Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings, 12-14-02, Memorial of Saint John of the Cross

For your reading, reflection, faith-sharing, comments and discussion.

Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.

Alleluia Ping!

Please notify me via Freepmail if you would like to be added to or removed from the Alleluia Ping list.

Saturday, December 14, 2002

Meditation
Matthew 17:10-13

Justice and peace; truth and holiness; grace and pardon; love and goodness: Isn’t this what the world needs—and what people most desire? The Advent season reminds us that God has promised to restore all that was lost by sin and to make all things new again.

The prophets were sent to draw people back to God and to his way of holiness and justice. Elijah was one of the greatest of the Old Testament prophets. In a competition with prophets of the false god Baal, Elijah called down fire from heaven to consume his sacrifice, while the false prophets—who could not do the same—stood wide-eyed with wonder and fear. In this way, Elijah demonstrated that Yahweh is the one true God, and he drew many of the Israelites back to true worship of the Lord. It was in this “spirit of Elijah” that John the Baptist came, igniting people’s hearts with a passion for holiness. Preaching repentance, he prepared Israel for the Messiah, even when it meant speaking out against King Herod and putting his own life at risk. Like Elijah, John is best known for the bold and passionate way he followed the Lord.

Every baptized Christian is called to share in the prophetic mission of Jesus. Through the gifts and workings of the Holy Spirit, each of us can become restorers of God’s holiness and justice in the world. As the Fathers of Vatican II taught, each one of us can “consecrate the world itself to God, everywhere offering worship by the holiness of [our] lives” (CCC, 901). We may not be called to take the national stage as Elijah and John the Baptist did. Nonetheless, God has a role for each of us in our daily lives. At home, at work, or at school, we can be lights in the darkness, pointing others to Jesus and bearing witness to the power of the gospel through our words, our actions, and our attitudes.

God is ever ready to transform us and fill us with his love and compassion. Let’s continue to draw close to him this Advent, asking him to teach us how to become prophetic voices to our world.

“Come, Holy Spirit, and set my heart aflame with the love of Christ, so that I may consecrate the world to God and proclaim the good news to all who will hear.”

Thought for the Day

At the end of our life, we shall all be judged by charity.

-- St. John of the Cross

From: Matthew 17:9a, 10-13

The Transfiguration (Continuation)

[9] And as they were coming down the mountains, [10] (And) the disciples
asked Him (Jesus), "Then why do the scribes say that Elijah must come?"
[11] He replied, "Elijah does come, and he is to restore all things; [12]
but I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not know him, but
did to him whatever they pleased. So also the Son of Man will suffer at
their hands." [13] Then the disciples understood that He was speaking to
them of John the Baptist.

Commentary:

10-13. Malachi 4:5 (3:23 in the Hebrew) speaks of the coming of Elijah
the prophet before "the great and terrible day of the Lord", the
Judgment Day. When Jesus says that Elijah has already come, He is
referring to St. John the Baptist, whose mission it was to prepare the
way for the First Coming of the Lord, the same as Elijah will have to
do prior to His last coming. The scribes failed to grasp the meaning
of the prophecy of Malachi; they thought it referred simply to the
coming of the Messiah, the First Coming of Christ.

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

Catholic Caucus: Where, when, and how did the Advent season originate?

Advent Calendar for Adults

Advent Calendar for Families

December 14
Deliver gifts to a local shelter, refugee center, or crisis pregnancy center. Rather than just dropping the package off, spend some time learning about the work of the facility. Find local Catholic Charities agencies at www.catholiccharitiesusa.org

Advent Calendar for Adults

December 15
Reflect on the Magnificat in Luke 1:46-55. What experiences of God in your life, work, and community prompt you to respond, "My soul proclaims the greatness of God" or "Holy is his name"?

One Bread, One Body

<< Saturday, December 14, 2002 >>

St. John of the Cross

Sirach 48:1-4, 9-11

Psalm 80

Matthew 17:10-13

View Readings

THE CHRISTMAS OF YOUR CHOICE

“Elijah will indeed come and restore all things.” —Matthew 17:11

Before Christmas, we need Elijah more than the contemporary Santa Claus. The two figures are very different, as are the Christmases they are associated with. Elijah dresses in a hairy garment (2 Kgs 1:8) while Santa wears a red suit. Elijah ate nothing but bread and meat for years (1 Kgs 17:6), while Santa is not associated with a sugar-free diet. Both Elijah and Santa are known for flying. At the end of his life, Elijah flew away in a fiery chariot drawn by flaming horses (2 Kgs 2:11), while Santa is said to fly a sleigh drawn by reindeer. Elijah is as hot as fire; Santa is as cold as snow. Of course, the main difference between Elijah and Santa is that Elijah is a real historical figure while Santa is “make-believe.”

