20251230 THE FORGOTTEN PROPHETESS
30 December 2025, Tuesday, 6th Day within the Octave of Christmas
First reading | 1 John 2:12-17 |
Observance of the will of God
I am writing to you, my own children,
whose sins have already been forgiven through his name;
I am writing to you, fathers,
who have come to know the one
who has existed since the beginning;
I am writing to you, young men,
who have already overcome the Evil One;
I have written to you, children,
because you already know the Father;
I have written to you, fathers,
because you have come to know the one
who has existed since the beginning;
I have written to you, young men,
because you are strong and God’s word has made its home in you,
and you have overcome the Evil One.
You must not love this passing world
or anything that is in the world.
The love of the Father cannot be
in any man who loves the world,
because nothing the world has to offer
– the sensual body,
the lustful eye,
pride in possessions –
could ever come from the Father
but only from the world;
and the world, with all it craves for,
is coming to an end;
but anyone who does the will of God
remains for ever.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 95(96):7-10 |
Let the heavens rejoice and earth be glad.
Give the Lord, you families of peoples,
give the Lord glory and power;
give the Lord the glory of his name.
Let the heavens rejoice and earth be glad.
Bring an offering and enter his courts,
worship the Lord in his temple.
O earth, tremble before him.
Let the heavens rejoice and earth be glad.
Proclaim to the nations: ‘God is king.’
The world he made firm in its place;
he will judge the peoples in fairness.
Let the heavens rejoice and earth be glad.
Gospel Acclamation | Heb1:1-2 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
At various times in the past
and in various different ways,
God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets;
but in our own time, the last days,
he has spoken to us through his Son.
Alleluia!
Or: |
Alleluia, alleluia!
A hallowed day has dawned upon us.
Come, you nations, worship the Lord,
for today a great light has shone down upon the earth.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 2:36-40 |
Anna speaks of the child to all who looked forward to the deliverance of Jerusalem
There was a prophetess, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was well on in years. Her days of girlhood over, she had been married for seven years before becoming a widow. She was now eighty-four years old and never left the Temple, serving God night and day with fasting and prayer. She came by just at that moment and began to praise God; and she spoke of the child to all who looked forward to the deliverance of Jerusalem.
When they had done everything the Law of the Lord required, they went back to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. Meanwhile the child grew to maturity, and he was filled with wisdom; and God’s favour was with him.
THE FORGOTTEN PROPHETESS
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [1 Jn 2:12-17; Ps 96:7-10; Lk 2:36-40]
Today’s Gospel is the only text given specifically to Anna, the prophetess. In the Presentation account, she is mentioned as well, but almost always forgotten. Clearly so because she appears to be an insignificant figure in the account. After all, she was just a widow, an elderly lady who could not do much for anyone except to spend her time in the temple to pray day and night. “She was now eighty-four years old and never left the Temple, serving God night and day with fasting and prayer.” But in truth such people are also important in the Church.
Quite often, we do not give credit to such people who have been instrumental in the life of the Church. They are seldom in the limelight – they work quietly behind the scenes, like those involved in flower arrangement, sweeping and cleaning the church, preparing and keeping the altar clean, or some menial tasks. Others are just in the prayer ministry, leading and praying the rosary before or after Mass. Yet, these people are more important than we think. They give life to the parish and keep it going. They might not hold any official title or an office, or given any Bene Merenti medal, but these are the ones that keep the church going and give life by their prayers.
Indeed, like Anna, they witness to us the presence of the Lord Jesus. “She came by just at that moment and began to praise God; and she spoke of the child to all who looked forward to the deliverance of Jerusalem.” We, too, are all called to praise God with our lives and celebrate the deliverance that Jesus came to give to us by His birth, life, passion, death and resurrection. We do this by walking the same path our Lord did when He was still a little child. The evangelist recounted, “When they had done everything the Law of the Lord required, they went back to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. Meanwhile the child grew to maturity, and he was filled with wisdom; and God’s favour was with him.” In other words, we must grow in spiritual maturity by walking in the way of the Law and in the Spirit.
This was what Anna the prophetess did in keeping her faith in the God of Israel. Although she did not have a comfortable and a good life in the reckoning of the world, she was very much at peace with the will of God. “She was well on in years. Her days of girlhood over, she had been married for seven years before becoming a widow.” Many who are widowed at such a young age would be resentful of God and of her life. But not for Anna. Instead of seeing it as a crisis, she saw it as an opportunity to consecrate her life to God through a life of prayer, fasting and devotion to God. “She was now eighty-four years old and never left the Temple, serving God night and day with fasting and prayer.” She was in truth living a consecrated life in a real sense of the word, and more – it was a contemplative life, spend with God, praying in union with the church and not allowing the world to distract her in serving God.
