January 4, 2018

Mother Seton

January 4, 2018:  St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, Religious and Mother

See 15 connections with today?
Legend below
Listen
  • 1 Jn 3:7-10  Those who act justly are righteous, just as he is righteous, but sinners belong to the Devil.   No one who doesn't love others belongs to God.
  • Ps 98:1, 7-9  "All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God."  Sing to the Lord, for he has done wondrous deeds.  Let the sea, what fills it, the world, those dwelling in it, the rivers, and the mountains all shout for joy before the Lord; he comes to rule the earth with justice and equity.
  • Jn 1:35-42  As John stood with two of his disciples and watched Jesus walk by, he said, "Behold, the Lamb of God."  They heard him, followed Jesus, and asked where he was staying; Jesus said, "Come and see," and they went, saw, and stayed with him.  Andrew told his brother Simon, "We've found the Messiah" ('Christ'), and brought him to Jesus, who told him, "You are Simon; you'll be called Cephas" ('Peter').
Reflect
  • Creighton:  How do we live?  John writes “no one begotten of God sins,” and “act in righteousness.”  Is that possible?  The psalm tells us to focus on God and his will for us, remembering his action in history and creation.  God is always with us, speaking to us.  Whether through the prophets or today, he understands the challenges of righteous living, doesn't give up on us, keeps reminding we're his children, forgives us, and helps us return to the life he's planned for us.  In the gospel, Jesus welcomed the two disciples of John the Baptist who left John to follow him, despite their sins and shortcomings; they just had to believe Jesus was the Messiah and follow him.  It should be no different for us now than for Andrew and Simon Peter then.  We can keep focused on Jesus and live according to his example.
Today we honor Mother Seton who lived in righteousness despite the challenges and heartbreak she faced.  At 3 she lost her mother three, and throughout life she endured further heartbreak, but she continued to nurse the sick and dying, working through and developing charitable organizations.  Her service continues to bless us in our Catholic schools, orphanages, and hospitals.  She refused to let setbacks and challenges divert her from God's call.
    Prayer of Mother Seton
  • One Bread, One Body:  "3-letter word for death":  Sin is deadly rebellion against God, rejection of Jesus, refusal to love, denial of reality, being deceived, manipulated, degraded, enslaved, and an abuse of freedom.  Though it can be enjoyable for a while, it's to be be avoided; it hurts us and others and causes all evils in the world.  May we repent....
  • Passionist:  “Come and see”:  The encounter in today’s gospel led to Jesus’ "come and see" invitation and to Andrew and Simon Peter's lives of discipleship and witness.  Jesus' invitation has touched the countless people over the centuries including St. Elizabeth Ann Seton.  Reared Episcopalian. she and her husband reared their five children.  An Italian family drew her to Catholicism.  When her husband died at 30, she embraced the Catholic faith and opened a parish school to support her family and witness her faith.  A group of young women joined her in her approach to education and Christian life; they formed the American Sisters of Charity and helped found other schools and orphanages.  As Jesus drew disciples to himself and began the Church, he touched her heart, and she said yes to him and worked tirelessly to build the Church.  As God invites us to come and see, may we deepen our relationship with Jesus, encourage others to “come and see” God’s love gathering us as Church, and generously serve those in need.

