20191121
OFFERING
OUR CHILDREN TO THE LORD
21 NOVEMBER,
2019, Thursday, Presentation of the B.V.Mary
|
First reading
|
|
Zechariah 2:14-17 ©
|
'I am coming', says the Lord
Sing,
rejoice,
daughter
of Zion;
for I
am coming
to
dwell in the middle of you
– it
is the Lord who speaks.
Many
nations will join the Lord,
on
that day;
they
will become his people.
But
he will remain among you,
and
you will know that the Lord of Hosts has sent me to you.
But
the Lord will hold Judah
as
his portion in the Holy Land,
and
again make Jerusalem his very own.
Let
all mankind be silent before the Lord!
For
he is awaking and is coming from his holy dwelling.
|
Responsorial
Psalm
|
Luke 1:46-55 ©
|
The
Almighty works marvels for me. Holy is his name!
or
Blessed
is the Virgin Mary, who bore the Son of the eternal Father.
My
soul glorifies the Lord,
my
spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour.
The
Almighty works marvels for me. Holy is his name!
or
Blessed
is the Virgin Mary, who bore the Son of the eternal Father.
He
looks on his servant in her nothingness;
henceforth
all ages will call me blessed.
The
Almighty works marvels for me.
Holy
his name!
The
Almighty works marvels for me. Holy is his name!
or
Blessed
is the Virgin Mary, who bore the Son of the eternal Father.
His
mercy is from age to age,
on
those who fear him.
He
puts forth his arm in strength
and
scatters the proud-hearted.
The
Almighty works marvels for me. Holy is his name!
or
Blessed
is the Virgin Mary, who bore the Son of the eternal Father.
He
casts the mighty from their thrones
and
raises the lowly.
He
fills the starving with good things,
sends
the rich away empty.
The
Almighty works marvels for me. Holy is his name!
or
Blessed
is the Virgin Mary, who bore the Son of the eternal Father.
He
protects Israel, his servant,
remembering
his mercy,
the
mercy promised to our fathers,
to
Abraham and his sons for ever.
The
Almighty works marvels for me. Holy is his name!
or
Blessed
is the Virgin Mary, who bore the Son of the eternal Father.
|
Gospel
Acclamation
|
Lk11:28
|
Alleluia,
alleluia!
Happy
are those
who
hear the word of God
and
keep it.
Alleluia!
|
Gospel
|
|
Matthew 12:46-50 ©
|
My mother and my brothers are anyone who does the will of my
Father in heaven
Jesus was
speaking to the crowds when his mother and his brothers appeared; they were
standing outside and were anxious to have a word with him. But to the man who
told him this Jesus replied, ‘Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?’ And
stretching out his hand towards his disciples he said, ‘Here are my mother and
my brothers. Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven, he is my brother
and sister and mother.’
OFFERING OUR
CHILDREN TO THE LORD
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ ZECHARIAH 2:14-17; MT 12:46-50 ]
Today, we celebrate the
feast of the Presentation of our Lady in the Temple. This event has no historical basis.
It is not founded in scripture although it is found in Tradition.
Apocryphal sources recorded how Joachim and Anne brought Mary to the Temple to
be offered to the Lord although not required by the Law unless the child was a
male. Nevertheless, they still did it because all parents want to
consecrate their children to God.
Indeed, all parents want
their children to do well and be happy in life. Unfortunately, many of
our parents do not know what is truly good for their children. Our parents themselves are lost and
confused in their own lives. They have not found the truth about life,
its meaning and purpose. Although they might be Catholic and even going
for Mass every Sunday, their faith is weak and shallow. Most are just
nominal or Sunday Catholics. The values they imbibe are those of the
world. They transpose the values and pursuits of the world onto their
children as well. And so their mantra to their children is, “study hard,
do well in your studies, go for further studies, land yourself in a prestigious
and well paid job, eat well, travel far, live in big bungalows, drive big cars
and have plenty of money.” This is the definition of happiness for many
of our parents.
But do we measure
happiness by the number of properties we have, the house we live in, the food
we eat, the car we drive, the position we hold in society? Or do we measure in terms of
fulfilment, meaning, purpose and outreach? Indeed happiness in life is
more than ensuring that we are living a comfortable life but whether we find
meaning in what we are doing. It is about our passion, our
contribution to society, changing lives, making a difference in the lives of
our fellowmen, realizing the dream of humanity, so that we feel good about what
we do, and that we did not live our lives in vain. Happiness is about
living, loving, growing, caring and sharing.
