22 December/Wednesday

1Sam 1:24-28/1Sam 2,1.4-5.6-7.8abcd/Luke 1,46-56

By Most Rev. Emmanuel Kofi Fianu, SVD

First Reading   1 Samuel 1:24-28

This is the child I prayed for: he is made over to the Lord.

When Hannah had weaned the infant Samuel, she took him up with her together with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour and a skin of wine, and she brought him to the temple of the Lord at Shiloh; and the child was with them. They slaughtered the bull and the child’s mother came to Eli. She said, ‘If you please, my lord. As you live, my lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you, praying to the Lord. This is the child I prayed for, and the Lord granted me what I asked him. Now I make him over to the Lord for the whole of his life. He is made over to the Lord.’ There she left him, for the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm     1 Samuel 2:1,4-8

My heart exults in the Lord my Saviour.

My heart exults in the Lord.

    I find my strength in my God;

my mouth laughs at my enemies

    as I rejoice in your saving help.

The bows of the mighty are broken,

    but the weak are clothed with strength.

Those with plenty must labour for bread,

    but the hungry need work no more.

The childless wife has children now

    but the fruitful wife bears no more.

It is the Lord who gives life and death,

    he brings men to the grave and back;

it is the Lord who gives poverty and riches.

    He brings men low and raises them on high.

He lifts up the lowly from the dust,

    from the dungheap he raises the poor

to set him in the company of princes

    to give him a glorious throne.

For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s,

    on them he has set the world.

Gospel Acclamation

Alleluia, alleluia!

Root of Jesse,

set up as a sign to the peoples,

come to save us

and delay no more.

Alleluia!

Gospel   Luke 1:46-56

The Almighty has done great things for me

Mary said:

‘My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord

and my spirit exults in God my saviour;

because he has looked upon his lowly handmaid.

Yes, from this day forward all generations will call me blessed,

for the Almighty has done great things for me.

Holy is his name,

and his mercy reaches from age to age for those who fear him.

He has shown the power of his arm,

he has routed the proud of heart.

He has pulled down princes from their thrones and exalted the lowly.

The hungry he has filled with good things, the rich sent empty away.

He has come to the help of Israel his servant, mindful of his mercy

– according to the promise he made to our ancestors –

of his mercy to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’

Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back home.

Reflection

The Gospel Reading presents the response of Mary to the inspired words of Elizabeth. It also informs us about how long Mary stayed with Elizabeth. The three months indicated in the story leads us to suppose that she assisted Elizabeth in her time of delivery before going back to Nazareth. Of greater significance in the Gospel Reading is the song or poem that Mary uttered in the presence of Elizabeth. Listening to what Elizabeth had to say about her, Mary acknowledges her own worth by affirming that although she occupies a humble position in society, God has honoured her and from now on all generations would call her blessed. We honour people by listening to them. Luke portrays this by presenting here the only section in all the Gospels in which women are given the opportunity to make long speeches.

In the Magnificat, Mary is bold enough to speak about controversial social issues. She affirms that God puts down rulers and lifts the humble or lowly. She also speaks of God feeding the hungry with good things but sending the rich away empty. These turnarounds of social status were not a welcome message to all but she spoke boldly about them. The Magnificat deals with theology, social ethics, politics and economy so it calls for careful study in order to discover the depth of the message which Mary conveys to us as we prepare for the birth of the son.

What Mary experienced for herself is also the mission of the son on earth. Jesus would humble himself for our sake so that he may lift us up and present us to the Father. His own life project that he would announce in the synagogue of Nazareth points to the type of social ethics he would promote through his mission. He would liberate those who suffer and restore the sight of those who are blind. May our meditation on the Magnificat help us encounter Christ in our own lives. May it help us transform our own outlook on social issues and learn to follow the way of the Gospels.

20 December/Monday

Isa 7:10-14/Psa 24:1-6/Luke 1:26-38

By Most Rev. Emmanuel Kofi Fianu, SVD

First Reading   Isaiah 7:10-14

The maiden is with child

The Lord spoke to Ahaz and said, ‘Ask the Lord your God for a sign for yourself coming either from the depths of Sheol or from the heights above.’ ‘No,’ Ahaz answered ‘I will not put the Lord to the test.’

