4 January 2019 - Christmas weekday - Friday - John 1:35-42

    “What are you looking for?”  This is the question that Jesus asks two men who are intrigued by him after they hear John the Baptist call him the Lamb of God.  We see so many people in the world today who are searching for something in their lives.  So many feel unfulfilled.  Many try to fill a void in their lives with other things: drugs, alcohol, music, video games, entertainment, pleasure, or even work.  Many of these things are not bad in themselves in moderation, if we don’t make them our idols or our gods.  Yet, if we are looking for meaning, if we are searching for fulfillment, our faith is where we will find it.

       We won’t always get an answer to all the questions we have.  Many times we will have to walk by faith and not by fact or evidence.  Rather, we are to learn and to grow.  On our journey of faith, the journey itself is important.  The values by which we live each day are important.  

         On this day that we come to Jesus for healing in our lives in the sacrament of the anointing of the sick, we celebrate a very important America Saint - St Elizabeth Anne Seton. In fact, she was the first native born citizen of the United States to be canonized a saint in the Catholic Church.  She was born in an Episcopalian here in New York in 1774, which was before the United States become an independent country.  She became Catholic after the death of her husband while they were on a trip to Italy.  Her own father was a great example of someone who lived a life of charity toward others.  Elizabeth Ann Seton gives us a great example of faith today as the first American born Catholic to be beatified, as the founder of the first American religious community for women, the Sisters of Charity, as the founder of the first American parish-affiliated Catholic school, and the first American Catholic orphanage.  What are you looking for?  Elizabeth Ann Seton answered this question by the life of faith that she lived in service to God and in service to her brothers and sisters.  We have to answer this same question with our own lives of faith. 

2 January 2019 – Wednesday of Christmas weekday – St. Basil the Great & St. Gregory Nazianzen – John 1:19-28

     “Who are you?”  The Jewish authorities asked this question of John the Baptist.  John had no difficulty answering them.  And, I wonder, if someone asked us a question that challenged our identity, both our natural identity and our spiritual identity, how would we answer?  In our society, many people try to manufacture or invent an image or identity for themselves, leaving their spiritual identities deep in the recesses of their souls.  

         The Jewish authorities questioned John the Baptist so intensely because they wanted to know if the Messiah had come, if John claimed to be the Messiah or one of the great prophets who was expected to return at the coming of the Messiah.  But John had no problem in knowing who he was and in proclaiming his identity to the world: he was the one preparing the way for the Messiah.  John is the first of the New Testament witnesses and martyrs. 

         Today we also celebrate the feast day of two important Church fathers and doctors of the Church from the 4th century: St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzus.  They were both from Cappedocia, an inland area in present day Turkey that was an important center of early Christianity.  Gregory and Basil were not only two great theologians and teachers in the early Church, they were great friends.  Gregory described his relationship with Basil as “one soul in two bodies.”  Like John the Baptist, Gregory and Basil were true disciples of Jesus who were not afraid of proclaiming their identities publicly and not afraid of ardently preached the truth of God.  In 379, Gregory found himself in Constantinople, where he had to defend the Trinitarian doctrine that was declared at the Council of Nicaea to those who adhered to the heresy of Arianism.  Gregory acquired the nickname “The Theologian,” because his theological way of thinking came from his strong life of prayer and holiness.  St. Basil was instrumental in outlining the foundations of monasticism as it evolved in the early Church and as it is still practiced in the monasteries today. As a bishop, Basil was also known for his acts of charity and for his development of the Church’s liturgy as the summit of its activity. 

         In John the Baptist, St. Basil the Great, and Gregory Nazianzen, we have three great examples of faithful discipleship, of identity rooted in their faith in God, of a strong willingness to give witness to their faith and their spiritual identity to all publicly.  May they serve us as models as we continue our journey of faith this Christmas season.

28 December 2018 – Feast of the Holy Innocents – Matthew 2:13-18

       Right after we celebrate Christmas, our church recognizes three feast days in a row, representing the different people who honor Jesus at his birth.  The day after Christmas is the feast of St. Stephen, a martyr in the early Church whom we can see as representing all who have sacrificed their lives for the faith.  Next, we have the feast of John the Evangelist, who represents all the Church leaders who work tirelessly for our faith.  Today, we celebrate and honor the Holy Innocents, children who were massacred by King Herod in Bethlehem when he had heard of Jesus' birth.  Martyrs, church leaders, children: they all honor Jesus at his birth. The martyrs we commemorate show us how the cross, the sacrifice Christ made for our salvation, is an essential part of the message we hear at Christmas.

         Luke tells us about the massacre of the holy innocents as part of the story of the Magi, quoting the prophet Jeremiah: “A voice was heard in Ramah, sobbing and loud lamentation; Rachel weeping for her children, and she would not be consoled, since they were no more.”  Jeremiah portrays Rachel, the wife of Jacob, the patriarch of the people of Israel, as weeping at the place where the Israelites were led by the conquering Assyrians for their march to Babylon. As Rachel is imagined weeping for her people forced into exile, as the parents of the children massacred at Bethlehem weep for their loss, what do we have to weep for today in our modern world?  We see children and families suffering and torn apart by violence, and by alcohol and drug abuse.  We see innocents killed by abortion.  We see many in our world and in our own society go to bed hungry for lack of food to eat.  We certainly have a lot to weep for ourselves. 

         Yet, while the prophet Jeremiah calls for weeping, he also brings a message of hope and liberation to the people of Israel forced into exile.  Herod's actions were brutal and painful, but they weren't the final word.  God gives us hope in the birth of Christ.  Through Jesus, God proclaims his kingdom and promises us salvation.  How are we called to help proclaim this kingdom that is here already yet is still not fulfilled?

Prayer for January 1 - in entrusting the Church to Mary, the Mother of God

O Mother of all peoples, you know all their sufferings and their hopes.  You maternally feel all their struggles between good and evil, between the light and the darkness that shapes the world.  Receive our cries, directed in the Holy Spirit straight to your heart and with the love of you merciful heart and with the love of the Mother and Handmaid of the Lord, embrace those who most look for your embrace.  We pray that you reach out to those who trust in you in a special way.  Take the entire human family into your maternal protection.   With our affection and love, we entrust our cries to you, Mother of the Church.  May the time of peace and liberty approach for all, the time of truth, justice, and hope.  AMEN.  

