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January 6, 2009 - Tuesday after Epiphany      DAILY LITURGICAL/THEME MEDITATION: "They fell down and worshiped Jesus" UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENT(S): JESUS IS THE WISDOM OF GOD INCARNATE; WAR AND HATRED DO NOT RESOLVE PROBLEMS SAINT OF THE DAY St. John Neumann  GENERAL MARIOLOGY The Mother of God DIVINE MERCY On Trust Distrust Hurts His Most Sweet Heart  TEACHING/TESTIMONY/CONVICTION: Pope's Christmas Address to Curia     Monthly Index

DAILY LITURGICAL MEDITATION

Feast of Epiphany (1/6): "They fell down and worshiped Jesus" Scripture: Matthew 2:1-12  (alternate reading: Mark 6:34-44) 1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, 2 "Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the East, and have come to worship him." 3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; 4 and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. 5 They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it is written by the prophet: 6 `And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;  for from you shall come a ruler  who will govern my people Israel.'" 7 Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star appeared; 8 and he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him bring me word, that I too may come and worship him." 9 When they had heard the king they went their way; and lo, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came to rest over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy; 11 and going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they  offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. 12 And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way. Meditation: If Jesus truly is who he claims to be, the eternal Son of God and Savior of the world, then why is he not recognized by everyone who hears his word and sees his works? John the Evangelist states that when Jesus came into the world the world knew him not and his own people received him not (John 1:10-11). Jesus was born in obscurity. Only the lowly shepherds recognized him at his birth. Some wise men also found their way to Bethlehem to pay homage to the newborn King of Israel. These men were not Israelites, but foreigners. They likely had read and discussed the Messianic prophecies and were anxious to see when this Messianic King would appear. God led them by means of an extraordinary star across the desert to the little town where Jesus was born. In their thirst for the knowledge of God, they willingly left everything, their home and country, in pursuit of that quest. In their diligent search they were led to the source of true knowledge – to Jesus Christ, the Light and Wisdom of God. When they found the newborn King they humbly worshiped him and gave him gifts fitting for a king. What fueled their search for the Messianic King? Faith in the promise of God to send a Redeemer, a King who would establish God's reign of peace and righteousness.  Faith is an entirely free gift that God makes to us.  It is through the help of the Holy Spirit, who moves the heart and opens the eyes of the mind, that we are able to understand, accept, and believe the truth which God reveals to us. In faith, the human will and intellect cooperate with grace. "Believing is an act of the intellect assenting to the divine truth by command of the will moved by God through grace" (Thomas Aquinas). To know and to encounter Jesus Christ is to know God personally. In the encounter of the wise men with Jesus we see the plan of God to give his only Son as King and Savior, not just for the Jewish people but for all the nations as well. The Lord Jesus came that both Jew and Gentile might find true and lasting peace with God.  Let us pray today that Jew and Gentile alike will find the Lord and Savior on their journey of life. Do you bring the light of Jesus Christ to those you meet through the witness of your life and testimony? "Lord Jesus Christ, we thank you for bringing salvation to all the nations. May the gospel of salvation be proclaimed to every nation today and to every person on the face of the earth.  Help me to be a good witness of the joy of the gospel to all I meet." Psalm 72:1-2, 7-8, 10-13 1 Give the king thy justice, O God, and thy righteousness to the royal son! 2 May he judge thy people with righteousness, and thy poor with justice! 7 In his days may righteousness flourish, and peace abound, till the moon be no more! 8 May he have dominion from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth! 10 May the kings of Tarshish and of the isles render him tribute, may the kings of Sheba and Seba  bring gifts! 11 May all kings fall down before him, all nations serve him! 12 For he delivers the needy when he calls, the poor and him who has no helper. 13 He has pity on the weak and the needy, and saves the lives of the needy.   ETURN TO TOP

UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENTS

JESUS IS THE WISDOM OF GOD INCARNATE   VATICAN CITY, 4 JAN 2009 (VIS) - At noon today the Holy Father appeared at the window of his study overlooking St. Peter's Square to pray the Angelus with the thousands of pilgrims present.    At the beginning of the Mass the Pope recalled that "the liturgy again invites us to meditate on the same Gospel proclaimed on Christmas Day, that is, the Prologue of St. John. After the chaos of racing around buying gifts these past days, the Church invites us to contemplate again the mystery of Christ’s birth in order to better understand its profound meaning and its importance for our lives".    "It is", he said, "an astonishing text that offers an extraordinary synthesis of all of Christian faith. It begins from on high: 'In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God"; herein lies the unheard of and humanly inconceivable novelty: 'And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us'".    Benedict XVI emphasized that this "is not a figure of speech but a lived experience! John, an eyewitness recounts it to us. ... They are not the erudite words of a rabbi or doctor of the law but the impassioned witness of a humble fisherman who, called by Jesus when he was young, in his three years of living with Christ and His apostles felt His love - to the point of defining himself 'the disciple whom Jesus loved' - who saw Him die on the cross and appear resurrected, and who received His Spirit together with the others. From these experiences, meditated upon in his heart, John drew a certain conclusion: Jesus is the Wisdom of God incarnate, is His eternal Word who was made a mortal man".    Highlighting that "knowing Jesus, being with Him, listening to His preaching, and seeing the signs he performed, the disciples recognized that all of Scripture was fulfilled in Him", the Pope said that "each man and woman needs to find profound meaning in their own existence. To do so it is not enough to read books or to follow Sacred Scripture. The Child of Bethlehem reveals and communicates to us the true 'face' of the good and faithful God who loves us and does not abandon us, not even in death".    The Holy Father affirmed that "the first to open her heart and contemplate 'the Word made flesh' was Mary, the Mother of Jesus. A humble girl of Galilee thus became the 'Seat of Wisdom'. Just like John the apostle, each of us is invited to welcome her into our homes in order to know Jesus more deeply and to feel His faithful and inexhaustible love. This is my wish for each of you, dear brothers and sisters, at the beginning of this new year". ANG/WORD/...                                                                                  VIS 090105 (460)   WAR AND HATRED DO NOT RESOLVE PROBLEMS   VATICAN CITY, 4 JAN 2009 (VIS) - After the Angelus the Pope invited all to pray for an end to the war in Gaza, recalling that hatred and war do not resolve problems.    "Today, in all the churches of the Holy Land, the patriarchs and leaders of the Christian churches of Jerusalem invite the faithful to pray for an end to the conflict in the Gaza Strip and implore justice and peace for their land. I join with them and ask you to do the same, remembering, as they are saying, 'the victims, the wounded, those with broken hearts, who are living in anguish and fear, that God bless them with consolation, patience, and the peace that proceeds from Him".    The Holy Father affirmed that "the dramatic news that we are receiving from the Gaza Strip shows that the refusal to dialogue leads to situations that weigh unspeakably on the populations who are again victim to hatred and war".    War and hatred are not a solution to problems. Most recent history again confirms this. Let us pray, then, that 'the Baby in the manger ... inspire the authorities and those responsible on both sides, Israeli and Palestinian, to act immediately to put an end to this tragic situation". ANG/CALL TO PEACE GAZA/...                                                   VIS 090105 (200) RETURN TO TOP

DAILY LITURGICAL SAINT

January 6, 2009 St. Gregory Nazianzen (329-390)   After his baptism at 30, Gregory gladly accepted his friend Basil’s invitation to join him in a newly founded monastery. The solitude was broken when Gregory’s father, a bishop, needed help in his diocese and estate. It seems that Gregory was ordained a priest practically by force, and only reluctantly accepted the responsibility. He skillfully avoided a schism that threatened when his own father made compromises with Arianism. At 41, Gregory was chosen suffragan bishop of Caesarea and at once came into conflict with Valens, the emperor, who supported the Arians. An unfortunate by-product of the battle was the cooling of the friendship of two saints. Basil, his archbishop, sent him to a miserable and unhealthy town on the border of unjustly created divisions in his diocese. Basil reproached Gregory for not going to his see. When protection for Arianism ended with the death of Valens, Gregory was called to rebuild the faith in the great see of Constantinople, which had been under Arian teachers for three decades. Retiring and sensitive, he dreaded being drawn into the whirlpool of corruption and violence. He first stayed at a friend’s home, which became the only orthodox church in the city. In such surroundings, he began giving the great sermons on the Trinity for which he is famous. In time, Gregory did rebuild the faith in the city, but at the cost of great suffering, slander, insults and even personal violence. An interloper even tried to take over his bishopric. His last days were spent in solitude and austerity. He wrote religious poetry, some of it autobiographical, of great depth and beauty. He was acclaimed simply as “the Theologian.” Comment: It may be small comfort, but post-Vatican II turmoil in the Church is a mild storm compared to the devastation caused by the Arian heresy, a trauma the Church has never forgotten. Christ did not promise the kind of peace we would love to have—no problems, no opposition, no pain. In one way or another, holiness is always the way of the cross. Quote: “God accepts our desires as though they were a great value. He longs ardently for us to desire and love him. He accepts our petitions for benefits as though we were doing him a favor. His joy in giving is greater than ours in receiving. So let us not be apathetic in our asking, nor set too narrow bounds to our requests; nor ask for frivolous things unworthy of God’s greatness.” RETURN TO TOP