    Then Isaiah said:

‘Listen now, House of David:

are you not satisfied with trying the patience of men

without trying the patience of my God, too?

The Lord himself, therefore,

will give you a sign.

It is this: the maiden is with child

and will soon give birth to a son

whom she will call Immanuel,

a name which means “God-is-with-us.”’

Responsorial Psalm  Psalm 23(24):1-6

Let the Lord enter! He is the king of glory.

The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness,

    the world and all its peoples.

It is he who set it on the seas;

    on the waters he made it firm.

Who shall climb the mountain of the Lord?

    Who shall stand in his holy place?

The man with clean hands and pure heart,

    who desires not worthless things.

He shall receive blessings from the Lord

    and reward from the God who saves him.

Such are the men who seek him,

    seek the face of the God of Jacob.

Gospel Acclamation

Alleluia, alleluia!

Emmanuel,

our king and lawgiver,

come and save us,

Lord our God.

Alleluia!

Gospel   Luke 1:26-38

'I am the handmaid of the Lord'

The angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the House of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. He went in and said to her, ‘Rejoice, so highly favoured! The Lord is with you.’ She was deeply disturbed by these words and asked herself what this greeting could mean, but the angel said to her, ‘Mary, do not be afraid; you have won God’s favour. Listen! You are to conceive and bear a son, and you must name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David; he will rule over the House of Jacob for ever and his reign will have no end.’ Mary said to the angel, ‘But how can this come about, since I am a virgin?’ ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you’ the angel answered ‘and the power of the Most High will cover you with its shadow. And so the child will be holy and will be called Son of God. Know this too: your kinswoman Elizabeth has, in her old age, herself conceived a son, and she whom people called barren is now in her sixth month, for nothing is impossible to God.’ ‘I am the handmaid of the Lord,’ said Mary ‘let what you have said be done to me.’ And the angel left her.

Reflection

After a reflection on the story of the visitation of Elizabeth by Mary, the liturgy proposes today the story of the annunciation of the conception of Jesus Christ. This particular reflection is not so much to commemorate the event of the annunciation but to help us recapitulate the event that culminates in the nativity of Jesus Christ. The greeting of the angel Gabriel at the beginning of the encounter is full of meaning. The words of the angel “Rejoice, so highly favoured! The Lord is with you” is an indication that God dwells in Mary. In the case of Mary, it is not a simple greeting but a confirmation of what she was to experience as she bears the Son of God in her womb. The Lord is with her because she has not only found favour with God but she is also destined to be the Mother of God.

Despite the great honour done to her, Mary portrays herself as a humble woman. She maintained her simplicity of heart and mind with which she questioned the angel to know more about what was to happen in her life. Hearing that she was to conceive by the power of the Holy Spirit, she decided to abandon herself in the hands of God. She decided to respond positively to the plan of God, thus collaborating with God in accomplishing his plan of salvation. The “yes” of Mary was essential in the accomplishment of the incarnation of the Son of God. It is also good to note how this story of the annunciation is seen as a fulfilment of what Isaiah prophesied in the First Reading to Ahaz that “the maiden is with child and would soon give birth to a son whom she would call Immanuel, a name which means ‘God-is-with-us’.’”

We learn from Mary how to be humble in life. She is our model for giving a positive response to the will of God in our lives. It is by saying yes always to the plan of God that we advance his plan of salvation. Christmas would be more meaningful for us all if we see it as an occasion to renew our “yes” to the Lord. Christmas is a time for us to cooperate with God in making known his Son who has come to dwell among us. May these days of preparation enable us to give ourselves completely to God in his son Jesus Christ. 

21 December/Tuesday

Cant 2:8-14 or Zeph 3:14-18a/Psa 33:2-3,11-12,20-21/Luke 1:39-45

By Most Rev. Emmanuel Kofi Fianu, SVD

First Reading   Song of Songs 2:8-14

See how my Beloved comes, leaping on the mountains

I hear my Beloved.

See how he comes

leaping on the mountains,

bounding over the hills.

My Beloved is like a gazelle,

like a young stag.

