Cycle B

2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle B

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Today’s readings teach us that the Lord not only calls us to help him in his mission, but also calls to something greater.

In today’s First Reading Samuel, with the priest Eli’s help, gradually realizes that the Lord is calling him to be his prophet. Samuel’s mother was so grateful for having him after entreating the Lord to bless her with a child that she entrusts him to the Lord in the Temple. Samuel is precious in the Lord’s eyes too, and the Lord starts calling him, but Samuel is too young and inexperienced to understand what is going on. He turns to the priest Eli and, at first, Eli doesn’t understand what is going on either. We can imagine him groggily sending Samuel away the first time, then perplexed when the boy returns a second time. His advice to Samuel on the second occasion is good advice for any situation: listen for the Lord and tell him his (or her) servant is listening. Today’s readings conclude by saying no word of Samuel’s was “without effect” for the rest of his life. That was because Samuel became the Lord’s prophet. The Word of God has an effect, whether we accept it or not.

Paul in today’s Second Reading reminds us that, in Christ, we are already part of something greater, and what we do or don’t do influences more than just ourselves. Through Baptism we are joined with Christ and our fellow believers in a communion of life and love. Our sins not only have repercussions on ourselves, but on everyone with whom we are in communion. They hurt Our Lord and they hurt our fellow believers. Is serious enough they can even break that communion. However, on the flip side, the good we do not only helps Our Lord, but others as well. We are members of the Mystical Body of Christ, so what we do is for the good or ill of the entire body. We are also temples of the Holy Spirit. We bear something precious in us that must be cherished and nurtured.

In today’s Gospel two disciples of the prophet John the Baptist, at his encouragement, check out a Rabbi (a.k.a. the Lamb of God) and become not only his disciples, but his friends, and must share the good news. Two disciples of a prophet go looking for a Rabbi and find not only a Rabbi, but a friend and much more. Andrew and the “other disciple,” whom we presume to be John the Evangelist, don’t start grilling Our Lord when they meet him. Rather, they want to hang out with him. They don’t address him as the “Lamb of God” as John the Baptist did, just as “Rabbi,” an expression of respect and an acknowledgment that he has something to teach them.

He doesn’t try to impose any preconceived notions on them in response; he simple says, “come and see.” It is not just learning from him, but living with him. Andrew, as the Gospel recalls, “heard John and followed Jesus.” If he hadn’t listened to John he would not have found Jesus either. In following Jesus Andrew discovers that he has met the Messiah, and that’s not something he can keep to himself, so he shares it with his brother, Simon. The minute Jesus meets Simon he gives him a nickname—Cephas—and from that friendship a great mission would soon be born. Cephas—Peter—would not undertake that mission alone; he would follow Christ and share in his mission.

Take the “Samuel” challenge this week: not just once, but three times, take a few minutes of silent prayer this week and say, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening,” then listen. Listening here does not just consist of processing information, but of being ready to do what he tells you, even if it is hard. He may give you an entirely new mission in life, he may simply tell you to get your act together, but he will tell you something. If you think he is trying to tell you something, but don’t quite get it, seek someone who can give you good spiritual advice.

Readings: 1 Samuel 3:3b–10, 19; Psalm 40:2, 4, 7–10; 1 Corinthians 6:13c–15a, 17–20; John 1:35–42.

Baptism of the Lord, Cycle B

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Today is the end of the Christmas season. God himself is celebrating what is taking place in the Gospel: the Baptism of his Son in the river Jordan at the hands of St. John the Baptist.

In the First Reading, God speaks of Jesus as his servant who is about to begin something wonderful: his public life. He’s going to bring justice to the world, be a light for the nations, open the eyes of the blind, and free prisoners. God is keeping his promise through Jesus’ mission on earth: God is sending out the Savior today to get to work. During Christmas we celebrated the birth of the Savior. On today’s feast, the Baptism of the Lord, we’re celebrating him finishing his silent years in Nazareth and going out to preach salvation to the world.

In the Second Reading St. Peter rejoices that salvation is not just for the people of Israel, but for everyone who respects God and acts uprightly. When Jesus is baptized in the Jordan, he institutes a new kind of baptism. John talks about that baptism in the Gospel today as different from his: it is a baptism of the Holy Spirit. St. Peter in the Second Reading is speaking to Cornelius, who was the first non-Jew to be baptized in the history of the Church. The Jews thought originally that the Savior would only come for the Jews. But then the Holy Spirit revealed to Peter and the Church through Cornelius’ situation that the Savior was coming for everyone who feared God (respected God) and acted uprightly (acted in a good way).

