Category: Uncategorized

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Acts 6:8-10, 7:54-59

Stephen, filled with grace and power,
was working great wonders and signs among the people.
Certain members of the so-called Synagogue of Freedmen,
Cyrenians, and Alexandrians,
and people from Cilicia and Asia,
came forward and debated with Stephen,
but they could not withstand the wisdom and the spirit with which he spoke.

When they heard this, they were infuriated,
and they ground their teeth at him.
But he, filled with the Holy Spirit,
looked up intently to heaven
and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God,
and he said,
“Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man
standing at the right hand of God.”
But they cried out in a loud voice, covered their ears,
and rushed upon him together.
They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him.
The witnesses laid down their cloaks
at the feet of a young man named Saul.
As they were stoning Stephen, he called out
“Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”

The Word of the Lord.

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Yesterday, hundreds of millions of Christians huddled together in churches around the world singing, “Glory to God,” as we celebrated the birth of our Savior.

Today the Church pulls us in what feels like the opposite direction, from life to death, rejoicing to sorrow as we celebrate the Martyrdom of Saint Stephen.

Why such a sudden change in tone?

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To remind us that faith always comes at a cost. It’s one thing praise Jesus on our lips. It’s another to praise him with our lives.

As our first reading reveals, Stephen was a deacon who took care of widows, performed miracles, and debated skillfully with the religious leaders of his day.

And just like his Lord, he died praying for his persecutors. As stones were being hurled at him in fury, Stephen saw the heavens opened, and Christ standing at the right hand of God. Then he prayed, “Lord do not hold this sin against them!’” 

And he breathed his last.

Stephen reminds us of the incredible love, courage, and wisdom the human heart is capable of when touched by grace.

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Yesterday hundreds of millions of people gathered in churches singing, “Glory to God.” Today Stephen reminds us it’s time to put that faith into action. 

Pray. Preach. Heal. Forgive.

Let the work begin.

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Image credits: (1) Deposit Photos (2) My Catholic Life! (3) X.com

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Gospel: Luke 2: 15-20

When the angels went away from them to heaven,
the shepherds said to one another, 
“Let us go, then, to Bethlehem
to see this thing that has taken place, 
which the Lord has made known to us.”
So they went in haste and found Mary and Joseph, 
and the infant lying in the manger.
When they saw this,
they made known the message
that had been told them about this child.
All who heard it were amazed
by what had been told them by the shepherds.
And Mary kept all these things,
reflecting on them in her heart.
Then the shepherds returned,
glorifying and praising God 
for all they had heard and seen, 
just as it had been told to them.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Often people imagine God as being a bigger version of Santa Claus. Even religious art depicts God the Father as an old man with a flowing white beard. 

We imagine God sitting up there in heaven, making his list, checking it twice. He’s going to find out who’s naughty or nice. We might cheer and sing, but we can also shudder, wondering if we’re getting a sack of coal for Christmas.

Maybe we made a mistake or two this year. Maybe life took an unexpected turn. Or maybe we blame the health scare, the loss, or the disappointments we experienced on God; it was his fault. He means to punish us.

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But that is not the God whom the prophets foretold. Isaiah tells us, when our God comes to earth, the blind will see; the lame will walk; the sick will be healed; the dead will be raised.

This is our God. 

Mighty. Powerful. Compassionate. A missionary, who left the glory of heaven to come down to earth.

Today as an infant. Wrapped in swaddling clothes, warmed by the breath of oxen, cuddled in his mother’s arms. Weak, tender, and mild.

Off in the distance, Mary and Joseph can hear the roar of the crowds, packed into the inn, eating and drinking, warm, and cheery-eyed with no room for them in that place or in their hearts. The rejection Jesus experienced that night foreshadows what will come.

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Still, Mary and Joseph rest out in the elements under a starry night sky, wondering, “What child is this, whom angels greet with anthems sweet, while shepherds watch are keeping?”

This is the mystery of Christmas. God becomes flesh of our flesh. Bone of our bones. Immanuel. God with us. God for us, who comes, not with coal, but with mercy. 

Not to judge, but to heal. Not to make his list and check it twice, but to offer a clean slate, hope and salvation to all.

In that sense, his birth is our birth. His life is our life. He will live among us – and yes, he will die among us – so that all who believe in him might not perish, but might have eternal life.

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While our Christmas trees have been surrounded by gifts large and small – toys, trinkets, the newest technology – we gather to celebrate someone greater than Santa, Jesus Christ.

May we welcome him into our hearts and homes, for salvation has come! Merry Christmas!

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Image credits: (1) HubPages (2) God the Father, Cima da Conegliano (3) The Christ Child, Andreas Johan Jacob Müeller

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Gospel: Luke 1:67-69

Zechariah his father, filled with the Holy Spirit, prophesied, saying:

“Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
for he has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty Savior,
born of the house of his servant David.
Through his prophets he promised of old
that he would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all who hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hand of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear,
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.
You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
to give his people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Zechariah’s wife, Elizabeth, has just given birth to their son, John the Baptist. John’s birth breaks the near year-long period of silence that Zechariah endured after doubting the archangel Gabriel’s proclamation that Elizabeth would bear a son.

As his lips are opened, he breaks out in song, praising God. “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel! He has come to his people and set them free.,” he sings. “And you, my child will go before the Lord to prepare his way.”

Zechariah is overwhelmed, not only by the joy of having a son, but also by the knowledge that his boy, John the Baptist, will prepare the way for the Lord.

What Zechariah – or anyone in Israel – didn’t know was what, exactly, God would be like when he came.

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The Greeks imagined God to be a passionless Being, beyond joy and sorrow, unmoved by the pleas of humanity. 

The Jews understood God to be litigious and demanding, yearning to bring his judgment upon the earth. Perhaps no one paints a clearer picture of this than John the Baptist, who preached of the coming “wrath.”

However, Jesus didn’t fit into either of these two molds. Rather, he revealed a God of unspeakable humility, who becomes a baby at Christmas and dies like a thief on Good Friday.

A God who is wildly in love with his people, who turns water into wine at a wedding, who isn’t afraid to associate with sinners, who forgives readily, whose heart breaks at the sight of a widow burying her son.

A God who promises grace to all who ask, who seeks to shoulder our burdens, who instructs his people, leads by example, and feeds the poor, not only with bread, but with his very Self. 

This is our God.

Yet how many of us still struggle to accept him as he is? Joyful, humble, meek, and mild.

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This Christmas, may we not only gaze upon the Christ-child in wonder, but also ask for the grace to become like him, who loves us and gives himself for us.

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Image credits: (1) Reform Magazine (2) Zechariah Holding John the Baptist, Catholic Daily Reflections (3) iStock