“Who are you” (Jn 1:19)? John did not claim or pretend to be something that he was not. He was clear who he was, he was clear of his place in serving God. He was preparing the way of the Lord, for Jesus. The question also arose about who Jesus was. It was a question that arose often during the early development of the Church’s Christology and still arises today. The readings of the Christmas Season, that we are still celebrating liturgically, in fact all of the four Gospels, address the question of who Jesus is.

The various heresies in the Church surrounded this question. From the Annunciation we recognize that at his conception in the womb of Mary Jesus remained fully God and became fully human. He did not become the Christ at his baptism as the heresy of Adoptionism would propose. Nor was Jesus a powerful created being as the priest Arius would propose in the third century. We counter the heresy of Arianism every Sunday when we recite in the Nicene Creed: “God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten not made, consubstantial with the Father; through him all things were made.”

Arianism taught that Jesus was a created being, the highest of beings made by God, but created non the less. The Church teaches that Jesus is begotten not made. He was, is, and always will be God, the Second Person of the Trinity. He is consubstantial, homoousios, meaning of one and the same substance as God the Father.

Adoptionism and Arianism are but two of the early heresies that arose, of which Arianism gained more of a following. Arianism stills pops up today in practice as it did then because of the unwillingness to acknowledge that the divine could become human, could or would enter into our human condition. This goes back to our starting question with John. “Who are you?” We might want to answer that question ourselves. We are human beings created in the image and likeness of God, we are physical beings with a rational soul. Do we like John accept who we are or do we reject our humanity, trying to put our self in the place of God to determine our own destiny alone? Do we pretend we are something other than we are, do we put on masks?

As we continue to celebrate this Christmas Season and the new year that has just begun, may embrace who we have been created to be, this gift of the unique a special person God made us to be, with a particular vocation and part to play in building up the reign of God. We will come to know our purpose and find meaning in our life as we each day follow the lead of Mary and John and align our human will with the will of God. This means recognizing we need his help in all the decisions we are to make this day, the smallest to the biggest. Let us make some time to meditate on the Nicene Creed to understand the foundation of what we believe, understanding who Jesus is, and who we are. Let us pray for a heart and mind that is open to following his will.

Photo: Sanctuary of Mission San Luis Rey in Oceanside, CA

Link for today’s Mass readings for Tuesday, January 2, 2018:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/010218.cfm

Mary offers us a wonderful gift on this New Year’s Day. “Mary kept all these things,
reflecting on them in her heart” (Lk 2:19). Gabriel shares with Mary that she will conceive a child through the power of the Holy Spirit, her relative Elizabeth, who is past child bearing years, is six months pregnant, when Mary and Elizabeth meet John leaps in the womb of Elizabeth, the shepherds convey the message they received from the angels that Mary’s baby is the long awaited Messiah, Magi came from the East bearing gifts, Simeon and Anna offer prophetic confirmation that Jesus is the Messiah.

Indeed these are matters to ponder, not to just take at face value and move on with the day. The Church at her best has followed the model of Mary’s reflection, pondering, and meditating on what these words mean and has come to call this day the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God. This title says more about Jesus than it does about Mary. We can only come to the same conclusion as the Church Fathers did during the council of Ephesus in 431 AD if we too, take the time to prayerfully reflect on them and immerse ourselves in the depth of what they convey:

Mary is the Mother of God, in Greek – Theotokos – the God bearer. The full divinity of the Son of God was present at the conception of Jesus in the ovum of Mary. He would remain fully divine as the second Person of the Trinity, as he developed fully human in the womb of Mary, and was born of Mary. This is the Mystery of the hypostatic union, in which Jesus is one divine person subsisting in two natures the human and divine.

Theological insights such as Mary being the Mother of God are easily missed or worse dismissed if we conform ourselves to the present age of instant gratification, instant access, surfing the internet, taking in sound bytes from Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and amassing information overload. All of these technological avenues can be wonderful if we stop, slow down, and as Mary did, ponder what they offer.

If we still read books, do we do so with pencil and highlighter in hand, take notes and go back to those points underlined, highlighted, and or noted and ponder the insights we have received? Or do we just have a moment of pause and say hmm, interesting, and then move on to the next factoid?