  • DailyScripture.net:  "We found the Messiah!"  John calls Jesus the Lamb of God, signifies his redemptive mission.  Jesus freely offered his life for us; his blood cleanses, heals, and frees us.  John was son of Zechariah, who participated in the sacrifice of a lamb for people's sins.  In Jesus John saw the sacrifice that could deliver us from bondage to sin.  The Holy Spirit revealed Jesus' nature to John so that he could bear witness to the Son of God.  The Spirit makes Christ known to us too.
John eagerly pointed beyond himself to the Christ (Messiah).  Jesus took the initiative to invite his disciples them into his company, asking, "What are you looking for?"  He asks the same of us.  Only God can show us our purpose.  Jesus invites each of us to draw near to know what he wants to offer us.  "If God hadn't called you, what could you have done to turn back?  The One who called you when you were opposed to him made it possible for you to turn back" (Augustine).   God initiates and draws us to himself; we can't find him on our own.
It's natural to want to share something good.  When Andrew discovered Jesus was the Messiah, he told his brother right away, bringing him to Jesus so he too could "come and see."  Jesus reached out to Simon as he had to Andrew; he revealed he knew who Simon was and where he came from, then gave him a new name signifying God's mission for him:  'Cephas,' Aramaic for 'rock,' translated as Peter (Greek 'Petros,' Latin 'Petrus'), also meaning 'rock.'  To call someone 'rock' was a great compliment. The rabbis said that when God saw Abraham, he exclaimed: "I discovered a rock to found the world on."  Through faith Peter grasped Jesus was the Messiah.  Faith in Christ makes us rocks or spiritual stones....
Dress legend
  • 'Children' pin:  "Children, let no one deceive you" (1st reading)
  • 'Olympics' tie pin:  "All the earth has seen God's saving power" (psalm)
  • 'Musical notes with "joy"' tie pin, 'Christmas music' tie:  Sing to the Lord a new song (psalm)
  • 'Hands' pin:  The Lord's right hand has won victory; let the rivers clap their hands... (psalm)
  • 'Alps' tie pin:  ...and the mountains shout with them for joy (psalm)
  • 'Ruler' tie bar:  The Lord comes to 'rule' the earth with justice (psalm)
  • 'Magnifying glass' (search icon) pin, '?' tie pin:  "What are you looking for?" (gospel)
  • 'Celebrate teaching' pin:  They said to him, "Rabbi..." ('Teacher') (gospel)
  • 'Lamb' tie bar:  "Behold, the Lamb of God" (gospel)
  • 'Eyeball' pin:  "Come, and you'll see" (gospel)
  • 'Rock' tie pin:  "You'll be called Cephas" (gospel)
  • White shirt:  Color of today's liturgical celebration
  • Christmas pin, 'Christmas trees' suspenders:  Christmas season continues through Monday
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January 3, 2018