GENERAL MARIOLOGY

The Mother of God  By Fr. Manfred Hauke    The following article is an excerpt from a chapter in the recently published Marian anthology, Mariology: A Guide for Priests, Deacons, Seminarians, and Consecrated Persons, Seat of Wisdom Books, A Division of Queenship, 2008. Fifteen international Mariology experts contributed to the text. The book features a foreword by Archbishop Raymond L. Burke and has 17 chapters divided into four parts: 1. Mary in Scripture and the Early Church; 2. Marian Dogma; 3. Marian Doctrine; and 4. Marian Liturgy and Devotion. The book is now available from Queenship Publications. To obtain a copy, visit queenship.org. Visit books.google.com and search on "Mariology: A Guide" to view the book in its entirety, or simply click here. Asst. Ed. (continued) Biblical Foundation (14) Holy Scripture does not contain the explicit title, "Mother of God," but offers the doctrinal basis for this expression. The correct understanding of the figure of Mary depends on a true understanding of the person of Jesus Christ, the incarnate Word of God (Jn 1:14). When discussing the biblical foundation for calling Mary Mother of God, we have to take into consideration all the affirmations which link the divinity of Jesus with the maternity of Mary. The most important scriptural passage comes from the Letter of the Apostle Paul to the Galatians: in the fullness of time, "God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons" (Gal 4:4-5) (15). It is the only passage of the Pauline letters which contains an allusion to Mary, because the Apostle of the Gentiles does not report many biographical details about the life of Christ. He focuses his attention on the Incarnation (especially in Phil 2:5-11), and particularly focuses on the Cross and the Resurrection of Christ (e.g. 1 Cor 15:3-8). This is the reason why Paul gives very little information about the Mother of Christ: he does not even mention her name. The aim of the passage in Galatians is to underline the true humanity of Christ, "born" of a woman and under the law of Moses (cf. Gal 4:4-5). The Son of God has taken upon himself the human condition of a Jew, in order to introduce humanity into the life of God as adopted sons. Nevertheless, we may consider Galatians 4:4 the most important passage for dogmatic Mariology in the whole New Testament (16). God (the Father) sends his Son into the world: this formulation presupposes the preexistence of the Son before being born of the woman, that is, we find here a hint of the divinity of Christ (for other references to the divinity of Christ in the Pauline letters, see in particular 1 Cor 8:6; Phil 2:5-11). If the Son of God is born by Mary, she can later on be called "Mother of God." In the most ancient New Testament passage about Mary we find her strictly united to the event of the Incarnation; for this reason it is not possible to separate her from her Son. It should also be noted that Paul, speaking about the human condition of Jesus, does not mention any human paternity in the process of generation; he only indicates the "woman." This fact can be seen as an implicit reference to the virginal maternity of Mary (17). The Gospel of Luke, which gives us the most abundant references about the Virgin Mary, also contains a most significant testimony about her divine maternity. In the Annunciation narrative, the evangelist links the maternity of Mary with the divinity of Christ: "Therefore, he who is to be born of you shall be holy and shall be called the Son of God" (Lk 1:35b). Whereas St. John the Baptist is conceived in a normal way, though the sterility of Elizabeth is overcome miraculously (cf. Lk 1:5-25), Jesus is generated from the Virgin Mary by the force of the Holy Spirit without any intervention of a human father. Here we see the difference between the greatest prophet and the Son of God. The Gospel of Luke does not speak explicitly of the preexistent divinity of Christ, but this conviction is certainly implicit. Moreover, for Luke, the preeminence of Jesus is not only linked to the virginal conception, but also to his being the Son of God even before assuming human nature in the womb of the Holy Virgin. We should note that already the hymn to Christ in the Letter to the Philippians, with its