Jesus is back in Nazareth and attends the Sabbath service in the synagogue. He is asked to read one of the readings. Was it accidental or intentional that He read the 66 long chapters of Isaiah? Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit who appeared upon Him during baptism. Jesus was so Spirit-filled that nothing was accidental in His life.

The passage Jesus reads contains the program of His ministry. In His life and ministry, Jesus fulfills what the prophet wrote centuries ago. Luke answers our question about Jesus clearly: He is the fulfillment of the prophecies of old. He did not come without having been announced centuries ago. The prophets actually spoke about their time and the imminent future; they did not think of Jesus Christ yet. But they were inspired by God’s Spirit so that the oracles they uttered turned out to have a much more profound meaning and would be fully fulfilled only in Christ.

Jesus came to proclaim the Good News. He came to free us from the captivity of sin. He opened our eyes and freed us from our spiritual blindness. He saw to it that people would be reminded of Isaiah’s prophecy and recognize Him as the One mankind was waiting for. Jesus started the fulfillment with His ministry.

As Jesus’ disciples, we are challenged to continue proclaiming the Good News. He needs us to open the eyes of those who are spiritually blind. He needs us to bring those bound by sin into His presence to liberate them. This effort even goes beyond spiritual liberation. In Latin America, the Church has contributed much to a social and political liberation of the poor and oppressed.

The Holy Spirit we received in baptism and confirmation is upon us. St. Paul goes a step further and speaks of us Christians as temples of the Holy Spirit, meaning the Spirit is in us. This enables us to continue the great work of Jesus. His program has become ours. Fr. Rudy Horst

Reflection Question: Am I aware that I am called to make Christ’s program my program in life? How can I do this effectively? Lord, You have given us a great task, the task to continue Your work on earth. With the Holy Spirit in us, we are able to do this. Make us more aware of this great responsibility and enlighten us to make Your program our own.

St. William of Bourges, bishop,pray for us.

the Good shepherd offers spiritual nourishMent

A week before Christmas, I went to Makati and walked through Glorietta. How I wished to be out of the chaos as soon as possible! All those rushing and running people, some doing window-shopping, others with heavy shopping bags
and all the restaurants so full that I could not find a place for a cup
of coffee. I began to think about whether these people are really
happy. Some looked so tired, so stressed while others rushed aimlessly
through the mall. Suddenly, the first sentence of the Gospel of Mark
today flashed through my mind: “Jesus saw a large crowd, and He took
pity on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd.”

Jesus came into the world because He knows how pressured and
stressed we are. He knows how aimlessly we often rush through life. He
knows that many have lost track of their goals in life. He knows that
many of us are “like sheep without a shepherd.”  Jesus
is the Good Shepherd who wants to give us rest and nourishment, and to
lead us safely through the confusing times and periods of life.

Adoration
chapels in churches are wonderful places of rest where you can come in
the presence of the Good Shepherd Who knows how harassed you are by the
worries and problems at home or at work.

Mark
also tells us that Jesus nourished the crowd — He took the loaves,
praised God, broke them and satisfied the hunger of all. This event
foreshadowed the Eucharist. Today, priests continue to do what Jesus
did then in the Consecration during Mass.

The Second Vatican Council
proclaimed: “The Eucharist is the source and summit of Christian
life.” It is here that Christ enters our very being and strengthens
us. It is here that the Good Shepherd, continues to lead us through the
turmoil and frenzy of daily life towards our goal: eternal life in the
presence of His Father forever. Fr. Rudy Horst

Reflection Question:

What can I do this year to find more peace and strength in the Lord who offers me all this for free?

Lord,
in our hectic life You offer rest. Why do I not make more use of it?
Lord, often I feel spiritually dry, empty and hungry – why do I not
accept You, Who are present in the Eucharist? You are there for me, for
all of us. Thank You, Lord.

St. Thorfinn, bishop, pray for us.

1 John 3:7-10

Generally
speaking, it is easy to know the difference between what is right and
wrong. Sometimes, though, we do have doubts. I wonder why, then, do we
find ourselves so often in a state of sin rather than in a state of
grace? It seems that we often choose the wrong course of action.

