Words of the Word

Advent Week 1: Thursday

“Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.” (Matthew 7:24)

In commenting upon this verse from today’s Mass Readings, Saint John Chrysostom writes:

“Whereas his teaching has up to now largely focused on the future kingdom, its unspeakable rewards and its consolations, now he shifts his focus to the present life, its current fruits and how great is the strength of virtue within it. What then is its strength? It is living with security, not being easily overcome by any of life’s terrors and standing above all those who treat others maliciously. What could be as good as this? For not even the one who wears the royal crown would be able to furnish this for himself. But one who pursues the way of excellence can have this stability, for that one alone is possessed of this equilibrium in full abundance. In the crashing surf of the present circumstances such a one experiences a calm sea. This is amazing. It is when the storm is violent, the upheaval great and the temptations continual that such a person is not shaken in the slightest. This is not a way of living that applies to fair weather only. For he says, “The rain came down, the floods came, the winds blew, and they beat against that house. And it did not fall because it was founded upon the rock.”

In referring to rain, floods and winds Jesus is speaking about all those human circumstances and misfortunes, such as false accusations, plots, bereavements, deaths, loss of family members, insults from others, and all the horrid things in life about which one could speak. Jesus says that a soul that pursues the way of excellence does not give in to any of these potential disasters. And the cause of this is that this soul has been founded upon the rock. Now “rock” refers to the reliability of Jesus’ teaching. For his commands are stronger than any rock. They place one quite above all the human waves of life. For the one who guards these commands with care will excel not only over human beings when treated maliciously but even over the demons themselves in their plots.” (The Gospel of Matthew, Homily 24)

Collect

Stir up your power, O Lord,
and come to our help with mighty strength,
that what our sins impede
the grace of your mercy may hasten.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

— Saint Francis Xavier —
Advent Week 1: Wednesday

“On that day it will be said: “Indeed, this is our God; we looked to him, and he saved us! This is the LORD to whom we looked; let us rejoice and be glad that he has saved us!” (Isaiah 25:9)

Saint Cyril of Alexandria reflects on this verse from today’s Gospel, writes:

“You recognize the one who gives you joy to drink and wine in addition, anointing those in spiritual Zion with myrrh. You recognize that he is true God and Son of God by nature, and although he appeared in the form of a servant, by becoming man he became the source of salvation and life for all, being in all things like those on earth though without sin. The prophet indicates that they are all but pointing [to Christ] with their finger when they say, “Behold our God in whom we have hoped, and we will rejoice in our salvation.” I think that this text applies especially to the Israelites who were nurtured in the words of Moses and were not ignorant of the predictions of the holy prophets. They waited for the time of the coming of the Savior and Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, as I have already said, Zechariah the father of John [the Baptizer] when he prophesied in the Spirit said of Christ, “He has raised up a horn of salvation.” And Simeon when he took the holy child in his arms said, “Behold, my eyes have seen the salvation which you have prepared before the face of all people.” Recognize then what had been announced of old, the one who is the hope of all, the Savior and Redeemer, they said, according to Isaiah, “Behold our God.”

They confess that God will give rest on this mountain. And it seems to me that mountain here refers to the church, for it is there that one finds rest. For we heard the words of Christ: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Commentary on Isaiah, 3)

Collect

Almighty and merciful God,
by whose gift Your faithful offer You
right and praiseworthy service,
grant, we pray,
that we may hasten without stumbling
to receive the things You have promised.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

Advent Week 1: Tuesday

“But a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom.” (Isaiah 11:1)

Saint Jerome offers the following insight on this verse from today’s First Reading:

“Until the beginning of the vision, or the burden of Babylon, which Isaiah the son of Amos saw, his entire prophecy was about Christ, a prophecy that we want to explain piecemeal lest the ideas and discussions thereof together confuse the reader’s memory. The Jews interpreted the branch and the flower from the root of Jesse to be the Lord himself because the power of his governance is demonstrated in the branch and his beauty in the flower. But we understand the branch from the root of Jesse to be the holy Virgin Mary, who had no shoot connatural to herself. About her we read above: “Behold, a virgin will conceive and bear a son.”1 And the flower is the Lord our Savior, who said in the Song of Songs, “I am the flower of the field and the lily of the valleys.” In place of “root,” which only the Septuagint translated, the Hebrew text has geza, which Aquila and Symmachus and Theodotus interpret as kormon, that is, “stem.” And they translated “flower,” which the Hebrew text calls nēṣer, as “bud” to show that after a long time in Babylonian captivity, no longer possessing any glory from the sprout of the old kingdom of David, Christ would rise from Mary as though from her stem. The educated of the Hebrews believe that what all the ecclesiastics sought in the Gospel of Matthew but could not find, where it was written “Because he will be called a Nazarene,” was taken from this place. But it should be noted that nēṣer was written here with the [Hebrew] letter ṣade [צ], the peculiar sound of which — somewhere between z and s — the Latin language does not express.” (Commentary on Isaiah, 4)

