Loaves and Fishes

                   18th Sunday in Ordinary Time

                  A cycle

 

      

The first reading each Sunday is usually from the Old Testament or Hebrew scriptures. Besides it’s own value, the first reading serves as an introduction to the Gospel reading. I think that the majority of these readings are taken from the Prophet Isaiah whose words, uttered more than six hundred years before the birth of Jesus, have always been thought to refer to the Messiah.

 

However, these words are not Isaiah’s words since he tells us that he is merely passing on the word of the Lord to us. In today’s reading the Lord invites all those who are thirsty to “come to the water;” and all who are poor to drink wine and milk “without paying and without cost;” and all who are hungry to “eat well,…and delight in rich fare.”

 

The Church uses this passage from Isaiah to introduce St. Matthew’s gospel account of the feeding of the 5000, a miracle that has always been regarded as pointing to the miracle of the Holy Eucharist. But before we get to the actual account of the “loaves and fishes” let’s look at the beginning of this gospel passage.

 

When Jesus heard of the death of John the Baptist,

He withdrew in a boat to a deserted place by himself.

 

We believe that Jesus was true God and true Man, but I think that we tend to overlook the actual humanity of Jesus. We might have reverence for His Sacred Heart but sometimes I think we read a gospel passage like this and think that Jesus had a heart of stone. There is no sign of grief or sorrow in Matthew’s account. He just tells us that Jesus went off by himself when he heard the awful news.  

 

Maybe the Evangelist wanted us to use our own imagination or experience to understand the actual emotional response of Jesus. My eye surgeon once told me that only 2% of the eye drops I have to put in my eye each day actually get through the defensive wall that protects our eyes. In the same way, I think that our souls have been made with a defensive wall that protects us from most of the horror and tragedy we hear about each day on the news. Otherwise, how could we calmly read about murders, wars, earthquakes, tsunamis, and famine and calmly go about our business each day? Once in a while, a public event like September 11 stops us dead in our tracks but it doesn’t take long for things to get back to normal unless we have been personally involved.

 

It is only when the bad news becomes personal that it can penetrate the outer defenses of our souls.  The death of a loved one especially if that person was young or in the prime of life is truly devastating. Sickness and suffering within our families can be overwhelming. I have heard it said that everyone in church is there for a reason. Despite our outward calm most of us have some hidden pain that we bring to the altar each Sunday. How can we deal with it? How did Jesus deal with the tragic news of the death of John the Baptist?

      

He had a human as well as a divine nature and so we see him act like many of us would do when faced with a great tragedy. He needed some time to Himself. But then, He got back to work. He saw the vast crowd and despite His own grief, “his heart was moved with pity for them, and he cured their sick.”

 

Some people think that suffering and pain come from God. It is hard not to sympathize with those people who ask, “How could God have allowed this suffering to come to me?” The pain and suffering does not come from God, it comes from the world we live in. Much of it is even caused by our own efforts. But Jesus was a healer who never hurt anyone. He came to bring us happiness, not sorrow. His words and miracles provide a way for us to deal with the sorrows that this world provides. 

 

 Look at today’s account of the feeding of the hungry crowd. This miracle should remind us of the way we are fed in the sacrament of the Eucharist. Jesus took the little bit of food that they had and offered it up to his Father in heaven. He said a blessing and broke the loaves just as the priest does at Mass. Then he asked the Apostles to distribute the food to the assembly. They were all fed just as Isaiah had predicted. Despite his own personal grief Jesus took care of the needs of others. He expects us to do the same.

 

It is interesting to note that before the miracle Jesus had expected the Apostles themselves to provide for the hungry crowd. He said, “There is no need for them to go away, give them some food yourselves.” Is it in the Eucharist and in the care for others that we will find solace for our own pain? The love of God is the true food that Isaiah talks about, and it is given freely, not like the false or junk food that we accept today as a costly substitute.

