March 23 Thursday: (St. Turibius of Mongorvejo)
The context: In today’s Gospel passage, Jesus defends His Messianic claims. The Jews demanded proofs for Jesus’ Messianic claims, quoting Dt 19:15 which requires two or three witnesses to substantiate a person’s claims. Here, Jesus presents four witnesses who approved His Messianic and Divine claims:1) John the Baptist, 2) his own miracles, 3) his Heavenly Father, and 4) the Hebrew Scriptures (our Old Testament).1) John the Baptist, whom many Jews considered a prophet, bore witness to Jesus as the “Lamb of God” and the Holy One whose paths he had come to prepare. 2) The miracles Jesus worked could only have been done by the power of God his Father. 3) God the Father attested to the Divinity of Jesus at Jesus’ Baptism (cfr. Jn 1:31-34); at the Transfiguration (cfr. Mt 17:1-8), and later, in the presence of the whole crowd (cfr. Jn 12:28-30). 4) The Hebrew Scriptures, especially, the Law and the Prophets, [Toa
& Nebim] bear testimony to Jesus’ Divine and Messianic claims. It was the Spirit of God Who prompted the prophets of the Old Testament to record their Messianic prophecies. Then Jesus identifies four obstacles which prevented the Jews from recognizing him as the Messiah and Son of God: 1) their lack of love of God, 2) their striving after human glory, 3) their prejudiced interpretation of Sacred texts, and 4) their lack of Faith in Moses and the prophets.
Life message: When we have doubts about Faith and the Church’s teachings we need to 1) read the Bible with trusting Faith; 2) pray for an increase of Faith; 3) learn the teachings of the Church, starting with the Catechism of the Catholic Church and the official documents of the Church; 4) accept the mysteries of our Faith, relying on the Divine Authority and veracity of Jesus; and 5) examine how strong our own Christian testimony is. Does our life reflect the light of Christ so much that it brings light to the darkness in others?
(Fr. Tony) (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)
March 24 Friday:
The context: Today’s Gospel passage describes Jesus’ secret journey to Jerusalem to participate in the Feast of Tabernacles (Booths), amid rumors of his possible arrest. But Jesus courageously made his public appearance in the crowd in Jerusalem and started teaching in the Temple. Naturally, people started wondering why the authorities did not arrest him.
Jesus’ Messianic claim and the Jewish reaction: Jesus made two unique and seemingly blasphemous claims. 1) He claimed that he was the Messiah, God’s Anointed One. 2) Jesus made the additional claim that only he knew God as He is because Jesus had come from God. By this claim, Jesus contradicted the belief of the Jews that they had the perfect and final revelation of God given through Moses and the prophets. In addition, Jesus’ claim to be the Messiah, and the “Son of Man” prophesied by Daniel, with exclusive and intimate knowledge of God was, they thought, nothing but blasphemy. The Jews argued that a mere carpenter-turned-wandering-preacher from Nazareth could not be the Messiah because nobody was supposed to know where the Messiah would come from. According to Jewish belief, the Messiah would emerge quite unexpectedly from Mount Olivet, cross the Kedron Valley, enter the city of Jerusalem, be anointed by Elijah the prophet, take possession of the City and the Temple and establish His Messianic kingdom.
Life messages: 1) Like the Jews, we, too, can be prejudiced and occasionally refuse to accept and follow the teachings of the Church. We need to have the humility to honor the teaching authority of the Church and its guidance by the Holy Spirit.
2) We need to accept Jesus as our Lord and personal Savior, experience him through prayer and the Sacramental life and surrender our lives to him.
3) Like the Jews who expected the surprise appearance of a super-human Messiah we, too, show the tendency to seek God only in miraculous and extraordinary events, ignoring His presence within us and in everyone around us.
(Fr. Tony) (https://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/23
March 25 Saturday: (The Annuciation of the Lord)
The context: Today’s Gospel tells us the story of the Annunciation, explaining how God began to keep the promise He had made, first to Adam and Eve that He woud send a redeemer from among their descendants, who would crush the head of the serpent, the evil one who had tempted them to sin (Gn 3:15), and next to King David through the prophet Nathan, that David’s descendant would rule the world in an everlasting Kingdom (II Sm 7:12-16). Venerable Bede remarks: “Today’s reading of the Gospel calls to mind the beginning of our redemption, for the passage tells us how God sent an angel from Heaven to a virgin to proclaim the new birth, the Incarnation of God’s Son, Who would take away our age-old guilt; through Him it would be possible for us to be made new and numbered among the children of God.”
