Weekly Reflections

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Epiphany, January 7, 2024

There are epiphanies in all of our lives; how do we recognize and honor them?

Gospel: Matthew 2: 1–12
Where is the newborn King of the Jews?

There are epiphanies in all of our lives; how do we recognize and honor them?

Matthew 2:1–12

When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of King Herod, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage.” When King Herod heard this, he was greatly troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. Assembling all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it has been written through the prophet: ‘And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; since from you shall come a ruler, who is to shepherd my people Israel.’”

Then Herod called the magi secretly and ascertained from them the time of the star’s appearance. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search diligently for the child. When you have found him, bring me word, that I too may go and do him homage.”

After their audience with the king they set out. And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them, until it came and stopped over the place where the child was.

They were overjoyed at seeing the star, and on entering the house they saw the child with Mary his mother. They prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed for their country by another way.

Music Meditations

Opening Prayer

Father, all powerful and ever-living God, we do well always and everywhere to give you thanks.
Today you revealed in Christ your eternal plan of salvation, and showed him as the light of all peoples.
Now that his glory has shone among us, you have renewed humanity in his immortal image.

Companions for the Journey

From “First Impressions”, a service of the Southern Dominican Province, 2011:

We do not know much about the Magi. For example, the text does not tell us there were three, as they are often depicted in paintings and creches. We do not know if they came from different nations or races. We are not sure if they were priests, royalty or astrologers. Their anonymity makes it possible for Christian tradition to place much symbolic meaning on them: they have come to symbolize diversity of race, ethnic background and nationalities. As today’s reading from Ephesians suggests, God’s grace has revealed the mystery to us that all peoples, not just a chosen few, will come to discover their place as, “co-heirs,” partners in the promise in Christ through the gospel. Matthew has depicted in the Magi the gospel truth that seekers from all nations will come to recognize Christ and be welcome in his presence. And, that the promise of Israel’s being a light for the nations, as the prophets anticipated, is now fulfilled in Christ.

Contentment isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Coasting along may feel smooth and familiar but it won’t take us anywhere new. It won’t take us on an uncomfortable journey where we don’t know the landmarks; where we will have to keep trusting the voice inside that urges us not to turn back or stop. Leaving contentment behind will require us to keep looking up ahead, placing one foot in front of the other, asking questions and trusting. There will surely be doubts and regrets along the way, but new life will also open up for us and eventually, like the Magi, we will come to the place where God waits for us. What will God look like at that moment? Certainly what the Magi saw was hardly impressive; a poor family in a nondescript village and an infant. However, the Magi had been led by the light of the star. Was it a star in the heavens or an interior light that kept them looking and then shone brightly for them, revealing the truth at the end of their quest?

God was present among the obscure; hidden in an out-of-the-way place. No splash, no “color commentator” to make God’s presence exciting for the sporting spectator. Yet, it took three strangers from another place and tradition to recognize someone special. Does it take the outsider in our midst to help us see beneath the surface or admit what we have been afraid to admit about our lives? So many disclaim the presence of God in their lives or down play and hide the gifts they have. Sometimes it’s the stranger or the person outside our familial surroundings who makes us aware of how gifted by God we are. People like teachers, mentors, religious guides, friends, etc., are often like the Magi visitors, who come from elsewhere and spot the divine light in us. They “manifest” (for that is what Epiphany is about, the manifestation of God in our world) to us the God we have been overlooking. These are light-bearers, stars that guide us to meet the Holy Presence in our lives and in the world around us. They shine a light before us and encourage us to venture out, to see life and ourselves from another perspective.

For those of us who leave the familiar and follow a distant light we may find ourselves in a place we never would have imagined going. There we will meet the divine—but in disguise, of course. For the Magi it was the infant in the crib. For us, the journey may take us to entirely new places: teaching religion to teenagers in the church basement; our wedding day and a person we have found and with whom we have decided to journey the rest of our days; a new way of praying; a bereavement group that begins to open new life for us after a death; a vocation in ministry; old age, faced not with dread, but excitement and discovery; new friends who have less materially to share, but more spiritually, etc.

We have come to church to celebrate Epiphany. How else might we celebrate this feast of recognition? We might recognize and honor the divine presence in the less important of our society: the children around us; those who clear our tables in restaurants; who sell us newspapers on the corner; who collect our garbage; who harvest our crops; who are very aged; who are weak, infirm or dying.

Today we also ask God to shake us out of our religious complacency and, like the Magi, stir up a hunger for God in us. Ask for the courage to let go of the comfortable and familiar and request the energy to once again go looking for God. Ask to be open to finding the holy in unfamiliar and “unholy” places. Ask for forgiveness for accepting what is immediately around us and for being satisfied with the status quo. Ask for the grace not to be disappointed when God isn’t found in the routine of familiar prayers and predictable ritual. Ask for a sense of wonder and awe in the little things of life that contain the spark of the divine. Ask for the spirit of a searcher, one willing to look up and follow a star beyond familiar borders. Ask to be able to put aside barriers that keep us apart from “the others”. Ask for the help to recognize the revelation of God, despite all appearances to the contrary. Ask for an Epiphany.

Further reflection:

Weekly Memorization

Taken from the gospel for today’s session…

Where is the newborn King of the Jews?

Living the Good News

What action can you take in the next week as a response to today’s reading and discussion?

Keep a private journal of your prayer/actions responses this week. Feel free to use the personal reflection questions or the meditations which follow:

Reflection Questions

  • What does this tale of the Magi say about where God is and who God is?
  • The visit of the Magi does not show up anywhere in recorded history as a factual report; it is a biblical story full of meaning for us. We should not be asking: “Did it really happen like that?”, but rather: “What does it mean?” What did the story mean to you as a child?
    What does this story mean to you now?
  • Magi were outsiders, who did not consider themselves special in God’s eyes. Yet it was to them that the reality of Jesus was revealed.
    Do you know of any outsiders that have had insights or experience about God, or the church?
    What does that tell us about who God welcomes into the mystery of God’s life and presence?
  • Have I ever viewed anyone else as a religious outsider?
    Have I ever viewed anyone else as an outsider in my friends, my family, my ethnic group, my country?
    What does this tell me about staying in my comfort zone?
  • What do you think helped the Magi to persevere on this arduous journey?
    Do I respect the spiritual journeys of others, even if I do not understand where they are going or why?
  • Someone said Christianity is lots of long walks. What have some of yours been?
    Have you always known of the ultimate destination or were you figuring that out as you went along?
  • What is the role of an open mind in a spiritual quest?
    What might be the role of doubts in a spiritual quest?
  • Where is God in the dark, lonely and uncertain moments of your life?
    Where are the stars in my life, guiding me to something?
  • To US a child is born. Do I believe that, really?
  • The magi brought gifts to the child Jesus and his parents. Since God has everything, what gift can I give to God?
  • What gifts can I bring to the world—and are they what is left over after I have every experience, every comfort, every honor, every material advantage I want for my self and my family, or are these gifts something I am sharing with the least of my brethren?
  • The Magi were not followers of the tradition into which Jesus was born. Which comes first in the quest for God?:
    faith in a particular set of theological principles,
    an unblemished moral life,
    obedience to those who hold positions of leadership in the church,
    theological degrees or scholarship,
    a yearning for meaning and union with Jesus
  • Do we ever sit in judgment on those who we think might be/ought to be excluded from God’s love (gays, unmarried mothers, those in the opposite political party, the rich, those whose lives are not in line with Catholic doctrine)?
  • The Magi followed a bright star which brought them a revelation of a new truth.
    Are you a bright star for anyone, helping them see, for example, the way to God’s love?
  • Epiphanies are sudden moments of truth, joy, clarity and hope which emerge when we least expect it.
    Have you ever experienced an epiphany, even a small “aha!” moment?
  • From First Impressions, a service of the southern Dominican Province:
    Where are we looking for Jesus today? Even if we had no other gospel story than this one, we should know where to look: among the newcomers and displaced; among the newborn poor and their families; among those who have no roots and are searching; among those pushed around by an uncaring system of laws and decrees.
    Would I describe myself as one of the modern-day magi, a searcher for God?
    How do I go about that search each day?
  • From First Impressions, a service of the southern Dominican Province:
    The Magi remind us that our quest for the living God must never end. Nor can we be complacent with where we are on our faith journey, or satisfied with our current spiritual life. Such satisfaction can be a form of darkness. There is always more about the mysterious ways of God to be discovered if only, like the Magi, we are willing to make the journey our inner light prompts us to begin.
    Do I feel my faith life is something I do out of habit and routine?
    What steps might I take to renew my spirit?