formulations taken by Paul from the primitive Christian community, clearly professes the preexistence of the Son of God (Phil 2:5-11). This text is even older than the Gospel of Mark, the first, according to some, in chronological order of the synoptic gospels. For this reason, and on the basis of a historical analysis of New Testament sources, we can exclude the theory that belief in the divinity of Christ is present only in the "late" Gospel of John (18). After the Annunciation, the scene of the Visitation also gives a precious reference regarding the divine maternity. Elizabeth proclaims, face to face with Mary: "To what do I owe that the mother of my Lord should come to me?" (Lk 1:43). The Greek word for "Lord" is Kyrios, a term used abundantly by the Septuagint (the most important Greek translation of the Old Testament) for referring to God without using his revealed name (Yahweh) which, at the time of Jesus, was never pronounced by the Jews. Also, in the immediate context of Elizabeth’s question, the term "Lord" clearly refers to God (Lk 1:45-46). The Lord proclaimed by Luke is therefore the divine Lord (19). Thus it is only a small step from the expression "mother of the Lord" to the title "Mother of God." The Visitation can be compared with the account of the journey of the Ark of the Old Covenant to Jerusalem (2 Sam 6:1-15). Many exegetes see in these parallels an implicit hint in the Gospel that Mary is the new Ark of the Covenant in which God himself comes to visit mankind and to sanctify John the Baptist in the womb of Elizabeth, who prophesies in the joy of the Holy Spirit (20). Here we also see a link between Mary’s divine maternity and her spiritual motherhood: when Mary is arriving and greeting Elizabeth, John the Baptist is sanctified and in this way receives a fruit of the mediation of Christ, mediated by the Mother of the Lord. Whereas the strongest biblical testimonies about the divine maternity can be found in Paul’s Letter to the Galatians and in the Gospel of Luke, some discrete hints are also present in Matthew, Mark and John. Matthew, recording the prophecy of Isaiah about the birth of the "Emmanuel" (Is 7:14), mentions that this name signifies "God with us" (Mt 1:23). Taken strictly, this expression already indicates the divinity of Christ, that is to say, that Jesus is the Son of God conceived in the womb of a virgin. … In such wise, Jesus is at the same time Son of God and son of Adam (21). The Gospel of Mark does not contain such an explicit hint, although Jesus is called "son of Mary" (Mk 6:3), whereas the parallel passages in Matthew and Luke speak of the "son of the carpenter" (Mt 13:55) or the "son of Joseph" (Lk 4:22) (as the Jews thought him to be). Matthew and Luke can mention Joseph as "father" of Jesus without any problem, because readers already know Christ’s divine origin from the infancy narratives. Mark, who begins his account with Jesus’ Baptism in the Jordan, calls Jesus "son of Mary," contrary to the normal practice of mentioning children according to their paternal lineage. This procedure hints at the virginal peculiarity of Mary’s motherhood (22). Already Mark is putting the profession of faith that Jesus Christ is the "Son of God" at the very center of his message (Mk 1:1; 9:7; 14:61-62; 15:39, etc.). The testimony of John for the divinity of Jesus is quite explicit (Jn 1:1; 20:28; 1 Jn 5:20). In the narratives about the miracle of Cana and the death of Christ on the Cross, Mary is not mentioned by her name, but called the "mother" of Jesus (Jn 2:1; 19:25). Given the premise that her Son is the eternal Word made flesh (Jn 1:14), the divine maternity is evidently a truth implicitly present in the Gospel of John. Under the Cross, the maternity of Mary is extended by Christ to the beloved disciple, who represents all believers in him: "Behold your mother" (Jn 19:27) (23). This spiritual maternity of Mary manifests itself as a consequence of her being Mother of God. This systematical perspective, developed later on in the Church, is hinted at already in the biblical source. Mary is not only the mother of the divine Son, but she also takes care of the adoptive children of God. The divine maternity cannot be separated from her maternal mediation. (to be continued)  RETURN TO TOP