In the final analysis,
happiness in life is when we live our vocation to the fullest. Joachim and Anne knew what was more
important for their daughter, Mary. They knew that happiness lies in
answering to the call of God for her. They knew that God had a great plan
for Mary. So they were inspired to go to the Temple and consecrate Mary
to God. They must have sensed that something was different in the child
Mary. The presentation of Mary therefore was in continuity and most of all,
the unfolding of God’s plan for Mary. She was already redeemed by Christ
through the preemptive grace of our Lord from original sin before she was
conceived in the womb of St Anne in view of her role as the Mother of the
Saviour. Her presentation therefore was a fitting concrete sign that Mary
was given to God for His service. She was called to live a sinless life
and a life of purity.
Most of all, from
hindsight, we know that Mary was graced by God right from the start of her life
because of her holiness, as seen in the way she responded to God’s call and the
Word of the Lord. She
was always sensitive to the prompting of the Holy Spirit and therefore was
present to the angel Gabriel when he appeared to her to inform her of God’s
predilection of her as the mother of the savior. She was able to say
“yes” to God instantly, simply because Mary’s heart was always aligned with the
Lord. This was what the Lord said of His mother in the
gospel. “And stretching out his hand towards his disciples he said,
‘Here are my mother and my brothers. Anyone who does the will of my Father in
heaven, he is my brother and sisters and mother.'” Later in the ministry,
when someone cried out, “Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed
you”, Jesus reply was, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of
God and obey it.” (Lk 11:27f) Mary was blessed because she
was always docile to the Word of God and aligning her will with God’s will.
Parents who want to
truly give happiness to their children must likewise do the same for them as
Joachim and Anne did for Mary. Parents
must help their children to find their vocation in life and not impose
their unfulfilled dreams in their own lives on their children, or make their
children continue what they are doing, especially their business, simply to
perpetuate the business empire. It is different if their children
see the business as their vocation in life, as a way to contribute to God and
to humanity. The truth is that most parents are not discerning of what is
good for their children and just make their children follow the crowd, which is
about making money, finding status in life, having a prestigious place in
society. It has nothing to do with finding vocation, meaning and living
out their purpose in life.
For this reason, parents
must help their children to build an intimate relationship with the Lord from
young. They
must be taught to read and pray the scriptures. They must be initiated
into the presence of God so that they can hear His voice calling them to their
vocation in life. We must do for our children what the parents of Mary
did for her, to be the Temple of the Living God. Indeed, in the first
reading, the prophet Zechariah said, “Sing, rejoice, daughter of Zion; for I am
coming to dwell in the middle of you – it is the Lord who speaks.” That
was what the angel said to Mary, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The
Lord is with you. Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with
God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him
Jesus. The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most
High will overshadow you.” (Lk 1:28, 30, 35) Without a living and intimate
relationship with the Lord, we will not be able to respond to His call.
Like Mary, the mission of
your children, regardless of which vocation they choose, is always for the same
mission of building up the People of God into God’s family, so that all will
find their place in this life and in the world to come. Like Mary, we are called to lead
others to God. Prophet Zechariah said this of Israel and of Mary, “Many
nations will join the Lord, on that day; they will become his people. But
he will remain among you, and you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent me
to you. But the Lord will hold Judah as his portion in the Holy Land, and
again make Jerusalem his very own. Let all mankind be silent before the Lord!
For he is awakening and is coming from his holy dwelling.” So each one of
us must give ourselves to the Lord to allow Him to do what He wills of
us. So long as we cooperate with God’s will and plan, the Lord assures
us, that “Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven, he is my brother and
sisters and mother.”
Truly, our ultimate
vocation in life is not in this world but in the life hereafter. We must desist from the temptation today
to make this world as the only world and only place and only life we
have. True happiness in life cannot be found in this world but only in
God after our pilgrimage in life. So in helping our children to find
happiness we must not make it as if this is where lasting happiness is
found. All that we do are to prepare us for our final home in
heaven. St Paul warns us, “Their destiny is destruction, their
god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set
on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly
await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the
power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will
transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious
body.” (Phil 3:19-21)
So as mothers, let us
thank God for the gift of children.
They are not our property but God’s. With Joachim and Anne, and with
Mary, we give praise and thanks to God for the gift of children. But let
us remember that we have a grave responsibility to form them well in Christ and
to help them live out their vocation on earth as God’s children in baptism and
for admission into the Family of God in heaven when their journey
ends. We are what we are because God has blessed us. “My soul
glorifies the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour. He looks on
his servant in her nothingness; henceforth all ages will call me blessed. The
Almighty works marvels for me. Holy his name!” Let us live out our
calling and identity as God’s children in holiness of life as Mary did, by
offering herself to God entirely.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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