20150101 FACING THE PAST AND THE FUTURE
Readings at Mass
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First reading
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Numbers 6:22-27 ©
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The Lord spoke to
Moses and said, ‘Say this to Aaron and his sons: “This is how you are to bless
the sons of Israel. You shall say to them:
May the Lord bless
you and keep you.
May the Lord let his
face shine on you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord uncover
his face to you and bring you peace.”
This is how they are
to call down my name on the sons of Israel, and I will bless them.’
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Psalm
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Psalm
66:2-3,5,6,8 ©
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O God, be gracious
and bless us.
O God, be gracious
and bless us
and let
your face shed its light upon us.
So will your ways be
known upon earth
and all
nations learn your saving help.
O God, be gracious
and bless us.
Let the nations be
glad and exult
for you
rule the world with justice.
With fairness you
rule the peoples,
you guide
the nations on earth.
O God, be gracious
and bless us.
Let the peoples
praise you, O God;
let all
the peoples praise you.
May God still give us
his blessing
till the
ends of the earth revere him.
O God, be gracious
and bless us.
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Second reading
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Galatians 4:4-7 ©
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When the appointed
time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born a subject of the Law, to
redeem the subjects of the Law and to enable us to be adopted as sons. The
proof that you are sons is that God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our
hearts: the Spirit that cries, ‘Abba, Father’, and it is this that makes you a
son, you are not a slave any more; and if God has made you son, then he has
made you heir.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Heb1:1-2
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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!
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Gospel
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Luke 2:16-21 ©
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The shepherds hurried
away to Bethlehem and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger.
When they saw the child they repeated what they had been told about him, and
everyone who heard it was astonished at what the shepherds had to say. As for Mary,
she treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart. And the
shepherds went back glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and
seen; it was exactly as they had been told.
When
the eighth day came and the child was to be circumcised, they gave him the name
Jesus, the name the angel had given him before his conception.
FACING
THE PAST AND THE FUTURE
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: NUMBERS 6:22-27; GALATIANS 4:4-7; LUKE 2:16-21
As we come to the end of
the year we cannot but thank God for all the blessings we have received.
Indeed we have
many things to thank God for, things we have taken for granted. We want
to thank God for the gift of biological life, the gift of physical health, the
talents and blessings we have received. The fact that we have survived
all the trials of life and still remain sane means that God has been kind and
merciful to us.
Indeed, we all know that without
Christ, who is the gift of the Father, it would not have been at all possible.
It is through His grace and mercy alone. As St Paul says, we have nothing
to boast except the grace of God. (cf 2 Cor 10:8) However this
grace would not be possible without Mary’s response to be the Mother of Christ.
Thus, as we come to the end of the Octave of Christmas, the Church invites us
to contemplate on His birth like the shepherd and Mary. “As for
Mary, she treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart. And the
shepherds went back glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and
seen; it was exactly as they had been told.”
For this reason, the
Church wants to honour Mary as the Mother God who gave us Jesus. She
said “Yes” even when it was an impossible task. We thank her for her
faith in God, as was praised many times in the Gospel by the angel Gabriel,
Elizabeth and even Jesus Himself. This faith enabled Mary to serve Him
quietly away from the limelight and ended with Jesus on the cross.
Hence, Mary is not just the Mother of God, the Mother of Christ who is the Head
of the Church, but also in the same vein, Pope Paul VI declared her to be the
Mother of the Church. Through her maternal care for the Church, we are nurtured
in our faith and grow to become more and more like her Son. Because Mary
gave birth to the head of the Church, we too are her children.
Imitating Mary, the
Church is called to be mother like her in her virginal devotion to the Lord and
in her motherhood in caring, nurturing, loving and guiding the People of
God. Like Mary, the Church is called to be a virgin, to be pure and devoted to
Christ, the Son of Mary. We are called to keep ourselves chaste and
holy. Like Mary, we are called not just to give birth to new Christians
but to look after them with love and devotion.
Necessarily, when we think
of the Motherhood of Mary and the Church, we cannot but also thank God for the
Church, our Christian community and our brothers and sisters in faith. As
we celebrate the Solemnity of Mary, the mother of God, we cannot but also
give thanks to God because through her maternal care for souls, many of us
have been healed from all kinds of illnesses, emotional wounds, and
psychological pains, spiritual and even physical ailments. Many of our
families have also been reconciled, as we are reconciled with God. All these
blessings have also been made possible because of the many people in our
lives. The Church is also our mother.
How is our Christian
community a mother like Mary, whose feast we celebrate today?
To be a mother is to be
a teacher, the one who nourishes like the way Mary raised up the Lord. To be a mother is to nurture
those under our care. Through the many programs in our parish,
activities and organizations, especially the celebration of the Word and the
Eucharist, we have grown in our spiritual life. Through the many
services of the Church and the Christian community, many have been helped to
find hope and healing from all kinds of illnesses that often medicine cannot
solve. The programs in the parishes without doubt have brought many
comfort and personal growth in their relationship with God and with their
brothers and sisters.
Just as Mary gave us the
face and the body of Jesus, many have seen the Face of God through the love of the community and
therefore been blessed as Moses was taught to do so. “This is how you are
to bless the sons of Israel. You shall say to them: May the Lord bless you and
keep you. May the Lord let his face shine on you and be gracious to you. May
the Lord uncover his face to you and bring you peace.” Indeed, to have a
personal encounter is the starting point of every Christian. Without
encountering the Lord, we will never be able to be healed or to have a personal
relationship with Him.
The Christian community,
like Mary, has given hope and renewal to those who were under the slavery of
sin and the law as St Paul mentions in the second reading. Many of us condemn ourselves like St
Paul because of our sins. But as St Paul says, “When the appointed time
came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born a subject of the Law, to redeem
the subjects of the Law and to enable us to be adopted as sons.” We know
the mercy of God and His forgiveness. This has helped us to let go,
forgive and begin a new life.
Many of us too have
rediscovered our sonship.
We have come to realize who we really are, the sons and daughters of God.
“The proof that you are sons is that God has sent the Spirit of his Son
into our hearts: the Spirit that cries, “Abba, Father”, and it is this
that makes you a son, you are not a slave anymore; and if God has made you son,
then he has made you heir.” Through the sacrament of initiation the
Church has given us a rebirth. Through the sacrament of reconciliation,
we have been given another rebirth, as over the years we have lost our
sonship. Through her ministering and preaching of the Word, she has
helped us to rediscover our sonship by giving us the Spirit of her Son.
We are now heirs of Christ.
In the light of the New
Evangelization, the Church must adopt a Marian spirituality. What is the
secret of a Marian spirituality? From Mary, we must learn the meaning of
faith in the impossible. Miracles have been wrought through prayers and intercessions
even at times when such healing and conversion were thought not possible.
Like Mary, we believe that we should simply do whatever He tells us to
do. From the perspective of praise and thanksgiving, like our
Blessed Mother we must always give praise and thanksgiving to God for the
wonders He has done and is still doing in our lives. From the
perspective of joy, we radiate the joy of serving the Lord and serving the
Church. This joy does not come from service primarily but from the joy of
encountering the healing grace of the Lord. From the perspective of
contemplative prayer, we need to develop a deeper prayer life, rooted in
the contemplation of the Word of God and adoration before the Blessed Sacrament.
From the perspective of evangelization, we need to stir up the hearts of
many who have been touched by the Lord to bring others to Him. Like the
angels and the shepherds, we cannot resist announcing the Good News to the
world. Like Mary, we want to carry the joy of being born in Christ to
others so that they too can leap for joy like John the Baptist.
Indeed, we have so many
things to thank God for. This gratitude of course is expressed in
action either by way of serving in the Church, reaching out to society or to
the poor, spiritually poor and materially poor. So we thank God for
healing our hearts, encountering Him and empowering our lives.
In the face of the
challenges, have no fear. This
was what the angel told Mary, “Do not be afraid!” This same message
was repeated to the shepherds by the angels, “Do not be afraid!” And the
reason is simply because Christ is our Saviour and He will give us the Holy
Spirit. The responsorial psalm reiterates that God rules at the end of
the day. “Let the nations be glad and exult for you rule the world with
justice. With fairness you rule the peoples, you guide the nations on
earth.” In the gospel we read that “when the eighth day came and the
child was to be circumcised, they gave him the name Jesus, the name the angel
had given him before his conception.” Jesus means God saves!
So like Mary and the
shepherds, we must continue to contemplate on His love and give praise and
thanks to Him. “As for Mary, she treasured all these things and
pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds went back glorifying and praising
God for all they had heard and seen; it was exactly as they had been
told.” Indeed, we must on one hand look forward but we must not
forget our past. We must remember our Christ-encounter or conversion
experience. Like Mary who consecrated Jesus to the Lord, we must
consecrate ourselves to the Lord as well. Delay no longer. Do not
be afraid! Open your heart to the Lord and His invite. Arise
in faith and with Mary, say, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord! Let it be
done according to your word.” Give birth to Jesus! Give Jesus to
the world. May Mary the Mother of God, the Mother of the Church and the
Star of the New Evangelization lead us forward bringing hope and a new dawn to
humanity!
WRITTEN BY THE MOST REV
WILLIAM GOH
ARCHBISHOP
OF SINGAPORE
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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