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November 24, 2008 –  Monday of 34th Week in Ordinary Time       DAILY LITURGICAL/THEME MEDITATION: "She out of her poverty put in all the living that she had" UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENT(S): Don't Let Wi-Fi Leave Your Prayer Life Dry SAINT OF THE DAY St. Andrew Dung-Lac and Companions  GENERAL MARIOLOGY The Virgin Mary in the New Testament, Part II: Birth and Circumcision of Jesus Christ DIVINE MERCY On Deify, Divinize Make My Heart Like Unto Yours  TEACHING/TESTIMONY/CONVICTION: On the Final Judgment   Monthly Index

DAILY LITURGICAL MEDITATION

Monday (11/24): "She out of her poverty put in all the living that she had" Scripture: Luke 21:1-4 1 He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury; 2 and he saw a poor widow put in two copper coins. 3 And he said, "Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them; 4 for they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all the living that she had." Meditation: Do you know the joy of selfless giving and love for others? True love doesn't calculate; it spends lavishly! Jesus drove this point home to his disciples while sitting in the temple and observing people offering their tithes. Jesus praised a poor widow who gave the smallest of coins in contrast with the rich who gave greater sums. How can someone in poverty give more than someone who has ample means? Jesus' answer is very simple: love is more precious than gold or wealth! Jesus taught that real giving must come from the heart. A gift that is given with a grudge or for display loses its value. But a gift given out of love, with a spirit of generosity and sacrifice, is precious. The amount or size of the gift doesn't matter as much as the cost to the giver. The poor widow could have kept one of her coins, but instead she recklessly gave away all she had! Jesus praised someone who gave barely a penny – how insignificant a sum – because it was everything she had, her whole living. What we have to offer may look very small and not worth much, but if we put all we have at the Lord's disposal, no matter how insignificant it may seem, then God can do with it and with us what is beyond our reckoning. Do you give out of love and gratitude for what God has already given to you? "Lord Jesus, your love knows no bounds and you give without measure. All that I have comes from you. May I give freely and generously in gratitude for all that you have given to me. Take my life and all that I possess – my gifts, talents, time and resources – and use them as you see fit for your glory." Psalm 119:17-24 17 Deal bountifully with thy servant, that I may live and observe thy word. 18 Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law. 19 I am a sojourner on earth; hide not thy commandments from me! 20 My soul is consumed with longing for thy ordinances at all times. 21 Thou dost rebuke the insolent, accursed ones, who wander from thy commandments; 22 take away from me their scorn and contempt, for I have kept thy testimonies. 23 Even though princes sit plotting against me, thy servant will meditate on thy statutes. 24 Thy testimonies are my delight, they are my counselors.   RETURN TO TOP

UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENTS

Don't Let Wi-Fi Leave Your Prayer Life Dry Vatican Aide Encourages Setting Aside Times of Silence   VATICAN CITY, NOV. 23, 2008 (Zenit.org).- In the age of cell phones and the Internet, the Holy See’s spokesman warns that your prayer life could be in danger. Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Vatican press office, made these remarks on the most recent episode of the weekly Vatican Television program “Octavia Dies.” “There is an interior and spiritual dimension of life that must be guarded and nourished. If it is not, it can become barren to the point of drying up and, indeed, dying” the Jesuit priest said. “Reflection, meditation, contemplation are as necessary as breathing. Time for silence -- external but above all internal -- are a premise and an indispensable condition for it.” Father Lombardi offered these reflections Friday on the occasion of “Pro Orantibus” Day, a day for men and women religious who dedicate themselves to a life of contemplation and prayer. “In the age of the cell phone and the internet it is probably more difficult than before to protect silence and to nourish the interior dimension of life,” he observed. “It is difficult but necessary. “For believers, in this dimension prayer, dialogue with God is developed, life in the spirit, which is more important that physical life itself. Jesus told us not to fear those who can kill the body as much as the one who can destroy our soul." “What is true for the individual person, is true for the community of the Church, true for humanity," the spokesman continued. "If for each one of us it is essential to know how to preserve dialogue with God in daily life, for the Church it is essential to have the sign and reality of life dedicated to contemplation and prayer, and for humanity it is essential to know there are beacons of light, sages and masters of the spirit.” Without attentiveness to and cultivation of the spiritual life “you will lose your soul," added Father Lombardi. "And today this is a very grave threat, and it is the most irreparable misfortune.” RETURN TO TOP