May today be a day to take a few deep breathes, to slow down, and commit to ponder, to return to the same thought or insight through the day. It could be a word, a phrase, or a short statement that we write down and return to often. The phrase could be as simple as a paraphrase from today’s reading: Mary pondered on these things in her heart. We can reflect on where God has been calling us to stop and take a deeper look at our lives. It could be one word: Theotokos. We can ponder the meaning and relevance of what Mary being the God bearer means to our life today this first day of the New Year.

If we seek to live a life of joy and fulfillment in 2018, we need to slow down and reflect on life, on what is important, what has value, and where we are putting our time and effort and how we are aligning ourselves with God’s will to actualize our potential. Otherwise we may just float along indecisively, or stagnantly with indifference or cynicism, merely reacting to situations that arise, or worse plodding along bored and listless. Taking time to risk, to embrace and immerse ourselves in a life of thoughtful study, prayer, worship, and service, we may be better positioned to be engaged in living our lives with meaning and purpose, able to act decisively with clarity, and experience more fully what we are here for, being salt and light to the world.

May 2018 be a wonderful new year of meaning, joy, and fulfillment. May God be with us to bless and guide us along the way, and may we make time each day to spend with him in the silence of our hearts and so like Mary be better able to bear God to one another in our corner of the world. Happy New Year! Peace and all God’s good.

Photo: Marian side chapel, St Augustine Parish, Culver City, CA

Link for today’s reading for January 1, 2018:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/010118.cfm

What we have been reading in parts the last few days, we read in full today. Luke gives us the account of the faithfulness of Mary and Joseph. They followed the prescripts of the law by bringing Jesus to the Temple to have him consecrated to the Lord. We read of the prophecy of Simeon that Jesus is the promised hope of Israel and the light to the Gentiles, and also that he will lead to, “the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted – and you yourself a sword will pierce – so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed” (Lk 2:34-35). The prophetess Anna gives thanks to God and shares how the long awaited redemption of Israel has come in the presence of this child. The scene closes with Joseph, Mary, and Jesus heading back home.

That is a lot for Mary and Joseph to take in. I am sure they pondered Simeon’s prophecy and talked about it on their way home to Nazareth. Though they did not fully comprehend all they were presented with, what the Holy Family, whose feast we celebrate today, model for us is that they are open to the process. They continue what they started, they are faithful to God’s leading, and they ultimately place their trust in God.

We are invited to do the same. The family is called to be the domestic Church. It is the place where we learn our faith, where we learn about God, learn to pray, to worship, to serve, and to trust in God. This is especially true in a fallen world. The Gospel is not a fairy tale. In the midst of the joy of new birth, and a birth that will bring about the redemption of Israel, there is the gift of myrrh, an oil used to anoint the bodies of the dead, and there are Simeon’s haunting words above. In the midst of the words of wonder about this child being the prince of peace is the reality that he will die a brutal death.

This is also true with family life which is not perfect. There are the joys of new birth, as well as the promise of new life unfulfilled. There are celebrations as well as growing pains. There are temptations that wound, and temptations resisted that strengthen, there are conflicts as well as reconciliation, and there are times of many struggles, trials, and even death, but there is joy in sacrificing for another, being willing to love one another, and being present for one another through it all.

What is present as a constant in the journey of family is having trust in one another as well as an anchor and trust placed in God. Because of the wonderful gift of diversity, that anchor may not be present in each member of the family, and some who espouse an unwillingness to proclaim a belief in God may actually be closer than the faithful! But no matter how rocky or bumpy the waters, God is present with us to keep us steady.

May the Christmas Season be a time of renewal in our commitment to our family. Even if we may be in the midst of dealing with deep struggles, pain, or loss, we can begin again by coming to the manger. Offer our hand to the baby Jesus and feel his gentle grip grasp our finger. May we feel his gentleness, love, and peace fill our being. May we look deep into his little brown eyes and so see the face of God looking back at us with the assurance that we are not alone, and trust that he is present with us and our families.

Photo: Christmas Morning Jack’s apartment

Link for today’s Mass readings for Sunday, December 31, 2017:

http://usccb.org/bible/readings/123117.cfm

We have no evidence that the vocation of Anna, Simeon, the Magi, or the shepherds changed in any way after their encounter with the baby Jesus. What did happen in each of their lives was the same as Anna today; they told the story of their encounter. They, like Anna, must have shared what they experienced with anyone who would listen.