Jan. 3

January 3, 2018:  Wednesday before Epiphany / Holy Name of Jesus

Find 13 connections with today?
Legend below
Listen

For gospel
Pope Francis General Audience
To prepare to celebrate the Eucharist, we acknowledge we've sinned.  We confess this as a community but speak personally: “I have sinned.”  A presumptuous heart can't receive God’s pardon, just as only by recognizing our faults and asking for forgiveness can we pardoned by others.  We confess we've sinned in thought, word, and deed; it's not enough to do no harm.  We must do good and bear witness to others that we're Christ's disciples.  It's hard to admit our own shortcomings, but we must learn to confess them instead of accusing others.
Like the humble publican, we recognize we're unworthy of God’s mercy and forgiveness.  We then beg the intercession of Our Lady and the angels and saints to lead us to holiness and conversion.  The priest then pronounces absolution: “May God have mercy on us, forgive us, and bring us to everlasting life.”  This expresses our trust in God’s forgiveness and reconciliation.  We join the line of biblical figures who acknowledged their sin before God with confidence in the power of his grace.  Full text
Read
  • 1 Jn 2:29–3:6  Everyone who acts justly is begotten by God.  We're God's children, and we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.  Everyone with this hope makes himself pure, but everyone who sins commits lawlessness.  He, sinless, was revealed to take away sins.  No one in him sins; no one who sins has known him.
  • Ps 98:1, 3cd-6  "All the ends of the earth have seen God's saving power."  Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done wondrous deeds....
  • Jn 1:29-34  John the Baptist, seeing Jesus approach, said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world, the one of whom I said, 'One will come after me who ranks ahead of me.'  I didn't know him, but I baptized with water to make him known.  I saw the Spirit come down from the sky and rest on him.  The one who sent me to baptize told me, 'The one you see the Spirit rest on is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.'  I have seen and testified he is the Son of God."
Reflect
  • Creighton:  When John the Baptist saw Jesus coming, he told those gathered he'd “seen the Spirit come down like a dove and remain upon him” when Jesus was baptized.  The Father had indicated to John that the one on whom the Spirit remained would baptize with the Holy Spirit.”  The importance of the gift of God’s Son began to be apparent to John's listeners, and now, all open to Jesus' message.  Today's 1st reading reminds us that though we may know the Lord's words, and feel we know him, to be “in him” we must live by his example, acting out of love for others, making sure he's in all we do.  May the "new song" we sing to the Lord be a renewal of our life in Jesus.
  • One Bread, One Body:  "Living hope":  As we celebrate the Hope of the World coming to us, many are "without hope."  "Hope deferred makes the heart sick."  "But hope is not hope if its object is seen."  Jesus comes to give us a living hope. "Hope is the confident expectation of divine blessing and the beatific vision of God; it is also the fear of offending God's love...."  Hope based on Jesus gives us strength to resist sin and expect blessing, even in the face of difficulties.  In Jesus difficulties give us greater virtue and lead to greater hope that overcomes disappointment.  Come to Jesus and find hope.
  • Passionist:  Once I yielded to the Holy Spirit, my faith went from religion to relationship with a living, loving Lord.  We often don't take advantage of the Holy Spirit.  Invite the Spirit to be more active in your life, and get ready for an adventure!  Listen, notice, and receive all God wants to do for and in you.
  • DailyScripture.net:  "Behold the Lamb of God!"  John calls Jesus the Lamb of God, signifying Jesus' mission as Redeemer.  The blood of the Passover Lamb delivered the Israelites from slavery and death. The blood Jesus poured out cleanses, heals, and frees us.  John was the son of Zechariah, a priest who participated in the daily sacrifice of a lamb for the people's sins.  John recognized Jesus as the unblemished lamb offered by the Father as the sacrifice to cancel the debt of sin and free us from death and destruction.  When he said he didn't know Jesus, he was referring to Jesus' hidden divinity, but then the Spirit revealed Jesus' true nature to him, and he bore witness that this is the Son of God.  The Spirit makes Christ known to us through faith.  God gives us his Spirit to open us to receive and comprehend God's plan to unite all things in his Son.  Lord, pour your Spirit on you to deepen my faith, hope, and love....
Dress legend
  • 'Children' pin:  We're God's children now (1st reading)
  • 'Eyeball' pin:  We'll see God as he is (1st reading); all have seen God's saving power (psalm); "I've seen and testified the Jesus is the Son of God" (gospel)
    • 'Hand' tie pin:  The Lord's right hand has won victory (psalm)
    • 'Angel with trumpet' pin:  Sing before the Lord with trumpets (psalm)
    • 'Musical notes with "joy"' tie pin:  Sing joyfully... (psalm)
    • 'Crown' tie bar:  ...before the King, the Lord (psalm)
    • 'Olympics' tie pin:  All the earth has seen God's saving power (psalm)
    • 'Lamb' tie bar:  "Behold, the Lamb of God" (gospel)
    • Blue in shirt:  John baptized with water to make Jesus known (gospel)
    • 'Dove' pin:  "I saw the Spirit come down like a dove and rest on Jesus"; "He will baptize with the Holy Spirit" (gospel)
    • "No-'L'" button, Christmas tie:  Christmas season
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    January 2, 2018

    Basil and Gregory

    January 2, 2018:  SS. Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen,
    Bishops and Doctors

    • 'Children around the world' tie:  Children, remain in him (1st reading); All the ends of the earth have seen God's saving power (psalm)
    • NEW 'Musical notes with "joy"' tie pin:  Sing to the Lord a new song (psalm)
    • 'Hand' tie pin:  The Lord's right hand has won victory (psalm)
    • 'Christmas trees' suspenders, "No-'L'" button:  Christmas season continues through Jan. 8
    • Sandals (not shown):  "I'm unworthy to untie the sandal strap of the one coming after me" (gospel)
    Listen

