VII.O.T. Lev 19:1-2, 17-18; I Cor 3:16-23; Mt 5:38-48

Every Sunday we come to Church to pray. Why do we come to church? Can’t we pray home? Do we need beautiful, magnificent buildings with stained glass windows to worship? What is the relevance of church building? In the early church, when the church was being persecuted they prayed in homes or the domestic churches. But as soon as the church got freedom, the first thing they made was to build churches. For one thing they could not be assembled in houses and most houses would not provide ideal conditions for celebration of Mass, devoid of distractions.

Temple or Church is the meeting place of God and man. God meets us not outside of ourselves, but in us. I meet God in my soul, in my heart. That is why Paul says: You are the temple of God. So primarily prayer is a personal encounter with God. That is why Jesus said: when you pray go into your room… close the door (of your senses) and pray to the Father who listens to you in secret. Yes, prayer is a personal relationship with God, and it is an individual experience, but it is far from a private experience!  When we become a Christian our faith is not dependent on anyone else—each of us is saved by our own trust in Jesus.  However, when a person becomes a believer in Christ he/she becomes part of the family of God—the church. We become a living stone in Paul’s language. Just as a baby is born into a family and grows and matures, so Christians are born into spiritual families that help believers grow and mature.  Although believers can pray and worship on their own, we are also told by Jesus to do these things together too. (When two or three are gathered together…)  An experience of encounter takes place when two meet. With one person there is no meeting. God is present everywhere. But for us to bring our presence, awareness we need suitable convenience. That is why we need suitable place and objects for worship.  

Hebrews 10:24-25 says, “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.  Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another...”    

Meeting together is important to our spiritual growth and encouragement.  We are to “spur one another on” to those things that will help us grow as believers. We learn, we share, we sing praises to God and pray in Christian gatherings. Have we ever sung a hymn when we prayed alone ?  

God does not save us as individuals. He saves us a community. He saves us together in one person- Jesus the head and we all are the members of his one body. In the end all will be subject to Christ and there will be only Christ and Christ will be subject to God and God will be ALL. And we profess that in the creed: we believe in the ONE Catholic Church. And that is why we have to come to Church on Sundays together, because I am not saved myself but saved with others.

The Church expresses this awareness - that our bodies really are temples of the Holy Spirit - in many ways. One of the most common ways is through the different postures we use during the Mass. The Mass is the perfect prayer, the perfect act of worship. We pray as ONE- through him with him and in him. And when we come to Mass, we come to pray, to adore God, to encounter him and be strengthened by him. We don't come to be entertained.

That's why we don't just sit in the pews during the whole Mass, as we do in a movie theatre, as just passive observers. But here, we are all members of the Body of Christ, and we are actively engaged in the supernatural events that go on in every Mass.

We stand when the priest and ministers enter the Church - because we are welcoming Christ himself, and we too are pilgrims on our way to the altar of heaven. We open the Mass with the sign of the cross, because our very bodies are holy and are part of our prayer. We stand again before the Gospel is read, to show our deep respect for the words and deeds of Christ, our Savior. And we consider the Gospel as the person of Christ, and that is why the Gospel is accompanied by candles. We stand when we pray the Creed, to show that our whole lives are committed to what we profess in that prayer. And during the holiest parts of the Mass, when God himself comes anew into our presence during the consecration, we kneel. Our bodies matter to God, because we matter to God, and the Church wants us never to forget that.

It is difficult to live in accordance with this truth, that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, in a world that tells us just the opposite, in a world that tells us that our bodies are just toys, or objects of material indulgence and pleasure.

Because our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, we can actually show God how much we love him by the way we treat our bodies. When we abuse our bodies we are saying to God: "I don't really believe that you dwell in my heart, that you are interested in my life, so I will just do whatever I feel like, whatever everybody else is doing." But when we take care of our bodies, motivated by faith and not by vanity, we are saying to him: "Lord, you have taken up residence in my heart, and I want to honor you by never forgetting that." This is why Christians should be healthy and balanced even in the basic things of life, like nutrition, exercise, and sleep. This is also why Christians will think twice before jumping on the bandwagon of the latest body-abusing trend, whether tattoos, piercing, cutting, immodesty, substance abuse, or sexual immorality. The world may consider those things wise, but, as St. Paul reminds us, “the wisdom of the world is foolishness in the eyes of God.”

