20240101 PONDERING OUR SONSHIP AND DAUGHTERSHIP
01 January 2024, Monday, Mary, the Holy Mother of God
First reading | Numbers 6:22-27 © |
They are to call down my name on the sons of Israel, and I will bless them
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.’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 66(67):2-3,5,6,8 © |
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.
Second reading | Galatians 4:4-7 © |
God sent his Son, born of a woman
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.
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!
Gospel | Luke 2:16-21 © |
The shepherds hurried to Bethlehem and found the baby lying in the manger
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.
PONDERING OUR SONSHIP AND DAUGHTERSHIP
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [NUMBERS 6:22-27; GALATIANS 4:4-7; LUKE 2:16-21]
In today’s gospel, when the shepherds “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.” Indeed, today is the end of the Octave of Christmas where we are called to ponder on the meaning of the Incarnation. What an appropriate way to help us contemplate on the Incarnation in the light of the Solemnity of Mary the Mother of God.
That Mary is the Mother of God is the first of the important implications of the Incarnation. If Jesus is truly the Son of God, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, and has taken flesh in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary, then have two persons in Jesus, the Son of God and the Son of Mary. To maintain the integrity of the person of our Lord, the Church, after 431 years, declared as dogma that Jesus is one person with two natures, divine and human. Jesus is not two persons – divine and human – but both natures in one person. To underscore this point, Mary was declared to be the Mother of God – not of the Trinity – but of Jesus who is God and also truly man. Since Mary is the mother of Jesus, she is also called the Mother of God, since Jesus is divine.
In the same vein, in calling Mary the mother of God, it underscores the fact that Jesus, the Son of God, is truly human and not God taking a human shell as a guise. Rather, Jesus is truly God who has taken on human flesh and a human nature. Indeed, Jesus who was born in the manger, was truly a man, and assumed all of our humanity, except sin. The letter to the Hebrews sums it so beautifully, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Heb 4:15f)
But that is not all. Jesus is truly human because He suffers the effects of sins that He did not commit. St Paul goes further to say, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Cor 5:21) In other words, Jesus truly shares with us the effects of our sins and the sins of humanity. St Peter captures His identification with us in our sins when he wrote, “When he was abused, he did not return abuse; when he suffered, he did not threaten; but he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were going astray like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.” (1 Pt 2:23-25)
Indeed, it is for this reason that Jesus is the perfect High Priest and mediator for us. As the gospel made it clear, “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 was circumcised and so was truly a member of the Chosen People of God, a descendent of King David; and given the name Jesus, which means “God saves.” Jesus was chosen among the People of God to be the saviour of humanity. It is for this reason that the Secular Calendar Year takes its cue from the Christian calendar. In the past, before secularism set in, history was divided simply into AD, in the year of our Lord, and BC, namely before Christ.
So, Jesus has come to make us all a new creation, the New People of God, born again in the Holy Spirit. In the letter of St Paul to the Galatians, he wrote, “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.” God the Son came to us, sharing in the limitations of our humanity and our vulnerability to pain. Only by so doing could He be our leader in perfection and obedience, as Hebrews says, “In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered; and having been made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him, having been designated by God a high priest according to the order of Melchizedek.” (Heb 5:7-10)
But knowing that by our own strength we cannot rise to our true identity as the sons and daughters of God, He gives us the Holy Spirit. St John wrote, “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 1:12f) Hence, St Paul wrote, “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.” It is through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that we become conscious of His love in us. It is the same Holy Spirit that made possible for Jesus to take flesh in the womb of the Blessed Virgin.
Recognizing our sonship and daughtership in Christ is what makes us a new creation, a new humanity. We share in God’s image and likeness. We are His sons and daughters. This is what it means to see the face of God. To see God’s face means that we recognize God is our Father and we are the brothers and sisters of our Lord Jesus Christ. Hence, the Lord instructed Moses to say to 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.” Indeed, God’s face is revealed to us in a special way in Christ. The acclamation reminds us, “Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds. He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word.” (Heb 1:1-3)
Consequently, it also means recognizing our fellowmen as our brothers and sisters. This is the key to world peace, which is what we celebrate today as well. The first day of the year is dedicated to World Peace. This peace can only come about when we recognize the face of God in each other, and see Jesus in our fellowmen. We are brothers and sisters regardless of our race, language or religion. If we realize this, then we would not hurt each other. We are all human beings sharing the same aspirations in life, love, unity, peace, a proper shelter, a loving family, meaningful work, financial stability, good health and loving relationships. No one wants to be treated like a slave or an outcast. So if we truly realize what we all share in common, we will work together for the good of each other.
Truly, today as we celebrate the Solemnity of Mary the Mother of God, we also recognize that because we are members of the mystical Body of Christ, and since Mary is the mother of Jesus, whole and entire, she too is our spiritual mother as well. We can turn to her and also learn from her how to be truly a daughter and son of God. We pray that like her, we will never forget our identity as sons and daughters of God, and that we are called to show the face of God to all whom we meet each day. We must live out our identity so that those who do not know God or His love may encounter Him through us. With Mary, therefore let us always contemplate on the love and mercy of God in our lives, search for His divine will and ponder His word in our hearts. Let our prayer every day be that of the psalmist. “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. 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.”
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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