Meditations

A Meditation in the Dominican Style/Asking Questions:

From Fr. J. Ronald Knott, a priest of the Archdiocese of Louisville, Kentucky and a blogger:

[In the church], instead of talking people into going on spiritual adventure, we often just led religious tours. We give up the goal of transforming people and settle for conformity. If you think taking a tour of shrines of the Holy Land is the same as walking in the footsteps of Jesus, you’re not on a spiritual adventure, you’re on a package tour. These Magi people were not on a tour. They were on a scary, spiritual adventure–one that took massive amounts of personal courage…
Too many of us just don’t believe in going places. There is so much about our church that values keeping people in bounds, constraining the adventurous. We often punish the adventurous and reward, protect and coddle the mediocre. Just like the Magi, Jesus left his carpenter shop and went on a spiritual adventure. He went about inviting others to drop what they were doing and follow him without looking back.

Religiously, Am I on an adventure or on a package tour?
What form does my membership in the Catholic Church take?

A Meditation in the Ignatian Style/Imagination:

Adapted from “An Epiphany” by Rev Bob Wicker:

I had been doing some calculations in the sand when like a thunderbolt two of my old friends walked up the road to meet me. They said they heard stories of people beyond the river where wondrous signs foretold big changes – changes that would make the world different forever. So we stood there in the road a long time, three old friends now living in faraway places only to find ourselves called together by events and stories and signs we did not understand. We argued first about what we knew, then we argued about what we didn’t know.

What do these things mean, we wondered? What should we do? What can we do?

Next we began to plan our journey with the same excitement we had when we first encountered each other on a pilgrimage three decades earlier. We knew once again that we had to travel where the heavens directed us. Wandering planets, stars and great comets pointed the way. Will it be a wedding, a coronation, a death or a birth, we wondered. Who are the people in this faraway land whose royalty is marked by signs in the heavens? Whatever the occasion we would honor it with gifts suitable for a royal event. We packed and set off in the cold darkness guided only by our reckonings of the path the heavens gave us.  The long journey fueled many doubts and more arguments over campfires. This desert is not safe with wild animals and robbers. Why are we doing this anyway? What brought us all the way out here? Yet each time doubt and fear rose in our bellies like indigestion, one of us would point out that you do not take a journey because you know all the answers. Someone else would note how our path seemed to be set out before us like a long carpet. We all knew just where we had to go. We just weren’t sure why.

Has there been a time in your life when you wondered where you were headed and why? It is comforting to know that others who have come before us have often felt the same way. Pray the following prayer of Thomas Merton: “My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore will I trust you always, though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.”

Poetic Reflections:

Here are some lovely poems for you to just enjoy this week and throughout the Christmas season:

"The Journey Of The Magi”
by T. S. Eliot

A cold coming we had of it,
Just the worst time of the year
For a journey, and such a long journey:
The ways deep and the weather sharp,
The very dead of winter.
And the camels galled, sorefooted, refractory,
Lying down in the melting snow.
There were times we regretted
The summer palaces on slopes, the terraces,
And the silken girls bringing sherbet.
Then the camel men cursing and grumbling
and running away, and wanting their liquor and women,
And the night-fires going out, and the lack of shelters,
And the cities hostile and the towns unfriendly
And the villages dirty and charging high prices:
A hard time we had of it.
At the end we preferred to travel all night,
Sleeping in snatches,
With the voices singing in our ears, saying
That this was all folly.

Then at dawn we came down to a temperate valley,
Wet, below the snow line, smelling of vegetation;
With a running stream and a water-mill beating the darkness,
And three trees on the low sky,
And an old white horse galloped away in the meadow.
Then we came to a tavern with vine-leaves over the lintel,
Six hands at an open door dicing for pieces of silver,
And feet kicking the empty wine-skins.
But there was no information, and so we continued
And arriving at evening, not a moment too soon
Finding the place; it was (you might say) satisfactory.

All this was a long time ago, I remember,
And I would do it again, but set down
This set down
This: were we led all that way for
Birth or Death? There was a Birth, certainly
We had evidence and no doubt. I had seen birth and death,
But had thought they were different; this Birth was
Hard and bitter agony for us, like Death, our death.
We returned to our places, these Kingdoms,
But no longer at ease here, in the old dispensation,
With an alien people clutching their gods.
I should be glad of another death.

“The Wise”
by William Everson (BROTHER ANTONINUS, O.P.)

Miles across the turbulent kingdoms
They came for it, but that was nothing,
That was the least. Drunk with vision,
Rain stringing in the ragged beards,
When a beast lamed, they caught up another
And goaded west.
For the time was on them.
Once, as it may, in the life of a man,
Once, as it was, in the life of mankind,
All is corrected. And their years of pursuit,
Raw-eyed reading the wrong texts,
Charting the doubtful calculations,
Those nights knotted with thought,
When dawn held off, and the rooster
Rattled the leaves with his blind assertion—
All that, they regarded, under the Sign,
No longer as search but as preparation.
For when the mark was made, they saw it.
Nor stopped to reckon the fallible years,
But rejoiced and followed,
And are called “wise”, who learned that Truth,
When sought and at last seen,
Is never found. It is given.
And they brought their camels
Breakneck into that village,
And flung themselves down in the dung and dirt of that place,
And kissed that ground, and the tears
Ran on their faces, where the rain had

“On the Mystery of the Incarnation”
by Denise Levertov

It’s when we face for a moment
the worst our kind can do,
and shudder to know the taint in our own selves, that awe
cracks the mind’s shell and enters the heart:
not to a flower, not to a dolphin,
to no innocent form
but to this creature vainly sure
it and no other is god-like, God
(out of compassion for our ugly
failure to evolve) entrusts,
as guest, as brother,
the Word.