    Pope Francis Angelus
    Migrants and refugees, appeal to the international community not to extinguish your hopes or your expectations for peace.  All institutions, educational, welfare, and ecclesial bodies must ensure a future of peace for you.  When the shepherds visited the Child Jesus after the angels' announcement, Mary meditated deeply in her heart.  Her faith widens her motherhood and makes her her Son's first disciple.  This is an invitation for each of us to pray, contemplating and tasting the gift of Jesus.‎ 
    Mary’s faith “provokes” the miracle of Cana, arousing the disciples' faith.  With that faith, at the foot of the Cross Mary receives the John as a ‎son, and after the Resurrection becomes a prayerful mother of the Church on which the ‎Spirit descends at Pentecost.‎  She intercedes for us in our privation, poverty, and suffering.  As a mother, she presents to her Son the needs of people, especially the weakest and most disadvantaged.  Peace is the right of all.  May we all work ‎generously to create a more supportive and welcoming ‎world.  Pray with Mary for the cause of migrants and refugees.
    Read
      1st reading:  Who's the liar?
      (not lyre; image is for psalm)
    • 1 Jn 2:22-28  Whoever denies Jesus as the Christ is a liar; whoever confesses the Son has the Father too.  If what you heard remains in you, you'll remain in the Son and the Father.  He teaches you about everything; remain in him.
    • Ps 98:1-4  "All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God."  Sing to the Lord a new song; the Lord has made his justice, kindness, and faithfulness known.
    • Jn 1:19-28  When asked, “Who are you?” John admitted, “I'm not the Christ, Elijah, or the Prophet but one crying, ‘Make straight the Lord's way.’”  Pharisees / John:  “Then why do you baptize?” / “I baptize with water, but one is coming whose sandal I'm not worthy to untie.”
    Reflect
    • Creighton:  Deceit is part of human nature.  We live in a world filled with false and misleading information.  I recently learned about Adrienne von Speyr:  wife, mother, daughter, born into a Protestant family, convert, joyful adherent to church teaching, with an attitude of total surrender to truth.  An angel told her “the Jesuits loved Jesus totally, and God's truth was greater than men's, and you can't always tell people everything exactly as you understand it in God.” (First Glance).  Today is the feast of SS. Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops and Doctors of the Church.  The deceit of the day for them was Arianism.  Just as John the Baptist lived and breathed the truth of Christ, so did they....
    • One Bread, One Body:  "Liars":  God asks, "Who is the liar?" and "Who are you?," questions that often go together.  Sometimes we lie about who we are.  We're tempted to give the impression we're the Messiah, but that's a lie.  We're also tempted to answer "Who are you?" with "what we do," but that's also a lie.  We sometimes answer "Who are you?" by putting ourselves down:  another lie.  If baptized, you're a child of the Father, a sibling of Jesus, a temple of the Spirit, a royal priesthood, purchased at the price of Jesus' blood.  You are holy, chosen, and beloved, destined for eternal life.
    • Passionist:  We start the new year with renewed expectations, hope, and optimism.  Today’s readings lay down a foundation for putting our faith into practice. From the 1st:  "If what you heard remains in you, you will remain in the Son and the Father.  And this is the promise he made: eternal life."  John begins with "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."  The supreme work of sanctification and salvation is from the beginning.  We're born to continue the redemptive work begun in us at baptism.  We can bring God’s life into even our most distressing conditions.  When John the Baptist called people to conversion, he knew God was starting something new, though he didn't understand it:  "The one coming after me...."  We know who he is and have pledged to follow him.  Remember God has begun a transforming work in you....
    • DailyScripture.net:  "Christ stands among you":  John the Baptist stirred the peoples' expectation of the Messiah's arrival, that many thought he might be the Messiah himself, or at least Elijah.  But he said he was only a voice bidding people to prepare the way for the Messiah.  He's the last Old Testament Prophet who points the way to the Messiah and the first New Testament witness, preparing the way for Jesus and announcing his mission as Lamb of God.  He saw the Messiah came to redeem us from sin and adopt us as God's children.  The Church has given John many titles:  Witness of the Lord, Trumpet of Heaven, Herald of Christ, Voice of the Word, Precursor of Truth, Friend of the Bridegroom, Crown of the Prophets, Forerunner of the Redeemer, Preparer of Salvation, Light of the Martyrs, and Servant of the Word.  Do I point others to Christ by my witness and example?  When the Lord's presence was revealed to Mary Elizabeth, John the Baptist, and Zechariah, they were all filled with the Spirit.  Lord, fill me with the Spirit and renew in me the gifts of faith, hope, and love, and the courage and boldness to point others to Christ.
    • Saint or seasoning?  Merriam-Webster shows both can be pronounced the same but prefers \ba-zəl\ (rhymes with 'dazzle') for the herb and \bā-zəl\ (rhymes with 'basal') for  the bishop
    Universalis on the hermits made bishops
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    January 1, 2018

    Mary, Peace

    January 1, 2018:  Christmas Octave:  Mary, Mother of God / World Day of Peace

    See about a dozen connections with today?
    Legend below
    Listen

    For 1st reading
    For Psalm 67
    Pope Francis

    NYE Vespers, Te Deum:  "When the fullness of time came, God sent his Son...."  Jesus Christ, Word made flesh, gave fullness to time of the world and human history.  "...Born of a woman"  The first person to experience the fullness given by Jesus’ presence was the woman he was born from, the Mother of the Incarnate Son, Theotokos, the Mother of God.  Through her the fullness of time has flowed:  through her humble faith-filled heart and her Spirit-saturated flesh.