Paul reminds us not to desecrate God’s temple, ie. we are. When Jerusalem temple was desecrated, Jesus got raged and drove them out of there. Is he happy with the temple that I am ?

When we treat ourselves with respect we learn to treat others also with true respect, the respect that is due to sons and daughters of God.

Today’s first and third readings are invitations from God to be holy as He is holy. God expects us to be holy people sharing God’s holiness by embodying His love, mercy and forgiveness. It also gives us the way to share God’s holiness:  “Love your neighbor as yourself.” The responsorial psalm challenges us to be like our God –kind, merciful and forgiving.

The gospel tells us that what makes Christians different is the grace with which they treat others with loving kindness and mercy, even if they don’t deserve it. That is the way to become perfect or whole or holy in the sight of God.

As we continue with this Mass, Jesus will remind us, powerfully, that our bodies really are his temple, that our lives really do matter to him. He will come to us not just spiritually, but sacramentally, physically, through the Eucharist.

When we receive him in Holy Communion, let's ask pardon for the times when we have abused our bodies, and let's beg him for the courage we need to honor him by caring for the temples that we are.

V. O.T. Is 58: 7-10; I Cor 2: 1-5; Mt 5: 13-16

 The common theme of the readings today is our mission to the world as salt and light.  In our first reading, the prophet Isaiah gives examples of how we are to allow the light of God to shine through us.  “Share your bread with the hungry, sheltering the oppressed and the homeless; clothing the naked when you see them, and not turning your back on your own.   Then light shall rise for you in the darkness, and the gloom shall become for you like midday” (58: 7, 10).   The Christian’s task is to be the salt of society, preserving, reconciling, adding flavor, giving meaning where there is no meaning and giving hope where there is no hope.  Every Christian needs to reflect the light borrowed from Christ and radiate that light in the form of love, kindness, mercy, forgiveness and humble service.
In the ancient world salt was highly valued.  The Greeks called salt divine and the Romans said, "There is nothing more useful than sun and salt."  The English word 'salary' literally means 'salt money'.  In the time of Jesus, salt was connected in people's minds with three special qualities. (i) Salt was connected with purity because it was white and it came from the purest of all things, the sun and the sea.  Salt was the most primitive of all offerings to the gods.   The Orientals made their oaths with salt to ratify them.  They believed that it was the salt that kept the seas pure.  As the salt of the earth, the Christian must be an example of purity, exercising absolute purity in speech, in conduct, and even in thought.
 (ii) Salt was the commonest of all preservatives in the ancient world when people did not have fridges and freezers.  It was used to prevent putrefaction of meat, fish, fruits and pickles.  As the salt of the earth, the Christian must have a certain antiseptic influence on life and society, defeating corruption and making it easier for others to be good.  Christians are to be a preserving influence to retard moral and spiritual spoilage in the world.
 (iii) Salt lends flavor to food items. One of the main functions of salt is to season food, to give it taste and flavor.  This image reminds us that, through Baptism, our whole being has been profoundly changed, because it has been "seasoned" with the new life which comes from Christ (cf. Rom 6:4).  Christianity lends flavor to life, although people think the opposite about us.    To be the salt of society also means that we are deeply concerned with its well-being.  We have to preserve the cultural values and moral principles Jesus has given us, and in this way to make a contribution to the development of cultural and social life.  Thus, we will be adding flavor to the common life.
Are we insipid salt?  Jesus went on to say that, if salt became insipid, it was fit only to be thrown out and trodden on by men.  Usually salt does not lose its flavor and its saltiness.  But when mixed with impurities, salt can lose its ability to enhance flavor.  We, too, might lose our ability to be a "flavoring agent" for the world if we allow "impurities" into our lives (1 Co 15:33). Therefore, we need to keep ourselves free from sin (Ep 5:3-7). If a Christian is not fulfilling his purpose as a Christian, if he or she does not bring to life the purity, the antiseptic power and flavor of salt, then he or she invites disaster.
One of the Peanuts cartoons showed Peppermint Patty talking to Charlie Brown. She said, "Guess what, Chuck. The first day of school and I got sent to the principal's office. It was your fault, Chuck."
He said, "My fault? How could it be my fault? Why do you say everything is my fault?" She said, "You're my friend, aren't you, Chuck? You should have been a better influence on me."
If we are good salt and light on a lamp stand, we can save many" Pattys from being called to the Principal’s office".
The word ‘divine’ comes from a Sanskrit root, ‘div’, which means ‘to shine’.  Christians must be visible like a "city" on a hilltop and a lamp on a "lamp stand."  Jesus therefore expects His followers to shine and be seen by the world (Jn 13:35; 17:21). In addition, they must radiate and give light.  "Let your light shine before men" (Matthew 5: 16).  By this metaphor Jesus means that our Christianity should be visible in the ordinary activities of the world, for example, in the way we treat a shop assistant across the counter, in the way we order a meal in a restaurant, in the way we treat our employees or serve our employer, in the way we play a game or drive or park a motor car, in the daily language we use, in the daily literature we read.
The world needs its guiding lights.  There are people waiting and longing for a leader to take a stand and to do the thing which they do not dare by themselves.
Salt is a hidden but powerful influence.  Light is a visible and revealing influence.   We are called to make a visible impact like light and invisible impact like yeast and salt.  Does my life make a difference?  It should.    If I live for Him, it will!
John Stott, from Great Britain and a leading Reformed theologian, has these challenging words to say to the church today:
You know what your own country is like. I'm a visitor, and I wouldn't presume to speak about America. But I know what Great Britain is like. I know something about the growing dishonesty, corruption, immorality, violence, pornography, the diminishing respect for human life, and the increase in abortion.