“The Three Holy Kings”
by Ranier Maria Rilke

Legend

Once long ago when at the desert’s edge
a Lord’s hand spread open–
as if a fruit should deep in summer
proclaim its seed–
there was a miracle: across
vast distances a constellation formed
out of three kings and a star.
Three kings from On-the-Way
and the star Everywhere,
who all pushed on (just think !)
to the right a Rex and the left a Rex
toward a silent stall.
What was there that they didn’t bring
to the stall of Bethlehem!
Each step clanked out ahead of them,
as the one who rode the sable horse
sat plush and velvet-snug.
And the one who walked upon his right
was like some man of gold,
and the one who sauntered on his left
with sling and swing
and jang and jing
from a round silver thing
that hung swaying inside rings,
began to smoke deep blue.
Then the star Everywhere laughed so strangely over them,
and ran ahead and found the stall and said to Mary:
I am bringing here an errantry
made up of many strangers.
Three kings with ancient might
heavy with gold and topaz
and dark, dim, and heathenish–
but don’t you be afraid.
They have all three at home
twelve daughters, not one son,
so they’ll ask for the use of yours
as sunshine for their heaven’s blue
and comfort for their throne.
Yet don’t straightaway believe: merely
some sparkle-prince and heathen-sheik
is to be your young son’s lot.
Consider: the road is long.
They’ve wandered far, like herdsmen,
and meanwhile their ripe empire falls
into the lap of Lord knows whom.
and while here, warmly like westwind,
the ox snorts into their ear,
they are perhaps already destitute
and headless, for all they know.
So with your smile cast light
on that confusion which they are,
and turn your countenance
toward dawning with your child:
there in blue lines lies
what each one left for you:
Emeralda and Rubinien
and the Valley of Turquoise.

Closing Prayer

Jesus, you are a mystery to me: mysterious are your words; mysterious are your teachings. Help me to be open to you and your message, in whatever guise you choose. Help me to see you in the mundane, ordinary events as they play out in my life. Help me to see you in those who are strangers, different, insignificant. Help me to make my home a place of welcome, for when I welcome others, I welcome you. What star am I asked to follow this new year, Lord? What of my gifts and talents can I bring to you this year, Lord?

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Commentary on Epiphany from “Living Space”

Today we celebrate the second of four great manifestations of God in our midst.  The word epiphany comes from Greek and it means a ‘showing’ or ‘manifestation’. 

FROM “LIVING SPACE”, A SERVICE OF THE IRISH JESUITS

Commentary on Isaiah 60:1-6; Ephesians 3:2-3,5-6; Matthew 2:1-12

Today we celebrate the second of four great manifestations of God in our midst.  The word epiphany comes from Greek and it means a ‘showing’ or ‘manifestation’.  We call today’s feast the Epiphany of the Lord, but the term could equally well be applied to the other three.

The first of these four manifestations we already celebrated on December 25, when God revealed himself to us, manifested in the form of a helpless, newborn infant.  He is presented as born homeless and in poverty and surrounded by the poor and outcasts (that is who the shepherds represented).  This manifestation fits in very well with the theme of Luke’s Gospel, and it is he who tells the story of Jesus’ birth. In today’s feast, we see the same recently born baby in similar circumstances, but the material and social surroundings are hardly touched on.  The emphasis here, as we shall see, is different.  Here are strangers, foreigners, total outsiders coming to give royal homage to this tiny child.  This will be the theme of Matthew’s Gospel:

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations… (Matt 28:19) The third manifestation we are skipping this year, but it normally closes the Christmas celebration of the Incarnation.  Jesus, now an adult of 30 years or so, is seen standing in a river together with a multitude of penitents.  He is solemnly endorsed by the voice of God as the Son of God:

You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.(Mark 1:11)

This event is recorded by all the evangelists.

The fourth manifestation is found only in John’s gospel.  It is not part of the Christmas liturgy but we read it on the Second Sunday during the liturgical Year C, immediately after the Christmas season.  This revelation occurs during a wedding banquet (symbolizing the Kingdom of love, justice and peace which is to be established through Jesus).  Water (symbolizing the Old Covenant) is changed into new wine (symbolizing the New Covenant to be signed and sealed on the cross of Calvary).  Mary (representing the Church, God’s people) is seen as the intermediary through whose request this is brought about.  It is the first of seven ‘signs’ by which Jesus reveals his true identity in John’s gospel.

Story or history?

Coming back to today’s feast, we may ask is the story of the “wise men” a factual report or is it just that – a story?  Primarily, it is a story.  A report is concerned with hard facts – the temperature dropped to 10 degrees last night or there were 10 mm of rain yesterday.  But a story, especially a biblical story, is concerned much more with meaning.  In reading any Scripture story, including Gospel stories, we should not be asking, “Did it really happen like that?”  Instead, we should be asking, “What does it mean?  What is it saying to us?”  The truth of the story is in its meaning and not in the related facts.

Epiphany
Certainly in this story the facts are extremely vague and not at all sufficient for a news report.  The standard questions a reporter is expected to be able to answer are: Who? What? Why? When? Where? How?  In this story it is difficult to give satisfactory answers to these questions.

Although Jesus is still an infant and still in Bethlehem, we do not know how long after his birth this incident is supposed to have taken place.  We are not told because it does not matter. It is not relevant to the meaning of the story (also, compared to Mark, Matthew tends to be notoriously short on details).

Magi
Who were these “wise men” and where did they come from?  In the Greek text they are called magoi, which is usually rendered in English as “Magi”.  Magi were a group or caste of scholars who were associated with the interpretation of dreams, Zoroastrianism, astrology and magic (hence the name ‘Magi’). In later Christian tradition they were called kings (“We three kings of Orient are…”) under the influence of Psalm 72:10 (“May the kings of Sheba and Seba bring gifts!”), Isaiah 49:7 (“Kings shall see and arise; princes, and they shall prostrate themselves”) and Isaiah 60:10 (“Their kings shall minister to you”).

We are not told what their names were or how many of them there were.  Tradition settled on three individuals, presumably because there were three kinds of gifts.  And they were also given names – Caspar, Balthazar, and Melchior.  Caspar was represented as black and thus Magi were understood to represent the whole non-Jewish, Gentile world which came to Christ.

We are told, too, that they came “from the east”.  This could be Persia, Eastern Syria or Arabia – or indeed any distant place.  The Asian theologian, Fr Aloysius Pieris, points out the significance for Asians that it was wise men from the East, and not the local wise men, who recognized the light that led to Jesus.

A star in the east

There is talk of following a star.  Was there indeed at this time a comet or supernova or some significant conjunction of planets which would be particularly meaningful to these men?  As well, how does one follow a star – have you ever tried?  How do you know when a star is “over the place” you are looking for?  You could travel several hundred miles and the star would still be “over” you.  Probably, we are wasting our time looking for some significant stellar happening.  The star is rather to be seen as a symbol – a light representing Jesus as the Light of the whole world.