 

In today’s second reading from the Letter to the Romans, St. Paul says that no amount of tribulation can separate us from the love of Christ. Despite all of his own pain and suffering, he could write, 

 

What will separate us from the love of Christ?

Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword?

 

For I am convinced that neither death, nor life,…

Nor any other creature will be able to separate us

From the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

###

Reading 1. I Isaiah 55: 1-3

Reading II. Romans 8:35, 37-39

Gospel. Matthew 14: 13-21 (Loaves and Fishes)

Behold the Lamb

                   2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

                  B cycle

 

 

Today is the second Sunday in Ordinary time. Ordinary time signifies that part of the church year which is not part of any particular feast, like Christmas or Easter. We might ask what happened to the first Sunday in Ordinary time? Usually, the first Sunday in Ordinary time will celebrate the Baptism of the Lord. It marks the beginning of the public life of Jesus with his baptism by John the Baptist at the river Jordan. Today, we follow up on that important event.

 

But let's begin by taking a look at our today’s first reading from the book of Samuel. It tells of the calling of Samuel, one of the great figures in Hebrew history. Samuel had been placed in the service of the Temple to fulfill a promise his mother, Hannah, had made to the Lord. While sleeping he hears a call but thinks it is just his mentor, the priest Eli. Eli tells him to go back to sleep but after another call, he realizes that something special is happening. He instructs the young Samuel to respond if he hears the call again. “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” Once Samuel responded to the call, the Lord was with him, or, to put it another way, he was with the Lord.

 

Something similar happens in today’s gospel reading. After the Baptism of Jesus, John the Baptist points to Jesus and tells his own followers that Jesus is the Lamb of God, the Messiah, the Christ. Two of them, Andrew and another unnamed one whom scholars assume to be the gospel writer, respond to their mentor’s guidance and follow Jesus that very day. Almost immediately they realize that He is the Messiah. Andrew goes off to tell his brother, Simon, and bring him to Jesus. When he arrives, Jesus calls him.

 

“You are Simon, the son of John,

You will be called Cephas” –which is translated Peter." 

 

Just as the life of Samuel would never be the same after he listens to and responds to the call of the Lord, the lives of Peter, Andrew, John and the other disciples would never be the same after their initial contact with the Lord.They have been called and they will have to spread the word to others. In the same way, we who have heard the Word have the same responsibility. We may not realize that we have been called, and it will probably not be as dramatic as the call to Samuel or Peter.

 

Jesus is going to embark on a mission that will end with his crucifixion and death. Fortunately, the sacrifice of Jesus is sufficient for us. Most of us will not have to face torture and a cruel death. But if we call ourselves followers of Christ, we will have to give up, in our own little way, our own lives in the service of others.

 

Husbands will give up their lives for their wives, and wives for their husbands. Both will have to sacrifice for their children. When they grow older, the children will have to sacrifice for their parents. Scripture tells us that people without spouses and children are called to even greater sacrifice. Not one of us is exempt. To save our life, we must lose it.

 

We all love sports but don’t we admire those players who sacrifice themselves for the good of the team? Even baseball has a special play called a “sacrifice” where a player gives himself up to advance a teammate. 

 

So in today’s second reading when St. Paul tells the Corinthians that their bodies are members of Christ, he is not telling them to become plaster saints. He is calling them to a life of hard work and sacrifice in doing the work of the Lord. Just as Jesus did, he is calling us to become disciples, and “take one for the team.” He asks,

 

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?

 

###

Reading 1. 1 Samuel 3: 3b-10, 15

Reading II. 1 Corinthians 6: 13c-15a, 17-20

Gospel. John 1: 35-42 (Behold the Lamb of God).

Prepare the Way

 +                2nd Sunday of Advent

                  B cycle

 

 

Today's first reading comes from the prophet Isaiah. In fact, most of the Old Testament readings in Advent come from Isaiah. He along with John the Baptist are the voices of Advent. Today's reading from Isaiah has always been regarded as an introduction to the prophetic mission of John the Baptist. 

 

       A voice cries out:

      In the desert prepare the way of the Lord!