Whose fault is it? Let me put it like this: if the house is dark at night, there is no sense in blaming the house. That's what happens when the sun goes down. The question to ask is, "Where is the light?"

If meat goes bad, there is no sense in blaming the meat. That is what happens when the bacteria are allowed to breed unchecked. The question to ask is, "Where is the salt?"

If society becomes corrupt like a dark night or stinking fish, there's no sense in blaming society. That's what happens when fallen human society is left to itself and human evil is unrestrained and unchecked. The question to ask is "Where is the church?"
Where are we Church in this degrading culture and moral values ? Let’s wake up and get up on the lamp stand. Let’s be tasteful salt trying to penetrate every molecule of the meat loaf that is the world.

IV.O.T. Mal 3: 1-4; Heb 2: 14-18; Lk 2: 22-40

Presentation of Jesus in the Temple.

The birth of Christ was revealed by three kinds of witnesses in three different ways -- first, by the shepherds, after the angel's announcement; second, by the Magi, who were guided by a star; third, by Simeon and Anna, who were inspired by the Holy Spirit. Today’s Gospel describes the Presentation of the Baby Jesus in the Temple.  The Feast of the Presentation of Jesus is a combined feast, commemorating the Jewish practice of the purification of the mother after childbirth and the presentation of the child in the Temple.

” According to Leviticus 12:2-8, a woman who bore a child was unclean  for forty days following the birth of a son or eighty days following the birth of a daughter.   Exodus 13:2, 12-13 prescribes that every first-born male belongs to God and must be set apart for the Lord, that is, dedicated to the service of God.   The Book of Numbers 18: 15 taught that since every Jewish firstborn male child belonged to Yahweh, the parents had to “buy back” (redeem), the child by offering a lamb or turtledoves as a sacrifice in the Temple.

