Homily for the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God

 Nm 6:22-27

Ps 67

Gal 4:4-7

Lk 2:16-21 

 

The ball dropped in Times Square despite Dick Clark no longer being alive to supervise it. The calendar shows a year that is one digit higher than it was yesterday.  By now a few people have written the wrong year on a check.  Resolutions announced with great fervor and determination yesterday 

have already been broken even though it is not yet noon. Toasts have been drunk and sappy songs have been sung. 

 

It is now Anno Domini 2023

 

Christmas is over for the secular world.  Indeed, for most people it was over 

once the gifts were opened.  For the Church however, the Christmas Season 

continues for twelve more days.  Unlike the secular world of Happy Holidays the Church is unwilling to abandon her joy at the coming of the Savior into the world

as quickly as the glitzy gift-wrappings that were ripped off gift boxes and dumped into the trash. 

 

The New Year on the Calendar begins today.  The New Year of the Church  began on November 27, the First Sunday of Advent.  The Church's Holy Season of Christmas--note, it is a HOLY season NOT a holiday season--will continue until the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord on January 9, whereupon we will return to Ordinary Time until Lent begins on Wednesday February 22. 

 

With the end of the secular holidays we have the opportunity to bask in the joy of Christmas without the retail dimension or the treacly sentimentality of TV movies that strip all religious associations from Christmas. The tree, the fat guy in the red suit, and the anthropomorphized animals, have been relegated to the closet until next year. Now we have the opportunity as church to contemplate the event that began our ransom from sin and death. 

 

We have the opportunity to contemplate Jesus' incarnation, fully God but also fully man, sharing completely in our human nature.  That sharing began in Bethlehem and ended on Calvary, the wood of the manger led directly to the wood of the cross. The Church's prolonged celebration of Christmas gives us the opportunity to look back to the past and forward to the future.

 

"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!"

 

The blessing Moses was told to impart on the people is a model of simplicity and profundity. It is a blessing that continued despite the people's attempt to reject it.

It is a blessing they repeatedly forgot whenever it was expedient to do so, whenever they chose to ignore the covenant.  But, it was a blessing that God never forgot despite the frequency with which it the people did. 

 

Paul's Letter to the Galatians contains an exquisitely evocative phrase of haiku-like brevity. Indeed, it is shorter than a typical haiku,  Just eleven words. A mere dozen syllables. Only one of the words has two syllables. Yet, this simple phrase 

could consume days of contemplation.

 

"When the fullness of time had come God sent His Son."

 

It is difficult to grasp the meaning of  "the fullness of time," particularly in light of yesterday's gospel: 

 

“In principio erat Verbum, 

et Verbum erat apud Deum

et Deus erat Verbum”

 

"In the beginning was the Word, 

and the Word was with God

and the Word was God."

 

With just a little reflection on the meaning of 'the fullness of time' or the meaning of eternity we become inarticulate.  We become inarticulate as we struggle to express that which is inexpressible. We can no more explain  or comprehend the meaning of God's existence before time than we can  comprehend the idea of God transcending all time.

 

In the coming months of the liturgical year we will encounter many things that, 

like Mary, Mother of Jesus, whose solemnity we observe today, we can only hold in our hearts.  We can only hold them in our hearts because they are impossible to describe in words.

 

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God. 

Mater Dei, the Theotokos whom we venerate in a special way.  While I was in Slovenia a few years ago, I attended—and photographed—an Eastern Church ecumenical liturgy  It included a prayer that perfectly explains the reason for this Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary and what it means for the world. 

 

"More honorable than the cherubim 

and by far more glorious than the seraphim, 

ever a Virgin, 

you gave birth to God the Word.  

O true Mother of God 

we magnify you!"

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Photos are from the ecumenical Roman-Orthodox-Eastern Uniate service. 

+ A Blessed New Year

Fr. Jack, Sj, MD

Feast of St. Stephen

 The Feast of St. Stephen, the first martyr, is a necessary balance to the joy of Christmas.  It is necessary because it brings us back to the reality of the past two millennia, a reality that Jesus described in the today's gospel: ". . . they will hand you over to courts. . . . they will scourge you . . . .brother will hand over brother . . . . you will be hated by all because of my name . . . 

 

It is quite a shift from angels and shepherds.  It is a harsh contrast to a Charlie Brown Christmas and the racks of sappy Hallmark cards.  We pray for peace on earth but it never comes. The persecution of Christians simply because they are Christians continues up to the present throughout the world. Stoning is not a significant risk in the U.S. But ostracism, being ‘canceled’, or a bogus lawsuit for saying the truth are risks. The effects can be as devastating as a few rocks to the cranium. 

 

Stephen was martyred by those to whom he preached Jesus crucified and risen from the dead.  Stephen's willingness to preach the truth despite the cost had an astonishing impact on one man who was a silent witness to that stoning.  It is an easy-to-miss detail in the first reading. "The witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul."  

 

This young man was a firebrand.  No one knows what went through his mind 

as he watched life extinguished from Stephen's body, watching as stone after stone hit its mark. Stephen's execution was not unique. Stoning was the punishment for many sins and crimes.  

 

That young man would become radicalized. He sought permission to become a bounty hunter, to round-up Christians and get them to Rome for execution. But then, something changed within this man. He was transformed from a man whose desire was to persecute Christians into one  who helped spread the faith after his own conversion, He went from persecutor of Christians to a martyr for preaching Jesus crucified and risen from the dead. Today we call him St. Paul of Tarsus. 

 

Jesus warned in the gospel that following him would not be easy.  Those who choose to follow him will encounter objections, hostility, family divisions, and hate because of his name.  Persecution and martyrdom of those who follow Christ have marked all of the twenty centuries since Jesus preached his prophetic words.  "You will be hated by all because of my name."  The consolation comes in the second half of that statement, "but whoever endures to the end will be saved."

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A very busy Christmas though one in which I was able to find periods of quiet and solitude.  After Mass this morning time to get some preparation done for a number of upcoming conferences. The photos below are from the chapel in St. Mary's Hall, the Jesuit residence on campus.  I'd hoped to go down into Boston along the Charles River to shoot cityscapes but temperatures in the teens nixed that plan.  I don't generally mind the cold but it is draining in light of having myasthenia gravis.  The MG is reasonably well-controlled with medication but there are some realities to deal with and the effect of temperature extremes is one of them.  So, I grabbed tripod, camera bag (a converted wheel-on suitcase) and went over to the chapel on Christmas Eve.  

There is a small tree on a table at the end of the hall that catches the morning sun.  

Same tree different angle.

Flower arrangements in the dining roo

Just before going from the sacristy to celebrate 8 AM Mass on 24 December

The main altar

The creche.  Light was a problem in the creche itself so . . . .

I moved the empty crib and put an iPhone underneath with the light on.

Which is how the rays emanating from it appeared through the roof.

Have a Blessed New Year

Fr. Jack, SJ, MD

Gaudete in Domino Semper: Homily for the 3rd Sunday of Advent

 Today, the third Sunday of Advent,  is known by its Latin name Gaudete Sunday. The name comes from the first word of the entrance antiphon in Latin: Gaudete: Rejoice. 

 

“Gaudete in Domino semper, 

iterum dice gaudete.  

Dominus enim prope est.” 

 

“Rejoice in the Lord always; 

again I say rejoice! 

The Lord is near.” 

 

Rejoice because our redemption is at hand.  Rejoice because the time of the Messiah has drawn near. Rejoice because, as we were reminded three days ago, Mary, the Immaculate Conception, responded to the message of the angel that she was to be Mother of Jesus with the most perfectly enunciated yes in history:

 

“Ecce ancilla domini, 

fiat mihi secundum verbum tuum.”

 

“Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.  

May it be done to me according to your word.”

 

With that ‘yes’ a universe that had been holding its breath sighed in relief and rejoiced.

 

Gaudete in Domino semper, 

“Rejoice in the Lord always; 

 

The world is told to rejoice because

 

Dominus enim prope est

The Lord is near,

 

Jesus entered into time and space he came to the earth, 

so as to save it.  He entered into our lives to save us from sin. Fully God and fully man He was sent to redeem us from the sin of Adam and Eve

and from our sins. 

 

The joy of this third Sunday of Advent is apparent in the readings:

 

Isaiah describes how the desert will exult blooming with abundant flowers on the steppes and rejoicing with joyful song.  The psalmist affirms the joy. 

 

'The Lord God keeps faith forever

secures justice for the oppressed

He gives food to the hungry

and sets captives free.' 

 

Anyone who is familiar with Handel's Messiah will recognize multiple verses from Isaiah throughout the oratorio.  That includes some of the verses  that were just proclaimed.  They form the recitative: 

 

"Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened, 

and the ears of the deaf unstopped. 

Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, 

and the tongue of the dumb shall sing."

 

The simple recitative is followed by the exquisitely beautiful aria “He Shall Feed His Flock."  The aria includes an important directive for all:

 

"come unto Him all you that labor, 

come unto Him that are heavy laden, 

and He will give you rest."

 

As was true last Sunday, the gospel narrated more about John the Baptist, 

the herald who announced the news of Jesus, the voice of the one crying out in the desert, the kinsman who felt unworthy to untie the sandal of the one who was to come.  When John sent messengers to inquire if Jesus was indeed He who was to come, Jesus instructed the messengers, 'tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them.'

 

On the 17^th of December, just six days from today, the Church holds her breath in anticipation as she sings the “O” antiphons that introduce and end the Magnificat at evening prayer.  The antiphons prepare us more fully

for the ad venire, the coming of our Lord into and onto this earth.  It is so near that we cannot help begin rejoicing. Soon.  Very soon. 

 

Gaudete in Domino semper, 

iterum dice gaudete.  

Dominus enim prope est. 

 

“Rejoice in the Lord always; 

again I say rejoice! 

The Lord is near.” 

 

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The photos are of the 18^th century Neapolitan Creche at the Abbey of Regina Laudis.  Rather than write about it, this is from the Abbey Web site.  After being closed due to covid, it is now open to the public.  It will close again after the new year and reopen in the spring. Note, there is no admission charge for the creche.  

 

This is the web site for the Abbey.  It is worth a visit if in Connecticut.  The abbey is about 20 minutes from Waterbury.  Use GPS.  The last few miles are tricky.  I’ve been going there periodically since 2014 and still need the directions.  

 

https://abbeyofreginalaudis.org/visit-creche.html

+Fr. Jack, SJ, MD

The Voice Crying Out in the Desert: Homily for the 2nd Sunday of Advent

 Is 11;1-10

Ps 72:1-2, 7-8, 12-13, 17

Rom 15:4-9

Mt 3:1-12

 

There is no reason to doubt the existence of John the Baptist, a kinsman of Jesus through his mother, a kinswoman of Mary, Mother of Our Lord.   Mentioned in all four gospels as well as  Acts of the Apostles, what is called multiple attestation,  John is also noted in sources outside of scripture, especially the writings of one Josephus, a contemporary historian who was neither a Jew nor a follower of Jesus. Though details of accounts vary across sources they are all compatible rather than contradictory.  

 

Josephus wrote, “He was a good man, who encouraged the Jews to lead righteous lives, to practice justice toward their fellow men, and piety toward God, and in so doing

to join in baptism.’ The practices of justice and piety towards God were necessary for the baptism to be acceptable to God”  

 

 

As described John’s dress and diet were typical of any desert dweller of the time.  

The skins were necessary for warmth during cold desert nights.  He was not a prototype combination hippie and radical vegan.  According to Josephus, John was a good man 

who preached a baptism of repentance.  One analysis notes that no man is more important for understanding the historical Jesus than is John the Baptist.  

 

Not only was John the herald of Jesus—the voice crying out in the desert  as prophesied by Isaiah—it was not until His baptism by John, that Jesus divine identity was revealed and His public ministry begun.  We will hear the baptism narrative in a few weeks.

 

John the Baptist will be debated forever.  However, with baptism John initiated a new liturgy within Judaism.  There is no agreement about the nature or meaning of that baptism,  Was it a baptism of forgiveness or a baptism of purification?  Be that as it may, there was nothing resembling it in Jewish liturgical practices of the day.  

The ritual of baptism itself heralded a new age. 

 

The more one reads about John the Baptist the more apparent it becomes that most of what is quote known about him unquote his motivation, his self-awareness, and his understanding of Jesus, represents more the writers’ projections onto and biases about John, than they do verifiable facts.  

 

As the late Jesuit Father John O’Malley, the great historian was fond of saying, ‘there is no history, only historians’ who decide what they are going to write about, what sources they will use, what information they will pay attention to, what they will ignore, and how they will present it.’  In general the more ancient the history the more subjectively biased is the information 

given by the historian.  

 

Jesus instructs his hearers in today’s  gospel, “Produce good fruit 

as evidence of your repentance.  And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’” This short sentence was later expanded in the Letter of James.  

“Be doers of the word not hearers only; What good is it if someone says he has faith but does not have works? 

 

Simply saying “we have Abraham as our father” was not a get-out-of-jail-free card.  It did not excuse wrong action.  Today, loudly proclaiming that one has faith in Jesus or that Jeeeeeezus is my savior,  without living out the demands of that faith, is not a get-out-of-jail-free card either.  

 

John's message was uncompromising.  It was the opposite of one of the saddest words 

used in the U.S. today:  "Whatever."  John's message is not a 'whatever.'  John's message is that 'this is the sure path you must follow.' In time that message cost him his life.

 

Paul wrote  “What was written previously was written for our instruction, that by endurance and by the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. . . Welcome one another, then, as Christ welcomed you, for the glory of God.”  If we are able to live out those words we will help bring about the peace prophesied in the first reading by Isaiah.  

 

We face many choices during Advent.  The important choices do not include 

colored lights or clear, what kind of cookies to I make, or, where can I find the biggest flat screen TV for the lowest price? The choices are how to live out our faith.  

How to live that faith in an attitude of repentance and conversion of heart, and to say with the psalmist:

 

“May his name be blessed forever;

as long as the sun his name shall remain. 

In him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed; 

all the nations shall proclaim

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The photos are some of the decoration in the Church of St. Casimir in Vilnius, Lithuania.  I was there during the Christmas season

+ Fr. Jack, SJ, MD