Collect

Look with favor, Lord God, on our petitions,
and in our trials grant us your compassionate help,
that, consoled by the presence of your Son,
whose coming we now await,
we may be tainted no longer
by the corruption of former ways.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

Advent Week 1: Monday

“In days to come, the mountain of the LORD’S house shall be established as the highest mountain and raised above the hills. All nations shall stream toward it.” (Isaiah 2:2)

Saint Jerome offers the following insight on this verse from today’s First Reading:

“This mountain is in the house of the Lord, for which the prophet sighed when he said, “One thing I asked from the Lord, this I seek, that I might dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,” and about which Paul wrote to Timothy, “If I am late, you should know how to behave in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.” This house was built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets, who are mountains themselves as imitators of Christ. About this house of Jerusalem the psalmist cried out: “Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which dwells in Jerusalem; it will not be moved forever. The mountains surround her and the Lord surrounds his people.” Hence Christ also founds his church on one of the mountains and says to him, “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld will not prevail against her.” (Commentary on Isaiah, 1)

Collect

Keep us alert, we pray, O Lord our God,
as we await the advent of Christ your Son,
so that, when he comes and knocks,
he may find us watchful in prayer
and exultant in his praise.
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

On Advent’s doorstep ...

What comes to mind when you hear the word Advent? Perhaps the phrase “coming to” or “preparation” recalls homilies or lessons from the past. Perhaps Advent triggers a word of frustration: ugh! - Christmas is close and there is much to do in a short period of time. Seemingly, we blink and Advent is over, that is if we even entered into it with the Christmas crush.

In the prayer following the Lord’s Prayer at every Mass, the Church prays: “Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil, graciously grant peace in our days, that, by the help of Your mercy, we may be always free from sin and safe from all distress, as we await the blessed hope and the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.”

Deliverance from every evil.
Peace in our days.
Freedom from sin.
Safe[ty] from all distress.

Might any of these four be a dream that you nurture deep within, wondering if any or all 4 will ever become a reality in your life? The world repeats and old message: there will always be evil in the world, peace will never come, we will always sin and we will have to find ways to medicate and to cope with distress in our lives. The repetitive and old message of pessimism and despair is real in the sense that anyone of us can give into its life-robbing power. The irony is that in the Face of Jesus Christ, these realities have no power; but WE give them power when we acknowledge their repetitive and old existence. Discovering the singular, unique newness Who is Jesus the Christ destroys evil, provides peace, gives freedom from sin and safety from distress.

Thus we come to the “work” of Advent. Yes, Advent as a way of life is a work, a work of responding to the new creation in our midst that is Jesus. Centuries ago, Saint Irenaeus wrote: “You must realize that He Who was promised has brought something totally new by giving us Himself.” Advent is a way of living life that proclaims boldly Jesus makes all things new (Revelation 21:5) and consequently there is no room for a repetitive, old message of evil, unrest, sin and distress. Allowing oneself to be found by Jesus Christ (in other words, not seeking after as if “I” must find Him) unleashes power that floods life with deliverance, peace, no sin and no distress. It begins by pondering, “how is Jesus new in my life?”

Ordinary Time Week 34: Saturday

“Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap.” (Luke 21:34)

Origen of Alexandria comments on these verses from the Gospel proclaimed at Mass today:

“But take heed to yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a snare.” You heard the proclamation of the eternal King. You learned the deplorable end of “drunkenness” or “intoxication.” Imagine a skilled and wise physician who would say, “Beware, no one should drink too much from this or that herb. If he does, he will suddenly be destroyed.” I do not doubt that everyone would keep the prescriptions of the physician’s warning concerning his own health. Now the Lord, who is both the physician of souls and bodies, orders them to avoid as a deadly drink the herb “of drunkenness” and the vice “of intoxication” and also the care of worldly matters. I do not know if any one can say that he is not wounded, because these things consume him.