6 January 2018 – Homilia - La Epifanía del Señor - Los Tres Reyes Magos – Mateo 2, 1-12

     Hoy, en el segundo domingo la temporada de navidad, celebramos la visita de los tres reyes magos al niño Jesucristo y sus padres.  En muchos sentidos, esta visita de los magos es una lección para nosotros sobre Jesús y su misión al mundo.  El mensaje de la visita de los reyes magos es que Jesús está enviado por la parte de Dios Padre para ofrecer la salvación de Dios a todos los hombres de la tierra.  Es interesante que los magos son reyes del oriente, que son paganos, no son judíos.  Vinieron a Belén para adorar al niño Jesucristo, mientras el rey Herodes y los sumos sacerdotes quedaron en Jerusalén. Herodes estaba muy enojado cuando se daba cuenta sobre el nacimiento del niño divino.  Herodes no quería visitarlo; él quería planear su muerte.  Herodes no tenía gozo en su corazón cuando recibió esta noticia, pero los magos estaban gozosos porque ellos reconocieron al niño como el salvador del mundo. Podemos mirar todas las personas en la narrativa del nacimiento de Cristo.  Herodes, los escribas, los sumos sacerdotes, y muchas otras personas en Israel – ellos estaban ciegos a la luz de Cristo que brilla en el mundo. Pero, María y José, los pastores en el campo, y los reyes magos – ellos podían reconocer la luz de Cristo y podían recibir esta luz en su vida.  Y nosotros podemos hacer lo mismo en nuestra vida también. 

      Podemos notar que no hay detalles en la narración de los reyes magos en el Evangelio que tenemos en nuestra tradición.  Pensamos que hay tres reyes magos, pero la Biblia no dice cuantos reyes habían, solo que ellos tenían tres regalos por el niño.  No nos dice sus nombres. No nos dice de cual país ellos son, sólo que ellos de algún del este. Dice que son magos. Pero, ¿qué son Magos? ¿Son astrólogos o sabios o reyes?  Siempre nos imaginamos a los reyes magos viajaban al desierto por camellos en su viaje para ver al niño Jesús, pero el relato de la Biblia no dice cómo llegaron.  No sabemos muchas detalles acerca de ellos en la Biblia, pero un obispo en Alemania, en el siglo 12 afirmó que encontró los cráneos de los tres reyes magos y los colocó en su catedral como reliquias preciosas.

        Reflejando de la narrativa de los tres reyes magos en el Evangelio de hoy,  me doy cuenta que a veces nosotros no podemos reconocer la presencia de Dios y sus maravillas que están en frente de nosotros.  Jesús estaba rechazado por su pueblo, por la gente que esperaba al Mesías, pero los extranjeros reconocían su identidad verdadera.  Nosotros somos hermanos en Cristo – eso no es una idea – es una realidad que necesitamos vivir.   Todos los hombres del mundo forman el nuevo pueblo de Dios.   Su salvación es para todo el mundo, so solo para un grupo pequeño.  Tenemos la libertad y la voluntad libre para aceptarlo o para rechazarlo.  Nosotros tenemos señales para encontrar a Jesús como los magos tenían esta estrella muy especial.  Como esta estrella tenía una luz brillante, Jesús es la luz mas brillante en las tinieblas de nuestro mundo.  Es una cosa para conocer los mandamientos de Dios y sus Escrituras, pero es otra cosa para seguir la luz de Jesucristo y para caminar en esta luz en nuestro camino de fe.

         Me gusta el cuento de los tres reyes magos muchísimo.  La verdad que existe en su viaje a través del desierto para llegar a este pesebre en Belén tiene muchas enseñanzas para nosotros hoy día.  Su camino como discípulos es un ejemplo de fe para nosotros.

6 January 2018 - The Epiphany of the Lord - Isaiah 6:1-6, Matthew 2:1-12

     The Epiphany of the Lord - the Three Wise Men - the Magi - the Three Kings - today’s celebration near at the end of the Christmas season has many different names. In most places in the Catholic world, Epiphany is celebrated on January 6.  However, in the United States, we Catholics always celebrate Epiphany on a Sunday, so that more of the faithful can be a part of this celebration. And this year, January 6 actually falls on a Sunday, so we celebrate it on its traditional date this year. A couple of years ago, I was interviewed by the religion reporter from the Tupelo newspaper about the celebration of Epiphany.  The reporter had a lot of questions about it, since this celebration is not recognized in most Protestant churches. Our word “epiphany” comes from a Greek word that means “manifestation.”  With the celebration of the Magi’s visit to Jesus, we celebrate the revelation of God in his Son Jesus Christ born in the humble manger in Bethlehem.  In the Church in the West, the Epiphany of the Lord has been celebrated since the 4th century, so it quite an ancient celebration in the Church.  Like many things in the Bible, the gifts that the Magi bring the Christ child have symbolic meaning.  Gold, a very valuable metal even in our modern world, symbolizes the kingship of Jesus. Frankincense, an incense that was used in religious ceremonies in the Temple in Jerusalem, represents the priesthood of Jesus.  Myrrh, a spice that was used to embalm bodies for burial, foreshadows Christ’s passion, suffering, and his death on the cross.  Matthew’s Gospel does not say how many wise men visited Jesus, but the number of three wise men has been traditionally assigned to them corresponding to the three gifts they brought the baby Jesus. In fact, supposedly the relics of the three wise men are housed in the Cathedral in Cologne, Germany, which was quite a honor for them during the medieval period.  

