A LITTLE OF OUR FAITH
(052)-BLESSED ARE YOU AMONG WOMEN !
Today –December 23 - We celebrate the 4th SUNDAY OF ADVENT - C.
This is the today's Gospel :
Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, where she entered the house of Zachariah and greeted Elizabeth.
When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the child leaped in her womb.
And Elizabeth was filled with Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry : "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.
And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me ?
For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy.
And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord".
In today's Gospel, Elizabeth sees and celebrates the presence of the Lord.
It sounds so simple, really, but this recognition and rejoicing elude many of us
The Lord is present, right here in our midst, and yet we miss him.
Maybe we are focused on all that needs doing during this busy time, or perhaps we only notice what is wrong with our lives or what is wrong with others.
Where have we fixed our eyes ?
What do we see ?
Chances are we are finding exactly what we have focused upon.
Although Elizabeth is a secondary character in the nativity story, she is a primary example of wise awareness.
When she realizes Mary is expecting, she could question it.
She could envy her young kingswoman or focus on all the reasons why she herself would have been the "better choice' – she was, after all, a devoted wife and a mature woman with many years of longing for matherhood.
Chosen to be John's mother, she could have asked herself why not the mother of Jesus.
Yet none of these thoughts enter her mind.
So full of the Holy Spirit's wisdom, so aware of the Lord's presence, and so open to his will - Elizabeth simply rejoices
May we, too, live in that wise awareness, that recognition and rejoicing.
May we see and celebrate the Lord's real presence in our daily lives, beginning with today's eucharist.
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Responsorial Psalm :
Restore us, O God, let your face shine, that we may be saved !
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"Jesus, I want to dedicate this season to seeing you more fully. Come, Lord, and make me ready to greet you when you come again !""
With joy and peace, we love you.
Maria & John
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Postcommunio Súmpsimus. Dómine, sacridona mystérii, humíliter deprécantes, ut, quae in tui commemoratiónem nos fácere praecepísti, in nostrae profíciant infirmitátis auxílium: Qui vivis.
"RECUAR DIANTE DO INIMIGO, OU CALAR-SE QUANDO DE TODA PARTE SE ERGUE TANTO ALARIDO CONTRA A VERDADE, É PRÓPRIO DE HOMEM COVARDE OU DE QUEM VACILA NO FUNDAMENTO DE SUA CRENÇA. QUALQUER DESTAS COISAS É VERGONHOSA EM SI; É INJURIOSA A DEUS; É INCOMPATÍVEL COM A SALVAÇÃO TANTO DOS INDIVÍDUOS, COMO DA SOCIEDADE, E SÓ É VANTAJOSA AOS INIMIGOS DA FÉ, PORQUE NADA ESTIMULA TANTO A AUDÁCIA DOS MAUS, COMO A PUSILANIMIDADE DOS BONS" –
[PAPA LEÃO XIII , ENCÍCLICA SAPIENTIAE CHRISTIANAE , DE 10 DE JANEIRO DE 1890]