See where he stands

behind our wall.

He looks in at the window,

he peers through the lattice.

My Beloved lifts up his voice,

he says to me,

‘Come then, my love,

my lovely one, come.

For see, winter is past,

the rains are over and gone.

The flowers appear on the earth.

The season of glad songs has come,

the cooing of the turtledove

is heard in our land.

The fig tree is forming its first figs

and the blossoming vines give out their fragrance.

Come then, my love,

my lovely one, come.

My dove, hiding in the clefts of the rock,

in the coverts of the cliff,

show me your face,

let me hear your voice;

for your voice is sweet

and your face is beautiful.’

Responsorial Psalm  Psalm 32(33):2-3,11-12,20-21

Ring out your joy to the Lord, O you just; O sing him a song that is new.

Give thanks to the Lord upon the harp,

    with a ten-stringed lute sing him songs.

O sing him a song that is new,

    play loudly, with all your skill.

His own designs shall stand for ever,

    the plans of his heart from age to age.

They are happy, whose God is the Lord,

    the people he has chosen as his own.

Our soul is waiting for the Lord.

    The Lord is our help and our shield.

In him do our hearts find joy.

    We trust in his holy name.

Gospel Acclamation

Alleluia, alleluia!

Key of David, who open the gates of the eternal kingdom,

come to liberate from prison

the captive who lives in darkness.

Alleluia!

Gospel  Luke 1:39-45

Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord?

Mary set out and went as quickly as she could to a town in the hill country of Judah. She went into Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. Now as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. She gave a loud cry and said, ‘Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord? For the moment your greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leapt for joy. Yes, blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.’

Reflection

The First Reading is a love song in which the girl is in the parents’ home and looks out to see the Beloved coming on the mountains. He finally comes to stand near the wall of the house and gazes through the window. It is not clear if what is narrated was happening in the sight of the girl or she was only recalling a past experience. Whatever be the case, she narrates what the lover said to her and how he yearns for her. He invites her saying: “Come then, my love, my lovely one, come”. The story shows the extent to which the Beloved manifested his love for the girl. It is true that love should not be wrongly stimulated and we should not read any mischief into the action and words of the Beloved but consider him to be sincere. Granting that he is sincere with his words, we notice in the story a certain compulsion about true love. When love is genuine, the Beloved is ready to go all out to convince the girl he loves to accept his proposal.

The story makes use of the psychological influence of the alteration of the seasons on love. The Beloved chose the spring season for his visit. It is a time of new and vibrant life in nature. This corresponds well with his own behaviour as he leaps upon the mountains and hills in search of her girl. Spring is the season when flowers burst forth, birds sing lovely tunes in the trees, fruit trees show their fruit and the smell of spring blossoms all over. All this transformation of nature has its influence on human relationship. It is therefore not strange that love is often associated with spring which is a time for new life and vitality.

We are invited today to taste a similar experience of the Beloved and her girl as we await the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. His coming is like the spring time because he brings us new life. His coming is like the visit of the Beloved because he comes to announce God’s infinite love for us. Elizabeth experienced and testified to this love in the Gospel Reading at the visit of Mary. May we also open our hearts to welcome the Lord who is to be born in our midst.

19 December/Sunday/4th Sunday of Advent – C

Mic 5:1-4/Psa 80:2-3,15-16,18-19/Heb 10:5-10/Luke 1:39-45

By Most Rev. Emmanuel Kofi Fianu, SVD

First Reading   Micah 5:1-4

He will stand and feed his flock with the power of the Lord

The Lord says this:

But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,

the least of the clans of Judah,

out of you will be born for me

the one who is to rule over Israel;

his origin goes back to the distant past,

to the days of old.

The Lord is therefore going to abandon them

till the time when she who is to give birth gives birth.

Then the remnant of his brothers will come back

to the sons of Israel.

He will stand and feed his flock

with the power of the Lord,

with the majesty of the name of his God.

They will live secure, for from then on he will extend his power

to the ends of the land.

He himself will be peace.

Responsorial Psalm  Psalm 79(80):2-3,15-16,18-19

Lord of hosts, bring us back; let your face shine on us and we shall be saved.