The Holy Spirit always works little by little. Cornelius had heard about Jesus and his promise of salvation, and had been praying for a sign. Peter was praying too, and they didn’t know each other at all. Then an angel came to Cornelius and told him to send men to find and bring Peter. Cornelius was a Roman centurion, and since he wasn’t a Jew, Peter wouldn’t have visited him unless the Holy Spirit had said it was okay in a dream, since the Jews didn’t enter the houses of non-Jews. As Peter rejoices that the Savior has come for everyone, he recalls Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan as the beginning of doing good and healing all those who were oppressed by the devil.

So we celebrate today with God, with Peter, with Cornelius, and with everyone who has become Christian since. We celebrate that Jesus began to go out and do good, heal the sick, give sight to the blind, and free those who are imprisoned by sin.

So as we begin a new year, and the Christmas season draws to an end, Jesus’ private and public life show us it is time for us to get to work as well. In the Christmas season we’ve spent more time at home, resting, being with family and friends, receiving so many gifts, and getting ready to live the New Year better. It’s not a time for gloom and doom as we return to work, to school, to the daily grind: it’s time to show Our Lord we appreciate all He’s given us over the last year, and all He’s given us during the Christmas season. It’s time for us to get to work and get the word out about salvation. Cornelius heard about salvation from someone, long before he met St. Peter, and there are lots of Cornelius’ out there who are looking for what our faith has to offer. They are hungry for God.

Let’s thank Our Lord for the Christmas Season and the New Year that has just begun. Let’s keep moving forward on those New Year’s resolutions as a way to show gratitude to Our Lord for all the blessings He has poured out on us. Let’s pray for those who are suffering from hunger and war, so that they too can be blessed. Let’s pray for all those Cornelius’ out there to find and love God, to do good, and to find salvation.

Readings: Isaiah 42:1–4, 6–7; Acts 10:34-38; Mark 1:7–11.

Holy Family, Cycle B

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Today’s Solemnity of the Holy Family, within the Christmas octave, reminds us that our family is a bedrock of love. We count on them and we know that they count on us. That bedrock also reminds us that we can always count on the love of God as well.

In today’s First Reading Sirach reminds us that we should not take our family for granted. A family is a gift, and our family is our family no matter what they do or don’t do on our behalf. We feel that all too well when we don’t respond to the love shown by our family, or lose a member of our family unexpectedly. We count on our family, and that reliance reflects the reliance we should have on God. When we can’t count on our family, it’s hard for us to count on anything else, even God.

We all know of truly tragic and heart-breaking family situations – divorce, children lost to drugs, squabbles over inheritances, misunderstandings, even betrayals – but even in those situations we don’t lose sight of the ideal Sirach describes: a father and mother set in honor and authority over their children, children revering and praying for their parents, obeying them and caring for them when they grow old, and the blessings God showers on children who do so.

This model of mutual respect, help, and reliance is meant to be reflected in our society as well, so when it’s not lived in the family it’s no surprise that society suffers as a result. Our family is more than what they do or don’t do for us, and more than what they mean or don’t mean to us: they are our family. God’s given them to us, and us to them.

In today’s Second Reading St. Paul reminds us that as believers we are all brothers and sisters in the great family of Our Father thanks to Jesus, and our virtues should show the same love and respect we experience in our own family. We’re made holy by sharing in the life of God, through our Baptism, and we are “beloved” because we have received the gift of life itself, no strings attached. We build our love on that bedrock of divine love by bearing with one another and forgiving each other when grievances come, just as the Lord has forgiven us for all those times we haven’t shown him the love he deserved.

With a spirit of gratitude to God for the gift of life and the gift of his Son we serve and love each other in our family, avoiding bitterness and provocations and disobedience. “Obedience” grates on ears today in a world that’s so obsessed with autonomy and self-reliance, but in a family it means acknowledging the gift God has given us of someone we can rely on. We show gratitude by obeying, and it reminds us that being someone relied on can be a big sacrifice and responsibility as well.

Today’s Gospel (Luke 2:22-40) reminds us that the Holy Family, and every holy family, is centered on Christ. He’s the ultimate bedrock of our love. Simeon was promised by the Holy Spirit that he would see the Messiah before he died. He didn’t know when, he didn’t know how, but when the moment came the Holy Spirit led him to the baby Jesus in the Temple and revealed Jesus to be the Christ. Simeon didn’t just rejoice for his own sake at finally meeting the Messiah, but for all of Israel that had been waiting for him. A whole family of faith built on love for God through love for Christ was being born.

Anna’s married life was short; she spent more of her life as a widow than as a wife, but all those years were full of prayer. Anna spent many years in prayer and expectation, but when the moment came, she didn’t shy away from giving witness as well. She was attentive to the signs of the times, helped by the Holy Spirit, and she saw that the time of redemption was at hand. Both Simeon and Anna remind us that the elderly have a great vocation to prayer and to sharing their wisdom. Who can deny the impact of grandparents and even great aunts and uncles in their lives?

