lord has its own feast day a week after Epiphany, the two events have a common result: They make known the truth of Jesus. A first question we need to ask ourselves is: What am I, a believer in Christ, doing to make the truth of Jesus known to others? 2. The Power of Humility: In this reading, John the Baptist demonstrates the attitude fundamental to making Christ known: humility. John the Baptist had the chance to be considered the Messiah, the Christ. True, eventually the deception would become known, but for a while he could have had all of Israel at his feet. All too often today, people give in to temptation and compromise their principles to get glory and power for a day think of businessmen who inflate their companys profits, or scientists who fake their results. Their inevitable downfall is tragic. St. John the Baptist knows that the only way he can serve God and fulfill his mission in life is to direct all glory to God and none to himself, never presuming to be more than he is. We, too, can live as true Christians and make Jesus present to others only if we put aside our own pride and vanity. 3. Living Love: What really makes John the Baptists message effective is that he doesnt just preach his message; he is his message. He preaches penance, but first he lives it, going out into the desert and living an ascetic life. He baptizes with water, but first he gets into the water. If we want to make Jesus known to others, we first have to know him ourselves. We cannot preach the essence of the Gospel, the message of love, if we dont live love in our daily lives. We cant criticize, judge others, and always look out for number one (where one is ourselves) and still hope to be an effective apostle of Christ. However, if with the help of Gods grace, we do our best to put love into action, then words will hardly be necessary. Our example alone will change peoples lives. Conversation with Christ: Lord, when I look at myself and my life, I see that too often I have been selfish, focused on what I enjoy and on what I want. Help me to love you above all things. Help me want to make you known by living love, even at the cost of my own pride and comfort. Resolution: I will make an extra effort today to show through my actions what it means to love Christ and one another. |
We begin this new year with the question: "Who are you?" (Jn 1:19). This is a good question. How can we be what the Lord wants us to be this year unless we know who we are? However, the question of our identity is most difficult. One voice says we are God's children (see Mt 3:17; Jn 1:12; 1 Jn 3:2). We are called "a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people He claims for His own" (1 Pt 2:9). But we don't feel like God's children or look very royal, priestly, or holy. Another voice says we are merely human, in fact, just sophisticated animals. If we accept this, we can "eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die" (see Wis 2:6ff; 1 Cor 15:32). Although this second voice puts us down and degrades us, we feel like believing it and leading a self-indulgent, sexually immoral life. To answer the question, "Who are you?", we must answer the questions: "Who are the voices in my life?" and "Who is the liar?" (1 Jn 2:22). The first voice is the united voice of God the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. The second voice is the voice of the world, the flesh, and the devil. The second voice is the liar. The first voice is the Truth (Jn 14:6). Know yourself. Know God.One Bread, One Body
<< Monday, January 2, 2012 >>
St. Basil the Great
St. Gregory Nazianzen
Saint of the Day
1 John 2:22-28
View ReadingsPsalm 98:1-4
John 1:19-28
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