This is her gift of herself to God and the Church, just as Jesus was God’s gift to us. She gave herself completely to God and His people. This is what we are called to do at Christmas as well when we contemplate on the meaning of Christ’s birth for us. How can we be a gift to the Lord if not by living a life of Christ? For this is precisely the purpose for which He came to the world: “He it is who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds.” (Titus 3:14) Truly, when we make ourselves a gift to others by living a life free from sin and purified of evil, we become free for service and love. By being a blessing to others, we truly become gifts to others because we bring the love of Christ and His mercy to them. In this way, the circle of Christ’s love for us at Christmas is completed.
What does this mean for us, concretely? First, offering ourselves as a gift to the Lord presupposes that we have claimed forgiveness through His name. We must not forget the purpose of Christ’s coming – to save us. He comes to reconcile us with His Father and with one another. His incarnation is destined for the passion on the cross. Christ did not simply empty Himself to share our humanity; He was stripped of everything and became a slave, even unto death. This was the total gift of His life, expressed fully in His death. In other words, Christ gave His entire life – from birth to death – for an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Because of His life and death, we are assured of God’s love and mercy, and that we have been accepted as the children of God.
Secondly, it is not enough to claim that we are God’s children unless we live our lives as such. When St John wrote, “He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God”, (Jn 1:11-13), it meant more than just accepting Him by believing in His name – it also involves welcoming the message and the life that He is asking us all to live. This is the only way we can be sure, as St John said, “we have overcome the Evil One.”
Thirdly, acceptance of Jesus entails being strong in the Word of God and in the truth taught to us from the very beginning. “I have written to you, children, because you already know the Father; I have written to you, fathers, because you have come to know the one who has existed since the beginning; I have written to you, young men, because you are strong and God’s word has made its home in you, and you have overcome the Evil One.” Indeed, a sure foundation for living in the truth is to rely on the Word of God and the Tradition of the Church passed down to us by the apostles and their successors. St Paul writing to Timothy reminds him, “All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.” (2 Tim 3:16f) Indeed, we must “stand firm and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by our letter.” (2 Th 2:15) John wrote to the fathers because they have the wisdom and maturity that comes with experience. Such fathers of course include the elders of the Church. They have “have come to know the one who has existed since the beginning.” So if we discard the traditions of the church and the apostolic teaching, we would have strayed from the truth.
The real problem of the Church today is that some are abandoning the truth of the Scriptures and the Tradition of the Church in an attempt to accommodate the values of the world – all in the name of inclusivity. We must be faithful to the Word of God and the perennial truths taught to us by the apostolic Church. Compromising the Word of God to bring more members into the Church will ultimately destroy its integrity and mission. Additionally, due to the shortage of manpower, we often struggle to be judicious and diligent in selecting the right men and women for priestly and religious vocations. As a consequence, when they are ordained or professed, they sometimes scandal and divisions in the Church.
Finally, we must take seriously John’s warning about being attached to the world and its pleasure: “You must not love this passing world or anything that is in the world. The love of the Father cannot be in any man who loves the world, because nothing the world has to offer – the sensual body, the lustful eye, pride in possessions – could ever come from the Father but only from the world; and the world, with all it craves for, is coming to an end; but anyone who does the will of God remains forever.” To compromise with the values of the world is to allow the Evil One to overcome us. We would do well to learn from Anna, who exemplifies the importance of practicing ascetism and contemplative prayer. When we begin to absorb worldly values and succumb to the temptations of the flesh and the distractions of the world, we risk rationalising and compromising the Word of God. As Christians, we are called to be in the world, but not of the world. We must reject the ways of the world that does not lead to the exercise of truth, justice, righteousness, compassion and love. This what it means to be a prophet like Anna in our times.
Best Practices for Using the Daily Scripture Reflections
- Encounter God through the spirit of prayer and the scripture by reflecting and praying the Word of God daily. The purpose is to bring you to prayer and to a deeper union with the Lord on the level of the heart.
- Daily reflections when archived will lead many to accumulate all the reflections of the week and pray in one sitting. This will compromise your capacity to enter deeply into the Word of God, as the tendency is to read for knowledge rather than a prayerful reading of the Word for the purpose of developing a personal and affective relationship with the Lord.
- It is more important to pray deeply, not read widely. The current reflections of the day would be more than sufficient for anyone who wants to pray deeply and be led into an intimacy with the Lord.
Note: You may share this reflection with someone. However, please note that reflections are not archived online nor will they be available via email request.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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