God calls our loved ones to love, and sometimes they (or we) don’t respond to that call. It’s the mystery of human freedom and sin. He calls us to love as well, and when we consider Christ’s example we know our love can’t be tarnished by a lack of love from others. Don’t feel left out in the cold: the Holy Family always has room for you, and the Church is always praying for you. The bedrock of love is always there, and forgiveness, even when a loved one doesn’t show it, is the balm that will bring you peace and consolation. Don’t be afraid to say “I forgive,” and don’t be afraid to say “I’m sorry” either. It’s often the trigger for many people rediscovering that the bedrock of love on which their lives are built. It doesn’t mean that you’ll forget, and many times it doesn’t mean that what happened will hurt any less, but it will give you a peace that the world can’t give.

Readings: Sirach 3:2–6, 12–14; Colossians 3:12–21; Luke 2:22–40.

4th Sunday of Advent, Cycle B

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The Fourth Sunday of Advent’s readings remind us, at the threshold of Christmas, that the mysteries of Our Lord and his saving plan are something revealed gradually over time, and will culminate with seeing Our Lord face to face in eternity. If we seek to gradually unravel the mystery we find that it goes beyond all our expectations.

In today’s First Reading King David decides it is time to build the first Temple for the Lord, and he receives a promise of a lasting dynasty. However, this dynasty is not like any other dynasty. The Ark of the Covenant in David’s time, a sign and instrument of the Lord’s presence among his people, had been housed in nothing better than a fancy tent, and now that David’s kingdom was secure he starts to feel guilty about the Lord’s nomadic “accommodations.” He consults the prophet Nathan and receives the green light from the Lord to start planning for the construction of what would become the first Temple of Israel, completed eventually by his son Solomon.

The Lord is pleased with David’s initiative, because David was showing appreciation for all the Lord had done for him: he’d gone from being a young shepherd to a great military leader to a king thanks to the Lord, not his own merits. The Lord promised David a lasting peace and success for his kingdom, but not just in David’s lifetime. The “house” of David, in recognition of the “house” he wanted to build for the Lord, would be a dynasty that endured in the Lord’s presence not just in history, but forever. That descendant who ensured that eternal dynasty would one day be revealed to be Our Lord, the Messiah, whose birthday we’ll celebrate real soon.

In today’s Second Reading St. Paul reminds us that God’s plans are always revealed gradually, shrouded in mystery. The Messiah wasn’t revealed at first to be the Son of God. That was revealed in Our Lord’s Incarnation, as the Gospel today reminds us. The Messiah wasn’t revealed at first to be a blessing for anyone other than Israel, but in Christ it was revealed that the Messiah would be a blessing for “all nations.” What Nathan and other Old Testament prophets foretold was only fully revealed and understood in Our Lord. The key to unlocking the mysteries of God is named Jesus Christ, but turning that key requires faith in him, following his rhythm.

In today’s Gospel the Annunciation, and Mary’s response, remind us that there’s always an element of mystery in God’s plan for our lives, a mystery to be accepted in faith. If you seek rational certainty you’re no longer believing, you’re just trying to prove something. The Angel Gabriel is dropping more bombs than a military plane. Mary doesn’t know how to respond to an angel appearing to her and saying she is pleasing to the Lord. It’s pure humility on her part.

Then Gabriel drops another bomb: the Lord wants Mary to be the mother of the Messiah. Mary is confused, because it seems her plans, good plans, were not God’s plans after all. The Church Fathers see in this confusion Mary’s prior plan to have pledged her perpetual virginity out of love for God, something unheard of in her time among the Jews. While explaining the biological and theological technicalities Gabriel also lets her know that her son will be the Son of God.

Mary was faced with a decision, the decision to become something seemingly impossible: the Virgin Mother of God the Son, who’d be the Messiah and save Israel. To understand the true weight of her decision we must forget for a moment everything that came after this decision. Put yourself in her shoes in that moment. She had to decide to embrace the seemingly impossible based on a promise that nothing was impossible to God.

She was faced with a mystery that in many ways was beyond her comprehension, but it was God’s mystery and that was enough for her: she accepted God’s mystery in her own life with faith and was never the same. She didn’t qualify her acceptance of the invitation; she said, “May it be done to me according to your word.”

Our Lord leaves signs for anyone with faith who wants to find them. He even promises that the Holy Spirit will help us to find them. A little silence and prayer will clear our minds and hearts to see more clearly what plans he may have for us at Christmas and in the new year about to begin. Like Mary, even if we don’t understand 100%, we must respond in faith and move forward with him.

Readings: 2 Samuel 7:1–5, 8b–12, 14a, 16; Psalm 89:2–5, 27, 29; Romans 16:25–27; Luke 1:26–38.