         From her the Church inherits this perception of fullness, which nourishes overflowing gratitude that extends to everything and everyone, comes from God, and involves both self and community.  We thank God for this year, recognizing that all good is God’s gift.  Though God gave us 2017 healthy, in many ways we've wasted and wounded it with works of death, lies, and injustices:  offenses against life, truth, and solidarity, which cause human, social, and environmental degradation.  We must assume responsibility before God, others, and Creation.

     I'm grateful for all who quietly express their love of Rome with small but precious and concrete actions:  doing their duty, confronting traffic with care, respecting public places, pointing out things that are wrong, paying attention to the elderly and those in difficulty....  Without speeches, without grandiosity, but with a type of civic education practiced in everyday life.  I feel great esteem for parents, teachers, and all who try to train children and young people, educating them to belong, take care of themselves, and take an interest in the reality around them.  Many face difficulties but do their part to improve things, without crying uselessly or harboring resentment.  I invite you to express gratitude for these builders of the common good....

    Today's homily:      The year opens in the name of the Mother.  Mother of God is Mary's most important title.  Why do we say Mother of God, not Mother of Jesus?  The words contain a magnificent truth about God and us.  From the moment our Lord took flesh in Mary, he took on our humanity; there's no longer God without human beings.  To call Mary Mother of God reminds us God is close to us, as child to mother.

     'Mother' (mater) is related to 'matter.'  In his Mother, the infinite God made himself small, became matter, to be with us and like us.  We're no longer alone; we're beloved children.  We see our reflection in the frail and infant God resting in Mary's arms and realize humanity is precious and sacred to the Lord.  To serve human life is to serve God.  All life, in the mother’s womb, the elderly, the suffering, the sick, the troublesome, the repellent, is to be welcomed, loved and helped.

     Today's gospel says only one thing about Mary:  she “kept all these things, pondering them in her heart.”  She kept them; she didn't speak.  The gospels' Christmas account doesn't report a single word of hers.  She's one with her Son, unable to speak.  The Word of God, who “long ago spoke in many and various ways,” is now silent; God before whom all fall silent is now a speechless child.  Silence and lowliness is the language of his kingship; his Mother joins him in the silence.

    As we gaze on the crib in silence, we rediscover we're loved, savor the meaning of life, and let Jesus speak.  His lowliness lays low our pride; his poverty challenges our outward display; his love touches our hard hearts.  To make time for God in silence is to 'keep' our soul and 'keep' our freedom from corrosion by consumerism, commercials, empty chatter, or shouting.

     Mary "pondered these things in her heart."  What things?  Joys and sorrows:  Jesus' birth, Joseph's love, the shepherds' visit, the radiant night, but also an uncertain future, homelessness, rejection, the disappointment of having to give birth in a stable.  Hopes, worries, light, darkness all dwelt in Mary's heart.  She pondered them, dwelt on them, with God, holding nothing back out of self-pity or resentment.  We 'keep' things when we hand them over, not yielding to fear, distress, or superstition, closing our hearts, or trying to forget, but turning everything into dialogue with God.  God, who keeps us in his heart, comes to dwell in our lives.

    So Mary silently treasured all things and brought them to God, in her heart.  At the beginning of the year, we need to set out from our center, leaving burdens behind and restarting from what really matters.  The Mother of God is our point of departure:  she's exactly what God wants us, and his Church, to be:  a tender, lowly Mother, poor in material goods, rich in love, free of sin, united to Jesus, with God in our hearts and our neighbor in our lives.  The Church's heart beats in Mary's.  To go forward, we must restart from the crib, from the Mother who holds God in her arms.