These are the rituals that St. Luke describes in today's Gospel passage. One of the rituals consisted in a new mother offering a sacrifice to God, to symbolize her awareness that, by bringing new life into the world, she participated in a special way in God’s own holiness and power. Usually, this sacrifice consisted of offering a lamb and a pigeon.

But St. Luke explains that Mary offers two pigeons instead of the normal combination. This tells us something important about Jesus, Joseph, and Mary. A stipulation of the Jewish law allowed an offering of two pigeons for those families too poor to afford a lamb (pigeons cost much less than lambs). 

Jesus, became a member of a normal, humble, working class family. By this, God wants us to know that true, lasting happiness doesn't come from having a lot of money, or things, or achievements, or celebrity. If those things were the secret to meaning and happiness, then Jesus would have been born into luxury and comfort. Real happiness comes from a kind of wealth that no one sees, the wealth of a heart set on knowing and loving God.

This is why the Church has always spoken of the virtue of poverty: it is the virtue by which we recognize that our relationship with God is infinitely more valuable than anything else. When Jesus summarized his formula for happiness and spiritual maturity, he began by saying: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven" (Matthew 5:3).

The virtue of poverty is not misery; it is interior detachment from material things, which is why he says, "blessed are the poor in spirit." This is the formula for true meaning and happiness - not money, but love: loving God and loving our neighbor.

Today's memorial of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple doesn't usually fall on a Sunday.

But whatever day of the week it does usually fall on, it is associated with a long-standing tradition of celebrating the special vocation to the consecrated life. In fact, almost every year on February 2nd, the Pope celebrates a special liturgy in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, to which he invites all the members of religious orders and other consecrated men and women who are living in Rome. Usually, thousands of them come together for the celebration. The vocation to the consecrated life is associated with today's Gospel passage, because when men or women consecrate their lives entirely to the service of God and the Church, they are offering themselves in a way similar to how Mary and Joseph consecrated Jesus. They present themselves to God, in response to a call that they feel deep in their hearts, and surrender their lives entirely to him, promising to live in poverty, chastity, and obedience for their whole lives.

In the first reading Malachi said, suddenly the Lord will appear in the temple. And when he did, he did in  the form of a poor little baby. Simeon had the wisdom to recognize him as salvation prepared for the world and light for the gentiles.

We are also called to look for God’s presence not just in the Church, but all around us, God presenting himself in poverty and weakness. Am I able to recognize him as Simeon and Anna did ?

And as parents and grandparents we are called to raise our children and grandchildren every day to God and consecrate them for the service of God.

Every Holy Mass in which we participate is our presentation. Although we were officially presented to God on the day of our Baptism, we present ourselves and our dear ones on the altar before God our Father through our Savior Jesus Christ at every Holy Mass. Hence, we need to live our daily lives with the awareness both that we are dedicated people consecrated to God and that we are obliged to lead holy lives and facilitate others to become holy as well. Thus we may be able to exclaim like Simeon at the dusk of our life: Now master, let your servant go in peace, today my eyes have seen your salvation.

II.O.T.(A)     Is 49. 3: 5-6; I Cor 1: 1-3; Jn 1: 29-34

A tourist visited a church in Germany and was surprised to see the carved figure of a lamb near the top of the church's tower. He asked why it was there and was told that when the church was being built, a workman fell from a high scaffold. His co-workers rushed down, expecting to find him dead. But to their surprise and joy, he was alive and only slightly injured. How did he survive? A flock of sheep was passing beneath the tower at the time, and he landed on top of a lamb. The lamb broke his fall and was crushed to death, but the man was saved. To commemorate that miraculous escape, someone carved a lamb on the tower at the exact height from which the workman had fallen.  That expresses a tiny bit of what John means when he says, "Behold, the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world". The same sense is indicated in Isaiah's Servant song in the first reading, which prophesies that God will make Messiah, his Servant a light to the nations, that God’s salvation may reach to the ends of the earth."  There are four servant songs in Second Isaiah which connects the Messiah’s mission to die for the sins of the world. "He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter" (53:5). 

