In Just Five Days!

Five days remain until we celebrate the birth of our Savior, and so I wanted to share this video with you. It features the song, Mary Did You Know. Merry Christmas!

Why Did The Word Become Flesh?

"HE WAS CONCEIVED BY THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT,AND WAS BORN OF THE VIRGIN MARY"

This Christmas let us meditate on why the Word became Flesh?

We find the answer to this question in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which tells us the following:

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With the Nicene Creed, we answer by confessing: "For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven; by the power of the Holy Spirit, he became incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and was made man."
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The Word became flesh for us in order to save us by reconciling us with God, who "loved us and sent his Son to be the expiation for our sins": "the Father has sent his Son as the Savior of the world," and "he was revealed to take away sins":70
Sick, our nature demanded to be healed; fallen, to be raised up; dead, to rise again. We had lost the possession of the good; it was necessary for it to be given back to us. Closed in the darkness, it was necessary to bring us the light; captives, we awaited a Savior; prisoners, help; slaves, a liberator. Are these things minor or insignificant? Did they not move God to descend to human nature and visit it, since humanity was in so miserable and unhappy a state?71

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The Word became flesh so that thus we might know God's love: "In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him."72 "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."73
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The Word became flesh to be our model of holiness: "Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me." "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me."74 On the mountain of the Transfiguration, the Father commands: "Listen to him!"75 Jesus is the model for the Beatitudes and the norm of the new law: "Love one another as I have loved you."76 This love implies an effective offering of oneself, after his example.77
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The Word became flesh to make us "partakers of the divine nature":78 "For this is why the Word became man, and the Son of God became the Son of man: so that man, by entering into communion with the Word and thus receiving divine sonship, might become a son of God."79 "For the Son of God became man so that we might become God."80 "The only-begotten Son of God, wanting to make us sharers in his divinity, assumed our nature, so that he, made man, might make men gods."81

May It Be Done To Me According To Your Word!

As we begin the Advent season and look forward to the day upon which we celebrate the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ, let us contemplate the events that led to up to this most memorable occasion.

Let us first consider our Blessed Mother’s role in God’s plan of salvation, and in particular her eagerness to do His will. Put yourself in Mary’s place, a very young girl from humble surroundings, betrothed to marry a carpenter by the name of Joseph, and suddenly she is visited by a messenger from God who informs her that God has chosen her to miraculously become pregnant with the long-awaited Messiah.

The author of the Gospel of Luke provides a beautiful account of Mary’s response to the surprising news she has just received, and one from which we can all take a lesson.

Given her circumstances, the news must certainly have been alarming. We can only imagine how her mind must have raced with the many consequences she could possibly face as a result of the pregnancy.

But even if fear entered her heart, it was quickly extinguished by her love of God and her desire to do His will. God did not interfere with Mary’s free will to either accept or reject what He called her to do, just as He does not interfere with our free wills in response to His call.

Mary quickly said YES in the most beautiful way, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word."(Luke 1:38 NAB)

At this same time, the angel Gabriele also informed Mary of the good news concerning her cousin, Elizabeth’s pregnancy, since it was thought that she would be unable to conceive due to her advanced age. A short time later, Mary would visit her cousin at which time she would give praise and worship to the Lord in what we now know as The Magnificat, which we also find recorded in the Gospel of Luke (1:46-55).

What lesson should we learn from Mary’s response? Our Blessed Mother sets the perfect example of how we should be eager do God’s will and respond to His call with a humble, thankful, and submissive spirit.

As we live and grow in our faith, let us put some time into learning more about the importance of the role of our Blessed Mother in God’s plan of salvation.

In the Book of Revelation, speaking of our Blessed Mother, the Apostle John writes of his heavenly vision referring Mary as “a great sign appearing in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.” (Rev 12:1 NAB)

Begin reading and learning about Our Lady in SIGNUM MAGNUM translated as THE GREAT SIGN, an encyclical written by Pope Paul VI.

Advent Begins on Sunday, November 30, 2008

In a season during which most people experience anxiety at the approach of the Christmas holiday, most of which, by the way, is the result of the impact materialism and commercialism has had on what should be a very peaceful and joyous occasion, let us turn our hearts and minds to the mercy and love of God as we approach the day on which we celebrate the birth of our Savior.

Let us start by contemplating the first of the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary, The Annunciation, and in particular our Blessed Mother’s obedience and surrender to the will of God.

The Annunciation

A devout Jewish girl living in as obscure town during the military occupation of her country is suddenly confronted by a messenger of God. Her familiarity with Scripture would leave her with little doubt about what is happening because all devout Jews awaited the Messiah. Every Jewish girl was given the hope that this might happen to her. But she was not a wife. How could this be?

In her puzzlement she knows what to do. What had the prophets and the holy women of the Bible done before? They had said, “Speak Lord, for your servant is listening” (1 Samuel 3:9). Puzzled, frightened, confused, she says the most simple and profound thing, “Be it done unto me according to your word” (Luke 1:3:38).

Every real attempt at holiness and friendship with God must begin here. There is no real and honest beginning without an unqualified act of obedience and of surrender.

The above was written by Fr. Benedict J. Groeschel, C.F.R. and appears in his leaflet entitled, The Rosary: Opening Our Hearts to the Mysteries of Faith, Creative Communications for the Parish, St. Louis, MO, 1995) – you may purchase this booklet and many other works by Fr. Groeschel @ http://www.franciscanfriars.com/books/benedict_books.htm. Fr. Groeschel also hosts a series on EWTN called Sunday Night Live with Fr. Benedict Groeschel. Find out more about this television series @ http://www.ewtn.com/tv/prime_sunday.asp.