Drunkenness is therefore destructive in all things. It is the only thing that weakens the soul together with the body. According to the apostle, it can happen that when the body “is weak,” then the spirit is “much stronger,” and when “the exterior person is destroyed, the interior person is renewed.” In the illness of drunkenness, the body and the soul are destroyed at the same time. The spirit is corrupted equally with the flesh. All the members are weakened: the feet and the hands. The tongue is loosened. Darkness covers the eyes. Forgetfulness covers the mind so that one does not know himself nor does he perceive he is a person. Drunkenness of the body has that shamefulness.” (Homilies on Leviticus, 7)

Collect

Stir up the will of your faithful, we pray, O Lord,
that, striving more eagerly
to bring your divine work to fruitful completion,
they may receive in greater measure
the healing remedies your kindness bestows.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

Ordinary Time Week 34: Friday

“He taught them a lesson. “Consider the fig tree and all the other trees.” (Luke 21:29)

Saint Ambrose of Milan offers the following insight on this verse from today’s Gospel:

“The fig tree therefore has a double meaning: when the wild is tamed or when sins abound. Like the believer’s faith that shriveled up before it will flower, so also sinners will glory through the grace of their transgressions. On the one hand is the fruit of faith, and on the other the lewdness of unbelief. The gardening of the Evangelist as farmer produces the fruit of the fig tree for me. We must not despair if sinners cover themselves with the leaves of the fig tree as with a garment of deceit, so that they may veil their conscience. Leaves without fruit are therefore suspicious.” (Exposition on the Gospel of Luke, 45)

Collect

Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

Ordinary Time Week 34: Wednesday

“... but not a hair on your head will be destroyed.” (Luke 21:18)

Saint Augustine of Hippo comments on this verse from the Gospel proclaimed at Mass today:

“We should have no doubt that our mortal flesh also will rise again at the end of the world. This is the Christian faith. This is the Catholic faith. This is the apostolic faith. Believe Christ when he says, “Not a hair of your head shall perish.” Putting aside all unbelief, consider how valuable you are. How can our Redeemer despise any person when he cannot despise a hair of that person’s head? How are we going to doubt that he intends to give eternal life to our soul and body? He took on a soul and body in which to die for us, which he laid down for us when he died and which he took up again that we might not fear death.” (Sermon 214)

Collect

Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

Ordinary Time Week 34: Tuesday

“All that you see here — the days will come when there will not be left a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down.” (Luke 21:6)

Saint Augustine of Hippo comments on this verse from the Gospel proclaimed at Mass today:

“The future signs that are foretold in the Gospel according to Luke are the same as those in Matthew and Mark. These three tell how the Lord answered his disciples. They asked him when the events that he had foretold of the destruction of the temple would happen. They also asked him what was to be the sign of his coming and of the end of the world. There is no discrepancy in the Gospels as to facts, although one tells one detail that another passes over or describes differently. They rather supplement each other when they are compared, and they thus give direction to the mind of the reader. It would take too long to discuss them all now. The Lord answered their questions by telling what was to happen from that time on: the destruction of Jerusalem that prompted their inquiry, and his coming in the church in which he does not cease to dwell until the end. Christ is recognized when he comes to his own, while his members are daily born. He said of this coming, “Hereafter you shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds.” (Letter 199)

Collect

Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen

— St Andrew Dŭng-Lạc and Companions —
Ordinary Time Week 34: Monday

“When he looked up he saw some wealthy people putting their offerings into the treasury and he noticed a poor widow putting in two small coins.” (Luke 21:1-2)

Pope Saint Leo the Great offers the following insight on these verses from today’s Gospel:

“Although the spite of some people does not grow gentle with any kindness, nevertheless the works of mercy are not fruitless, and kindness never loses what is offered to the ungrateful. May no one, dearly beloved, make themselves strangers to good works. Let no one claim that his poverty scarcely sufficed for himself and could not help another. What is offered from a little is great, and in the scale of divine justice, the quantity of gifts is not measured but the steadfastness of souls. The “widow” in the Gospel put two coins into the “treasury,” and this surpassed the gifts of all the rich. No mercy is worthless before God. No compassion is fruitless. He has given different resources to human beings, but he does not ask different affections.” (Sermon 20)

Collect

O God, source and origin of all fatherhood,
who kept the Martyrs Saint Andrew Dung-Lac
and his companions
faithful to the Cross of your Son,
even to the shedding of their blood,
grant, through their intercession,
that, spreading your love
among our brothers and sisters,
we may be your children both in name and in truth.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Glory to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen