So let's talk about today's readings 12/27/09

[cheeto1]

December 27, 2009
Feast of the Holy Family

The readings are too long today, so they will have to be split up.

Reading 1
Sir 3:2-6, 12-14 or 1Sm 1:20-22, 24-28
God sets a father in honor over his children;
a mother’s authority he confirms over her sons.
Whoever honors his father atones for sins,
and preserves himself from them. When he prays, he is heard;
he stores up riches who reveres his mother.
Whoever honors his father is gladdened by children,
and, when he prays, is heard.
Whoever reveres his father will live a long life;
he who obeys his father brings comfort to his mother. My son, take care of your father when he is old; grieve him not as long as he lives.
Even if his mind fail, be considerate of him;
revile him not all the days of his life;
kindness to a father will not be forgotten,
firmly planted against the debt of your sins
—a house raised in justice to you.
or
In those days Hannah conceived, and at the end of her term bore a son
whom she called Samuel, since she had asked the LORD for him.
The next time her husband Elkanah was going up with the rest of his household
to offer the customary sacrifice to the LORD and to fulfill his vows,
Hannah did not go, explaining to her husband, “Once the child is weaned,
I will take him to appear before the LORD
and to remain there forever; I will offer him as a perpetual nazirite.”
Once Samuel was weaned, Hannah brought him up with her,
along with a three-year-old bull, an ephah of flour, and a skin of wine,
and presented him at the temple of the LORD in Shiloh.
After the boy’s father had sacrificed the young bull,
Hannah, his mother, approached Eli and said:
“Pardon, my lord! As you live, my lord,
I am the woman who stood near you here, praying to the LORD.
I prayed for this child, and the LORD granted my request.
Now I, in turn, give him to the LORD;
as long as he lives, he shall be dedicated to the LORD.” Hannah left Samuel there.

**-- **Wonder which reading will be chosen today?
In the first choice from Sirach, twice it says of the man who honors his
father, that his prayers will be heard. Does this imply that for the man who
does not honor his father, his prayers will not be heard?

– “Hannah left Samuel there”. That seems like such a crazy idea to do to a child,
who is not old enough to try to understand the reason for his abandonment.
And I didn’t even hear God tell her to do that.

 

[cheeto1]

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 128:1-2, 3, 4-5

(cf. 1)** Blessed are those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.**
Blessed is everyone who fears the LORD,
who walks in his ways!
For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork;
blessed shall you be, and favored.
Blessed are those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
in the recesses of your home;
your children like olive plants

around your table.
Blessed are those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.
Behold, thus is the man blessed
who fears the LORD.
The LORD bless you from Zion:
may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
all the days of your life.
Blessed are those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways.
or
Ps 84:2-3, 5-6, 9-10.
(cf. 5a) Blessed are they who dwell in your house, O Lord.
How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts!
My soul yearns and pines for the courts of the LORD.
My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.
Blessed are they who dwell in your house, O Lord.
Happy they who dwell in your house!
Continually they praise you.
Happy the men whose strength you are!
Their hearts are set upon the pilgrimage.
Blessed are they who dwell in your house, O Lord.
O LORD of hosts, hear our prayer;
hearken, O God of Jacob!
O God, behold our shield,
and look upon the face of your anointed.

Blessed are they who dwell in your house, O Lord

**-- “**For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork”
This is what the first psalm says of the man who fears the Lord and
walks in His ways. And what will the man who does not fear the Lord eat?

– “Their hearts are set upon the pilgrimage”
Surely this directly relates to Samuel’s family as they set off to give him away.

 

[cheeto1]

Reading II
Col 3:12-21 or 3:12-17 or 1 Jn 3:1-2, 21-24 Brothers and sisters:
Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved,
heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience,
bearing with one another and forgiving one another,
if one has a grievance against another;
as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do.
And over all these put on love,
that is, the bond of perfection.
And let the peace of Christ control your hearts,
the peace into which you were also called in one body.
And be thankful.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly,
as in all wisdom you teach and admonish one another,
singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs
with gratitude in your hearts to God.
And whatever you do, in word or in deed,
do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Wives, be subordinate to your husbands,
as is proper in the Lord.
Husbands, love your wives,
and avoid any bitterness toward them.
Children, obey your parents in everything,
for this is pleasing to the Lord.
Fathers, do not provoke your children,
so they may not become discouraged.

or
Brothers and sisters:
Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved,
heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience,
bearing with one another and forgiving one another,
if one has a grievance against another;
as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do.
And over all these put on love,
that is, the bond of perfection.
And let the peace of Christ control your hearts,
the peace into which you were also called in one body.
And be thankful.
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly,
as in all wisdom you teach and admonish one another,
singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs
with gratitude in your hearts to God.
And whatever you do, in word or in deed,
do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks to God the Father through him.
or
Beloved:
See what love the Father has bestowed on us
that we may be called the children of God.
And so we are.
The reason the world does not know us
is that it did not know him.
Beloved, we are God’s children now;
what we shall be has not yet been revealed.
We do know that when it is revealed we shall be like him,
for we shall see him as he is.
Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us,
we have confidence in God and receive from him whatever we ask,
because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.
And his commandment is this:
we should believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ,
and love one another just as he commanded us.
Those who keep his commandments remain in him, and he in them,
and the way we know that he remains in us
is from the Spirit he gave us.

– Too many choices!! Which one will be chosen?

– Here’s what I like from the first choice:
“And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the
Lord Jesus” - this is what makes it easier to do and say the right thing.

– Here it is again in the second choice:
“And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the
Lord Jesus” . I note how this one leaves out the subordination part at the
end. The subordination part is always hard for priests to talk about, since
we are subordinate to God first of all, but not all authority figures think those
under them should act that way.

– The third choice is the most comforting reading of all.
And here’s the most exciting part of it:
“what we shall be has not yet been revealed”

 

[cheeto1]

Gospel
Lk 2:41-52 Each year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the feast
of Passover,
and when he was twelve years old,
they went up according to festival custom.
After they had completed its days, as they were returning,
the boy Jesus remained behind in Jerusalem,
but his parents did not know it.
Thinking that he was in the caravan,
they journeyed for a day
and looked for him among their relatives and acquaintances,
but not finding him,
they returned to Jerusalem to look for him.
After three days they found him in the temple,
sitting in the midst of the teachers,
listening to them and asking them questions,
and all who heard him were astounded
at his understanding and his answers.
When his parents saw him,
they were astonished,
and his mother said to him,
“Son, why have you done this to us?
Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety.”
And he said to them,
“Why were you looking for me?
Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”
But they did not understand what he said to them.
He went down with them and came to Nazareth,
and was obedient to them;
and his mother kept all these things in her heart.
And Jesus advanced in wisdom and age and favor
before God and man.

– “After three days they found him in the temple”
Wonder where He slept? On the floor? Wonder why the teachers let
Him do that? Didn’t they ask about His parents? Did they give Him food?
And this line takes the cake: “Son, why have you done this to us?"
I still wonder that. Why did a sinless Jesus do that? If He really was
supposed to “be about His Father’s business”, then why didn’t He tell
Joseph and Mary that He’s sorry but He must stay there? He would not
be dishonoring them if He really had to be there.

Today is the feast of St. John the evangelist. Apparently the feast of the Holy
Family takes precedence. I wonder if St. John will be mentioned at all?

So what struck you about today’s readings? :bible1::twocents: