Luke, 1:26-38:

The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, "Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you." But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his Kingdom there will be no end." But Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?" And the angel said to her in reply, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God." Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word." Then the angel departed from her.
The Gospel of the Lord.

In the Garden of Eden, Eve was tempted by the devil in the form of a serpent and disobeyed God by eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; she tempted Adam who also ate. Both were expelled from the Garden of Eden. We do Bible Studies in 6th Grade of CCD. I ask my class, "Is that fair?" Those who say "Yes" say God only gave them one rule, why is that so hard to obey. Those who say "No" say they should have received another chance. To which we answer, the second chance is what the whole rest of the Bible is about.
In this Church, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Perpetual Help, we have a stained glass window dedicated to the Immaculate Conception. It is the first window on the right, my left, directly behind the Blessed Sacrament Chapel where the Host is kept. The center panel shows Mary Immaculate with the serpent crushed beneath her foot. Beneath is the heraldic shield of Pope Pius IX who governed the Church for 32 years, the second longest time after Peter. The panel to the left has the ship of the Church, Papal Infallibility. When the pope speaks ex cathedra, from his Chair he is infallible. He has only done that once, on the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception, December 8, 1854, 100 years before the cornerstone for this Church was laid. Pope Pius IX also convened the first Vatican Council in 1869, broken up in 1870 when Garibaldi conquered the Papal States.

Gabriel: God's able-bodied one, or hero of God.

David was the ancestor of Joseph. David was also the ancestor of Mary.

Mary said "Yes" overturning the sin of Eve, who on the Devil's urging disobeyed God the Father and ate of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil - original sin.

There have been many iterations of Marian piety, and we need to stay close to the authentic tradition. St Ambrose gave it luminous expression in his comment on this passage. "Every soul who has believed both conceives and generates the Word of God and recognises his works. Let the soul of Mary be in each one of you to magnify the Lord. Let the spirit of Mary be in each one to exult in Christ."

Compare Mary's visit from the angel Gabriel with Zechariah's visit from the same angel Gabriel [My name is Gabriel. I stand before God.] Mary a humble young virgin in her home. Zechariah a priest of the Jewish faith in the Temple charged with responsibility for the holy of holies, the sanctuary, the Tabernacle. While Mary believes, Zechariah doubts and is struck dumb for his impertinence.

Prayer Service December 19, 2012

In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah; and he had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.

Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, according to the custom of the priesthood, it fell to him by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer is heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth; for he will be great before the Lord, and he shall drink no wine nor strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. And he will turn many of the sons of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared."

And Zechariah said to the angel, "How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years." And the angel answered him, "I am Gabriel, who stand in the presence of God; and I was sent to speak to you, and to bring you this good news. And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things come to pass, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time." And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they wondered at his delay in the temple. And when he came out, he could not speak to them, and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he made signs to them and remained dumb. And when his time of service was ended, he went to his home.

After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she hid herself, saying, "Thus the Lord has done to me in the days when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among men."


How not to speak to an angel.


Two Ways to Respond to God's Promise

There is another thing that I think Luke wants us to see from the contrast between the announcements of Jesus' birth and John's birth. Luke wants Theophilus to see the power of God and the preeminence of Jesus, but he also wants him (and us) to see the right way and the wrong way to respond to God's promise of power. This contrast is unavoidable when we look at how Zechariah on the one hand and Mary on the other hand respond to Gabriel's promise that God is going to give them a child and make the child great. Luke clearly wants Theophilus to follow Mary's example, not Zechariah's. Let's read both responses. Zechariah says to Gabriel,

"How shall I know this? For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years." And the angel answered him, "I am Gabriel, who stand in the presence of God; and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things come to pass, because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their time."
Zechariah did not believe Gabriel's promise. He was in a spot almost just like Abraham but did not respond like Abraham, of whom Paul said in Romans 4:19, "He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead because he was about 100 years old, or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah's womb. No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith giving glory to God." Zechariah did waver in unbelief. And I think Luke intends for us to contrast this response to Mary's faith, because Zechariah's wife (in verse 45) commends Mary in a way that sounds like a criticism of her husband's unbelief. She says, "Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord."

How did Mary's faith express itself? When the angel was finished predicting the miraculous birth of Jesus, Mary said in verse 34, "How can this be, since I have no husband?" Note the contrast: Zechariah says, How can I know this?—Mary says, How can this be? Zechariah asks for more evidence; Mary asks for an explanation. Zechariah says he can't be sure; Mary says she can't understand. Mary receives at least a partial explanation (which we will speak more of next time), but Zechariah receives a rebuke and is made dumb by the angel. Luke's point, therefore, to Theophilus is: be like Mary when you hear about Jesus, don't be like Zechariah.

12/18/12. Homily, Saturday, December 22, 2012

22 December
Lk 1:46-56

Mary said,
‘My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant.
Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
His mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
and lifted up the lowly;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
and sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his descendants for ever.’ 
And Mary remained with her for about three months and then returned to her home.