There really is not much to be gained in trying to pinpoint facts here.  We are dealing instead with meaning, and the meaning is very clear from the general context of Matthew’s Gospel.  God, in the person of Jesus, is reaching out to the whole world.  More than that, the religious leaders of his own people – the chief priests and experts in the scriptures, although clearly aware of where the Messiah would be born, made no effort whatever to investigate.  Yet Bethlehem was “just down the road”, so to speak, from Jerusalem.

King Herod, an ambitious and ruthless man (and that is a fact of history), was prepared to travel there, but only to wipe out even the remotest threat to his own position. These pagan foreigners, on the other hand, went to great lengths to find the “King of the Jews” and “pay him homage”.

As part of that homage they offered their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.  The gifts seem inspired by Isaiah 60:6 quoted in today’s First Reading:

“They shall bring gold and frankincense and shall proclaim the praise of the Lord.” (Is 60:6)

In later tradition, the gold came to symbolize the kingship of Christ, the incense his divine nature, and the myrrh his redemptive suffering and death.  They also came to signify virtue, prayer and suffering.

No outsiders

All in all, today’s feast is telling us that for God there are no foreigners, no outsiders.  From his point of view, all are equally his beloved children.  We all, whatever external physical or cultural differences there may be between us, belong to one single family which has one Father, “our” Father.  It means that every one of us is a brother and sister to everyone else.  There is no room for discrimination of any kind based on nationality, race, religion, class or occupation.  There cannot be a single exception to this position.

The facts of today’s story may be vague, but the message is loud and clear.  We thank God today that there are no “Chosen People”, whether they be Jews or Christians (or even Catholics).  Let us try to understand more deeply God’s closeness to us, which is also a reason for us to be close to each other.  There are no outsiders.  All are called – be it the Mother of Jesus, the rich and the poor, the privileged and the lonely, the healthy and the sick, the saints and the sinners.

Yet, we can become outsiders.  We do that every time we make someone else an outsider, whether we do that individually, as a family, a community, or an ethnic grouping.  To make even a single other person an outsider, that is, to deny them the love and respect which belongs equally to all, is to make an outsider of oneself.  It is to join the ranks of the Pharisees, the chief priests and every other practitioner of bigotry.

Where are the stars?

Finally, we might ask ourselves, Where are the stars in my life?  The wise men saw the star and followed it.  The people in Jerusalem did not.  How, and to what is God calling me at this time?  Where does he want me to find him, to serve and follow him?  Some have their priorities already fixed, and so have stopped or have never even started to look for the real priorities, the God-sent stars in their lives.  That is like first making a right turn at a crossroads, and then wondering where you should be going.  Saint Ignatius Loyola, in his Spiritual Exercises, speaks of people who get married first and then ask, “What does God want me to do?”

This very day, let us stop in our tracks.  Obviously, at this stage there are many things which, for better or worse, we cannot change some decisions, right or wrong, which cannot now be undone.  But it is not too late to look for our star and begin following it from where we are now.

The wise men did not know where the star would lead them.  They just followed it until it brought them to Bethlehem – and to Jesus.  They never, I am sure, regretted their decision. If we can only have the courage and the trust to follow their example, I doubt if we will have regrets either. If we have not already done so, today is the day to make that start.

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Feast of the Holy Family, December 31, 2023

The Holy Family was a typical and observant Hebrew family / The importance of unselfishness in families and in the Kingdom

Gospel: Luke 2: 22–40
The favor of God was upon him

The Holy Family was a typical and observant Hebrew family / The importance of unselfishness in families and in the Kingdom

Luke 2:22–40

When the days were completed for their purification according to the law of Moses, they took him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, just as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every male that opens the womb shall be consecrated to the Lord,” and to offer the sacrifice of “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons,” in accordance with the dictate in the law of the Lord.

Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, awaiting the consolation of Israel, and the holy Spirit was upon him. It had been revealed to him by the holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Messiah of the Lord. He came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to perform the custom of the law in regard to him, he took him into his arms and blessed God, saying: “Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared in sight of all the peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel.”

The child’s father and mother were amazed at what was said about him; and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted (and you yourself a sword will pierce) so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”

There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived seven years with her husband after her marriage, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple, but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer. And coming forward at that very time, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.

When they had fulfilled all the prescriptions of the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth.

The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.

Music Meditations

  • Mary, did you know?—Pentatonix
  • When Joseph was an old man—Jose Feliciano
  • Joy to the world--Mormon Tabernacle Choir

Opening Prayer

adapted from today’s Psalm 105:

I give thanks to you, O Lord, I invoke your name I will make your name and your seeds known among the nations. I will sing to you, sing your praise, Proclaim all your wondrous deeds ( Pause here and consider what deeds of Christ have helped/saved you and yours) I give glory to your holy name, O Jesus I rejoice with all hearts that seek you I look to you, Lord in your strength I constantly seek your face. Amen

Companions for the Journey

From ‘Living Space”, a service of the Irish Jesuits:

Today’s Gospel says, “They took [Jesus] up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, just as it is written in the law of the Lord, ‘Every male that opens the womb shall be consecrated to the Lord’.” The actual ritual is not described but we are introduced to two elderly people who were in the Temple at the time. The first of these was a devout man called Simeon. He had been told that he would not die until he had first laid eyes on the promised Messiah. Guided by the Spirit he came into the Temple and recognized in Mary’s child the long-awaited Messiah. He makes a prayer of thanksgiving to God for answering his prayer “for my eyes have seen your salvation”. And what he has seen is “a light for revelation to the Gentiles and glory for your people Israel”. Jesus, the Incarnate Word of God, is a divine revelation to the non-Jews and the glory of God’s own people from whom he came. Mary and Joseph are quite amazed at the words being spoken. There is a lot they still do not know about their Son. But Simeon then had some ominous words for the Mother: “This child is destined for the fall and the rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted (and you yourself a sword will pierce) so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.” This is the paradox of Jesus. He comes as Savior bringing life for the whole world and yet there will be people who will reject his message of truth and life. His own people will be deeply divided over him. This will be a source of deep pain for the Mother, something she will not realize fully until she sees him die in agony before her eyes. Simeon’s words must have been very puzzling and even alarming to Mary and Joseph. The second person to greet the parents and their Child was another deeply religious person. She was Anna, whose husband had died after only 7 years of marriage and who had now been a widow for more than 60 years. She spent all her time in the Temple in prayer and fasting. On seeing the Child, she gave thanks to God and spoke about him to everyone she met. As mentioned, when this feast was called the Purification of Our Lady there was for a long time a custom in the Church for mothers to go through a purification ceremony after giving birth. Such a rite is now seen as inappropriate but the revised Rituale Romanum (Roman Ritual) still provides for the blessing of women both before and after birth. The latter is only in cases where the mother could not be present at the baptism of her child. In general, it would seem highly appropriate for a special blessing to be given to mothers on this day. The feast is now called the Presentation of Our Lord and the emphasis is more on Jesus than on his Mother. The blessing and the procession of candles as well as the Scripture readings focus on Jesus who is the “Light of the World”. The First Reading is from the prophet Malachi. It consists of a prophecy which can be applied to the Messiah and hence to Jesus. The opening sentence reminds one of John the Baptist: “I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me”. But then the rest of the sentence foreshadows today’s feast: “Suddenly there come to the temple the Lord whom you seek and the messenger of the covenant whom you desire. Yes, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts.” A clear reference to Jesus, as the Word of God and the one who will inaugurate the New Covenant between God and his people. The prophecy goes on to warn that the coming Messiah will be a real challenge, he will be “like the refiner’s fire”. He will refine the sons of Levi, “refining them like gold or silver, that they may offer due sacrifice to the Lord”. For those who welcome his message and his call, Jesus is good news but for those who will reject his call it will mean death and the end of life. The Second Reading is from the Letter to Hebrews. It speaks of the meaning of God’s Son coming to live among us as one of us, which, of course, is the theme of today’s feast. For the Son of God came to share our flesh and blood and all that goes with it. It was in this way that he would “destroy the one who has power of death, that is, the devil”. On the contrary, he has come to liberate “those who through fear of death had been subject to slavery all their life”. In order to do this, the Son “had had to become like his brothers in every way, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest before God to expiate the sins of the people”. And, on the cross, Jesus will be both Priest and Victim, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. As the reading concludes, “because he himself was tested through what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested”. All of this is foreshadowed in the warnings that Simeon gives to Mary about the sword of sorrow which will pierce her heart.