     What does it mean when we call them Magi?  “Magi” is the Greek word used for them in the Gospel. The term “Magi” could refer to astrologers or magicians or dreamers or star gazers.  Since the wise men trace their journey by following a star, the term “Magi” makes sense to us.  We could also call them Wise men. The Roman philosopher Cicero referred to them as “wise and learned men from among the Persians.” In fact, the Hebrew word wise men is used in the Old Testament to designate this class of astrological advisors.  We often think about them as “Kings,” don’t we?  We often picture them in our minds wearing crowns, don’t we?  Are everyone knows the Christmas carol “We Three Kings.” The Christian author Tertulian from the 2nd century saw the Three Kings as fulfilling the prophecy of Isaiah that we hear in our first reading today: “Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn…and all from Sheba will come, bearing gold and incense and proclaiming the praise of the Lord.”  So, there is indeed some truth in calling these three visitors to Jesus as Wise Men or Kings or Magi - all of these labels describe some aspect of their mysterious identity. 

     The most important thing is not the title we give these men who visit the Christ child - what is most important is what this story of the Wise Men tells us.  Whether these visitor are seen as coming from the Orient or seen as representing Europe, Africa, and Arabia, the fact that these men came from outside the nation of Israel from a faraway place, recognizing the Christ child as someone special, shows us that Jesus is meaningful beyond the confines of Israel.  Jesus is a gift to the whole world.  Jesus brings salvation to all races and all cultures and all nations.  While these men bring Jesus precious gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, may we bring our own gifts and treasures today to honor Jesus our Lord as we the Catholic faithful celebrate Epiphany today.    

Quote from Florence Nightingale about Life

"Live life when you have it.  Life is a splendid gift -- there is nothing small about it."  

What a wonderful quote.  

Florence Nightingale (1820 to 1910).  

(English social reformer, reformer of hospitals and founder of modern of nursing - served as a nurse to soldiers in the Crimean War).  

30 de diciembre de 2018 – La Sagrada Familia – Lucas 2, 41-52, 1 Samuel 1,20-22, 24-28

      En nuestro mundo, muchas personas piensan que la celebración  de Navidad termina con la misa en el 25 de diciembre, en el día del nacimiento de nuestro señor.  Pero, en realidad, la temporada de navidad empieza este día del 25 de diciembre y termina con el bautismo de nuestro Señor en el 13 de enero.  Hoy, celebramos la Sagrada familia, una celebración importante en la temporada de navidad.  En el Evangelio, San Lucas nos da una narración del descubrimiento del joven Jesús en el Templo de Jerusalén.  En el Evangelio, hay un énfasis en la familia divina de Jesús y en su familia humana también.  Jesús explica a María que necesita quedar en la casa de su Padre, pero, en última instancia, él obedece a sus padres con su vuelta a Nazaret con ellos.  Al fin de la lectura, dice que Jesús creció en sabiduría y en estatura con sus padres, en el favor de Dios y de los hombres.  Después de escuchar la explicación de Jesús, María conservaba en su corazón todas aquellas cosas. Me imagino que María tenía confusión y frustración en este momento, pero lo guardaba en su corazón y lo compartía con la comunidad cristiana en los Evangelios. 

      En el descubrimiento de Jesús en el Templo, podemos reflexionar sobre los obstáculos y los desafíos que tenemos en nuestras familias, en la manera que vencerlos con perseverancia y con una respuesta de fe.  En las celebraciones de Navidad y del Año Nuevo, celebramos con familiares y amigos.  Podemos darnos cuenta de las relaciones rotas, de las argumentos y los problemas que tenemos en nuestras familias.  En los días de Navidad, queremos ayudar a los pobres y los hambrientos, y en estas acciones, nos damos cuenta de la desigualdad que existe en nuestra sociedad humana, de la guerras, los conflictos, y los sufrimientos en nuestro mundo, de la pobreza material y espiritual que afligen a muchas personas.  En los problemas y en los desafíos que tenemos en nuestras familias y en nuestra sociedad, tenemos la luz de Cristo para guiarnos.  Tenemos las gracias y las bendiciones de Dios para animarnos y consolarnos. 

      En la primera lectura de Samuel, escuchamos sobre las oraciones de Ana.  Ana recibió una respuesta de Dios – un hijo – se llama Samuel.  Ana no olvide las promesas de Dios – no olvide su voluntad en su vida.  Entonces, Ana dio las ofrendas a Dios, y envió Samuel al profeta Elí con su gracias y su gratitud a Dios.  La fe de Ana es un ejemplo de fe para nosotros y para su hijo Samuel.  Samuel será un gran profeta para el pueblo de Israel.  

      Un niño necesita participar en una comunidad de fe y en la liturgia y los sacramentos de nuestra Iglesia.  Necesita participar en las clases de la doctrina en la Iglesia.  Pero, el Segundo Concilio Vaticano dice que la familia es la Iglesia domestico para los niños. En sus palabras y en su ejemplo, los padres son los primeros y los mejores maestros de sus hijos en la fe. Ana y su esposo pasaron su fe a su hijo Samuel. Y Jesús también creció en su fe con el ejemplo de José y María en su vida. Los padres cristianos tienen la llamada de animar a sus hijos en la búsqueda de la vocación propia de cada uno, de su vocación sagrada.  Cada padre y cada adulto en nuestra comunidad de fe puede preguntar – ¿Cómo estamos predicando la palabra de Dios a nuestros hijos y a los jóvenes en nuestra comunidad en nuestras palabras y en nuestras acciones.  En el cuento de la Sagrada Familia de hoy, podemos reflexionar sobre nuestra llamada de ser sagrado en nuestra familia propia y de nuestra llamada de cultivar la santidad de nuestras familias.  

Bendición del pesebre - misa de la Noche Buena - 24 de diciembre de 2018

Oremos:

Dios de cada nación y cada pueblo,

desde el principio de la creación tú has manifestado tu amor

cuando nuestra necesidad de tener un Salvador era grande. 

Enviaste a tu Hijo para nacer de la Virgen María.

A nuestras vidas, tu Hijo trae la alegría y la paz, la justicia y el amor.

Señor, bendice a todos los que miran a este pesebre;

Que nos recuerde el humilde nacimiento de Cristo,

Que le levante nuestros pensamientos,

Quien es Dios con nosotros y Salvador de todo.

que vive y reina por los siglos de los siglos.

R /. Amén.

Blessing of the nativity scene - Christmas eve mass - 24 December 2018

Let us pray: 

God of every nation and people,

from the very beginning of creation

you have made manifest your love:

when our need for a Savior was great

you sent your Son to be born of the Virgin Mary.

To our lives he brings joy and peace, justice and love.

Lord, bless all who look upon this manger;

May it remind us of the humble birth of Jesus,

May it raise our thoughts to him,

who is God-with-us and Savior of all,

who lives and reigns forever and ever.

Amen.

1 January 2019 – solemnity of Mary, Mother of God – Luke 2:16-21

       In our Catholic faith, we have so many different titles for our Mother Mary.  Some of these titles describe the different attributes that Mary has: Morning Star, Queen of the Prophets, Vessel of Honor, Queen of the Angels, and Mirror of Justice.  Some of these titles are related to different devotions and apparitions of the Blessed Mother:  Our Lady of the Pillar, Our Lady of Guadalupe, Our Lady of the Rosary, and Our Lady the Snows.  On her feast day of January 1, we celebrate and honor Mary in a special way as the Mother of God.   This is the first and most important title that we ascribe to Mary.  It describes the place Mary has in our lives and describes the loving and genuine devotion we have to our Mother. 

       Christian historian Jaroslav Pelikan states that Mary has inspired more people than any other woman who has ever lived.  Rose Kennedy, the matriarch of the Kennedy family and a very devout  Catholic, reflected upon all the tragedies she endured throughout her lifetime, stating that she constantly found inspiration and consolation in our Blessed Mother, who never lost her faith in God or her faith in her Son even when she saw Jesus crucified and reviled. Indeed, one of the most essential lessons that Mary teaches us is her willingness to accept her suffering and to learn from it.  From the very beginning, when Mary was told about Jesus’ upcoming birth by the Angel, she opened herself up to God with the response of “yes” and she prepared herself for whatever was to come according to God’s will, even if she did not always understand.  It is easy to agree to something like this, but difficult to live this out faithfully throughout one’s life.  Yet, Mary went through her sufferings and agony, remaining faithful to God. Her strength and courage helps her move through the struggles of her life by relying on God’s mercy and on the help and support of her family and loved ones. Through the pain of seeing her son suffer, through the agony of not understanding how her life and the life of her son unfolded, Mary took all those experiences into her heart and pondered them.   On last Sunday’s feast of the Holy Family, with the young Jesus lost for 3 days and separated from his parents, with the message from the Angel conveyed by the shepherds to Mary in today’s Gospel, Mary took all these things into her heart and reflected on them. Sometimes, our lives and struggles can seem overwhelming.  When this happens, we are to be like Mary and reflect on them in our hearts.  I remember when I had a parishioner who had gone through the tragic death of her son, Sister Paulinus, a Sister of Mercy and a very good friend of this lady, told her that her experiences mirrored those of Mary, of how Mary grieved for her son and pondered her sorrows in her heart, maintaining her faith and her love for God.

      As we celebrate a new year today and close out the old year of 2018, I would like to close our homily today with one of the great hymns that has been written about Mary. When I took a course on Mary and her role in the Church, we had to write a paper at the end of the course analyzing an aspect of Marian theology.  Our professor suggested that I choose the Marian hymn AVE MARIS STELLA (Hail Star of Sea), which was written in Latin around the 8th or 9th centuries; it has often been attributed to St Bernhard of Clairvaux.  It was a particularly favorite hymn for monks to chant during the prayers of the liturgy of the hours during the Middle Ages.  Here are some of the verses of that hymn that demonstrates the love, respect, and honor the faithful of the Church have had for Mary, the Mother of God throughout the ages:

Hail, bright star of the ocean,

God's own Mother blest,

Ever sinless Virgin,

Gate of heavenly rest.

Taking that sweet Ave

Which from Gabriel came,

Peace confirm within us,

Changing Eva's name.

Break the captives' fetters,

Light on blindness pour,

All our ills expelling,

Every bliss implore.

Show thyself a Mother;

May the Word Divine,

Born for us thy Infant,

Hear our prayers through thine.

Virgin all excelling,

Mildest of the mild,

Freed from guilt, preserve us,

Pure and undefiled.

Keep our life all spotless,

Make our way secure,

Till we find in Jesus,

Joy forevermore.

Through the highest heaven

To the Almighty Three,

Father, Son and Spirit,

One same glory be. Amen.

30 December 2018 – The Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph – 2nd reading: Colossians 3:12-17, Gospel: Luke 2:41-52

     Christmas is a very busy liturgical season for us.  In 3 weeks, we not only celebrate the birth of our Savior with our Christmas eve and Christmas day celebrations, but we also will celebrate the Holy Family, Mary the Mother of God, the Three Kings, and the Baptism of our Lord.  That is a lot in terms of major celebrations in our Church in a very short period of time. 

      What strikes me in today’s Gospel is that it is not some sort of perfect, idealistic, unrealistic view of family life.  Instead, it presents Jesus and his parents at a moment of crisis, of Jesus being separated from his parents for three days as they were traveling to Jerusalem for the Jewish holy days. The parents with us here at mass today can only begin to imagine how they would feel if one of their children went missing for three days and they had no idea where he was. Mary didn’t have a cell phone that she could pick up to call Jesus to find out what was going on.  When Mary was looking for Jesus, she was probably frustrated, anxious, and frightened.  But we are told that Mary kept all of these things in her heart and learned from them.  Mary shared this event with the early Christian community so that it could be recorded in the Gospels and passed down to us today.  The finding of Jesus in the Temple shows the challenges and obstacles we face as families, how we can overcome them with perseverance and respond to them in a loving way in the context of faith.

       In recent years, the family has been a very important topic of discussion in our society.  We’ve had court decisions and government policy changes in our country and in many other countries throughout the world that have looked at our very definition of marriage and family.  As secularism in the modern world is battling Christianity, we see how families are finding it more and more challenging to live out Christian values in their family life and to form their children in those values.  In our Catholic faith, we had a Synod on the Family several years ago as convened by Pope Francis.  One article I read about this issue was entitled:  “Reality is Messy for US Catholic Families.”  Yes, the realities we face as families are messy and complicated and not always so straight-forward.  Bishop George Murry of Youngstown, Ohio, one of the official American delegates to the Synod, said that one of the main understandings to come out the Synod saw the family as the basis of society and as the domestic church.  Some of the bishops from places like India and Africa stated that the family unit was still very strong in their countries, but that they were afraid that consumerism and secular values could affect that reality.  The Synod expressed how we in the Church need to listen to how our families are struggling with what the Church teaches before we look at changing Church teaching.

        Paul challenges the Colossians to live out the values of Christ’s Gospel in their relations with each other.  He tells them to use heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, being able to bear with one another and forgive one another. Do we try to live up to these Christian values in our relations within our families? Are we trying to live by those values as a parish community?  Today, as we celebrate the Holy Family that nurtured Jesus throughout his lifetime, let us think about the ways that we are called to holiness in our own families, the ways we are called to cultivate this holiness in our families and have it infuse how we live out our lives of faith.

24 de diciembre de 2018 – La Noche Buena – Misa durante la noche – Lucas 2,1-14, Isaías 9, 1-3, 5-6

       Queremos dar la bienvenida a todos en nuestra celebración esta noche, en nuestra celebración del nacimiento de nuestro Salvador.  En la misa de navidad, tenemos muchos visitantes e invitados y miembros de nuestras familias aquí que no vemos a la misa regularmente. Queremos dar la bienvenida especialmente a aquellos de ustedes que son visitantes o con nosotros por la primera vez esta noche en nuestra comunidad católica de St Jude.  Esperamos que todos ustedes se sienten la bienvenida que se extiende a todo el mundo.
        La navidad es una celebración que los cristianos esperamos celebrar en nuestro año litúrgico.  Preparábamos en las cuatro semanas del adviento para la llegada de este día - la temporada del adviento muestra la importancia de este día para nosotros como discípulos en la  fe.  Preparábamos con esperanza y alegría durante esta temporada, porque sabíamos que este día iba a traer el nacimiento de nuestro Salvador al mundo.  Sin embargo, es difícil concentrarse en lo que la  navidad significa realmente para nosotros en la fe, ya que el mensaje de Navidad tiene otro sentido en nuestro mundo secular.
          El profeta Isaías comienza su proclamación en la primera lectura, diciendo: El pueblo que caminaba en tinieblas vio una gran luz.  No tenemos que mirar muy lejos para ver oscuridad en nuestro mundo. En verdad, hay luz en el mundo, pero hay mucha oscuridad también.  Hay mucha violencia.  Hay problemas con drogas y con alcohol.  Hay dificultades económicas en muchas países y en muchas familias.  Con las tinieblas que existen en el mundo y los desafíos que suceden en nuestras vidas, podemos preguntarnos qué diferencia la Buena Nueva de navidad podría hacer en nuestras vidas este año.
         Podemos darnos cuenta que en el momento del nacimiento de Jesucristo, había muchos desafíos y muchas tinieblas en el mundo también.  Nació en la periferia del Imperio Romano, en una zona considerada como pobre e insignificante.  Cristo nació de una mujer joven, María. Ella no era una princesa o de una familia poderosa en esa sociedad.  Era un censo, por lo que María y José tuvieron que viajar a la ciudad de los antepasados de José - Belén - la ciudad de David, el rey de Israel.  Este pequeño bebé Jesucristo no nació en un gran palacio o castillo.  Él nació en un pesebre donde comían los animales.  En esta época de Cristo, la mayoría de la gente no estaba buscando su nacimiento.  El nacimiento del niño Jesucristo se anunció por primera vez al mundo después de su nacimiento en las palabras del ángel: “Les traigo una buena noticia…. Hoy les ha nacido, en la ciudad de David, un Salvador, que es el Mesías, el Señor.”  No anunció las noticias al gobernador o a los sacerdotes o a los empresarios ricos. Anunció a los pastores que estaban en el campo con su rebaño en el medio de la noche.
          No parecía que el mundo estaba escuchando el mensaje del nacimiento de Cristo, la noche en que nació.  Y por todo lo que está pasando en el mundo ahora mismo, por las tinieblas y la violencia, tal vez no vemos el mundo a prestar atención a este mensaje en nuestros días tampoco.  Los ángeles cantaban: “¡Gloria a Dios en el cielo, y en la tierra paz a los hombres de buena voluntad!”  Cantamos las palabras de la Gloria esta noche también, las palabras que no hemos cantado durante los cuatro domingos de Adviento, por lo que estas palabras son muy especiales y significativas esta noche.
         María - José - San Juan Bautista - ellos hicieron su parte para preparar un camino para la llegada de Cristo en el mundo.  Ellos dijeron "sí" a Dios.  Dios depende de todos nosotros para hacer nuestra parte para anunciar la Buena Noticia de Jesús al mundo, para que su luz a esos lugares inesperados.  El Papa Francisco explicó que para llevar a Cristo a nuestro mundo, debemos llevar el amor de Cristo también. Es un amor que comparte. Es un amor que perdona. Es un amor que acompaña. Es un amor que no se diluya.  Tenemos la presencia de la luz de Cristo que entra en el mundo esta noche. Y nosotros necesitamos traer esa luz a nuestro mundo también.

Encendemos todas las velas de la corona de adviento - el cuarto domingo del adviento - 23 de diciembre de 2018

Señor, nuestro tiempo de preparación está casi terminado mientras iluminamos todas las velas en nuestra corona de Adviento hoy. Este lunes, celebraremos el nacimiento de su hijo. Ayúdanos a conocer el gran don que nos das en el Señor encarnado Jesucristo. Como comparta tu hijo con nosotros, ayúdanos a compartir tu hijo con todos los que encontramos.  Que Jesús se encarne en nosotros. AMÉN.

25 December 2018 - Christmas Day – John 1: 1-5, 9-14

      Today we celebrate the joyous holiday of Christmas, of Jesus’ birth into our world. Last night, at Christmas eve mass, we heard a reading from the Gospel of Luke that described Jesus’ birth in a humble manger, a vivid image that helps us understand the circumstances of his birth in the manger in Bethlehem.  Today, we hear from the beginning of the Gospel of John, where the images are more openly theological and poetic in nature, particularly the image of light. 

       For the people of the ancient Mediterranean world, light and darkness were two very separate realities.  Darkness did not mean the absence of light, but rather the presence of darkness, just as light meant the presence of light.  Just as light can push out the presence of darkness, darkness can push out light.

     Light is associated with life in John’s Gospel. Jesus comes to the world as light and life.  John’s Gospel tells us that Jesus is the word in whom all living things came into being. Since we all have light as living beings, light and life go hand in hand.  Light and life have their origin in God’s created work. As created beings, we can hand down this light to others, but we can’t create it ourselves.

         We use the symbolism of light in the Sacrament of Baptism.  We receive the light of Christ in our lives when we are baptized. In the Sacrament of Baptism, the godparents light a candle for the baptized child from the paschal candle that represents Christ.  They are to keep the light of Christ alive in the life of the child that was just baptized.

         There are times in our lives when the darkness can overwhelm us.  I remember one Christmas that I spent in Ecuador in small village of San Francisco de Onzole in the middle of the rainforest jungle. The village was right on the banks of a huge river.  It had no electricity at all.  On Christmas eve, the villagers spent the whole night in the church, signing hymns to the sounds of the maracas and drums.  I remember sitting in the church in the late night hours in the hot and humid tropical climate on Christmas eve, with the only light present coming from a few candles.  The night felt so immense and so dark.  Yet, I felt the light of Christ in the joy of the people and in the light coming from those few candles.

         Things can come out of the darkness of the world and hit us unexpectedly, taking our focus off Jesus and off our faith in him. The Roman philosopher Cicero, born a century before Jesus, described the Roman Empire as “a light to the whole world.” We can make so many other things in our lives the light that we focus on to the exclusion of our faith: our work, our personal ambitions, our national identity, and our desires for success or material possessions.  Those lights can outshine our Catholic faith & Jesus the light of the world. 

     As part of our Church's faith, we believe in the Word of God, the Logos, the Word that created the world and came to earth as the baby Jesus as a light to our world.  This truth about Jesus can seem so distant from the reality of our world, especially now with secular message that is taking over our society. The violence, darkness, and chaos of our world can seem overwhelming.  With all we witness in our daily lives, it may seem like the light of God and the light of Truth are being put out.  We need that light from God to serve as our compass – to lead us and guide us.

     It is important that we, as believers, as Catholics, strongly reaffirm with our lives the salvation that comes with the birth of Christ as a light in our world.  In the humble manger in Bethlehem, this light that now illuminates our lives was made manifest to the world.  Christ as a light is the way that leads to the fullness of our humanity as it is revealed to us.  It would be beneficial for all of us this Christmas season to ask ourselves how Jesus functions as a light in our own lives and what we can do each day in order to continue to follow the Light of Christ and to be that light to others.

16 December 2018 - Third Sunday of Advent - Prayer for the lighting of the Advent wreath

O Lord, our redeemer,

you lead us from languishing in sorrow’s shadows

into great joy over your abundant restoration

that your provide us in the birth of your son.

As we light three candles on our Advent wreath today,

we give thanks with joyful hearts for the coming of 

your Son that leads us along the path of discipleship.  

AMEN. 

23 December 2018 - Fourth Sunday of Advent - Lighting of the Advent Wreath

God of hope, Prince of peace, and Lord of love,

your goodness is beyond anything we can imagine.

You give us more than we can think to ask

as you soon with come to us with the birth of your son

with impossible possibility in the union of body and spirit. 

As we light all four candles on our Advent wreath today, 

we ask that you teach us to love this world and all people

as you love us in your Son Jesus Christ, our Lord, 

who will be born in the humble stable in Bethlehem.  

24 December 2018 - Christmas Eve Mass - Isaiah 9:1-6, Luke 2:1-14

       We gather tonight for the traditional Midnight Mass to celebrate the birth of the Lord.  The Midnight Christmas Mass traces its tradition to the city of Jerusalem in the Early Church as the the faithful would welcome the birth of the Christ child in the late night hours. We follow in the footsteps of that tradition tonight. We often have a lot of friends and visitors joining us at St Jude for Mass tonight.  We want to welcome all of you here tonight with a very warm welcome.  At our Midnight Mass tonight, and at Midnight Masses all over the world, we hear the words of the prophet Isaiah proclaimed: “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light.” This prophecy of Isaiah never ceases to touch us, especially when we hear it proclaimed in the liturgy of Christmas night.  But this message is just not sentimental.  It touches our lives became it names a deep reality of our lives, that as we journey in faith, all around us and within us, is darkness and light. In this night, as the spirit of darkness enfolds in our world, the birth of Christ takes place.  Each year, as we celebrate his birth, we are amazed and touched by the light of Christ that enters our world. His light helps us reflect on the mystery of faith, as we walk and we see and we search.   

      The symbolism of the Midnight Mass tonight intersects with the reality of our world at this time of the year.  Ever since the summer solstice in the middle of June, we have been losing a little bit of light each day. The winter solstice, the shortest day of the year, occurred last Friday, with the sun rising later in the morning and setting earlier in the evening. Some of us walk out the door in the morning into darkness and then return home in darkness. Our days are framed by darkness. 

      In the darkness of this time of the year, into our lives of faith is born our Savior, the child Jesus born in the manger in Bethlehem.  God has shattered the darkness of night with the light of His Son, bringing the light of Christ into our lives.              There are times in our lives when the darkness can overwhelm us.  I remember one Christmas that I spent in Ecuador in small village of San Francisco de Onzole in the middle of the rainforest jungle. The village was right on the banks of a huge river.  It had no electricity at all.  On Christmas eve, the villagers spent the whole night in the church, signing hymns to the sounds of the maracas and drums.  I remember sitting in the church in the late night hours in the hot and humid tropical climate on Christmas eve, with the only light present coming from a few candles.  The night felt so immense and so dark.  Yet, I felt the light of Christ in the joy of the people and in the light coming from those few candles.

       The Mexican people have a custom that they celebrate throughout the last couple of weeks leading up to Christmas called the Posadas. We celebrated a Posada here at St Jude a couple of weeks ago.  It is a dramatization of the search for lodging for Mary and Joseph right before Jesus’ birth, the story of the Holy Family that we hear tonight in our Gospel from Luke. A couple of youth dress as Mary and Joseph to symbolize their plight.  As they knock on the doors of the homes, they ask: “In the name of Heaven, we ask you for lodging, because Mary cannot walk any longer, as she is about to bear a child.”  They are given the answer by those who are inside: “This is no inn, keep on going. We won't open the door – we don’t know who you are.”   Finally, they reach a house where they receive this answer: “Enter, Holy Pilgrims, accept this dwelling place; you will dwell not in this humble house, but in our humble hearts.”

      As we hear in the Gospel tonight, it is not the wealthy or influential who first recognize Jesus’ birth and who believe in its glory, but rather the poor and outcasts of society.  Shepherds were forsaken in their community not only because of their poverty, but because their contact with blood of their sheep made them unclean under Jewish law.  The birth of Jesus within human history is so very important, but it's equally important that Jesus be born in our hearts and in our faith.  There must take place in us something corresponding to what happened in Bethlehem; a birth must take place in us in our hearts through the Holy Spirit.  As we celebrate the birth of our Savior tonight, may he truly be born into our hearts.  

23 December 2018 - Homily - 4th Sunday in Advent - Luke 1:39-45 - Cycle C

The following is a homily in the form of a conversation that will be presented at the masses on December 22 and 23, 2018 - the fourth Sunday of Advent.  The inspiration for this homily was taken from the book - Unexpected News: Reading the Bible with Third World Eyes by liberation theologian Robert McAfee Brown.  I first gave this homily back in 2009 when I was at St Richard Catholic Church in Jackson serving as the associate pastor.  I have updated it for the other parishes where I have served: St Mary in Yazoo City, St James in Tupelo, and now St Jude in Pearl.  After the reading of the Gospel for the day of the visitation of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth, the Gospel will continue with the reading of the Magnificat.  How radical are the words that Mary proclaims in the Magnificat?  If we hear them the way Mary announced them to the world, should we be shaken up and shocked out of our complacency?  

GOSPEL READING:  Luke 1:39-55

PRIEST:  During those days Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.

When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, "Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy.  Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.”  And Mary said:

MARY:  "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my savior. For he has looked upon his handmaid's lowliness; behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed. The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. His mercy is from age to age to those who fear him. He has shown might with his arm, dispersed the arrogant of mind and heart. He has thrown down the rulers from their thrones but lifted up the lowly. The hungry he has filled with good things; the rich he has sent away empty. He has helped Israel his servant, remembering his mercy, according to his promise to our fathers, to Abraham and to his descendants forever."

HOMILY:

Reader: We usually look at the Gospel from our own perspective, of how it speaks to us in the reality of our own lives.  Today, on the 4th Sunday of Advent, we hear about the visitation of Mary to her cousin of Elizabeth.  Mary sings the Magnificat in response to the greeting she receives from Elizabeth.  Let’s look at Mary today from a different perspective than our own. Let us look at Mary’s visitation to her cousin Elizabeth from the perspective of a poor peasant farmer in Chile in a conversation with his priest, and of how the Virgin Mary herself might respond to them. Let us use our imagination to hear today’s Gospel from a perspective very different from our own.

PRIEST: Today's Gospel brought to mind a conversion I had with a friend, Joe in seminary.  He was planning his first mass in the Diocese of Lexington where he was going to ordained a priest. He wanted to have the Magnificat sung at this mass.  But, when he came to the phrase, “the rich will be sent away empty,” he decided he was going to change those words. Instead of the rich being sent away empty, he wanted it to be the arrogant, or the proud or the haughty who would be sent away empty.  You see, Joe didn’t want to offend his sisters who would attending the mass.  They happen to be quite wealthy.   

MARY:  Why would someone want to change my words?  Why can’t they just hear what I have to say? 

PEASANT: Hey, Father Lincoln.  Could I talk to you about today’s Gospel reading?  When I heard it, it reminded me of 9/11.

PRIEST: Hi Miguel.  Good to see you.  Why would Mary’s Magnificat remind you of the terrorist attacks on September 11 in the United States?

PEASANT: No, not the attacks in New York on 9/11.  That's so far away from here. I thought about what happened in my country of Chile, on 9/11 back in 1973.  Our President Salvador Allende was killed in a military coup by General Agosto Pinochet on that day.  President Allende was concerned about the poor of our country, just like the Virgin Mary in the Magnificat.  That is why I thought about that day.    

MARY:  Now this conversation is getting interesting.  Let’s see how he connects my visit with my cousin Elizabeth to his own life. 

PRIEST:  Let's look at the Magnificat, Miguel. How does it help you better understand Mary and her situation?

MARY:  I was in quite a predicament when those words came out of my mouth: I was pregnant, alone, and very scared. I wonder if they will understand the desperation that I felt.

PEASANT: I look at the Magnificat, and I think about the  woman who said those words: “The Lord has looked upon his handmaid's lowliness.”  When I see the image of the Virgin Mary in the Cathedral, I see a beautiful woman with a crown, with gold rings and jewels on her fingers, dressed in a beautiful blue dress embroidered in gold.  In reality, Mary was a lowly handmaid, a poor woman of Nazareth.  She was engaged to a lowly carpenter. 

MARY: Yes, I was a poor Jewish girl wearing the same type of clothing all the young women wore.  There were blisters on my hands from the hard work I did all day.  I did not have an easy life.

PRIEST: In the Magnificat, Mary tells us what God is doing for her, what he is doing for Israel.  He chose a poor, humble servant as the mother of his Son.

PEASANT: Exactly, Father.  Mary would have been like me and the poor of my village who work our fingers to the bone to try to put food on the table for our families.

MARY: What I was saying in the Magnificat was that the lowly were being lifted up, that those on high were being cast down.  That's what God was doing in his selection of the mother of his Son, in choosing me for this very special task.  It was all God's doing.  It was all God's plan. 

PRIEST: You know, Miguel, Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth in obedience to the Angel's instructions.  She did this out of love and charity. Mary responded to Elizabeth with praise and love for God. 

MARY: My soul magnifies the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God, my Savior.

PEASANT: I believe Mary praises God because he has turned the world upside down.  You would have thought that our powerful God would have chosen a princess to be the mother of his son.  God's message in choosing the Virgin Mary was that he pays special attention to people like me – to the poor, to the oppressed, to the hard working people of the world. 

MARY: Yes, God raised me up, and all generations now call me blessed.  Who would have imagined such a thing? 

PEASANT:  Father, Mary proclaims that God has put down the mighty from their thrones.  What does that mean to me in language that I can understand?   I am just a poor farmer.  My family struggles a lot.  The economic and political turmoil in the world can make our situation so much worse - it is way beyond our control.

PRIEST: Miguel, think of the empires that existed in Jesus' day and how often they rose and fell – the Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Greeks, and the Romans.  We've seen it in our own day too. Many colonial empires have come and gone in the last few centuries. We were controlled by Spain for a long time here in Chile – but that rule ended a long time ago.  Empires come and go, but the poor, humble people of the world will always be here.

MARY: Those worldly empires mean nothing – God's kingdom is what really matters.

PEASANT: When I hear Mary proclaiming that God has filled the hungry with good things, and that the rich will be sent away empty, I see God empowering me.  By the poor having more, the rich will have less, because there is only so much to go around.  But, I think God expects me to work hard and to feel empowered as well.  God took the people of Israel to the promised land, but the people had responsibilities too.  They had to undertake that journey. 

MARY:  Yes, Miguel, we all have a hand in proclaiming God's kingdom here on earth, just as I had my special role in God's plan of salvation. God is calling us to work for peace and justice.  
PRIEST: We all are called during this Advent season to rejoice at the coming of the Lord.  We are to joyfully give thanks for God’s presence with us.  Mary gives thanks in the Magnificat.  What God did for Mary shows the great love he has for us all – the rich and the poor – everyone.

PEASANT:  Yes, Father.  That is what I like about the joyful celebrations we have at our parish.  I give thanks to a God who liberates me, who humbles the arrogant by showing them that they are not the ones in charge, because it is really God who is in charge. 

MARY:  No one else in the world loves the Magnificat as much the poor of Latin America. I sometimes hear them singing the Magnificat as they leave mass.  The Magnificat is not just the hymn of praise that I sang while visiting my cousin Elizabeth – it is a hymn of praise for all of us. 

PRIEST: How would King Herod have reacted if he had heard Mary singing the Magnificat?

MARY: He probably would have laughed at me!  He probably would have thought that I was crazy!

PEASANT:  Well, I am certainly not laughing, and the Virgin Mary certainly isn’t crazy.  Mary’s Magnificat gives me hope.  I may struggle to put food on my table, I may not have a lot of power, I may not be rich, but I have a God who loves me. 

PRIEST:  I am glad you have hope, Miguel. Let us have hope together. 

PEASANT: Mary may have been a poor Jewish girl who was pregnant and scared, but she is the Mother of our Lord and the Queen of Heaven.  She is our mother.  That is why these words mean so much to me. 

MARY: It’s so complicated for those in the modern world to understand who I was and who I am, to understand what was going on in ancient Israel at the time of Jesus’ birth.  I hope that my son’s disciples keep searching for the truth.   I hope they keep asking questions. I hope they never give up!

PRIEST:  Miguel, thank you so much for sharing your thoughts with me today.  This conversation has been a blessing for me.  God bless you. 

PEASANT: Gracias, Padre.  Adios. 

23 de diciembre de 2018 – el cuarto domingo de adviento – Lucas 1,39-45

    Se acaba el tiempo de adviento mañana.  Mañana, vamos a celebrar el nacimiento de Jesucristo con nuestra celebración de la Noche Buena. Tenemos la misa en español a las 8:00 de la noche. En las semanas de adviento, concentramos en nuestra preparación para dos cosas. Primeramente, en el Dios hecho hombre en la primera navidad en el nacimiento del niño Jesús en Belén. Pero, también, en la segunda venida de Cristo en su gloria y en su majestad cuando él viene otra vez. Somos el pueblo del adviento en este sentido – en el nacimiento de Cristo en el pasado – un acto de Dios muy conocido.  Pero, esperamos en el futuro, cuando el reino de este niño viene en su plenitud. 

      En el adviento, tenemos lecturas de Juan el Bautista y de otros profetas para darnos un mensaje de espera, de expectación, y de luz. Hoy, en el último domingo del adviento, tenemos una oportunidad de contemplar la riqueza de la visitación de la Virgen María a su prima Isabel.  Había sorpresas en las vidas  de María y Isabel – dos niños vinieron en sus vidas al mismo tiempo.  Ellas responden a estas noticias con agradecimiento.  Dios las visitó y Dios las bendijo con el don de su hijos.  Y estos dos hijos tienen un papel muy importante en nuestra historia de salvación. Los nacimientos de Juan el Bautista y de Jesucristo no son cuentos antiguos. María, una joven de 13 o 14 años, no conocía aún varón, pero esta embarazada por la voluntad de Dios actuando en su vida. ¿Cómo puede comprender esta situación una joven como María?

      En su pobreza, en su humildad, en su inocencia, ella escuchaba el mensaje de Dios, y ella fue a su prima Isabel según este mensaje. María visitaba a Isabel, una viejita – ella vivía en fidelidad y en esperanza en Dios, y recibió el mejor don para una mujer judía – un hijo.  María viajaba a la casa de Isabel.  Estas dos mujeres necesitaban compartir su alegría y sus inquietudes en la intimidad de su amistad. Isabel proclamó en esta visita a María: “Bendita tú entre las mujeres”. María está bendita en el presente de esta visita – está bendita para siempre, especialmente en los corazones de los seguidores de Jesucristo.

     Para nosotros, María es una mujer elegida y amada por Dios. Ella es la madre de Dios que recibió los saludos de Isabel.  Ella recibirá los saludos de nosotros para siempre. Con nuestras lentes de fe, podemos entender la profundidad de la visita de María a Isabel, de la llegada de Jesús en nuestro mundo al pesebre en Belén.

    María creyó.  Isabel creyó.  Y los dos hijos saltan de alegría en los senos de sus madres, en la visita que tienen juntos. Terminamos el adviento con esta misa.  Continuamos en nuestro camino de fe en el nacimiento de nuestro Señor.