 

Now we usually think of the prophets as foretelling the future, and it is true that Isaiah presents us with a picture of a new world to come. However, the special talent of the Old Testament prophets was their ability to describe with brutal accuracy the wrongs of their own day and call for a day when things would be set right. 

 

As a critic of his own times, Isaiah gives us an introduction to the great New Testament prophet, John the Baptist. In today's gospel, St. Mark quotes Isaiah's famous lines that refer to John.

 

      Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you;

      He will prepare your way.

A voice of one crying out in the desert,

      Prepare the way of the Lord,

      make straight his paths.

 

In fact Mark’s gospel which we will use throughout this liturgical year begins with the mission of John the Baptist. Unlike Luke and Matthew, Mark omits the story of the nativity and infancy of Jesus and begins with the outset of his public life. In Mark’s gospel John is portrayed as a very popular figure whose proclamation of a baptism of repentance was attracting people from the whole Judean countyside. Nevertheless, he is an unusual public figure in that he minimizes his own importance and deflects attention from himself. He proclaims:

 

One mightier than I is coming after me.

I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals.

I have baptized you with water;

He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.

 

John is, of course, calling attention to Jesus. What he calls a baptism of repentance is a way for all of us to prepare for the coming of Jesus. 

 

Repentance is about looking over our lives and taking stock of who we are and where we are going. Advent is a perfect time for us to do so. It is the beginning of a new year so to speak. For centuries the Church has advised us to  examine our conscience. In particular, such a review might examine a dominant fault and work on ways to correct it, or it might consider a particular strength or virtue and consider ways to increase it.

 

Even though the phrase, “examination of conscience”, may sound strange to us today, the idea is not outmoded. At the end of each year business people are advised to look back on the past year and consider what worked and what didn't work. They spend hours examining their strengths and weaknesses. For the upcoming year they are urged to prepare a business plan where they will work on developing their strengths and overcoming their weaknesses.

 

Athletes do the same thing. Every week coaches spend hours examining game films to see what they did right and what they did wrong. Whole practices are devoted to making the necessary corrections and incorporating them into next weeks game plan. Why do we spend so much time preparing for games but so little time preparing for the game of life? 

 

When it comes to the most important things in our own lives we fail to examine our conscience? As the old saying goes, people don't plan to fail, they fail to plan. What did we do wrong last year? How did we hurt ourselves and our loved ones? Can we begin now to rid ourselves of bad or destructive habits? 

 

On the positive side what strengths or virtues do we possess? What can we do to build spiritual muscle memory so that good behavior becomes easy and natural to us? The word virtue merely means a good habit, while a vice is a bad habit. Now is the time to kick the bad habits and concentrate on the good. 

 

In today’s second reading, St. Peter asks, “what sort of persons ought you to be,” and urges us to “be eager to be found without spot or blemish.”

 

The biggest criticism against Christians today is that we are no different than anyone else. Rather than being a light to the nations, the darkness in our society seems to be overwhelming us. We don't have to go about wearing our religion on our sleeve but in our homes, our schools, and in our businesses we should be producing good fruit. We don't need laws and judges to bring Christ back into Christmas. All we need is for Christians to act like Christians.

###

Reading 1. Isaiah 40: 1-5, 9-11

Reading II. 2 Peter 3: 8-14

Gospel. Mark 1: 1-8 (John the Baptist appeared)

Prepare the Way

 +                                  2nd Sunday of Advent

                                   

 

 

Today's first reading comes from the prophet Isaiah. In fact, most of the Old Testament readings in Advent come from Isaiah. He along with John the Baptist are the voices of Advent. Today's reading from Isaiah has always been regarded as an introduction to the prophetic mission of John the Baptist. 

 

             A voice cries out:

            In the desert prepare the way of the Lord!

 

Now we usually think of the prophets as foretelling the future, and it is true that Isaiah presents us with a picture of a new world to come. However, the special talent of the Old Testament prophets was their ability to describe with brutal accuracy the wrongs of their own day and call for a day when things would be set right. 

 

As a critic of his own times, Isaiah gives us an introduction to the great New Testament prophet, John the Baptist. In today's gospel, St. Mark quotes Isaiah's famous lines that refer to John.

 

            Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you;

            He will prepare your way.

A voice of one crying out in the desert,

            Prepare the way of the Lord,

            make straight his paths.

 

In fact Mark’s gospel, which we will use throughout this liturgical year, begins with the mission of John the Baptist. Unlike Luke and Matthew, Mark omits the story of the nativity and infancy of Jesus and begins with the outset of his public life. In Mark’s gospel John is portrayed as a very popular figure whose proclamation of a baptism of repentance was attracting people from the whole Judean countyside. Nevertheless, he is an unusual public figure in that he minimizes his own importance and deflects attention from himself. He proclaims:

 

One mightier than I is coming after me.

I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals.

I have baptized you with water;

He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.

 

John is, of course, calling attention to Jesus. What he calls a baptism of repentance is a way for all of us to prepare for the coming of Jesus. 

 

 

Repentance is about looking over our lives and taking stock of who we are and where we are going. Advent is a perfect time for us to do so. It is the beginning of a new year so to speak. For centuries the Church has advised us to  examine our conscience. In particular, such a review might examine a dominant fault and work on ways to correct it, or it might consider a particular strength or virtue and consider ways to increase it.

 

Even though the phrase, “examination of conscience”, may sound strange to us today, the idea is not outmoded. At the end of each year business people are advised to look back on the past year and consider what worked and what didn't work. They spend hours examining their strengths and weaknesses. For the upcoming year they are urged to prepare a business plan where they will work on developing their strengths and overcoming their weaknesses.

 

Athletes do the same thing. Every week coaches spend hours examining game films to see what they did right and what they did wrong. Whole practices are devoted to making the necessary corrections and incorporating them into next weeks game plan. Why do we spend so much time preparing for games but so little time preparing for the game of life? 

 

When it comes to the most important things in our own lives we fail to examine our conscience? As the old saying goes, people don't plan to fail, they fail to plan. What did we do wrong last year? How did we hurt ourselves and our loved ones? Can we begin now to rid ourselves of bad or destructive habits? 

 

On the positive side what strengths or virtues do we possess? What can we do to build spiritual muscle memory so that good behavior becomes easy and natural to us? The word virtue merely means a good habit, while a vice is a bad habit. Now is the time to kick the bad habits and concentrate on the good. 

 

In today’s second reading, St. Peter asks, “what sort of persons ought you to be,” and urges us to “be eager to be found without spot or blemish.”

 

The biggest criticism against Christians today is that we are no different than anyone else. Rather than being a light to the nations, the darkness in our society seems to be overwhelming us. We don't have to go about wearing our religion on our sleeve but in our homes, our schools, and in our businesses we should be producing good fruit. We don't need laws and judges to bring Christ back into Christmas. All we need is for Christians to act like Christians.

###

Reading 1. Isaiah 40: 1-5, 9-11

Reading II. 2 Peter 3: 8-14

Gospel. Mark 1: 1-8 (John the Baptist appeared)

Advent: Examination of Conscience

+                                  2nd Sunday of Advent

                                   

Today's first reading comes from the prophet Isaiah. In fact, all the Old Testament readings in Advent come from Isaiah. He along with John the Baptist are the voices of Advent. Today's reading contains perhaps the most colorful and famous passage found in all of the prophetic writings. It is the story of the "peaceable kingdom" where

             the wolf shall be a guest of the lamb,

            and the leopard shall lie down with the kid...

Now we usually think of the prophets as foretelling the future, and it is true that Isaiah presents us with a picture of a new world to come. However, the special talent of the Old Testament prophets was their ability to describe with brutal accuracy the wrongs of their own day. 