     Devotion to Mary is a requirement of Christian life.  Looking to her, we must leave baggage behind and rediscover what matters.  The gift of Mary, every mother, and every woman, is precious for the Church.  While men often abstract and impose ideas, women 'keep,' put things together in their heart, give life.  We need a mother’s heart to keep God's tender love and feel the heartbeat of all around us.  May Mary, God’s finest human creation, guard and keep us, and bring her Son's peace to us and our world.   Full text

    WDP message:  Migrants and refugees... in search of peace

    Heartfelt wishes for peace:  Peace to all!  Everyone aspires to peace, especially those who suffer its absence, including the over 250 million migrants worldwide, of whom 22.5 million are refugees, searching for somewhere to live in peace and willing to endure hardship, even risk their life, for it.  We embrace all fleeing from war and hunger, or forced to leave their homeland.  But it's not enough to open our hearts to their suffering; more must be done so they may again live in a safe, peaceful home.  Welcoming others requires commitment, assistance, goodwill, attention, responsible management, and resources.  Government leaders should take prudent, practical measures to welcome, protect, and integrate them, while remembering their responsibility towards their own communities, lest they become like the rash builder.

     Why so many?  Displaced persons are one of the consequences of war, conflict, and ethnic cleansing, but people migrate for other reasons too, mainly out of hope for a better life:  to join their families, seek professional or educational opportunities, or flee from poverty caused by environmental degradation.  Most migrate through regular channels, but some different routes when their countries offer neither safety nor opportunity but legal pathways out seem impractical.  Many destination countries demean the dignity due to all God's children.  Some people foment fear of migrants and so sow violence, discrimination, and xenophobia.  Though some consider migration a threat, I view it as an opportunity to build peace.

     With a contemplative gaze:  Migrants and those who welcome them belong to one family and have the right to enjoy the goods of the earth.  Isaiah and Revelation describe the new Jerusalem as open to people of every nation, who marvel at it and fill it with riches.  Peace and justice guide it and govern coexistence within it.  See God dwelling in our houses, streets, and squares, fostering the desire for goodness, truth, justice, peace, and community.  Migrants arrive with their courage, skill, energy, aspirations, and cultural treasures; they enrich the lives of those who receive them.  We also see the creativity and generosity of those who open their doors and hearts to migrants.  A contemplative gaze should encourage those responsible for the public good to pursue policies of welcome, and so recognize seeds of peace and nurture their growth, turning our cities into workshops of peace.

     Mileposts for action:  Offering migrants an opportunity for peace requires welcoming, protecting, promoting, and integrating:
    • Welcoming:  expanding legal pathways for entry, keeping migrants from persecution and violence, balancing concerns for national security and human rights.  “By showing hospitality to strangers, some people have shown hospitality to angels....”
    • Protecting:  recognizing and defending the dignity of those who flee dangers, and preventing their being exploited.  Think of women and children exposed to risks and abuses, even enslavement.  “The Lord watches over the foreigner....”
    • Promoting:  supporting migrants' human development, including ensuring access to education.  This will enable them to realize their potential and equip them to foster a spirit of dialogue.  God “loves the foreigner among you, giving them food and clothing.  Love foreigners; you yourselves were foreigners....”[15]
    • Integrating:  allowing migrants to participate fully in the life of society, for mutual enrichment, fruitful cooperation, and human development of the local community.  “You are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people.”
    Proposal:  I hope this spirit will lead the UN to approve two Global Compacts, one for safe, orderly, and regular migration and another for refugees, to provide a framework for proposals and concrete measures.  They need to be inspired by compassion, foresight, and courage, to build peace and not surrender to cynicism or indifference.  
    Dialogue, coordination, and international cooperation are necessary.  The Migrants and Refugees Section of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development has published action points that provide leads for implementing these mileposts.  Our aim is to express the Church's interest in the process leading to adoption of the Compacts, a sign of pastoral concern that goes back to the origins of the Church and has continued to the present.

     For our common home:  “If all share the ‘dream’ of a peaceful world, if the refugees’ and migrants’ contribution is properly evaluated, then humanity can become more a universal family and our earth a true ‘common home’” (John Paul II).  Many have believed in this ‘dream,’ and their achievements testify that it's no mere utopia.  St. Frances Xavier Cabrini devoted her life to migrants, became their patron saint, and taught us to welcome, protect, promote and integrate them.  Through her intercession, may the Lord enable us to experience that “a harvest of justice is sown in peace by those who make peace.”

