Reading 1 Nm 6:22-27
The LORD said to Moses:
“Speak to Aaron and his sons and tell them:
This is how you shall bless the Israelites.
Say to them:
The LORD bless you and keep you!
The LORD let his face shine upon
you, and be gracious to you!
The LORD look upon you kindly and
give you peace!
So shall they invoke my name upon the Israelites,
and I will bless them.”
Responsorial Psalm Ps 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8
R. (2a) May God bless us in his mercy.
May God have pity on us and bless us;
may he let his face shine upon us.
So may your way be known upon earth;
among all nations, your salvation.
R. May God bless us in his mercy.
May the nations be glad and exult
because you rule the peoples in equity;
the nations on the earth you guide
R. May God bless us in his mercy.
May the peoples praise you, O God;
may all the peoples praise you!
May God bless us,
and may all the ends of the earth fear him!
R. May God bless us in his mercy.
Reading 2 Gal 4:4-7
Brothers and sisters:
When the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son,
born of a woman, born under the law,
to ransom those under the law,
so that we might receive adoption as sons.
As proof that you are sons,
God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts,
crying out, “Abba, Father!”
So you are no longer a slave but a son,
and if a son then also an heir, through God.
Alleluia Heb 1:1-2
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets;
In these last days, he has spoken to us through the Son.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel Lk 2:16-21
The shepherds went in haste to Bethlehem and found Mary and Joseph,
and the infant lying in the manger.
When they saw this,
they made known the message
that had been told them about this child.
All who heard it were amazed
by what had been told them by the shepherds.
And Mary kept all these things,
reflecting on them in her heart.
Then the shepherds returned,
glorifying and praising God
for all they had heard and seen,
just as it had been told to them.
When eight days were completed for his circumcision,
he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel
before he was conceived in the womb.
REFLECTION
GOD WAS A BABY
"When the designated time had come, God sent forth His Son born of a woman, born under the law, to deliver from the law those who were subjected to it, so that we might receive our status as adopted sons." –Galatians 4:4-5
We began the Christmas season celebrating Jesus' birth. On this eighth day of Christmas, we celebrate His conception, that is, the conception of God. To express the reality of His conception, God's Incarnation, we speak of Mary as the mother of God. This states that God really and permanently became a human being. He did not merely inhabit a human body or appear in the form of a human being. God actually became a human being.
God, in the womb of Mary, was a fetus about the size of a thumbnail. God nursed at Mary's breast. God talked "baby-talk." God had to be taught to walk. In addition to these physical realities of God's becoming human, God spiritually took on our weak human nature. He was born under the law (Gal 4:4). He was like us in all things but sin (Heb 4:15). He was tempted in every way that we are (Heb 4:15). The awesome God, the All-holy One, the great I AM, emptied Himself (see Phil 2:7) to the point that He had to struggle to overcome the little, petty temptations with which all human beings struggle.
Why did God so humiliate Himself and become man? "God is Love" (1 Jn 4:16).
| PRAYER: | Father, through this world day of prayer for peace and justice, break through in China as You did in the former Soviet Union. |
| PROMISE: | "Mary treasured all these things and reflected on them in her heart." –Lk 2:19 |
| PRAISE: | Mary, the mother of God, is also our mother. Praise You, Almighty God, for adopting us into Your glorious family! Alleluia.
|
No comments:
Post a Comment