If we listen carefully, we can see that Isaiah is contrasting the rule of the future King with the actual state of things in his own time. He complains that people, especially those in authority, judge things solely by appearances and not by principle or justice. They make up their minds by hearsay. Neither the poor not the land's afflicted receive justice or mercy. The ruthless and the wicked prevail. If the future King will rule with justice and faithfulness, it is clear that the present rulers do just the opposite.

As a critic of his own times, Isaiah gives us an introduction to the great New Testament prophet, John the Baptist. In today's gospel, St. Matthew tells us that Isaiah's famous lines refer to John.

            A voice of one crying out in the desert,

            Prepare the way of the Lord,

            make straight his paths.

Like Isaiah, John is a critic of the leaders of his own time. Although people were coming from all over to be baptized in the Jordan, John lashes out at the Pharisees and the Sadducees, the leaders of the Jews, for their hypocrisy. Archaeologists tell us how important ritual bathing or baptism was to the Jews at the time of Christ. The frequent washings were not just to cleanse the body, they were also meant to purify the soul.

When the Pharisees and Sadducees come to John's baptism, he calls them a "brood of vipers" because they have no true repentance for the wrongs they have done. They think that it's enough to go through the ritual washing of the body without a thought to a subsequent change of their behavior. He tells them that their status as leaders of the community and descendants of Abraham means nothing unless they "produce good fruit as evidence of ... repentance."

What is good fruit? We can go back to Isaiah's list. We should not judge others merely by appearances. We should avoid deciding merely by hearsay. We should treat those less fortunate than ourselves with fairness and compassion, and not take advantage of them because of their circumstances. We should avoid ruthless and wicked behavior. Is our society any different than Isaiah's? 

When John speaks of repentance, he is talking about looking over our lives and taking stock of who we are and where we are going. Advent is a perfect time for us to do so. It is the beginning of a new year so to speak. For centuries the Church has advised us to  examine our conscience. In particular, such a review might examine a dominant fault and work on ways to correct it, or it might consider a particular strength or virtue and consider ways to increase it.

Even though the phrase may sound strange to us today, the idea is not outmoded. At the end of each year business people are advised to look back on the past year and consider what worked and what didn't work. They spend hours examining their strengths and weaknesses. For the upcoming year they are urged to prepare a business plan where they will work on developing their strengths and overcoming their weaknesses.

Athletes do the same thing. Every week coaches spend hours examining game films to see what they did right and what they did wrong. Whole practices are devoted to making the necessary corrections and incorporating them into next weeks game plan. Why do we spend so much time preparing for games but so little time preparing for the game of life? 

When it comes to the most important things in our own lives we fail to examine our conscience? As the old saying goes, people don't plan to fail, they fail to plan. What did we do wrong last year? How did we hurt ourselves and our loved ones? Can we begin now to rid ourselves of bad or destructive habits? 

On the positive side what strengths or virtues do we possess? What can we do to build spiritual muscle memory so that good behavior becomes easy and natural to us? The word virtue merely means a good habit, while a vice is a bad habit. Now is the time to kick the bad habits and concentrate on the good. In today's reading from St. Paul's letter to the Romans he speaks of the quality of endurance. We are in this life for the long haul and must be prepared to go the distance. 

The biggest criticism against Christians today is that we are no different than anyone else. Rather than being a light to the nations, the darkness in our society seems to be overwhelming us. We don't have to go about wearing our religion on our sleeve but in our homes, our schools, and in our businesses we should be producing good fruit. We don't need laws and judges to bring Christ back into Christmas. All we need is for Christians to act like Christians.

###

Reading 1. Isaiah 11: 1-10

Reading II. Romans 15: 4-9

Gospel. Matthew 3: 1-12 (John the Baptist appeared).

Advent Preparation

                                    2nd Sunday of Advent

                                 

In this liturgical year the first reading for each of the Sundays in Advent is taken from a different Hebrew prophet. Last week it was Isaiah and this week it is the somewhat lesser known Baruch. It is common for us to think of a prophet as someone who foretells the future but usually the Hebrew prophets just talk about their own time, especially its problems. They also stress the need for change. Isn’t that what Advent is all about? It is a time for us to take stock of where and who we are; and to realize what we need to do to get back on track.