Further reflection:

Weekly Memorization

Taken from the gospel for today’s session…

The favor of God was upon him

Living the Good News

What action can you take in the next week as a response to today’s reading and discussion?

Keep a private journal of your prayer/actions responses this week. Feel free to use the personal reflection questions or the meditations which follow:

Reflection Questions

What do we know historically about Jesus’ early life? How has popular culture or tradition described the family of Jesus? What do we know about the actual relationship between the members of Jesus immediate family? Do you think they ever disagreed with each other of became angry with each other? In what ways might Jesus’ family have been perfect? In what ways might it not have been perfect? How do you describe any “holy family”, and what standards of behavior do to attribute to this kind of family? How is your family a “holy family”? How is it not? What is your role in your own family dynamic? Do you think every family is normal and wonderful and yours is not? Do you think that your family is perfect and other families are flawed? Have you seen or experienced the impact a new baby has on a family? How does it change the family dynamic? What are or have been the special rituals surrounding a new baby born into your family? What is your opinion of the purification rituals Mary had to undergo? (Leviticus 12, See attachment Purification According to the Law of Moses) Had any of those ever carried over into Christian/Catholic rituals? Have you ever heard of a firstborn son being dedicated to the Lord? What is the importance of this event taking place in the Temple in Jerusalem? Where have important events in your family taken place? What is/has been the role of Church in special family events? Has there ever been a time in your life when you waited prayed and hoped for a change (such as a marriage, a new baby, a vaccine, an end to a certain war, a political or social change for the better)? How did you feel when the change/event finally happened? There is an unselfishness about both Anna and Simeon—all they do is praise God! They show us an example of patience and gratitude… what does their reaction say to me? Anna has been fasting and praying, actually in mourning, for the people of God. Are you mourning for anything or anyone? Do you know of anyone now who is living with the hope of change in the future? What hopes do you have for the future? Do you, like Anna, pray for those hopes and dreams? How do we as a society treat the elderly? What can the elderly teach you and me? Do we as Christians have an obligation to help bring joy and comfort where we can in the lives of those who are enduring suffering of any kind, especially illness and old age? Jesus was destined to be a sign whose message would be opposed. As His followers, how do we handle opposition to our ideas and ideals?

Meditations

A Meditation in the Augustinian Style/Memory:

Adapted from Terrance Klein, in “America”, the Jesuit weekly magazine: There would have been tears, I think. If Simeon had waited all those years for the Lord, if Anna were a widow and so advanced in age, they would have shed tears when they saw the Infant King, certainly when they were allowed to hold him. It is quite possible that Mary and Joseph shed a few tears while nurturing and bringing up Jesus—tears when he was sick, tears when he was lost, tears when he seemed to have plans for life that differed from the norm. The tears of the first half of life are often tears of disappointment or impatience, because we have made mistakes, or because life is not unfolding as we wish, or not unfolding fast enough…… Life’s second half is awash in tears. Tears for what happened long ago, in the first half; tears because time is too short to be savored; tears because life itself has begun to run deeper. Everything seems to matter more.

Where are you in your life’s journey right now? Have you shed tears for mistakes you or others have made? Have you shed tears for the loss of someone important to you? Have you shed tears of joy for a wonderful experience you have had?

Spend a little time sorting through the memories you have accumulated in your life so far. Thank God for the good things that have given you joy and for the bad or sad things that have made you strong.

A Meditation in the Ignatian Style/Imagination:

Imagine that you are standing by when this couple comes into the temple, having offered the poor peoples’ sacrifice of two turtledoves. What are they wearing, and how are they behaving toward this infant? Who is holding him? What are the expressions on their faces? Do they seem somewhat in awe of their surroundings? In awe of the precious gift of a child? Now take a look at who else is there. Describe the old man Simeon. Why does this couple give him the child to hold? What is his expression when the baby is placed in his arms? How do you react to the words of thanksgiving that Simeon utters? How would you react if you were Simeon? Now take a look at the old woman, Anna the prophetess. In your mind’s eye, imagine what she looks like, what she is wearing. Do you think Mary and Joseph were taken aback by her prediction? Do you feel for his parents when you hear what the future holds for them? What words in his prediction might also apply to you in your life? Put these words in your own vernacular, and make this your evening prayer this week: Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared in sight of all the peoples. A light for the revelation to the Gentiles. And glory for your people Israel.

Poetic reflection:

Read this poem by Michael J. Kennedy, S.J., (Taken from “First Impressions”, a service of the Southern Dominican Province, 2007) and see if any of the observations he makes apply to you:

“Leave it to Beaver”
(Holy Family)

There are at Least two things that Mess up our appreciation of The Holy Family and the first is The utter uniqueness of this family For who can relate to a mother Who is a virgin and a step-father Of sorts and a Son who is unlike Any son before or after and yet The second reason we do not really Get them might be the source Of our ignorance because we Keep pushing our preconceived Ideas as fact instead of Trying to accept the Gospel on its Own terms **** So we often see Mary As above being human capable Of magic and sort of floating Above others during her life On earth and we see Joseph as A kindly old man mostly out of Touch with reality and one who Died way before Calvary and The first Easter and Jesus We see as a terrific First century Superman **** But if we look More closely and accept The Scriptures as they are We then see a generous and loving Spouse and a young Jewish mother And a Son who was not just the Son of God but also fully human And the reason for the holiness Of this family is because they Were so human yet filled with Faith since they were a real Family and not one like the Phony family in Leave It to Beaver

Poetic Reflection:

Please read this poem for the season by Dr. Maya Angelou... it will soothe your soul...