DAILY LITURGICAL SAINT

November 24, 2008 St. Andrew Dung-Lac and Companions St. Andrew was one of 117 martyrs who met death in Vietnam between 1820 and 1862. Members of this group were beatified on four different occasions between 1900 and 1951. Now all have been canonized by Pope John Paul II. Christianity came to Vietnam (then three separate kingdoms) through the Portuguese. Jesuits opened the first permanent mission at Da Nang in 1615. They ministered to Japanese Catholics who had been driven from Japan. The king of one of the kingdoms banned all foreign missionaries and tried to make all Vietnamese apostatize by trampling on a crucifix. Like the priest-holes in Ireland during English persecution, many hiding places were offered in homes of the faithful. Severe persecutions were again launched three times in the 19th century. During the six decades after 1820, between 100,000 and 300,000 Catholics were killed or subjected to great hardship. Foreign missionaries martyred in the first wave included priests of the Paris Mission Society, and Spanish Dominican priests and tertiaries. Persecution broke out again in 1847 when the emperor suspected foreign missionaries and Vietnamese Christians of sympathizing with the rebellion of one of his sons. The last of the martyrs were 17 laypersons, one of them a 9-year-old, executed in 1862. That year a treaty with France guaranteed religious freedom to Catholics, but it did not stop all persecution. By 1954 there were over a million and a half Catholics—about seven percent of the population—in the north. Buddhists represented about 60 percent. Persistent persecution forced some 670,000 Catholics to abandon lands, homes and possessions and flee to the south. In 1964, there were still 833,000 Catholics in the north, but many were in prison. In the south, Catholics were enjoying the first decade of religious freedom in centuries, their numbers swelled by refugees. During the Vietnamese war, Catholics again suffered in the north, and again moved to the south in great numbers. Now the whole country is under Communist rule. Comment: It may help a people who associate Vietnam only with a recent war to realize that the cross has long been a part of the lives of the people of that country. Even as we ask again the unanswered questions about United States involvement and disengagement, the faith rooted in Vietnam's soil proves hardier than the forces which would destroy it. Quote: “The Church in Vietnam is alive and vigorous, blessed with strong and faithful bishops, dedicated religious, and courageous and committed laypeople.... The Church in Vietnam is living out the gospel in a difficult and complex situation with remarkable persistence and strength” (statement of three U.S. archbishops returning from Vietnam in January 1989).   RETURN TO TOP

GENERAL MARIOLOGY

The Virgin Mary in the New Testament, Part I By Fr. Settimio M. Manelli, F.I.   Birth and Circumcision of Jesus Christ (Lk 2:1-21) Whereas St. Matthew wrote his gospel above all for Jews, St. Luke addresses all men. Hence, he underscores heavily the universal character of salvation, offered not only to Israel, but to all the nations. For this reason this evangelist is careful to record a number of historical details which permit us to situate the events he narrates within universal history. In accord with this approach, when he recounts the episode of the birth of Jesus, he places it within the context of profane history, precisely when Augustus was Roman emperor, when Quirinus was governor of the Roman province of Syria. Thus, St. Luke shows how "the birth of the Messiah corresponds to the expectations, not only of the Chosen People, but of all mankind" (130). The historical occasion bringing Mary to Bethlehem, precisely when she was about to bring her pregnancy to term, was a census decreed by the emperor. A providential occasion, for it permitted the realization of the ancient prophecies concerning Bethlehem as place of birth of the future Messiah (cf. Mic 5:2). Census regulations required that every male citizen be registered in the city of origin of his ancestors. Joseph was of the house and family of David; hence he had to register in Bethlehem. This accent repeatedly placed on the Davidic descent of Joseph by way of the refrain: "of the house and family of David," is a way of accenting the Davidic descent of Jesus. Matthew and Luke as evangelists are at one in making plain that Jesus is the promised Davidic Messiah (131). Joseph, then, is the person who assures from a legal point of view that Jesus is an heir of David, therefore who can very well be the Davidic Messiah foretold and awaited (cf. 2 Sam 7). Mary, however, is the person who assures that Davidic descent according to the flesh (cf. Rom 1:3) (132). The text of Lk 2:5 ("to register, together with Mary, his espoused wife" ) clearly supposes that Mary as well, notwithstanding the advanced state of pregnancy, traveled with Joseph in order to register. Precisely because already married, she was obliged to be present with her husband at the office of registrations (133). The decree of Augustus was thus put at the service of the history of salvation. Once again God showed himself the Lord of history and of man, who guides history according to the dispositions of the divine will (134). One should take note here how St. Luke says that Joseph went to Bethlehem "together with Mary, his espoused wife" (2:5). The word used here to indicate Mary is the same used by Matthew 1:18 and by Luke 1:27: emnesteuméne, or "betrothed," "fiancée." However, by this time cohabitation had begun for some time, as the text of Matthew 1:24 clearly indicates. Here the evangelist probably makes an implicit reference to the virginal conception of Jesus by the working of the Holy Spirit. In this sense, one may say that the term here parallels the use made of it in Matthew 1:25, where after the dream with the angel, Joseph is said to have taken Mary as his wife, "whom he did not know till she had brought forth her first-born son" (135). At Bethlehem, writes St. Luke, "And while they were there, the time came for her to be delivered. And she gave birth to her first-born son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn" (2:6-7) The birth of Jesus in Bethlehem is an indisputable historical fact in virtue of the overwhelming abundance of ancient literary testimonials which we possess. It suffices to recall merely the unanimity of the gospels and apocryphal literature, all in accord on this point, notwithstanding their origin at different times and in different places (136). Jesus, although the long-awaited Messiah, was born in poverty, so overturning the hierarchy of values among men (137). He was born in a manger, because "there was no room for them in the inn." Joseph and Mary were unable to find appropriate arrangements, probably because of overflowing crowds of registrants. Bethlehem for all practical purposes was only a more or less large village (138). Another factor should be kept in mind, one bearing on the particular condition of Mary, almost at the point of giving birth, hence in need of a place of solitude and tranquility. They found this, as one can deduce from the presence of a manger, in a cave equipped as a stall for animals. Jesus is called "firstborn" of Mary. So doing St. Luke wishes to indicate that as such Jesus has acquired all the privileges proper to the firstborn, in particular consecration to God (cf. Ex 13:1-16; 34:19; Num 3:12ff.; 18:15) (139). Shortly after, in fact, the evangelist narrates the episode of the presentation of Jesus in the Temple, where he is offered, consecrated to the Lord (140). At the same moment, the Virgin Mary exercises her duties toward Jesus as mother: "She wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger" (Lk 2:7). Fr. Manelli comments: The parturition was one in which the woman did everything by herself, alone. She took the child, wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a poor manger. There is no shadow of labor or pain in this scene so gentle and maternal. Tradition has rightly read therein the mystery of the joyful, virginal birth of him who had come to bring into the world "superabundant joy" (Jn 15:11). From this moment, Mary was no longer the "pregnant Virgin," but the "Virgin Mother" who unites and carries in herself the two seals of glory: that of perpetual virginity and of divine maternity (141). In the Gospel of St. Luke as well, the birth of Christ was accompanied by an extraordinary event. In Matthew, the Magi arrive, guided by a star to the very place where the babe was to be found (Mt 2:1-11). In Luke, instead, a choir of angels, in the middle of the night, appears to a group of shepherds in the vicinity of Bethlehem, to announce to them the birth "of a Savior, who is Christ the Lord" (Lk 2:11). The shepherds, filled with joy "said to one another: ‘Let us go over to Bethlehem, and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.’ Then, without delay, they went and found Mary and Joseph and the babe lying in a manger" (2:15ff.). Contrary to the Jewish mentality and custom of giving great precedence to the husband, and significantly, here Mary is mentioned first. This detail also serves the evangelist to remind us of the virginal conception of Jesus, in which Mary is the lone human protagonist (142). St. Luke also records how the shepherds "when they had seen, they understood what had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard marveled at the things told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept in mind all these things, pondering them in her heart" (Lk 2:17-19). Once more the evangelist sets in relief the figure of Mary. Here, as later on another occasion (2:51), he describes her contemplative dispositions. Mary’s in effect were those of a person of genuine wisdom (philosopher), who precisely kept the word of God in her heart, continually reflecting on it, making it her daily nourishment, her guide and strength (cf. Sir 50:27-29) (143). "Mary is the model of the contemplative soul, capable of silent listening and recollected meditation upon the words and events of faith that ought always to be more deeply penetrated" (144). St. Luke uses the term rhémata, meaning things, both events and words, concerning Jesus. All this, then, is object of Mary’s contemplation. The contemplation of Mary, however, as G. Rossé insists, is an active approach: Mary does not merely guard the words and events passively so as to be able to recall them later, but in such wise as to penetrate their meaning. This is a process typical of a faith which grows and progresses in the understanding of the divine mystery. Further, Mary "interprets in her heart" (or better meditates). She engages all her intellectual energy and her will (heart) to penetrate events and words which surpass her, in such wise as to grasp them ever more profoundly with the help of grace (145). These recollections of Luke are at the same time a veiled indication of the primary source of his account of the infancy of Christ (146). Eight days after the birth of a male child, Jewish law prescribed the rite of circumcision and of the conferral of a name. St. Luke recounts that Mary and Joseph fulfilled this rite (cf. 2:21). For the Jews, the rite of circumcision held fundamental importance, because by means of it the babe became part of the Chosen People and sharer in the covenant established by God with Abraham and Moses. Thus the Jew bore in his body a concrete sign of his belonging to the Lord God and, as it were, an assurance of participating in the blessings promised to Israel (147). St. Luke, however, puts the accent rather on the imposition of the name Jesus, indicated by the Angel Gabriel to the Mother on the day of the Annunciation (cf. Lk 1:31; 2:21). If the evangelist now recalls again that the name was indicated at the time of the divine message, this is because he wishes to underscore how it is a name from on high, from God, a sign of a singular divine project, summarized by this name which St. Matthew candidly explains: "She shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus; for he shall save his people from their sins" (Mt 1:21) (148). Jesus, then, received the name indicating: the ontological and dynamic constitution of his personality. Jesus is the proper name of the Word incarnate, and means "the Lord is salvation." It is composed of two constituent elements, one pertaining to his essence (Lord) and the other to his mission (salvation) (149). (to be continued)  RETURN TO TOP

DIVINE MERCY

Dairy from St. Faustina On Deify, Divinize, Transform Make My Heart Like Unto Yours I want to be transformed into Jesus in order to be able to give myself completely to souls (Diary, 193). Lord, transform me completely into Yourself, maintain in me a holy zeal for Your glory, give me the grace and spiritual strength to do Your holy will in all things (Diary, 240). Jesus, make my heart like unto Yours, or rather transform it into Your own Heart that I may sense the needs of other hearts, especially those who are sad and suffering. May the rays of mercy rest in my heart (Diary, 514). RETURN TO TOP

CATHOLIC  TEACHING/CONVICTION/TESTIMONY

On the Final Judgment "Not a Question of Honors and Appearances"   VATICAN CITY, NOV. 23, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Here is the address Benedict XVI delivered today before praying the Angelus with those gathered in St. Peter's Square. * * * Dear Brothers and Sisters! Today we celebrate, the last Sunday of the liturgical year, the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ the King. We know that in the Gospels Jesus rejected the title of king when it was understood in a political sense, along the lines of “the rulers of nations” (cf. Matthew 20:24). Instead, during his passion, before Pilate he claimed a different sort of kingship. Pilate asked Jesus plainly, “Are you a king?” Jesus answered, “You have said it; I am a king” (John 18:37). A little before this, however, he had declared, “My kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36). The kingship of Christ is, indeed, the revelation and the implementation of the kingship of God the Father, who governs all things with love and with justice. The Father entrusted the Son with the mission of giving men eternal life, loving them to the point of the supreme sacrifice, and at the same time he has given him the power to judge them, from the moment that he was made Son of Man, like us in all things (cf. John 5:21-22, 26-27). Today’s Gospel insists precisely on this universal kingship of Christ the judge, with the impressive parable of the final judgment, that St. Matthew presents right before his account of the Passion (25:31-46). The images are simple, the language is popular, but the message is extremely important: it is the truth about our ultimate destiny and lays down the criteria by which we will be judged. “I was hungry and you gave me to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me” and so on (Matthew 25:35). Who does not know this passage? It has become a part of our civilization. It has marked the history of peoples of Christian culture, their hierarchy of values, their institutions, and their many benevolent and social organizations. In effect, the Kingdom of God is not of this world, but it brings to fulfillment all the good that, thanks to God, exists in man and history. If we put love of our neighbor into practice, according to the Gospel message, then we are making room for the lordship of God, and his kingdom will realize itself in our midst. If instead each of us thinks only of his own interests, the world cannot but be destroyed. Dear friends, the Kingdom of God is not a question of honors and appearances, but, like St. Paul writes, it is “justice, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Romans 14:17). The Lord has our own good at heart, that is, that every man have life, and that especially the “least” of his children be admitted to his feast, which he has prepared for all. Because of this he has no use for the hypocritical ones who say “Lord, Lord,” but have neglected his commandments (cf. Matthew 7:21). God will accept into his eternal kingdom those who have made the effort every day to put his word into practice. This is why the Virgin Mary, the most humble of his creatures, is the greatest in his eyes and sits as Queen at the right of Christ the King. We desire to entrust ourselves with filial confidence once again to her heavenly intercession, so that we might realize our Christian mission in the world. [After praying the Angelus, the Holy Father greeted the crowds in several languages. In Italian, he said:] Tomorrow in the city of Nagasaki in Japan, the beatification of 188 martyrs -- all of them Japanese, killed in the early part of the 17th century -- will take place. I pledge my spiritual nearness on this occasion, which is so significant for the Catholic community, and for the whole country of the Rising Sun. Also, in Cuba next Saturday, Fray José Olallo Valdés, of the Hospitaller Order of St. John of God, will be beatified. I entrust the Cuban people to his heavenly protection, especially the sick and health workers.     RETURN TO TOP

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