Baruch begins by urging Jerusalem to take off its “robe of mourning and misery.” Now, whenever we hear an Old Testament prophet use the word “Jerusalem”, we should realize that he is not speaking about a city or place. Jerusalem means the whole nation or people of God. In the same way, we speak of the Church today as the people of God. In Baruch’s time the people had been scattered and dispersed by foreign conquest. As he says, they have even been forcibly led away into exile and captivity.

He does, however, predict a return, a restoration of the Kingdom, in words similar to those used by Isaiah last week,

            For God had commanded

That every lofty mountain be made low,

And that the age-old depths and gorges

Be filled to level ground, 

That Israel may advance secure in the glory of God.

These words are echoed in today’s gospel account and St. Luke sees their fulfillment in “the baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins” preached by John the Baptist, the last great Hebrew prophet. In other words, all this business about leveling the mountains, straightening the roads, and filling in the gorges has to do with our own personal lives. 

John the Baptist was a real historical figure who appeared at the appointed time to point the way to the One who was going to change everything. But notice, he does not say that God will do the heavy road construction work. It is up to us to prepare the way, make straight the paths, fill the valleys, and level the mountains and hills.

When John speaks of repentance, he is talking about looking over our lives and taking stock of who we are and where we are going. Advent is a perfect time for us to do so. It is the beginning of a new year so to speak. For centuries the Church has advised us to examine our conscience. In particular, such a review might examine a dominant fault and work on ways to correct it, or it might consider a particular strength or virtue and consider ways to increase it.

Even though the phrase may sound strange to us today, the idea is not outmoded. At the end of each year business people are advised to look back on the past year and consider what worked and what didn't work. They spend hours examining their strengths and weaknesses. For the upcoming year they are urged to prepare a business plan where they will work on developing their strengths and overcoming their weaknesses.

Athletes do the same thing. Every week coaches spend hours examining game films to see what they did right and what they did wrong. Whole practices are devoted to making the necessary corrections and incorporating them into next week’s game plan. Why do we spend so much time preparing for games but so little time preparing for the game of life? 

When it comes to the most important things in our own lives we fail to examine our conscience? As the old saying goes, people don't plan to fail, they fail to plan. What did we do wrong last year? How did we hurt ourselves and our loved ones? Can we begin now to rid ourselves of bad or destructive habits? 

On the positive side what strengths or virtues do we possess? What can we do to build spiritual muscle memory so that good behavior becomes easy and natural to us? The word virtue merely means a good habit, while a vice is a bad habit. Now is the time to kick the bad habits and concentrate on the good. 

In today's second reading from St. Paul's letter to the Philippians he ends with a little prayer in which he urges his people to reflect on their lives and consider what they really value:

And this is my prayer:

That your love may increase ever more and more

In knowledge and every kind of perception,

To discern what is of value,

So that you may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ…

The biggest criticism against Christians today is that we are no different than anyone else. Rather than being a light to the nations, the darkness in our society seems to be overwhelming us. We don't have to go about wearing our religion on our sleeve but in our homes, our schools, and in our businesses we should be producing good fruit. We don't need laws and judges to bring Christ back into Christmas. All we need is for Christians to act like Christians.

###

Reading 1. Baruch 5: 1-9

Reading II. Philippians 1: 4-6, 8-11

Gospel. Luke 3:1-6 (Prepare the Way).

Baptism of Repentance

Nativity of St. John the Baptist

Michelangelo: The Doni Tondo
Behold the lamb of God
The young Baptist looks on
as Mary elevates her Son

Today is usually the 12th Sunday in Ordinary time. By "ordinary" the Church means the time of year not marked by great feasts like Christmas and Easter. But today just happens to be the feast day of the birth or nativity of St. John the Baptist and that feast is so great that it supersedes the ordinary Sunday readings.