The magnificat and nunc dimmitis and the 23rd psalm are to be memorized for the comfort they give.



Mary’s Magnificat has been called the most revolutionary document in the world. Notice, however, that she did not say, “Let’s bring down the powerful…” but “God has brought down the powerful….” She is already celebrating the topsy-turvy logic of the Gospel.

She is an image of the new community, the Church. That is a community where the logic of the Gospel is intended to hold sway: the first is the last, the weak is the strong, the greatest is the least, the poorest is the richest, the lowest is the highest.... But when we look at the Church – at ourselves – sadly, we see that we live mostly by straightforward logic: power and privilege, palaces, badges and titles of honour.... And if I wear such a badge or carry the title of Christian, it doesn't guarantee that it stands for anything in the reality of my life.

Mary, the greatest revolutionary figure, still has many revolutions to accomplish.

December 17, 2012. Homily, Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Matthew 1:18-25

This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with child through the Holy Spirit. Joseph, her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. Such was h is intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."  All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophets:
        Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, 
       and they shall name him Emmanuel,
which means "God is with us." When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home. He had no relations with her until she bore a son, and he named him Jesus.
The Gospel of the Lord.

"Jesus" means "God saves."


 Immanuel literally means "God is with us" - cf. Mt 1:23
      2. This name describes the Messiah's NATURE; i.e., that He is
         Deity!
         a. Other passages expound upon this aspect of Christ's nature
            1) He is "Mighty God, Everlasting Father" - Isa 9:6
            2) He is "God", possessing the "glory of God"; the Great
               "I AM", who shared in the glory of the Father prior to
               His incarnation - cf. Jn 1:1-3,14; 8:56-59; 17:5 (cf.
               Isa 42:8)
            3) Declared to be "the Son of God with power" by virtue of
               His resurrection - Ro 1:3-4
            4) He was "equal with God" who willingly humbled Himself
               - cf. Php 2:5-11
            5) In Him "dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily"
               - Col 2:9
         b. Human minds, finite and feeble, wrestle with this great
            mystery, but Jesus was "God manifested in the flesh"!
            - 1Ti 3:16

CONCLUSION

1. Would you have a strong foundation for your faith and hope?
   a. Then keep in constant view your Savior's name "IMMANUEL" ("God
      with us")
   b. For having become flesh, God understands our human plight - cf.
      He 2:17-18

December 10, 2012. Homily, December 11, 2012

Matthew 18: 10, 11

"See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly Father. [For the Son of man is come to save that which is lost.] 

Matthew 18: 12-14
What is your opinion? If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine in the hills and go in search of the stray? And if he finds it, amen, I say to you, he rejoices more over it than over the ninety-nine that did not stray. In just the same way, it is not the will of your heavenly Father that one of these little ones be lost."
The Gospel of the Lord.


How valuable are we to the Lord. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Lk 21:18. (An assurance of the most special providence over all Christ's disciples.)Nothing is more astonishing than the care and concern of God for His followers.
God the Father does not want to lose any one of us, even any part of us, so that He [and His guardian angels, the angels in heaven] watches over us and will bring us with Him to heaven to be with Him to the end of time.

Christ will lead us through sufferings, to glory with Him.

Everything that is ordered is a creation of God.

"See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly Father. [For the Son of man is come to save that which is lost.]

Pope John Paul II said, "There is no place in the clergy for one who has abused a child in his care." And yet the Bishops' Council meeting in Texas considered whether the words of John Paul II meant one strike and you are out, two strikes and you are out or three or more strikes and you are out.

I remember seeing Archbishop Dolan meeting some elderly nuns, and him opening his arms, this great bear of a man, and enfolding them in his embrace and his love. How much I loved him, and love him now thinking about it, for that demonstration, for that innocent public witness, of the love of the Church.

December 7, 2012. Homily, Immaculate Conception.

Luke, 1:26-38:

The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, "Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you." But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his Kingdom there will be no end." But Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?" And the angel said to her in reply, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God." Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word." Then the angel departed from her.
The Gospel of the Lord.

Today is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, that Mary was born without original sin, thus preparing her to be the Mother of God.

Inn the Garden of Eden, Eve was tempted by the devil in the form of a serpent and disobeyed God by eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; she tempted Adam who also ate. Both were expelled from the Garden of Eden. We do Bible Studies in 6th Grade of CCD. I ask my class, "Is that fair?" Those who say "Yes" say God only gave them one rule, why is that so hard to obey. Those who say "No" say they should have received another chance. To which we answer, the second chance is what the whole rest of the Bible is about.
In this Church, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Perpetual Help, we have a stained glass window dedicated to the Immaculate Conception. It is the first window on the right, my left, directly behind the Blessed Sacrament Chapel where the Host is kept. The center panel shows Mary Immaculate with the serpent crushed beneath her foot. Beneath is the heraldic shield of Pope Pius IX who governed the Church for 32 years, the second longest time after Peter. The panel to the left has the ship of the Church, Papal Infallibility. When the pope speaks ex cathedra, from his Chair he is infallible. He has only done that once, on the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception, December 8, 1854, 100 years before the cornerstone for this Church was laid. Pope Pius IX also convened the first Vatican Council in 1869, broken up in 1870 when Garibaldi conquered the Papal States.