At the end of today’s account from Luke, Joseph, Mary and Jesus “returned to Galilee,
to their own town of Nazareth. The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom;
and the favor of God was upon him” (Lk 2:39-40). No ticker tape parade, no giving the key to the city, and no gala ball, they just returned to Nazareth.

These examples express a pattern of how God works, how the kingdom of God is, like a mustard seed, like seed that is sown, or like yeast. It starts small, quietly, and simply. God works through the everyday events of our lives, often unseen. We so often look for the mighty, majestic, and grandiose. We often believe we need to do great things, and often do nothing. St Mother Teresa directs us to do, what she learned from the Little Flower, St Therese of Lisieux, little things with great love.

As the Christmas Season continues, but life has already or has begun to shift; families and friends have come and gone or are readying to go, vacation days are coming to an end, let us continue to soak up the time we have that is available to enjoy one another, appreciate the gift we have been given to be with one another, and to make every effort to keep in touch, because our life is fragile and we will not be aware when it will be our time to go home to God.

As the Holy Family begins their return to Nazareth, and we begin to return to our normal course of daily living, may we be open to the quiet and gentle ways of how God is working in our lives. As seeds planted germinate and sprout, as yeast begins to cause the dough to rise, as we commit to support and care for one another, to be aware and reach out to those in need, to be open to expressing our need for help and allowing others to assist us, we can start to see God working in our lives. Let us be willing to recognize the simplicity of divinity operating within the midst of our humanity. God is inviting us to be transformed in this new year, to kindle in us the fire of his love. Let us watch, pray, and cooperate with his will to renew the face earth.

Photo: Mission San Luis Rey, Oceanside, CA

Link for today’s Mass readings for Saturday, December 30, 2017:

http://usccb.org/bible/readings/123017.cfm

“Lord, now let your servant go in peace; your word has been fulfilled: my own eyes have seen the salvation which you prepared in the sight of every people, a light to reveal you to the nations and the glory of your people Israel” (Lk 2:29-32).

As Simeon receives Jesus to be consecrated to the Lord, he recognizes through the gift of the Holy Spirit that this child, was the one he and Israel had been waiting for, he is the Messiah, the Christ. He has come to fulfill the Law and the Prophets as well as be a light to the Gentiles, to the Nations.

These verses, called the Canticle of Simeon, from Luke are recited each night by those of us who pray the Divine Office or the Liturgy of the Hours. They are prayed during Compline or Night Prayer, the last prayers before going to sleep. May we too see that this celebration of the birth of Jesus we have been engaging in this week is our savior too, our fulfillment and our light also.

May we like Simeon receive this child in our arms from Mary and Joseph. May we too see the salvation that is offered us, the invitation given to us. May we not run from the light of his truth, but may we embrace it so as to be transformed. Let us glory in the joy of knowing that Jesus came to share his love, mercy, and grace, with us. He is the promise of healing that we all need to realize and actualize in our lives.

That is the key, Jesus invites us but does not impose. This Christmas can be just another day in a cycle of days that passes with no change, or we can immerse ourselves in this Octave of Christmas so to take seriously the fact that Jesus is who he said he was, who the Apostles claimed that he was, who the Church still announces that he is today, Jesus the Christ the Son of the Living God. Spend some time holding the baby savior today.

As you hold him look into his face, see his smile, the glint in his eye, and allow that exchange to melt away any sin of pride, lust, greed, envy, sloth, gluttony, prejudice, and wrathful tendencies. May we feel the warmth of his love radiate up from the depths of our soul. May we be filled with his joy, so that as we gaze on another today we may share that same smile we have received and so radiate the love of Christ with those we encounter today.

Photo: Christmas morning!

Link for today’s Mass readings for Friday, December 29, 2017:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/122917.cfm

The magi come from the East seeking the new born king. They follow the natural sign of the star, and they are led into Jerusalem. They lose or turn away from the star and seek instead the ruler, Herod, to help them to find the child. But after meeting with Herod they again see the star and come to Jesus, do him homage, and share their gifts. Warned in a dream not to return to Herod with the location of the new born infant, they instead depart for their home another way. The magi had encountered the new born king and would share it with joy. A sign that the good news of Jesus is for all the nations, all the world.