Elijah’s Christmas is prophetic, repentant, sacrificial, and real. Elijah leads us to Christ and Christmas. Santa’s Christmas is jolly, indulgent, escapist, empty, and cold. Santa leads us nowhere. Which Christmas will you choose — Elijah’s or Santa’s?

Prayer: Jesus, I give my life to You. I live for and in You. I will not only keep Christ in Christmas, but I will keep Christmas in Christ.

Promise: “You are destined, it is written, in time to come to put an end to wrath before the day of the Lord, to turn back the hearts of fathers toward their sons, and to re-establish the tribes of Jacob.” —Sir 48:10

Praise: Once St. John heard Jesus ask him what reward he desired for his works of faith. John replied: “Lord, I ask no other recompense than to suffer and be condemned for Thy love.”

Catholic Online Saints

St. John of the Cross
Feastday: December 14

Born in Spain in 1542, John learned the importance of self-sacrificing love from his parents. His father gave up wealth, status, and comfort when he married a weaver's daughter and was disowned by his noble family. After his father died, his mother kept the destitute family together as they wandered homeless in search of work. These were the examples of sacrifice that John followed with his own great love -- God.

When the family finally found work, John still went hungry in the middle of the wealthiest city in Spain. At fourteen, John took a job caring for hospital patients who suffered from incurable diseases and madness. It was out of this poverty and suffering, that John learned to search for beauty and happiness not in the world, but in God.

After John joined the Carmelite order, Saint Teresa of Avila asked him to help her reform movement. John supported her belief that the order should return to its life of prayer. But many Carmelites felt threatened by this reform, and some members of John's own order kidnapped him. He was locked in a cell six feet by ten feet and beaten three times a week by the monks. There was only one tiny window high up near the ceiling. Yet in that unbearable dark, cold, and desolation, his love and faith were like fire and light. He had nothing left but God -- and God brought John his greatest joys in that tiny cell.

After nine months, John escaped by unscrewing the lock on his door and creeping past the guard. Taking only the mystical poetry he had written in his cell, he climbed out a window using a rope made of stirps of blankets. With no idea where he was, he followed a dog to civilization. He hid from pursuers in a convent infirmary where he read his poetry to the nuns. From then on his life was devoted to sharing and explaining his experience of God's love.

His life of poverty and persecution could have produced a bitter cynic. Instead it gave birth to a compassionate mystic, who lived by the beliefs that "Who has ever seen people persuaded to love God by harshness?" and "Where there is no love, put love -- and you will find love."

John left us many books of practical advice on spiritual growth and prayer that are just as relevant today as they were then. These books include:

Ascent of Mount Carmel

Dark Night of the Soul

and A Spiritual Canticle of the Soul and the Bridegroom Christ

Since joy comes only from God, John believed that someone who seeks happiness in the world is like "a famished person who opens his mouth to satisfy himself with air." He taught that only by breaking the rope of our desires could we fly up to God. Above all, he was concerned for those who suffered dryness or depression in their spiritual life and offered encouragement that God loved them and was leading them deeper into faith.

"What more do you want, o soul! And what else do you search for outside, when within yourself you possess your riches, delights, satisfaction and kingdom -- your beloved whom you desire and seek? Desire him there, adore him there. Do not go in pursuit of him outside yourself. You will only become distracted and you won't find him, or enjoy him more than by seeking him within you." -- Saint John of the Cross

In His Footsteps:
John of the Cross believed it was just as dangerous to get attached to spiritual delights as worldly pleasures. Do you expect to get something -- a good feeling, a sense of God -- from prayer or worship? Do you continue to pray and worship when you feel alone or dry?

Prayer:
Saint John of the Cross, in the darkness of your worst moments, when you were alone and persecuted, you found God. Help me to have faith that God is there especially in the times when God seems absent and far away. Amen

Wonderful thread. Thank you.

You are so welcome. It sets the day for me, and I hope it does for you, too!

Oops -- wrong day was posted. My mistake!

Advent Calendar for Adults

December 14
Adopt one of the spiritual works of mercy from Penitential Practices for Today's Catholics as part of your Advent journey.