2nd Sunday of Advent, Cycle B

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The prophets in today’s readings teach us that it is not enough for the Lord to make a beeline toward us. We need to clear a straight path toward him and help others reach him as well. Our sins are the roadblocks and setbacks in the journey.

In today’s First Reading Isaiah reminds us that we can help the Lord reach us or hinder him, but he is coming one away or the other. Salvation history, from the Fall to the Incarnation, was a long, difficult, and twisted road. Mankind was lost in sin and groping in the dark to regain its bearings. The Lord’s interventions before coming in Person were all to keep people moving and facing in the right directions, with mixed results. They were expecting to meet him at the end of the journey, not during the journey. Today the Lord tells Isaiah to encourage Israel after all their struggle and difficulty with the good news that not only are they getting closer, but the Lord is coming closer to them to help them along the way. They’ve paid the prices for their sins and are ready of be reconciled with the Lord. With all the imagery of making a straight path, filling in the valleys, and levelling the peaks not only is the Lord encouraging them to make a beeline for him, but to build a direct path to him. A direct path between two people is good for both. In the Incarnation and Birth of Our Lord, for which we’re preparing, we meet Our Lord on the way, and he makes the way easier and accompanies us.

In today’s Second Reading St. Peter reminds us how we can make straight the way for the Lord, and how the Lord makes the way straight for us. It is a long road because Our Lord is patient with sinners and wants their salvation. Some need time to get back on course. Some need more time, some need less. With sin the road doesn’t get longer; it gets harder. We go off track, take useless detours, stumble along the way, sometimes turn completely around and lose progress. The Lord will appear unexpectedly and everything will change, for good or ill, depending on our attitude toward him. God was born as Jesus Christ. Our humanity is his humanity, and a meeting point no one could have expected in our journey towards eternity. That meeting seeks to transform our lives, not condemn them. Our Lord wants to make it a good moment, not a bad one, but the decision is ultimately ours: we make straight the path to him if we live in “holiness and devotion,” eager for his day to come as a day of righteousness. That Day is not just at the end of time when he returns in glory, but, as his Birth reminds us, the moment we’re born of water and the Spirit in Baptism (see John 3:3–8). From that moment we’re back on the path to eternity with him at our side, and that path is made straight, if we keep pressing on.

In today’s Gospel John the Baptist starts telling Israel, and us, to get ready, fulfilling two prophecies of the Old Testament. The prophet Malachi said someone would come prepare the way for the Lord (see Malachi 3:1). That someone, as the prophecy in today’s First Reading reminds us, would encourage his listeners to make straight the way of the Lord (see Isaiah 40:3): enter John the Baptist. Mark tells us how the way of the Lord was made straight by John: a baptism of repentance (as opposed to what we now know as the sacrament of Baptism) for the forgiveness of sins. An attitude of repentance and a desire for forgiveness is what makes the Lord’s path straight, and John’s baptism with water was a way to show it.

Mark also makes a point of describing John’s attire because it was the “uniform” of a great prophet, Elijah (see 2 Kings 1:8), who was one of the most amazing prophets of the Old Testament in terms of the signs and miracles. Malachi actually described the one who would prepare the Lord’s way as “Elijah” (see Malachi 4:5). John’s mission would be equally amazing for two reasons: first, because he would actually baptize the Lord when he came, a moment when Our Lord sanctified the waters for Baptism; second, because he would be the last prophet of the Old Testament, the one who would immediately announce the Messiah and see him before his death.

If John personifies how we can make the Lord’s path straight (an attitude of repentance and a desire for forgiveness), the right attitude is not enough. His baptism was a sign of that attitude, but the action would happen in the Baptism we now all receive to be “born anew” (see John 3:3–8) in the Holy Spirit. Advent is our moment for adopting the right attitude, and Christmas will be the moment when we encounter Our Lord and remember that we too were born in him, leaving the old, dead life of sin behind.

The Messiah is coming in a few weeks, hidden in a cave in Bethlehem. As far as hide and seek goes, finding him can present a challenge if we try to do it on our own. During Advent the prophets, apostles, and evangelists are telling us where and how to find Our Lord at Christmas. Meditate on the Advent readings as a roadmap to make a straighter way to and for the Lord. Our Lord’s Incarnation and birth are also a way in which God comes out of hiding from a humanity lost in sin so that we can seek him again. Our Lord never avoids us, even in those moments where we’re letting him down. That alone warrants us seeking to encounter and unite ourselves more deeply with him at Christmas and beyond.

Readings: Isaiah 40:1–5, 9–11; Psalm 85:9–14; 2 Peter 3:8–14; Mark 1:1–8.

Second Sunday of Advent - December 7, 2014 - Mission Basilica San Diego de Alcalá