Confronting his lack of trust in the Lord, the prophet Isaiah declares to King Ahaz in the first reading (Is 7:10-14; 8:10): “The Lord Himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel.” The annunciation to Mary is the fulfillment of all three of these prophecies.
The second reading (Heb 10:4-10) explains the reason for God’s Incarnation, i.e., the Son of God became man to do God’s will (“Behold I come to do your will) so that he might replace animal sacrifices and pay the price of our redemption by his death and resurrection.
The angel’s salutation to Mary: “Hail, full of grace,” reminds us of God’s words to Moses at the burning bush (Ex 3:12), and the angel’s salutation to Gideon, (Jgs 6:12). Mary is described as “full of grace,” filled with God’s favor and graciousness. She is the new Ark, a tent (Tabernacle), and Temple. God is literally and physically in her, and, thus, she is the greater House of God promised to David. Mary’s question, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” is natural. That is why the angel reminds Mary, “Nothing is impossible with God.” The Lord God will “empower” her (“the Spirit will come upon you“), and “protect” her (“overshadow you“). In Luke’s narrative, Gabriel points out that the Child would not only be a distant grandson of David — he would be God’s own Son: “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David.” Mary does not require confirmation but responds in Faith. She agrees to carry out the Word Gabriel has addressed to her. Since Mary is really a true hearer and doer of the Word of God, she immediately makes a response with Faith and trust. Mary thus became the virgin-mother who fulfills Isaiah’s prophecy (Is 7:14), in a way that Isaiah could not have imagined. She is united with her son in carrying out the will of God (Ps 40:8-9; Heb 10:7-9; Lk 1:38). The Annunciation touches both the Good News that God has become one like us “in every respect tempted as we are, yet without sinning” (Hb 4:15), so that we might become as God is, and the greater news that God, in the person of Jesus, has “paid the price” for achieving this end. When we pray the “Angelus” prayer three times a day, we gratefully remember the great gift of God’s Incarnation. When we pray the Rosary, we refer to the Incarnation fifty-three times — each time we pray the “Hail Mary” — and the first of the “Joyful Mysteries” is the Annunciation, the Incarnation of Our Lord.
Life message: 1) We need to be humble instruments in the hand of God, trusting in His power and goodness, and Mary shows how an ordinary human being can reflect God in the ordinary circumstances of life. St. Augustine reminds us that God who created us without our permission can not save us without our active cooperation. Hence, let us cooperate in the fulfillment of God’s plan for us, by doing His will with Mary’s trusting Faith and humility, through which she brought Jesus into the world, giving him flesh and blood. Can we also bring Jesus to others in our day-to-day lives? Like Mary who brought God to us as Jesus our Savior, it is our duty to carry Jesus and bring him to the lives of others around us in love, mercy, forgiveness, and service. “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.” (attributed to St. Ambrose).
2) We need to say a courageous and generous “yes” to God in our everyday choices: True obedience comes from a free choice made in the light of what is true and good. Such a self-surrender often requires a great deal of courage because it can involve going against the tide of social expectations. True obedience also aims at putting oneself at the service of Someone/something that is greater than oneself, accepting what God clearly wants us to do or what He wants to do through us. It is by saying, with Jesus and Mary, a wholehearted and totally unconditional “Yes” – “Fiat! May it be done in me,” to Jesus that he will be re-born in each of us, or maybe even born in me for the first time. By my saying “Yes,” Jesus will be born or re-born in others, too.
3) We need to try to learn God’s plan for our lives: The Good News in today’s Scripture message is not only that God is making provision for the salvation of His people, but also that He has a plan for each individual person. In many cases, our work for God seems rather ordinary, but each ordinary task which we carry out fits into God’s plan in ways that we cannot yet understand. God desires not only the skill of our hands and talents but the love of our hearts. The Babe in the Manger reminds us of what God has done and is still doing for us. What are we doing for Him in return? Let us show our gratitude to God by living as true followers of Christ: “Behold, here I am, Lord! I come to do Your will.”
(Fr. Tony) (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)