The phrase 'Lamb of God' runs through John’s gospel from beginning to end.  John the Baptist introduced Jesus to the Jews as the “Lamb of God”. "Lamb of God" is the most meaningful title given to Jesus in the Bible.  It is used 29 times in the book of Revelation.  It sums up the love, the sacrifice and the triumph of Christ.  John’s introduction probably brought several pictures of the “lamb” in the mind of his Jewish listeners. 

1) The Paschal Lamb (Ex. 12: 11ff), whose blood saved the first born of the Jewish families in Egypt from the Angel of destruction."  This lamb reminded them also of the Paschal Lamb which they killed every year on the Passover Feast.  The Pasch dinner consists of eating a lamb.

2) The Lamb of Atonement (Lev. 16: 20-22).  A lamb was brought to the Temple on the Day of Atonement.  Placing his hands over its head, the high priest confessed over it all the iniquities of the people of Israel, and sending it away into the wilderness by means of someone designated for the task, to be killed by some wild animals.

3) The Lamb of Daily Atonement (Ex. 29: 38-42; Numbers 28: 1-8). This was the lamb sacrificed on the “Black Altar” of the Temple every morning and evening to atone for the sins of the Jews.

When Abraham was going to sacrifice his son Isaac on mount Moriah, Isaac asked him we have the fire and the wood, where is the lamb of sacrifice. Abraham responded, God will give us. And Jesus was that lamb of sacrifice God gave to take away our sins. The book of Hebrews says no sins will be forgiven without shedding blood. We don’t know why ? But it is. That is why Jesus had to become a lamb to save us from our sins.

In the Eucharist, at "the    breaking of the bread", which signifies the death of Jesus on the cross, we proclaim in word or song what the Baptist said, the Agnus Dei. He emptied every drop of his blood through the wounds in his body to save us. That is why at that very moment we sing the Lamb of God. Then after that the celebrant breaks a piece of bread and mingles in the sacred wine, signifying, the resurrection of Jesus- which is called co-mingling, blood joined with the body, getting life back. And we receive the resurrected Jesus as our companion to come with us and live with us the rest of the day.

Even in the beginning of the Mass, in the Gloria, the song of the angels, we sung: lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. So the Mass is all about celebrating Jesus as the Lamb of God.  It is said that shepherds used to rear special kind of lambs in Bethlehem to be offered in the temple. Because they had to be without faults. And it is said that Jesus was born in a manger that had this special faultless kind of lambs housed. He became like us in all things, except sin.

In John's gospel this theme is expertly woven into the story.  The ancient instructions for killing and eating the Passover lamb said, "You must not break any bone of it" (Exodus 12:46).  And so, John says, the soldiers did not break Jesus' legs as he hung on the Cross but pierced him instead with a lance. John also mentions that Jesus was hung on the cross exactly the same time the Pascal lamb was slain in the temple.  Later, near the end of the century, in John's apocalyptic vision he saw "between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders a Lamb standing as if it had been slaughtered" (Rev. 5:6) -  that is, dead and raised up again.  

It is interesting to see Jesus through the eyes of these two men named John – the Baptist and the Evangelist. Both of them depict Jesus as the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

When we say or sing, “Lamb of God” we are challenged by the Church to remember what Jesus did for us and what he has empowered us to do for others.  We are reminded that joining Jesus in sacrificial love is the only way we can be his followers. We are also challenged to die like a sacrificial lamb by sharing our blessings of health, wealth and talents with others in the family, parish and community. 

 Jesus Christ is the lamb who takes away the sin of the world, which has been immolated to give us Grace. Let us fight to always live by Grace, to fight against sin, and help the lamb to save the world of its sins.

Baptism of the Lord.