7 Children, let no one deceive you. The person who acts in righteousness is righteous, just as he is righteous. 8 Whoever
sins belongs to the devil, because the devil has sinned from the
beginning. Indeed, the Son of God was revealed to destroy the works of
the devil. 9 No one who is begotten by God commits sin,
because God’s seed remains in him; he cannot sin because he is begotten by God. 10 In
this way, the children of God and the children of the devil are made
plain; no one who fails to act in righteousness belongs to God, nor
anyone who does not love his brother.

Who are you?

Who are you? is a question that makes us feel uncomfortable. A person who knows you and loves you has no need to ask this question. It can express curiosity but also suspicion, depending on how the question is asked. Those who came to John the Baptist and asked him, Who are you? were certainly not curious but full of suspicion.

John, who dressed and lived like  the prophet Elijah, was the son of a priest but did not have anything to do with the Temple. He was drawing ever-increasing crowds — very dangerous in a time when the Romans  occupied and oppressed the nation. It could easily lead to rebellion and to a disastrous crackdown by the Romans. John could have said that he was a prophet sent by God. He could have said that he was the Messiah, as several pseudo-messiahs had done before him. In unbelievable humility, John is nothing but  a simple messenger  who prepares the way for a greater person coming after him.

It’s quite human to brag about who we are. We put ourselves in relation to a great politician, or a doctor or an artist or a bishop. We may be relatives of certain great or not-so-great people. Yet, this does not say anything about who we really are. The more boastful our answers are, the more our real being remains hidden.

Who am I? It is a question best asked before God, because before  Him we have to be honest and cannot pretend to be better than we are. We  become small. We cannot but admit that we are sinners. We are humbled like John the Baptist who wanted to be nothing but a voice telling the people to get ready.

We are signposts that point to Christ as the ultimate goal of history, as the answer to all questions. Nothing great is demanded from us signposts. We only show the right direction through our simple Christian way of life. Fr. Rudy Horst

Reflection Question:

What makes me hide my real self from others? Why can I not be honest about myself even before God?

Lord, You know me better than I know myself. You see me as I am – and still You love me more than I love myself. For this I thank You. May the humility of John the Baptist inspire me to be always myself and prevent me from pretending to be more than I am a simple signpost along the way to Your kingdom.

St. Adelard, abbot, pray for us.

adapted from Kyregma

Mary’s Mother of God and our Mother

You Need a Spiritual Family?

It’s another New Year and I guess nearly every one of us today asks the same question: What will this year bring’s. Apart from the good things, we also experienced catastrophes, violence, terror attacks in different parts of the world; there might have been the death of someone close to us; there were personal problems, problems in the family. We feel so vulnerable, often helpless, in this our world and society. It is understandable then that most of us look with some anxiety toward the year we begin today.

Today the Church celebrates the feast of the Blessed Mother under the title Mother of God, Mary is rightly called the Mother of God because Jesus, her Son, is God. Both cannot be separated from each other. Mary’s motherhood began when in Nazareth she gave her fiat (let it be done according to your word). But when she stood some decades later beneath the cross of her Son, her maternal vocation and mission received another dimension.

With the words, Woman, behold your Son and Behold your Mother, Jesus gave His Mother to His future community, represented by His beloved disciple. The Mother of God also became our Mother.

Mary, the Mother of God and our Mother, was the best mother one can imagine. She always stayed close to her Son, especially when He was in danger, when He was persecuted, even when He was in His last agony.

We now look at the moving scene of Mother and Child in Bethlehem. We also look ahead to that moment when Mary was given the task to care for us as a loving Mother. Many of us have experienced her maternal closeness and help. We cannot but thank her for carrying us through the difficulties of life and for protecting us from danger and harm.

A consoling answer to our question earlier emerges from today’s feast, it will be another year with our heavenly Mother. Fr. Rudy Horst

Reflection Question:

In which area of my life do I most need the assistance of Mother Mary?

Mary, Mother of God and my Mother too, accompany my loved ones and me this New Year. With you at my side, I can face whatever is God’s plan for me. Mother, I need you. Please, never leave me alone.

St. Clarus, abbot, pray for us.