Fr Kevin Kilgore

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Gospel: Luke 1: 26-38

In the sixth month,
the angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee 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.

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On Wednesday, we heard Joseph’s account of the Annunciation. An angel appeared to him in a dream, encouraging him to take the miraculously pregnant Mary into his home.

Today we roll back in time, hearing Mary’s account of the story.

The angel Gabriel promises that she’ll conceive the Son of God in her womb. Her initial reaction is that of fear and confusion. “How can this be?” she wonders. But Gabriel consoles her, “Do not be afraid. You have found favor with God!” 

Mary was afraid for several reasons. First, she’s staring at angel! Who of us has ever seen a divine creature before? Secondly, as their conversation ensues, she begins to realize what is at stake.

She’s about to become a mom. There’s no guarantee that Joseph will accept the news. No guarantee that Mary will be accepted. No guarantee Joseph will help her to raise this child. 

Yet, without consulting anyone, Mary solemnly declares:

“Let it be done unto me according to your word.”

She surrenders to the angel, because she loves God more than Joseph, more than her future, even more than herself.

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Thus, the Christmas story begins with Mary’s fulfillment of the Law, which states: “You shall love the Lord your God with all of your mind, body, heart, and soul.” 

Mary was willing to risk everything in order to glorify God.

Can we do the same?

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As we prepare to meet the Christ-child this Christmas, perhaps we might consider: 

Does God come first in my life? Or, at times, do other people or things take a higher priority?

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May the Blessed Mother, who accepted God’s providence in her life, pray that we would do the same. May it be done unto us according to His Word.

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Image credits: (1) The Anunciation, Fra Angelico (2) We Dare to Say (3) Church of the Ascension

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Gospel: Luke 1:5-25

In the days of Herod, King of Judea,
there was a priest named Zechariah
of the priestly division of Abijah;
his wife was from the daughters of Aaron,
and her name was Elizabeth. 
Both were righteous in the eyes of God,
observing all the commandments
and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly. 
But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren
and both were advanced in years. 

Once when he was serving as priest
in his division’s turn before God,
according to the practice of the priestly service,
he was chosen by lot
to enter the sanctuary of the Lord to burn incense. 
Then, when the whole assembly of the people was praying outside
at the hour of the incense offering,
the angel of the Lord appeared to him,
standing at the right of the altar of incense. 
Zechariah was troubled by what he saw, and fear came upon him. 

But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah,
because your prayer has been heard. 
Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son,
and you shall name him John. 
And you will have joy and gladness,
and many will rejoice at his birth,
for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. 
He will drink neither wine nor strong drink. 
He will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb,
and he will turn many of the children of Israel
to the Lord their God. 
He will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah
to turn the hearts of fathers toward children
and the disobedient to the understanding of the righteous,
to prepare a people fit for the Lord.” 

Then 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 said to him in reply,
“I am Gabriel, who stand before God.
I was sent to speak to you and to announce to you this good news. 
But now you will be speechless and unable to talk
until the day these things take place,
because you did not believe my words,
which will be fulfilled at their proper time.”
Meanwhile the people were waiting for Zechariah
and were amazed that he stayed so long in the sanctuary. 
But when he came out, he was unable to speak to them,
and they realized that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary. 
He was gesturing to them but remained mute.

Then, when his days of ministry were completed, he went home. 

After this time his wife Elizabeth conceived,
and she went into seclusion for five months, saying,
“So has the Lord done for me at a time when he has seen fit
to take away my disgrace before others.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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At the time when this Gospel passage was written, there were about 20,000 priests in Israel. Often, this honor came by birthright; any male who was a descendant of Aaron was automatically a priest. Such was the case for Zechariah.

Because of the sheer number of priests, most never had the opportunity to enter the Holy of Holies, the innermost room of the Temple where God’s presence dwelt. There sacrifices were made on behalf of the entire nation.

But today the lot falls on Zechariah. It was his time, but a bittersweet moment. 

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Though an incredible honor to pray for his people, deep within his heart, Zechariah also harbored inconsolable grief. He was now an elderly man, and his wife, Elizabeth, was barren. At that time, there was a great deal of shame associated with being childless. 

It was even grounds for divorce.

So, when Zechariah entered the Holy of Holies, he was not only praying for his nation; he was also praying for a son.

Suddenly, an angel appears telling him that his prayer has been heard! But because of his disbelief, he’s struck mute.

Scholars say this was an act of mercy on the angel’s behalf, preventing Zechariah from blaspheming – or doubting God’s power – while standing in the holiest place on earth. 

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His story presents both a challenge and a word of comfort for us today.

Notice Zechariah fell into the age-old temptation of favoring human logic over Divine Providence. While the angel promised him that his wife would conceive a son, he didn’t believe it; he thought Elizabeth was too old. 

How often do we also favor human logic over Divine Providence? Or pray to God, while doubting in our heart of hearts that we’ll actually be heard? 

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And notice where Zechariah’s prayer is heard and answered… in the Temple. Sometimes the Lord waits until we bring our intentions to the altar before answering us.

When we do offer a prayer, remember nothing is impossible for God.

Just think of Zechariah.

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Image credits: (1) CreativeKidsWork.com (2) Zechariah in the Temple, Jan Lievens (3) Catholic Answers

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Gospel: 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 his 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 prophet:

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.

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Perhaps one of the most popular scenes depicted in Christian art is the Annunciation, the moment when the angel Gabriel appears to Mary, telling her that she’ll bear the Son of God in her womb.

What’s much less depicted is today’s Gospel scene, which we might call, the annunciation to Saint Jospeh. Like Mary, Joseph learns of God’s plans for his life through the mouth of an angel, and he, too, is baffled.  

And like Mary, Joseph’s “yes” will play a crucial role in the Christmas story.

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Without his assent, the Old Testament prophesies foretelling that the Son of God would come from David’s line would not be fulfilled.

Without Joseph, Mary could easily be reduced to a life of begging, trying to provide for this miraculous child, which society would deem illegitimate. 

Without Joseph, Mary would be denied a husband to help her navigate this extraordinary change in circumstances. It takes the “yes” of both of them to bring this child into the world and to raise him in a safe, nourishing home.

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The heart of Joseph’s story is about waking up in a mess that he did not create – his wife is pregnant, and the child is not his; his heart has been broken; the future he had hoped for is over. 

Yet he does not divorce himself from it; he listens to the voice of an angel, takes Mary into his home, accepts this mysterious child, looking for God’s presence in it all. 

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Like Joseph, I’m sure we’ve all woken up a time or two, finding ourselves in circumstances we had never imagined – a malignant diagnosis, a closed door, dryness in prayer, a broken heart, a loved one suddenly taken from our midst.

The temptation is to divorce ourselves from it all, either abandoning the cross we’ve been given, or to seek relief in ways that do not help us in the end.

But Joseph reminds us that – whatever our own mess may be – God is present. There’s an angel somewhere, in some form, saying to us what was said to him and to Mary, “Do not be afraid.” 

Jesus is Emmanuel, God with us.

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Image credits: (1) Aleteia (2) Integrated Catholic Life (3) Saint Joseph with the Infant Jesus, Guido Reni