IS.42:1-7; Acts 10:34-38; Mt.3:13-17

The Christmas season, comes to an end with the feast of the Baptism of Our Lord. Christmas is the feast of God’s self-revelation to the Jews and Epiphany celebrates God’s self-revelation to the Gentiles. At his baptism in the Jordan, Christ reveals himself to repentant sinners. The liturgical season of Christmas comes to conclusion this Sunday with the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord.
Baptism had been practiced for centuries among the Jews as a ritual equivalent to our confession. Converts were also expected to take this bath before entering Judaism. The Orthodox Jews still retain the rite. John preached that such a bath was a necessary preparation for the cataclysm that would be wrought by the coming Messiah.

John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance: people who were moved by his preaching to change their ways went out to the river to be baptized by him. Thus they symbolized their need to finish with their old ways and turn over a new leaf. Jesus joined the crowd to show complete solidarity with sinners; he sat and ate with sinners, shared his life with them, defended them against heartless religious authorities who would call them unclean and cast them out. He did not come like a firebrand yelling God’s vengeance on sinners, but preaching mercy of God to repentant sinners, though did not mince words with the arrogant hypocrites. As Isaiah said he will not break a bruised reed, or quench the dimly burning wick. Or he will not enforce ‘the eye for an eye or a tooth for a tooth’ principle. On the contrary as the Baptist said: he will baptize with the holy spirit leading people on the way of transformation. In his baptism when he identified himself with humanity, he included us in his righteousness.

When we were baptized we experienced God’s love and forgiveness. It was a time of beginning of change, inviting us to figure out what that involves. Baptism saves, but it is only a beginning of God’s saving activity; not the end of saving activity of God, like many other denominations believe, calling themselves fully saved. Baptism is only the gateway to  God’s saving activity.

Most of us dipped the fingers of our right hands into the holy water font and blessed ourselves when we came into Church today. Why ? This blessing is supposed to remind us of our Baptism. And so when I bless myself with the Holy water, I should be thinking of the fact that I am a child of God; that I have been redeemed by the Cross of Christ; that I have been made a member of God’s family and that I have been washed, forgiven, cleansed and purified by the blood of the Lamb.

The 13th century King of France,S t.Louise IX, insisted that the grand celebration of his birthday should be held on the day of his baptism, and not on his birthday proper. His argument was that Baptism was the beginning of a life that would continue for eternity in the everlasting glory of heaven.
There is a folk tale from India that summarizes our thoughts on baptism’s power. There was a good king who ruled wisely and well. One day the king called his three daughters together and told them he was leaving on a long journey. “ I wish to learn about God, so I will need to go away and spend a long time in prayer. In my absence I will leave the three of you in charge. Before I leave I would like to leave each of you with a gift; a gift I pray will help you learn how to wisely use your power to rule.” Then he placed in each of their hands a single grain of rice.

The first daughter tied a long golden thread around her grain of rice and placed it in a beautiful crystal box. Every day she looked at it and reminded herself that she was powerful. The second daughter took one look at the common grain of rice, and threw it away, thus squandering her father’s mysterious gift. The third daughter just looked at her grain of rice for a long, long time- until she finally understood what to do with it…
She went outside and planted it in a field. And it became a seed giving life beyond itself, eventually turning into a vast field of hope and nourishment to others.  When the father returned years later, he asked his daughters what they had done with their grains of rice. Though he was polite with his first two daughters, he did not respond to their explanations with much enthusiasm. It was only after the king saw the fields of grain resulting from the 3rd daughter’s wisdom that he responded with delight. Taking the crown off his head, he placed it on hers, saying, Beloved, you alone has learned the meaning of power. From that day onward that daughter ruled the kingdom. Our baptism helps us to be one with Christ and to grow in Christ. Like that 3rd daughter who developed the gift manifold, we need also to increase the power of baptism in our life by fulfilling the promises we made to God.

Let us ask Our Lord today to make us faithful to our baptismal promises, helping us to put on the mind of Christ and grow to the stature of Christ.