DIVINE MERCY

Dairy from St. Faustina On Trust Distrust Hurts His Most Sweet Heart God is very displeased with lack of trust in Him, and this is why some souls lose many graces. Distrust hurts His most sweet Heart, which is full of goodness and incomprehensible love for us (Diary, 595). When the burden of the battle becomes too much for me, I throw myself like a child into the arms of the heavenly Father and trust I will not perish (Diary, 606).   RETURN TO TOP

CATHOLIC  TEACHING/CONVICTION/TESTIMONY

Pope's Christmas Address to Curia "The Holy Spirit Gives Us Joy, and He Is Joy"   ROME, JAN. 1, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of Benedict XVI's Dec. 22 address to prelates and the Roman Curia on the occasion of the traditional exchange of Christmas greetings. This non-official translation was provided by Coadjutor Bishop Michael Campbell of Lancaster, England. * * * (continued) 2. Finally, I add a few more remarks on other aspects of pneumatology. If the creator Spirit is manifest above all in the silent grandeur of the universe, in its intelligent structure, faith, beyond this, tells us something unexpected, that this Spirit speaks, as it were, also in human language, has entered into history and, as a force which shapes history, is also a Spirit who speaks, rather he is the Word which comes to meet us in the writings of the Old and New Testament. What this might mean for us, Saint Ambrose has marvellously expressed in one of his letters: "Even now, when I read the divine Scriptures, God walks in paradise" (Ep.49:3). By reading the Scriptures we also today can, so to speak, wander in the garden of Paradise and meet the God who walks there: between the theme of the World Youth Day in Australia and the theme for the Synod of Bishops exists a deep interior bond. The two themes "Holy Spirit" and "Word of God" go together. Reading Scripture we learn moreover that Christ and the Holy Spirit are inseparable from one another. If Paul, in an arresting synthesis, states: "The Lord is the Spirit" (2 Cor3:17), not only does there appear in essence, the Trinitarian unity between the Son and the Holy Spirit, but also their unity where the story of salvation is concerned: in the passion and resurrection of Christ the veils of the merely literal sense are torn and the presence of God who is speaking becomes visible. By reading the Scripture together with Christ, we come to sense in human words the voice of the Holy Spirit and we discover the unity of the Bible. 3. With this we have arrived at the third dimension of pneumatology which consists, precisely, in the inseparability of Christ and the Holy Spirit. In rather beautiful fashion this is shown in Saint John's account of the first appearance of the risen Lord to his disciples: the Lord breathes on his disciples and in this way gives them the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the breath of Christ. And just as the breath of God in the morning of creation transformed the dust of the earth into a living being, likewise the breath of Christ gathers us into ontological communion with the Son, makes us a new creation. For this reason it is the Holy Spirit who makes us say with the Son: "Abba, Father" (Jn20:22; Rom8:15). 4. As the fourth dimension, there arises spontaneously the connection between Spirit and Church. Paul, in 1 Corinthians 12 and Romans12, explains the Church as the Body of Christ and in this way as an organism of the Holy Spirit, in which the gifts of the Holy Spirit mould individual members into a single living entity. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of the Body of Christ. By belonging to this body we find our role, we live as one for another in dependence on one another, living in the depths of Him who lived and suffered for us all, and by means of the Holy Spirit draws us to himself in the unity of all the sons of God. "Do you also wish to live from the Spirit of Christ? Then be in the body of Christ.," says Augustine in this regard.(Tr,in Jo.26:13) And so with the theme "Holy Spirit" which guided the days in Australia and, in a more hidden fashion, also the week of the Synod, the whole extent of the Christian faith becomes clear, a breadth which from the responsibility for the created order and for the existence of man in harmony with creation leads, through the themes of Scripture and the history of salvation, to Christ and beyond to the living community of the Church, in its ordinances and responsibilities and also in its vastness and freedom, which finds expression both in the multiplicity of charisms and in the Pentecostal image of the multitude of languages and cultures. Joy is an integral part of the feast. A feast can be organised, joy no. It can only be offered as a gift; and, in fact, has been given to us in abundance: it is by this that we are known. Just as Paul described joy as the fruit of the Holy Spirit, so likewise has John in his gospel connected closely the Spirit and joy. The Holy Spirit gives us joy. And he is joy. Joy is the gift in which all the other gifts are included. It is the expression of happiness, of being in harmony with ourselves, that which can only come from being in harmony with God and with his creation. It belongs to the nature of joy to be radiant, it must communicate itself. The missionary spirit of the Church is none other than the impulse to communicate the joy which has been given. May it always be alive in us and so be radiated on the world in the midst of its tribulations: such is my wish at the close of this year. Along with a lively thanks for all your labours and endeavours, I wish you all this joy which comes from God and may it also be given to us abundantly in the New Year. I commend these wishes to the intercession of the Virgin Mary, Mother of Divine Grace, requesting that we can live the Christmas festival in joy and in the peace of the Lord. With these sentiments I sincerely impart to you and the great family of the Roman Curia the Apostolic Blessing.   RETURN TO TOP

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