Gabriel: God's able-bodied one, or hero of God ,strong one of God.

David was the ancestor of Joseph. David was also the ancestor of Mary.

Mary said "Yes" overturning the sin of Eve, who on the Devil's urging disobeyed God the Father and ate of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil - original sin.

There have been many aberrations of Marian piety, and we need to stay close to the authentic tradition. St Ambrose gave it luminous expression in his comment on this passage. "Every soul who has believed both conceives and generates the Word of God and recognises his works. Let the soul of Mary be in each one of you to magnify the Lord. Let the spirit of Mary be in each one to exult in Christ."

Compare Mary's visit from the angel Gabriel with Zechariah's visit from the same angel Gabriel [My name is Gabriel. I stand before God.] Mary a humble young virgin in her home. Zechariah a priest of the Jewish faith in the Temple charged with responsibility for the holy of holies, the sanctuary, the Tabernacle. While Mary believes, Zechariah doubts and is struck dumb for his impertinence.

December 4, 2012. Homily December 5, 2012

Matthew 15:29-37, Mk. 6:34-44, Luke 9:10-17, John 6:1-13

The healing of many people.
At that time: Jesus walked by the Sea of Galilee, went up on the mountain and sat down there. Great crowds came to him, having with them the lame, the blind, the deformed, the mute and many others. They placed them at his feet and he cured them. The crowds were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the deformed made whole, the lame walking, and the blind able to see, and they glorified the God of Israel. 
The Feeding of the Four Thousand.
Jesus summoned his disciples and said, "My heart is moved with pity for the crowd, for they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry for fear that they may collapse on the way." The disciples said to him, "Where could we ever get enough bread in this deserted place to satisfy such a crowd?" Jesus said to them, "How many loaves do you have?" "Seven," they replied, "and a few fish." He ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground. He took the seven loaves and the fish, gave thanks, broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, who in turn gave them to the crowds. They all ate and were satisfied.  They picked up the fragments left over -- seven baskets full. [Those who ate were about five thousand men not counting women and children.]
The Gospel of the Lord.

The only miracle that appears in all four gospels, Twice in Mark and twice in Matthew and once in John and once in Luke.


No one who met Jesus was left untouched.  They were either attracted by his love and miraculous power or they were repelled by his claim to divinity.  Jesus' miracles demonstrated the power of God and the magnitude of his mercy. Should we be surprised to see Jesus making what seemed to be impossible demands upon his disciples?  When the disciples were confronted by Jesus with the task of feeding four thousand people many miles away from any source of food, they exclaimed: Where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them? The Israelites were confronted with the same dilemma when they fled Egypt and found themselves in a barren wilderness. Like the miraculous provision of manna in the wilderness, Jesus, himself provides bread in abundance for the hungry crowd who came out into the desert to seek him. The gospel records that all were satisfied and they took up what was leftover.  Are you satisfied with God's provision for you?

In the multiplication of the loaves and fishes we see a sign and a symbol of what God always does.  God knows our needs and he cares. When God gives, he gives in abundance.  The gospel account records that the leftovers from the miraculous meal was more than seven times the amount they began with.  Seven is a symbol of completion and wholeness. When God gives, he gives until we are satisfied. When God works for his people he gives abundantly -- more than we could deserve and more than we need. He nourishes us with his life-giving word and with the bread of heaven. In the kingdom of heaven God will feast us at his banquet table. Do you hunger for God and his kingdom?

Lord, you alone can satisfy the longing and hunger in our hearts.  May I thirst for your kingdom and find joy in your presence. Give me the true bread of heaven and nourish me with your life-giving word." 

December 3, 2012. Homily, Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Luke 10:21-24

Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, "I give you praise, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have kept these things hidden from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike. Yes, Father, such has been your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father. No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him."
Turning to the disciples in private he said, "Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. For I say to you, many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, but did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it."
The Gospel of the Lord.

Jesus is exultant on the successful return of the seventy who had been sent out two by two as missionaries. They were sent out as emissaries of the Lord, to witness to the Lord, to cure the sick, to be worthy of their role, and to preach what John the Baptist had preached - repent and repentance. Later, after the Passion, death and resurrection of the Lord, they will preach His way and anchor their preaching with the fact, that He had died for our sins and then rose again and ascended into heaven where He sits at the right hand of the Father as mediator for us.


I am reminded of my own ordination as deacon when Cardinal Egan sent me and the other ordinandi, my class-mates, out with the words, "Read the Gospel, believe what you read, preach what you believe, and practice what you preach."

And the instruction of St. Francis Assisi on how to preach. Preach the Gospel. Use words only if necessary.