EPIPHANY OF THE LORD.  Is 60:1-6; Eph 3:2-3, 5-6; Mt 2:1-12

Today is the feast of Epiphany. The Greek word Epiphany means appearance or manifestation. The Feast of the Epiphany celebrates Jesus’ first appearance to the Gentiles, represented by the Magi. Who were these Magi ? The word ‘magi’ is translated here as “wise men.”  ‘Magus’ meant different things: a magus was a member of the Persian priestly caste; or one who possessed occult knowledge and power (this is the origin of our word ‘magic’).  They were, basically, the "scientists" of the ancient world. They were like the scholars and professors of ancient times. But instead of working in universities, they usually worked for kings. A king would finance his own group of scholars, using them as consultants and translators, and also to enhance his kingdom's reputation.  King Herod consulted the Jewish magi or scholars to tell him the place and time of the Savior’s birth, though they themselves failed to look for him.

The Orthodox Church holds that the Magi consisted of twelve Kings, corresponding in number to the twelve tribes of Israel.   Commentary on the Torah by Jewish rabbis suggested that a star appeared in the sky at the births of Abraham, Isaac and Moses.  Likewise, in the Book of Numbers, the prophet Balaam speaks of "a star that shall come out of Jacob."  Stars were believed to be signs from God, announcing important events.  

We know what their coming meant, theologically speaking - it shows that Jesus Christ was not just another Jewish prophet. The Magi were "from the east" - they were not Jews. And yet, they came to worship Jesus. This shows that Christ was the promised Savior of the entire world, of both the Jews and the Gentiles.

While Jesus’ mission was first to the lost sheep of Israel, it was not to be exclusively for them. Jesus would tell his Apostles: Go out into all the world and preach the good news. The good news of salvation is “catholic” – a word that comes from the Greek language which means universal. If Salvation is “catholic”, then the Church which Jesus founded to preach the good news of salvation must necessarily be Catholic as well. 

Our unity is not founded on race or language or nation of origin – rather it is founded on Christ. We acknowledge one Lord, one Faith, one Baptism as Paul tells.

The adoration of the Magi fulfills the oracle of Isaiah (first reading), prophesying that the nations of the world will travel to the Holy City following a brilliant light and will bring gold and incense to contribute to the worship of God.

The presence of the searchers of this new born king really startled king Herod. Herod was one of history’s great tyrants: he spared no one, not even his own family; to keep his grip on power he murdered his wife, three of his sons, his brother-in-law, an uncle, and even his mother-in-law.  He had been appointed “King of the Jews” by the Roman Senate in 40 BC and he had already reigned for over thirty years.  He was in no mind to hear of a new king, especially one who was no son of his. “He was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him.”  He was frightened to hear of a rival, and the people were frightened because they knew what he was capable of.  

Herod would fail to kill him, but later on they themselves would succeed. 

The scribes, Pharisees and the Jewish priests knew that there were nearly 500 prophecies in the Hebrew Scriptures concerning the promised Messiah.  They were able to tell Herod the exact time and place of Jesus’ birth.    Unfortunately, they were more interested in their own selfish gains than in discovering the truth. Hence, they refused to go and see the child Jesus -- even though Bethlehem was only 6 miles south of Jerusalem.  They were totally engrossed in their Temple rituals and legal discussions that they completely disregarded Jesus. He meant nothing to them. Even today there are many among us who disregard Jesus. He is considered as a noble person to be worshiped and adored. But he is not given any role in their personal lives. Today many Christians remind us of this group.   They practice their religion from selfish motives, such as to gain political power, prestige and recognition by society.  

The only group that came to worship the savior was the Shepherds and Magi. The shepherds offered the only gifts they had: love, tears of joy, and probably woolen clothes and milk from their sheep.  The Magi offered gold, in recognition of Jesus as the King of the Jews; frankincense, in acknowledgment that He was God, and myrrh as a symbol of His human nature. 

This feast invites us to see ourselves as images of the Magi, a people on a journey to Christ. In our journey to Christ, what he needs is not what we have, but what we are. Our total self, our sins and our virtues, our strength and our weaknesses, our sufferings and sorrows , Our talents and efforts.

Today, when we receive our Lord again in Holy Communion, let's lay at his feet whatever will please him most, whatever he is asking for, so that we may share the joy and peace of the magi who travelled long thirsting for the Savior of the world.

MOTHER OF GOD- NEW YEAR.

A few weeks ago, when Pope Francis was selected as “Person of the Year,” a young woman of feminist leanings joked, “We should have a WOMAN as head of the church ABOVE the Pope,”.  Another woman who heard her immediately tossed back, “We have one- Mary.  Mary, Mother of God, is above the Pope in the Church!”   She is not God, but above any human being as the message of the angel indicated “Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb too. She herself proclaimed: All generations will call me blessed.

Today we celebrate the New year, but as Catholics today we think and celebrate Mary as the Mother of God.  Mary’s Motherhood is the heart and reason for all our attention to and claims on Mary through the centuries.

Jesus once asked his disciples “Who do you say I am?” (Mt 16:15).  It is a question that never goes away, and every believer faces it again and again.  We can be quite clear in our mind about the Church’s answer to the question, but every believer has to experience the force of the question addressed to him or herself.  “Who do you say I am?”  In a sense it cannot be fully answered with words but only with one’s life.  It could have the right formulation but it has little significance if my life contradicts it or ignores it. 

Through the centuries every possible answer has been given.  Followers of Nestorius, the 5th-century archbishop of Constantinople said that Christ was two persons – the man Jesus and the divine Son of God.  This view was rejected at the Council of Ephesus (431 AD), which insisted that Jesus was one person with two natures, divine and human.  The most emphatic way they could say this was to affirm that Mary was not just the mother of the man Jesus, but that she was the mother of God.  This was to say that Christ was one person, not two.  If there were two persons in Jesus, Mary could not be the mother of Son of God. She could only be the mother of human Jesus, not of the Christ. Note that it is more a statement about Christ than about Mary – or rather, equally so.

In today's Second Reading, St Paul reminds us that through God's grace we have all become brothers and sisters of Christ and, therefore, children of God.

This is what happened at baptism. At that moment we were born again, supernaturally; God infused his divine DNA into our souls. The spiritual life consists of the gradual spread and development of that DNA, until each one of us becomes a mature, wise, and fruitful follower of Jesus Christ.

Today's Solemnity reminds us that if we have become Christ's spiritual brothers and sisters, we have also become spiritual children of Mary. She was his mother in the flesh, and she is our mother in grace. Representing all disciples of Jesus in John the apostle Jesus said: this is your mother.

In today's Gospel she teaches us one of the most important virtues of all: wisdom. St Luke tells us how Mary responded to the wonderful things that God was doing in and around her: "Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart."

God did not tell Mary His entire plan. She had to walk in the dim light of faith, one step at a time, trusting in God, witnessing his action, and seconding it whenever she could. This capacity and habit of reflecting in our heart of God's action in our lives is both a sign and a source of wisdom. And we can never become mature, courageous, and joyful  followers of Christ unless we develop it.

Our culture has a custom of making new year resolutions. Why not make the resolution to spend this year learning from our spiritual mother how to let God put wisdom into our lives, by "keeping all these things and reflecting on them in our hearts" through praying Rosary every day. Rosary is a very powerful weapon to fight Satanic influences in our families if prayed together as a family.

As we make new priorities for life, let’s make sure that Jesus and Mary find a place in our plans and decision makings. When  wrestling with all the uncertainties of life, struggles, challenges that seem to keep coming our way, remember we can fight them all with the help of Mary and her Son.

In closing let me draw our attention to one of the important areas we should be paying attention to this new year. It is about redeeming our time.

What portion of our time does God have in my everyday life ? How much television are we watching? How much time to sports are we devoting? What are we doing with our time? If we don’t find time for God, he will not find time for us to. Let’s not always be pleasure seekers but seekers of Holiness, which gives us joy and peace.  Let’s start every day of our New year on our knees, one who kneels before God can stand up to anything in life. Wish you all a happy new year.