"Amazing Peace: A Christmas Poem"

Thunder rumbles in the mountain passes And lightning rattles the eaves of our houses. Flood waters await us in our avenues. Snow falls upon snow, falls upon snow to avalanche Over unprotected villages. The sky slips low and grey and threatening. We question ourselves. What have we done to so affront nature? We worry God. Are you there? Are you there really? Does the covenant you made with us still hold? Into this climate of fear and apprehension, Christmas enters, Streaming lights of joy, ringing bells of hope And singing carols of forgiveness high up in the bright air. The world is encouraged to come away from rancor, Come the way of friendship. It is the Glad Season. Thunder ebbs to silence and lightning sleeps quietly in the corner. Flood waters recede into memory. Snow becomes a yielding cushion to aid us As we make our way to higher ground. Hope is born again in the faces of children It rides on the shoulders of our aged as they walk into their sunsets. Hope spreads around the earth. Brightening all things, Even hate which crouches breeding in dark corridors. In our joy, we think we hear a whisper. At first it is too soft. Then only half heard. We listen carefully as it gathers strength. We hear a sweetness. The word is Peace. It is loud now. It is louder. Louder than the explosion of bombs. We tremble at the sound. We are thrilled by its presence. It is what we have hungered for. Not just the absence of war. But, true Peace. A harmony of spirit, a comfort of courtesies. Security for our beloveds and their beloveds. We clap hands and welcome the Peace of Christmas. We beckon this good season to wait a while with us. We, Baptist and Buddhist, Methodist and Muslim, say come. Peace. Come and fill us and our world with your majesty. We, the Jew and the Jainist, the Catholic and the Confucian, Implore you, to stay a while with us. So we may learn by your shimmering light How to look beyond complexion and see community. It is Christmas time, a halting of hate time. On this platform of peace, we can create a language To translate ourselves to ourselves and to each other. At this Holy Instant, we celebrate the Birth of Jesus Christ Into the great religions of the world. We jubilate the precious advent of trust. We shout with glorious tongues at the coming of hope. All the earth's tribes loosen their voices To celebrate the promise of Peace. We, Angels and Mortals, Believers and Non-Believers, Look heavenward and speak the word aloud. Peace. We look at our world and speak the word aloud. Peace. We look at each other, then into ourselves And we say without shyness or apology or hesitation. Peace, My Brother. Peace, My Sister. Peace, My Soul.

Closing Prayer

From Sacred Space, a service of the Irish Jesuits:

Jesus, you share my humanity in every way. Like you I want to grow and become strong, filled with wisdom. I still have miles to go before I sleep. May the favor of God be with me as with you.

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CC@S CC@S

Leviticus on Purification According to the Law of Moses

‘These are the regulations for the woman who gives birth to a boy or a girl.’

12 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Say to the Israelites: ‘A woman who becomes pregnant and gives birth to a son will be ceremonially unclean for seven days, just as she is unclean during her monthly period. 3 On the eighth day the boy is to be circumcised. 4 Then the woman must wait thirty-three days to be purified from her bleeding. She must not touch anything sacred or go to the sanctuary until the days of her purification are over. 5 If she gives birth to a daughter, for two weeks the woman will be unclean, as during her period. Then she must wait sixty-six days to be purified from her bleeding.

6 “‘When the days of her purification for a son or daughter are over, she is to bring to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting a year-old lamb for a burnt offering and a young pigeon or a dove for a sin offering.[a] 7 He shall offer them before the Lord to make atonement for her, and then she will be ceremonially clean from her flow of blood.

“‘These are the regulations for the woman who gives birth to a boy or a girl. 8 But if she cannot afford a lamb, she is to bring two doves or two young pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for her, and she will be clean.’”

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Fourth Sunday of Advent, December 24, 2023

Listening to and accepting God’s plans for me

Gospel: Luke 1: 26–38
Let it be done to me according to your word

Listening to and accepting God’s plans for me

Luke 1:26–38

In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary.

And coming to her, he said, “Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.

Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus.

“He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?” And the angel said to her in reply, “The holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.

“And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God.” Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

Music Meditations

Opening Prayer

From the prayer from the liturgy for the Fourth Sunday of Advent:

In the psalms of David
in the words of the prophets
In the dreams of Joseph,
your promise is spoken, eternal God,
and takes flesh at last
In the womb of the Virgin.
May Emmanuel find welcome in our hearts.
take flesh in our lives, and be for all peoples
the welcome advent of redemption and grace.
We ask this through him whose coming is certain
whose Day draws near:
your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit
One God, for ever and ever.

Companions for the Journey

Adapted from a sermon N.G. delivered at Stanford’s University Public Worship in 2008 (with a little help from Walter Burghardt, S.J.):

Can it be that Christmas is almost upon us? Where did Advent go? It seems that Christmas comes while we are busy doing other things: baking cookies to leave on people’s doorsteps, writing cards, shopping—mostly online these days, trimming trees, creating a sense of nostalgia about what Christmas ought to be but can’t be this year this year (and maybe never was…). And becoming a family happens, too, often while we are not paying attention: while we are trying to decide how to adapt our Christmas traditions to ones that are safe, or attending the kindergartner’s Christmas Sing via zoom, or patching up boo-boo’s or listening to our pre-teen talk about how mean the other kids are. That’s how family happens. That’s how becoming a family happens except most of the time we are not thinking about it, we are simply going about the business of living and loving. And a marriage happens that way and also divorce it seems, while we do the dishes or do lunch or make love or make money, or hang drapes or hang lives—or don’t do any of those things. That’s when and how marriages happen and how divorces happen, and sometimes we don’t even know it.. Life is what happens when we are making other plans.

It is also true that that is the way God happens—as we go about doing other things. Look at Luke’s story of a Hebrew maiden in Galilee: As she swept the floor or washed clothes or baked bread, (somehow I don’t think she spent her days praying at a pri dieu while servants did the heavy lifting), as she busied herself about the task of putting together the pieces of her future, into the midst of her dreaming and planning for her new life comes God disguised as an angel (which is almost always how God comes—in disguise—and turns her future upside down.

When I was young, I believed that Mary serenely acquiesced to what was being asked of her—she had no fears, no doubts; after all, she was being given the great honor of carrying God. Who could say no to that? Well, a closer reading of this gospel passage Has Luke portraying Mary as unsettled and perplexed by this unannounced visit. Catholic tradition has had much to say about the confusion and hesitation that Mary experiences when the angel first makes its announcement. (”She was much perplexed and pondered what sort of greeting this might be… ‘How can this be, since I am a virgin?’”)

As a result, Christian artists have tended to focus on Mary’s surprise at the moment the angel approaches her. In many Renaissance Annunciations, Mary holds up her hand, palm outward, as if to tell the angel to slow down; in Botticelli’s sublime Cestello Annunciation—probably my favorite painting of all time—Mary’s knees buckle and her eyes drift closed, as if she is about to faint. In a Donatello sculpture from about 1430, Mary’s body twists away from the angel even as she turns her face toward him. In an even more dramatic Ghiberti relief from 1407, the Virgin holds up an arm protectively, as if she expects the angel to strike her. A Memling Annunciation from the 1480’s, like Botticelli’s, portrays a fainting Virgin; however, in this one, she has a couple of smaller angels conveniently at hand to help keep her steady.

One more look at the passage shows that “she was greatly troubled” at Gabriel’s announcement. And “she pondered what sort of greeting this might be.” The angel quickly has to reassure her, “do not be afraid.” How could she not be afraid? In her tiny village, where everyone knows everyone else and many people are related to one another, everyone knows that she and the man who is already her legal husband have not yet begun to live together. And all of them can count to nine. What will they say about her, what kinds of nasty looks will they cast her way when her precious child is born too soon?

The angel did not lay out a blueprint for Mary—telling her in great detail what the scenario would be. So the key words here are not obedience, but courage and trust. It is the same for us. At least in my life, no angel appeared at my graduation from a tiny women’s college in New Haven with a little outline mapping out future events. Life unfolded, day by day, year by year, crisis by crisis and joy by joy, until this very moment, when the road ahead is still not any too clear. There are still options to be weighed, choices to be made, and where the spirit will lead I, personally, do not have a clue. As I look back, I see that often I had to trust in God when the way was murky or painful, I had to have the courage to make difficult choices when an easier way presented itself. Sometimes I had that courage, and other times, unlike Mary, I hedged my bets, choosing a safer route.

The bottom line is this: when God called Mary, when God asks you and me: “Will you?”, he reveals very little: the basic call, the bare bones. His invitation does not include a vita, a biography, a script; and so it calls for an unbelievable faith, trust beyond imagining, your hand in God’s. He does not promise a rose garden. He only promises that whatever the garden, Eden or Gethsemane, He will be there, faithful through all your infidelities.

Given the open-ended nature of the request, given the fact that Mary lived in a society where unmarried women who fetched up pregnant were often stoned, given the fact that She and Joseph did not make this decision together (I would have loved to be a fly on the wall for that first discussion between the two of them), it is almost unbelievable that she responded that way the Luke says she did. “Be it done unto me according to your word”

Mary lived out that “yes” through the hardship of eking out a living in a land beset with political and economic woes, through the normal problems and joys of being a parent, through witnessing the difficulties of her son’s unpredictable career. She lived out that “yes” as she stood at the foot of the cross one terrible Friday afternoon, as she huddled in fear with the remnant of Jesus’ followers in that upper room after he died, as she went wherever life and the early church community took her. Her yes had to be said once, and repeated in her heart over and over. She, actually, was Jesus’ first disciple. According to St Augustine, DOING THE WILL OF JESUS IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN BEING THE MOTHER OF JESUS. So it was with Mary herself.

So it is with us. Through the changes and adjustments, through wonderment and success, through sorrow and loss, through uncertainty, and often failure, we learn that doing the will of Jesus is easy when it is what we want, less so when it is something we do not choose to have happen. “Be it done according to your word” is harder to say when God’s word and my wishes don’t always line up perfectly. We are asked to give birth to the word of God in our everyday lives. The question: Will you follow me? Will you bring the Word of God into a broken and troubled world?

Saying yes, or “let it be” will change our lives, break our hearts, and move us closer to the Kingdom of God’s love.

That is how God happens.

Further reflection:

Weekly Memorization

Taken from the gospel for today’s session…

Let it be done to me according to your word

Living the Good News

What action can you take in the next week as a response to today’s reading and discussion?

Keep a private journal of your prayer/actions responses this week. Feel free to use the personal reflection questions or the meditations which follow:

Reflection Questions

  • What are some real-life attention-getters that we sometimes do not recognize as a visitation of the Holy Spirit?
  • When have you most felt favored by God?
  • Has your life turned out exactly as you have planned it?
    Is that good or bad?
  • Who reveals to you the mysterious presence of God in human flesh?
  • When have you experienced God dwelling with you in difficult circumstances?
  • Is God asking you to do or agree to something that seems impossible?
    Has it happened in the past?
    What was your answer?
    What will it be now?
  • When has doing God’s will been easy?
    When has it been hard?
  • In what sense am I available to God’s spirit in me?
    What holds me back? (Fears, prejudices, greed, need to control the results; need for success, jealousy, resentments, excessive self-doubts, perfectionism (Mother Teresa: “Jesus did not call us to be perfect, He called us to be faithful”), sheer laziness)
    What holds me back?
  • To which people in my life have I been anointed to bring glad tidings?
    What are those messages?
  • How do I deal with sudden changes in my life?
    What is my first reaction?
    How do I adjust to those changes?
    Can I imagine Mary going through the same process?
  • Doing the will of Jesus is more important than being the mother of Jesus. In my own life, it might be easier to do God's will when it is what I want, less so when is something I did not want to have happen. Doing the will of God is easier when it is something we want to do or expected to do anyway. Doing the will of God is much harder when it takes us out of our comfort zone. But when God happens in all part of our lives, our job is to say yes, not as an act of a blind faith, but as an act of the will. How did Mary deal with the unknown? How do we?
  • When God called Mary, when God asks you and me: “Will you?”, he reveals very little: the basic call, the bare bones. His invitation does not include a vita, a biography, a script; and so it calls for an unbelievable faith, trust beyond imagining, our hand in God’s. Was this situation much easier for Mary than it would be for us?
    Why or why not?

Meditations

A Meditation in the Ignatian Style/Imagination:

A young girl, sheltered, waiting in Galilee, waiting for her life to begin. She is a virgin, untouched, still almost a child. Waiting. A marriage is planned for some time in the future. A contract has been made, a formal betrothal. He is older, stable, kind. They will never be rich; he is only a carpenter, after all. But life will be predictable, safe. Joseph will care for her. Until then, she works at home, and dreams of the future. Life will be good. She knows that.

Gradually, she is aware of wind, a slight noise, something is in the room with her. “Hello, Mary.” She hears her name on the merest breath of a sound. And with that greeting, her life changes forever.

Can you imagine that conversation between Mary and her parents? How does she explain things to Joseph? In her tiny village, where everyone knows everyone else and many people are related to one another, everyone knows that she and the man who is already her legal husband have not yet begun to live together. But all of them can count to nine. What will they say about her, what kinds of nasty looks will they cast her way when her precious child is born too soon? What makes her decide to visit her cousin Elizabeth so far away? What is the trip like? How does Elizabeth greet her? Does Mary’s response surprise you?

Go over the words of the Magnificat and savor the way in which Mary feels God’s presence in her life and in the world. Open yourself up to whatever God is calling you to this day. Contemplate how God is present to you, when, like Mary, you don’t get what you want, but get, instead, what God wants for you. Practice acceptance. Practice faith. Practice hope.

A Meditation in the Dominican Style/Asking Questions:

This meditation is based on the events just after the Annunciation in the gospel of Luke; the visitation of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth:

It is striking that Mary, newly pregnant, hurries to the side of her cousin Elizabeth, to offer companionship and whatever help Elizabeth might need. Henry Nouwen said:

I find the meeting of these two women very moving, because Elizabeth and Mary came together and allowed each other to wait. Mary’s visit made Elizabeth aware of what she was waiting for. The child leapt for joy in her. Mary affirmed Elizabeth’s waiting. And then Elizabeth said to Mary: “Blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.” And Mary responded: “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord.” These two women created space for each other to wait. They affirmed for each other that something was happening worth waiting for. Here we see a model for the Christian community. It is a community of support, celebration, and affirmation in which we can life up what has already begun in us. The visit of Elizabeth and Mary is one of the Bible’s most beautiful expressions of what it means to form community, to be together, gathered around a promise, affirming what is happening among us.

—Henri Nouwen, The Path of Waiting, p 23-24

Have you ever looked upon marriage, upon friendship and community as a way to wait together for what is to come? Sometimes all that is needed when someone is troubled or frightened is to be present, to sit with another in his or her sadness or fear and simply to be there for that person. However, there are times when we get so wrapped up in our own obligations, busyness or problems that we miss the cues that tell us we are needed. Have you ever known anyone who just seemed to come alive in the service to others? Did that person’s energy inspire you to exert yourself a little more? Is there a friend or someone in your family you can count on when you need companionship, especially while you are in transitional moments of your life? Do you count God or any of the saints as companions in such times? Speak to Jesus about your need for him in good times and in bad.

Poetic Reflection:

A discussion on the poem “Annunciation” by the late Stanford Professor Denise Levertov, adapted from Poetry Magazine:

Levertov asks us to slow down, to take a second look, to ponder for a moment what this eternal moment was like for Mary. Levertov invites us to notice. To notice Mary and her courage, her willing consent, her freedom offered to the glory of God. And as we do this, Levertov asks us one more thing: to take seriously that we might also experience an annunciation. Not just like this, of course, and yet something like this. Certainly, as she says, there have been other annunciations, some, where the recipient accepts openly; some happen where the recipient accepts in a sullen spirit, still others, where there have been outright refusals. And this observation both heightens the beauty, boldness, and courage of Mary’s response as well as invites us to wonder if we might do the same. Invites, us, indeed, to do the same: to be open to the movement of God, to receive with courage and joy, mingled of course with a holy terror at the presence of God, and in this way to participate in the movement of the Spirit:

“Annunciation”

We know the scene: the room, variously furnished, 
almost always a lectern, a book; always
the tall lily.
Arrived on solemn grandeur of great wings,
the angelic ambassador, standing or hovering,
whom she acknowledges, a guest.

But we are told of meek obedience. No one mentions
courage.
The engendering Spirit
did not enter her without consent.
God waited.

She was free
to accept or to refuse, choice
integral to humanness.

Aren’t there annunciations
of one sort or another
in most lives?
Some unwillingly
undertake great destinies,
enact them in sullen pride,
uncomprehending.
More often
those moments
when roads of light and storm
open from darkness in a man or woman,
are turned away from

in dread, in a wave of weakness, in despair
and with relief.
Ordinary lives continue.
God does not smite them.
But the gates close, the pathway vanishes.

She had been a child who played, ate, slept
like any other child–but unlike others,
wept only for pity, laughed
in joy not triumph.
Compassion and intelligence
fused in her, indivisible.

Called to a destiny more momentous
than any in all of Time,
she did not quail,
only asked
a simple, ‘How can this be?’
and gravely, courteously,
took to heart the angel’s reply,
the astounding ministry she was offered:

to bear in her womb
Infinite weight and lightness; to carry
in hidden, finite inwardness,
nine months of Eternity; to contain
in slender vase of being,
the sum of power–
in narrow flesh,
the sum of light.
Then bring to birth,
push out into air, a Man-child
needing, like any other,
milk and love–

but who was God.

This was the moment no one speaks of,
when she could still refuse.

A breath unbreathed,
Spirit,
suspended,
waiting.

She did not cry, ‘I cannot. I am not worthy,’
Nor, ‘I have not the strength.’
She did not submit with gritted teeth,
raging, coerced.
Bravest of all humans,
consent illumined her.
The room filled with its light,
the lily glowed in it,
and the iridescent wings.
Consent,
courage unparalleled,
opened her utterly.

Artistic Meditation:

Pick an artistic depiction or two on the subject of the Annunciation (Fra Angelico, Boticelli, da Vinci, Caravaggio, Murillo, Dinatello, for example), or use this one:

General Guidelines for viewing artistic representation of the Annunciation:

Each artist who has rendered a painting of the Annunciation (and there are many) has offered his or her unique interpretation, both artistically and religiously, of this sacred mystery. Keep in mind that each artist may also use details such as dress and physical surroundings which more closely match the culture from which he or she is coming rather than the actual biblical time and place. This is, in some ways, not true to scripture, but it is true to the understanding that biblical narratives are not just period pieces, or good stories, but can be interpreted through the filters of our own experience and should offer meaning for us and hope for us in the time and place in which we find ourselves. In that sense, they are timeless.

There are several artistic conventions surrounding religious/biblical art:

  1. Birds are a symbol of the spiritual; a dove is a symbol of the Holy Spirit
  2. The angel Gabriel, either aloft or on the ground, is usually portrayed in human form, beautiful and young; some robes can be said to be priestly and flowing, others ethereal. Gabriel often is seen with a lily, which is the symbol of his official task as a herald. Occasionally he is portrayed with a scepter, sometimes with the words “Ave Maria, gratia plena” on or around it. In any event, his affect would portray his origin from on high, his attitude toward for Mary, and the content of his message.
  3. Mary is almost always shown with a halo, or even a crown to reflect her holiness. The style and elegance of the halo/crown (gold with jewels or a simple wreath of flowers) is deliberate. It is significant when she is not painted with a halo or crown. If she is bareheaded, then it implies a sense of privacy or intimacy, as women throughout much of history did not go out in public with their heads uncovered.
  4. Olive branches or olive wreaths are a sign of peace
  5. The colors used by the artist for the clothing, and for the background carry a message as well.
  6. Sometimes there are other scenes, some peopled with saints, biblical personages, or significant architectural details which are seen in the distance or in the background. For example, Fra Angelico’s painting is set in the Dominican convent of St. Mark, and a Dominican, St Peter Martyr, stands to the left.

Questions for Art Reflection on the Annunciation:

Where does this seem to be taking place? Describe the room or surroundings. Is the space indoors or out, public or private? That do you think the author is trying to convey? Are there other people in the vicinity? Does the angel lay out a blueprint for her future? Is God asking me right now to do something that seems impossible?

What do you notice about the posture of Mary? (Is she serenely listening? Is she brooding? Is she repulsed? Are her knees buckling in trepidation? What is the position of her arm or arms? What is her facial expression? What does that suggest to you? Do you get a sense of the artist’s interpretation of Mary’s personality, her response to God’s message, or her possible answer? How would I react in similar circumstances? Who reveals to me the mysterious presence of God in my life? Have I ever been faced with a very frightening situation and been assured that God was with me as I went forward?

Closing Prayer

Take some time to offer personal prayers for yourself or others, if you wish to…

By Thomas Merton:
You have trusted no town
With the news behind your eyes
You have drowned Gabriel’s word in thoughts like seas
And turned toward the stone mountain
To the treeless places.
Virgin of God, why are your clothes like sail?

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