In the readings for this special feast day the Church talks of John, the precursor, the messenger, the herald of Jesus. The Church has always interpreted the words of Isaiah as referring to John.

The Lord called me from birth,

from my mother's womb he gave me my name.

He made of me a sharp-edged sword...

He made me a polished arrow, ...

You are my servant, he said to me,

Israel, through whom I show my glory.

Who was John? The gospels from today's Mass as well as from yesterday's vigil Mass give us an account of the birth of John. The story as narrated by St. Luke bears a remarkable resemblance to the birth of Jesus. Commentators have noted that both accounts are like plays or dramas which can be broken down into acts and scenes. But first, let's look at the cast of characters. In the first account we have Zechariah and Elizabeth, the parents of John. Then, we have Mary, the future mother of Jesus. The angel Gabriel appears in both accounts.

Zechariah's name means "Yahweh remembers." He was one of the 800 priests of the Temple and he could trace his ancestry back to Aaron, the first high priest. The name of his wife, Elizabeth, means, "God swears." Elizabeth, the cousin of Mary, was a good, holy woman but advanced in years and childless. The name John, which has such importance in today's reading, means "God is gracious." Mary, in Hebrew Miriam, means "the exalted one." Jesus, or Yeshua, means "God's salvation or savior."

The names alone would indicate the importance in Luke's gospel of this account of the births of John and Jesus. But we should also notice the similarities between the two dramas. God's messenger, the angel Gabriel, appears to Zachary in the inner sanctum of the Temple. Later he appears to Mary. Both of them express anxiety at the appearance but are told, "Do not fear."

The angel makes a mysterious announcement and both Zachary and Mary respond with a question. Zachary's doubt causes him to be struck dumb until after the birth of John when his acceptance restores his speech. But Mary's acceptance; "Be it done unto me according to thy word" is immediate.

There are even more parallels but it is enough to say that St. Luke didn't mean these accounts to be merely charming little stories. The life and mission of John is linked with the life and mission of Jesus from the beginning. John preached repentance while the gospel of Jesus is all about the completion of repentance--forgiveness and healing. Now we don't have to go out into the desert to find repentance. In fact, the Church makes it kind of easy for us. Forget for a moment the great sacrament of Penance. Did you ever notice how often during the Mass we are given opportunities for repentance and forgiveness?

Right at the beginning we ask for mercy from the Trinity in the Kyrie, one of the oldest prayers in the liturgy. "Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy." Right after that in the Confiteor we confess our sins. "I confess to Almighty God, and to you my brothers and sisters...."

Later we all say the "Our Father" that famous prayer composed by Jesus, himself. In it we say, "forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us." The great St. Augustine said that the sincere recitation of these words of repentance was enough to gain forgiveness for most of our sins. Right after the Lord's Prayer we turn to each other and offer the Lord's "Kiss of Peace," a sign of our reconciliation with our neighbor.

Finally, before receiving our Lord in Communion we prepare ourselves with another act of repentance. We join together and say the "Agnus Dei"

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us,

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us,

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, grant us peace.

Then, we follow by paraphrasing the words of the Roman soldier who asked our Lord to heal his son. "Lord I am not worthy that thou should come under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed."

A few years ago there was a saying that became very popular. It was, " Happiness is never having to say you're sorry." This sounded good but was mistaken. I think that most psychologists would agree that a sincere expression of sorrow or repentance is the first step toward happiness for us and for those we've offended. 

What I have always liked most about John the Baptist is his humility. Jesus called John the greatest of the Apostles but in today's second reading from the Acts of the Apostles, St. Paul noted these words of the Baptist. 

What do you suppose that I am? I am not he. Behold, one is coming after me. I am not worthy to unfasten the sandals of his feet.

We all tend to think that our words and our deeds are so important but they are really important when they prepare the way of the Lord.

###

Reading 1. Isaiah 49: 1-6

Reading II. Acts 13:22-26

Gospel. Luke 1: 57-66, 80 (He will be called John)