O shepherd of Israel, hear us,

    shine forth from your cherubim throne.

O Lord, rouse up your might,

    O Lord, come to our help.

God of hosts, turn again, we implore,

    look down from heaven and see.

Visit this vine and protect it,

    the vine your right hand has planted.

May your hand be on the man you have chosen,

    the man you have given your strength.

And we shall never forsake you again;

    give us life that we may call upon your name.

Second Reading Hebrews 10:5-10

God, here I am! I am coming to obey your will

This is what Christ said, on coming into the world:

You who wanted no sacrifice or oblation,

prepared a body for me.

You took no pleasure in holocausts or sacrifices for sin;

then I said,

just as I was commanded in the scroll of the book,

‘God, here I am! I am coming to obey your will.’

Notice that he says first: You did not want what the Law lays down as the things to be offered, that is: the sacrifices, the oblations, the holocausts and the sacrifices for sin, and you took no pleasure in them; and then he says: Here I am! I am coming to obey your will. He is abolishing the first sort to replace it with the second. And this will was for us to be made holy by the offering of his body made once and for all by Jesus Christ.

Gospel Acclamation   Luke 1:38

Alleluia, alleluia!

I am the handmaid of the Lord:

let what you have said be done to me.

Alleluia!

Gospel  Luke 1:39-45

Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord?

Mary set out and went as quickly as she could to a town in the hill country of Judah. She went into Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. Now as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. She gave a loud cry and said, ‘Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord? For the moment your greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leapt for joy. Yes, blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.’

Reflection

The Gospel Reading is the account of the visitation of Elizabeth by Mary. Reading this narrative a few days before the celebration of the nativity of Jesus helps us relive the joy of Elizabeth when she encountered her Lord through the visit of her cousin, Mary. Luke informs the reader of two things that happened to Elizabeth when she heard the greetings of Mary. She was filled with the Holy Spirit, which is an expression of her divine possession. Apart from that, the child in her womb leaped for joy. This is not strange in Jewish tradition because the Jews are familiar with the idea that unborn children may take part in world events occurring around them. Such participations anticipate their later positions in life. For example, in Gen 25 we read about the struggles of Esau and the twin-brother Jacob in the womb which is in anticipation of their position in life. In the case of our Gospel Reading, we can say that Elizabeth responded to the greetings of Mary while the unborn John the Baptist responded to the presence of the unborn Jesus. These two observations are confirmed by Elizabeth when she said to Mary “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.” Elizabeth’s words came from her inspired interpretation of the movement of the unborn child in her womb. In other words, the Holy Spirit that filled her at the greeting of Mary was her source of inspiration. Other than that, we would find it difficult to explain how she got to know that Mary was “the mother of her Lord”. The intense nature of what she said reveals the depth of the inspiration she received.

There is also a double blessing in the greeting of Elizabeth that is worth our attention. She said: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb”. Similar formulae are found in two forms in the Old Testament. It is either a two-lined blessing in which the second line reveals the cause of the blessedness or a double blessing where God is blessed as the source of the blessedness of the human person who has been blessed. It is not easy to say which of the two forms is used in the Gospel Reading because there are elements of both forms in the formulation. We can say that Mary’s blessedness is in bearing the Messiah who is blessed because of his unique role and identity. Although Elizabeth speaks about the blessedness of mother and child, the nature of their blessedness remains unspecified in her own words. It is only betrayed in the question that she asks in Luke 1,43: “And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me?” Her question reflects reverence in the face of God’s action and presence. It also expresses further what she meant by the blessedness of Mary and the unborn child. She revealed her joy at being visited by the one who is bearing the messianic child.

The encounter between the two women and their unborn children reveal what should be our own reaction to the birth story of Jesus. The approaching nativity of Jesus should bring joy to all who hear that our Saviour is at the door. His advent is a blessing for all who welcome him because it introduces the divine presence into our lives. His coming is also an occasion to bless God who in his bountiful mercy has decided to reveal his goodness to humanity. Our sins do not merit us such a great gift but God has blessed us with his only begotten Son so that we may have the fullness of life in him. As we await the Christmas event, we are invited to bless God and thank him for the great gift of his Son.