King Herod, as in the time of Moses with the Pharaoh, has a different reaction: Fear. Herod fears losing his title, power, prestige. “When Herod realized that he had been deceived by the magi, he became furious. He ordered the massacre of all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had ascertained from the magi” (Mt 2:16). Often when we are led by fear, we react with violence.

Two very different reactions to the birth of Christ. The joy of the birth of Jesus that can lead to new life and a new beginning moving from our self centered, defensive posture of living or a doubling down of ego and disregard for the dignity of others. This Christmas Season how do we respond to the birth of Christ? Do we accept the invitation to let go of the fear and darkness within us or do we grasp and cling to it?

May we choose with the magi and Joseph to follow the leading of God and so experience the joy of the freedom from self and the freedom for excellence and pursue our vocation to live a life to the full that respects the dignity and value of others. As Pope Francis pointed out on this feast day of the Holy Innocents last year: “Christian joy does not arise on the fringes of reality, by ignoring it or acting as if it did not exist. Christian joy is born from a call – the same call that Saint Joseph received – to embrace and protect human life, especially that of the holy innocents of our own day. Christmas is a time that challenges us to protect life, to help it be born and grow.”

Life is a precious gift at all stages, yet life is fragile and vulnerable. May we be newly inspired to protect human dignity from the moment of conception until natural death. Enjoy your family, tell those you care about that you love them, and listen and respond to the cry of the innocent, the cry of the poor.

Photo: Oceanside, CA

LETTER OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS TO BISHOPS ON THE FEAST OF THE HOLY INNOCENTS December 28, 2016:

http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/letters/2016/documents/papa-francesco_20161228_santi-innocenti.html

Link for today’s reading for Thursday, December 28, 2017:

http://usccb.org/bible/readings/122817.cfm

Jesus Christ is born for us. Jesus Christ dies for us. Jesus Christ conquers death and rises again for us. Because of our place in time, December 27, 2017 AD – Anno Domini, In the year of our Lord, we are capable of experiencing the Paschal Mystery of Jesus: his life, suffering, death, Resurrection, and Ascension into Heaven. Does this new fact, this new reality in human history make a real difference in our lives?

Christmas did not end two days ago. We are still in the Octave of Christmas. The Church celebrates two octaves in the Church liturgical calendars, Christmas and Easter. These eight days are celebrated as such to impress on the solemnity of the event of remembrance. From the vigil celebration of Christmas on December 25 to January 1, the Solemnity of Mary the Mother of God, we celebrate the significant event of the Incarnation, the Son of God becoming one with us in human history. The Masses that are celebrated within the Octave of Christmas as well as the readings of Evening Prayer  in the Liturgy of the Hours, reflect the celebration of Christmas Day each day for the eight days. It is like having a week long birthday party.

But if we are solely focused on gifts, the returning of gifts, and celebration apart from the celebration of Jesus’ birth, if we are removed from the liturgical cycle and rhythm of the Church, it is easy to fall into the post Christmas blues. We hear Christmas music coming through many radio channels for weeks before Christmas, but at some point on Christmas Day and definitely the following day, they stop. This is when the music of Christmas ought to begin!

If you are slipping into the Christmas blues, maybe look at the possibility of going to a daily Mass or two. If you are not up to that or if it is not feasible, read the daily readings of the Mass. I post them at the end of this reflection each day, or you can go to usccb.org and click on the calendar to the right. You can read the readings yourself or click on the tab to hear the audio version, and they also have video homilies available for each day.

May we not succumb to the post Christmas blues, but rejoice in the Gospel, the Good News, that Jesus changed human history and we are a part of that human history of transformation. In today’s Gospel reading from John, Mary Magdalene shared that Jesus was no longer in the tomb. Peter and James ran to see, John arrived first, and then Peter. Peter went in and saw an empty tomb except for the burial clothes. When John entered after Peter, “he saw and believed” (Jn 20:8).

Do we see? Do we believe? John came to realize and embrace the gift of the Paschal Mystery: Jesus has been born for us, he suffered, died, rose again and conquered death for us. His, Mary’s and Peter’s lives were transformed and ours can be too. This is something to celebrate, not just two days ago, or just today, but for eight days, for all days! “O Come let us adore him, O come let us adore him, O Come let us adore him, Christ the Lord!”

Photo: Christmas Eve at the Grove, Los Angeles, CA.

Link for today’s reading for Wednesday, December 27, 2017:

http://usccb.org/bible/readings/122717.cfm

“You will be hated by all because of my name, but whoever endures to the end will be saved” (Mt 10:22).

Why are we talking about being hated the day after Christmas? Because Jesus, this baby whose birth we just celebrated is “the light that shines in the darkness” (Jn 1:5). Jesus is the Love that exposes hatred.

Jesus did not just come into the world as light to a world of darkness, he came to each and every individual person then and now to reveal the truth of those dark places within our own hearts, minds, and the very depth of our being. Yet many of us turn away or reject the light. The intimacy of what his light and love reveal within us, we often are not ready to face. Yet this baby invites us to be healed. When we are open to his healing and come to an openness to receive the gift of Jesus in our life, our natural response is to want to share the gift. But as we begin to share, let us do so through invitation and not imposition. As we in our woundedness said no to the healer, we need to be understanding of those who may not yet be ready to receive the gift of the baby Jesus.

Just as Jesus was rejected, so too will we be who embrace his message, then live and speak it. We will be labeled crazy, out of step, simple minded, and worse, yet we are to endure opening our being, our whole self each day to the transformative mercy, love, and forgiveness of Jesus and so reflect that to others, even those who persecute us.

Change, maturation, and growth is not easy. That is why we are called disciples. We are to be disciplined and to persevere. But we need to remember that our redemption does not come from our own doing or willing it to be so, our restoration and transformation comes first and foremost from an invitation to receive the blessing of Jesus, an invitation to receive the healing salve of his love, mercy, and forgiveness. May we be willing to be healed from our bias, prejudice, hatred, and selfishness. May we be willing to step out of our comfort zone and with courage be more loving, merciful, and forgiving with our family, friends, and enemies.

Christmas is not just a day, it is not just a season, Christmas is a way of allowing the baby Jesus to transform our lives. When we are tempted with impatience, call on the name of Jesus and take a few deep breaths. Be open instead to receive his patience that we may be present to the need of another. When we are tempted to judge, may we see the baby Jesus in the manger, weak, vulnerable and in need, so to see the one we are about to judge with understanding, mercy, and a love that wills their good. When we are tempted to disagree, let us visualize ourselves kneeling before the Christ child as we surrender our will, our ego, so to share our point of view, but allow the other to do the same. May we be able to disagree while at the same time respect the dignity of the person that we converse with.

May each day going forward be a new beginning committed to serving Jesus, as well as seeing Jesus in one other. Let us persevere in the love, mercy, and forgiveness that Jesus has given us. Let us endure to the end!

Photo: Crèche from St Augustine parish

Link for today’s Mass readings for Tuesday, December 26, 2017:

http://usccb.org/bible/readings/122617.cfm

“And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (Jn 1:14).

May we take time to meditate upon these words. We need to resist becoming complacent or indifferent to the reality that are in them, or to the idea that this is just another Christmas Day that we celebrate today. Instead may we embrace the promise to our person and our world that they embody. The Word, the Logos in the Greek, who was, who is, and who always will be, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, has become one with us. We, if we think beyond ourselves for just a minute, are the minutest of minutest speck of specks present in the whole of the cosmos. And yet, we have been graced by the presence of God who became man for each one of us, each individual person, so we can be one with him. He became human that we might be invited to become divine.

God took on flesh, he really did become a human being, while at the same time, not diminishing in any way his divinity. He did not just appear to be a man for a time and cast off his humanity like a coat. The Son was conceived in the womb of Mary, developed as you and I did, and when born let out a gasp and scream (just like a baby that just emitted a joyous cry a few seats behind me and JoAnn) that brought joy to Joseph and Mary, as they stared down at the new life before them.

The baby sitting behind us and his or her articulation that he or she is also alive and doing well echoed through the cabin as I was typing about Jesus’ birth. He or she helped me to pick up on something that had eluded me. We were en route to Los Angeles – the city of the Angels – on the airline, Virgin America, two days before Christmas. Not a bad way to be closing out the Lenten Season and beginning to think about the meaning of Christmas.

Christmas Day is a celebration of new life. Not just the birth of any baby, but through his coming into the world, a new beginning for creation and humanity. Today we celebrate the reality and the hope that we are not totally destroyed. We have not been totally undone by Original Sin. Yes, we have been wounded, we have been broken, but not undone.

Though darkness may appear to reign and their may be a temptation to buy into fear and desperation, today we celebrate that “A light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it” (Jn 1:5). This is a day to rejoice, a day to recommit to the light, to the baby who would later call himself, “the way, and the truth, and the life” (cf. Jn 14:6).

Today, may we kneel before this baby wrapped in swaddling clothes, for he shows to us the truth and realization that: “We cannot save ourselves. We can only open ourselves to the hope that comes to us from without, from others, ultimately from one Other” (Lohfink, 255). The One whose birth we celebrate today: “The Light of the human race” (Jn 1:4).

My prayers are with all of you who are reading these words. May God bless you and all you hold close this day. Merry Christmas!

Photo: St Augustine Church, Culver City, CA – Sunday Mass, Fourth Week in Advent.

Lohfink, Gehard. No Irrelevant Jesus: On Jesus and the Church Today. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2014.

Link for today’s Mas readings for Monday, December 25, 2017:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/122517-day.cfm

Today, on the fourth Sunday of Advent, we return to the Annunciation. Gabriel, an angel, a messenger of God, a spiritual being, interacts with a human being; though Mary is not the first one to experience such an encounter. There are personal encounters with God and his messengers throughout the Bible. This is how the God of Israel, the God of Jesus Christ acts, person to person through invitation, either directly himself or indirectly through one of his angels. We saw examples of such encounters during this week’s readings with the mother of Sampson, Hannah, the mother of Samuel, and Zechariah and Elizabeth, the parents of John the Baptist. Going back to Genesis we can see where God originally called a people to himself through his invitation to Abraham, and similar to Elizabeth and Zechariah, he and Sarah would give birth to a son, Isaac, past the time of child bearing years. Moses, the judges, David, and the prophets all would hear and answer God’s invitation. God communicates, reaches out to his created beings in history, in time.

But with Mary this announcement is different, for at this appointed time, the Son of God himself would become, while remaining fully divine, a human being in the womb of Mary. The God who is. Period. Full stop. He is not a being, not a human or even a supreme being. He is Infinite Act of Existence, and he the totally Transcendent will take on flesh and dwell among his created beings. This is the message that Mary receives, and we can understand why Gabriel would say to her:

“Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God” (Lk 1:30).

Mary, who knew the arch of salvation history, knew of the encounters God had with his people, her ancestors, knew of the promised coming of the Messiah, would now be the bridge between heaven and earth, the bridge between the old and the new covenant, the bridge between a people lost and a people found. Mary in her fiat, her yes, would become Theotokos, the God bearer.

This is what we prepare to celebrate tonight and tomorrow: The Son of God will be born to us because Mary said yes. Yet, her yes is not in isolation. It is made possible by so many who had gone before her. Joachim and Anna, Mary’s parents who provided care and guidance, as well as the many named above and not named though out the Biblical tradition who said yes to God and played a part in making this moment possible. Mary is not alone in the Annunciation, not alone in this definitive moment. This is the distinctive feature of Judaism and Christianity: We cannot save ourselves. We are not God. Our very life as created beings are a gift from God and we are in need of constant help and support from God and one another (cf. Lohfink, 254).

Now the invitation comes to us. Christmas is not just another day, even another holiday. It is a day to ponder, to wonder, to be still, to be in awe. The Son of God, the second Person of the Trinity, loved us so much, more than we can imagine, more than we can ever even begin to conceive, that he became one with us. Us, you reading this, me writing this, and each unique person taking a breath on this earth. No matter how much we have messed up, no matter how distant we feel we may be from him, no matter how confused, overwhelmed, disillusioned, he is present for and with us. We are going to be invited tomorrow to play our part in the ongoing wonder of salvation history. Mary’s answer: “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word” (Lk 1:38) is a definitive yes. What will our response be?
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Painting: Henry Oswana Tanner, The Annunciation, 1898

Lohfink, Gerhard. No Irrelevant Jesus: On Jesus and the Church Today. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2014.

Link for today’s readings for Sunday, December 24, 2017:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/122417.cfm