    Read
    • Nm 6:22-27  Lord to Moses:  Bless like this:  The Lord bless you, keep you, shine on you, be gracious to you, look on you kindly, and give you peace!
    • Ps 67:2-3, 5-6, 8  "May God bless us in his mercy."  May all exult and know your salvation; you rule justly and guide us.
    • Gal 4:4-7  God sent his Son to ransom those under the law, so we might receive adoption.  God sent the Spirit into our hearts, crying, “Papa!”  So you're not slaves but children and heirs.
    • Lk 2:16-21  The shepherds found Mary, Joseph, and the baby, then shared the message they were told; all were amazed.  Mary reflected on these things.  The shepherds praised God.  The child was given the name Jesus, the name the angel gave before he was conceived.
    Reflect
    • Creighton:  Every cell of Jesus' body developed from Mary’s.  In her body God, the Light of the World, took on human form, flesh and blood, bone and water.  “Hail his Dwelling, his Tabernacle, his Robe, the Virgin made Church” (Francis).  Mary said yes to God and a lifetime of wonder, confusion, joy, and pain.  She's known as blessed, Mother of Mercy, Mother of Good Counsel, Mother of refugees, the homeless, the dying, nonviolent, widows, unwed mothers, political prisoners, condemned and executed criminals; she's a sign and source of hope for the oppressed.  She can accompany us when we contemplate the Spirit at work within us and creation.  Mary bore Jesus, who rose and gave us the Spirit, so we may in turn give life, proclaim the Word, witness to Christ within and among us, and be signs of hope.  Mary is woman of wisdom and grace, our mother, sister, companion, advocate, friend, prophet, model of discipleship, Theotokos (God-bearer).  “Only Christ-bearers can restore the world to life and give humanity back the vitality of love” (Houselander).  Because of Mary we can nurture a personal, intimate relationship with God....
    • One Bread, One Body:  "Abba's daughter":  The Spirit came to Mary, and she conceived Jesus.  The Spirit cried out in her, "Abba."  She became mother of God and daughter of God the Father.  When she saw Jesus in the manger, nursing, saying his first words, taking his first steps, playing, learning to be a carpenter, crying, laughing, or praying, she saw not only Jesus but the Father.  When Mary and Joseph found him in the Temple, he responded with puzzling questions:  "Why did you search for me?  Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house?"  He taught her to call God "Abba."  When Jesus was hanging on the cross, she heard him cry out, "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit."  After the Resurrection, at the first Christian Pentecost, and later, when she was taken to heaven and crowned, she knew her Father's love.
    • Passionist:  The Church invites us to begin the year contemplating that God took flesh in the womb of young Mary of Nazareth.  The early church gave Mary the title Theotokos, “God-bearer.”  No matter what 2018 will bring us, we have courage and hope because God-with-us will never abandon us.  The deep springs of our faith give us courage and hope to accept the coming year....
    • DailyScripture.net:  "He was called Jesus":  A person's name represented what they'd be in the future; it expressed their being at its deepest level.  A Jewish male child was named at his circumcision, eight days after birth; it was a sign of the God's covenant with Abraham and his posterity.  Joseph and Mary gave their son the name Jesus because of the angel's message; the name, 'the Lord saves,' signifies his identity and mission.  Jesus is both God and man, so Mary is called both mother of the Christ ('Messiah') and mother of God (Theotokos, 'God bearer').  The name Jesus signifies that God's name is present in his Son.  Peter exclaimed no other name can save us.  In Jesus' name, exalted above every other, demons flee, cripples walk, the blind see, the deaf hear, and the dead are raised.  Jesus' name is at the heart of Christian prayer; we pray through him to the Father in the power of the Spirit.  May we exalt Jesus' name and pray with confidence in his name.
    Dress legend
    • 'Clocks' suspenders:  When the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son (2nd reading); New Year
    • 'Dove' pin:  God sent us the Spirit crying out, “Abba, Father!” (2nd reading)
    • 'Sheep' tie bar:  The shepherds rushed to Bethlehem... (gospel)
    • 'Peace sign' tie bar:  The Lord look upon you kindly and give you peace! (1st reading); World Day of Peace
    • 'Mary' pin:  Mary, Mother of God
    • 'Heart' pin (oops, forgot):  Mary reflected on these things in her heart (gospel)
    • 'Happy birthday, Jesus' and 'angel' pins:  After 8 days, he was named Jesus, the name the angel gave him (gospel); Christmas season
    • 'Streamers' tie:  Happy new year!
    • White shirt:  Today's liturgical color
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