Daily Reflection | Gospel Reading | RVA

3RD WEEK OF ADVENT
Psalter: Week 3 / (Violet)

1 Sm 2:1, 4-5, 6-7, 8abcd
My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.

1^st Reading: 1 S 1:24-28

When the child was weaned, Hannah took him with her along with a three-year-old bull, a measure of flour and a flask of wine, and she brought him to Yahweh‘s house at Shiloh. The child was still young.

After they had slain the bull, they brought the child to Eli. Hannah exclaimed: “Oh, my lord, look! I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, praying to Yahweh. I asked for this child and Yahweh granted me the favor I begged of him. I think Yahweh is now asking for this child. As long as he lives, he belongs to Yahweh.“

And they worshiped Yahweh there.

Gospel: Lk 1:46-56

And Mary said,

“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,

my spirit exults in God, my savior!

He has looked upon his servant, in her lowliness, and people, forever, will call me blessed.

The Mighty One has done great things for me, Holy is his Name!

From age to age, his mercy extends to those who live in his presence.

He has acted with power and done wonders, and scattered the proud with their plans.

He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and lifted up those who are downtrodden.

He has filled the hungry with good things, but has sent the rich away empty.

He held out his hand to Israel, his servant, for he remembered his mercy,

even as he promised to our fathers, to Abraham and his descendants forever.“

Mary remained with Elizabeth about three months, and then returned home.

REFLECTION:

The Magnificat which is a song thanksgiving teaches us three things:

1. First, it shows us what sort of a woman Mary is. Mary is a blessed and grateful woman. Filled with the Holy Spirit and pregnant with Jesus, she offers thanks to God. She is so blessed that she cannot but be grateful to God.
2. Second, it reminds us that everything is God‘s gift, that everything is God‘s grace. Mary recognizes the greatness of God in her Magnificat. Her conception of Jesus is but a gift from God not only to her but to humanity. Everything is God‘s grace that the only thing that she needs is to cooperate with the grace of God.
3. Third, because everything is God‘s gift we need to give thanks to God. And our thanksgiving should be seen most especially in our sharing of what we received from God to others. God was the first giver and sharer. We need to imitate Him.

Indeed, we all have been blessed and gifted by God in one way or another. Perhaps, we were not given the same gifts, but just the same we are gifted and blessed. We are blessed first and foremost with the gift of God‘s presence in us, with the gift of family, of friends, and of everything that we need in life. But have we ever thanked God for all these blessings? Lest we forget, a person who is grateful is not only happy and contented but he also proclaims the greatness of God and allows Him to enter and dwell in his life. If God dwells in our hearts, the devil has no place to dwell in us.

Daily Reflection

Daily Gospel ® is a product Claretian Publications, a division of Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc. (CCFI) which is a pastoral endeavor of the Claretian Missionaries in the Philippines that brings the Word of God to people from all walks of life. CCFI aims to promote integral evangelization and renewed spirituality that is geared towards empowerment and total liberation in response to the needs and challenges of the Church today.

CCFI is a member of Claret Publishing Group, a consortium of the publishing houses of the Claretian Missionaries all over the world: Bangalore, Barcelona, Buenos Aires, Chennai, Colombo, Dar es Salaam, Lagos, Madrid, Macao, Manila, Owerry, São Paolo, Varsaw , Yaoundé.

Biblical Texts are taken from Christian Community Bible, Catholic Pastoral Edition (57^th Edition) The New English Translation for the ROMAN MISSAL

With permission from the EPISCOPAL COMMISION ON LITURGY of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines

 

DAILY GOSPEL ® 2017
Readings and Reflections
Copyright © 2O16
Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc.
U.P. P.O. Box 4, Diliman,
1101 Quezon City, Philippines
Tel.: (63-2) 921-3984
Fax: (6352) 921-7429
Email: ccfi@claretianpublicationscom
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Web: www.claretianph.com

3RD WEEK OF ADVENT
Psalter: Week 3 / (Violet/White)
St. Peter Canisius, priest & doctor

Ps 33:2-3, 11-12, 20-21
Exult, you just, in the Lord!
Sing to him a new song.

1^st Reading: Song 2:8-14 (or Zep 3:14-18a)

The voice of my lover! Behold he comes, springing across the mountains, jumping over the hills, like a gazelle or a young stag. Now he stands behind our wall, looking through the windows, peering through the lattice.

My lover speaks to me,

He

“Arise, my love, my beautiful one!

Come, the winter is gone, the rains are over.

Flowers have appeared on earth; the season of singing has come; the cooing of doves is heard. The fig tree forms its early fruit, the vines in blossom are fragrant. Arise, my beautiful one, come with me, my love, come. O my dove in the rocky cleft, in the secret places of the cliff, let me see your face, let me hear your voice. Your face—how lovely! Your voice—how sweet!“

Gospel: Lk 1:39-45

Mary then set out for a town in the hill country of Judah. She entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary‘s greeting, the baby leapt in her womb. Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and, giving a loud cry, said, “You are most blessed among women; and blessed is the fruit of your womb! How is it, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? The moment your greeting sounded in my ears, the baby within me suddenly leapt for joy. Blessed are you, who believed that the Lord‘s word would come true!“

REFLECTION:

Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth. But in reality, it was also the visit of Jesus, who was still in the womb of his mother, to Elizabeth and his cousin John, who like him was still in the womb of Elizabeth. Mary was used as instrument for Jesus to visit them.

According to St. Augustine, the mystery of incarnation is God‘s visitation to his people. But God‘s visitation to his people did not end in Jesus‘ ascension to the Father.

God continues to visit this people through us whenever we bring God‘s presence to others.

Daily Reflection

Daily Gospel ® is a product Claretian Publications, a division of Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc. (CCFI) which is a pastoral endeavor of the Claretian Missionaries in the Philippines that brings the Word of God to people from all walks of life. CCFI aims to promote integral evangelization and renewed spirituality that is geared towards empowerment and total liberation in response to the needs and challenges of the Church today.

CCFI is a member of Claret Publishing Group, a consortium of the publishing houses of the Claretian Missionaries all over the world: Bangalore, Barcelona, Buenos Aires, Chennai, Colombo, Dar es Salaam, Lagos, Madrid, Macao, Manila, Owerry, São Paolo, Varsaw , Yaoundé.

Biblical Texts are taken from Christian Community Bible, Catholic Pastoral Edition (57^th Edition) The New English Translation for the ROMAN MISSAL

With permission from the EPISCOPAL COMMISION ON LITURGY of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines

 

DAILY GOSPEL ® 2017
Readings and Reflections
Copyright © 2O16
Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc.
U.P. P.O. Box 4, Diliman,
1101 Quezon City, Philippines
Tel.: (63-2) 921-3984
Fax: (6352) 921-7429
Email: ccfi@claretianpublicationscom
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Web: www.claretianph.com

3RD WEEK OF ADVENT
Psalter: Week 3 / (Violet)

Ps 24:1-2, 3-4ab, 5-6
Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory.

1^st Reading: Is 7:10-14

Once again Yahweh addressed Ahaz, “Ask for a sign from Yahweh your God, let it come either from the deepest depths or from the heights of heaven.“

But Ahaz answered, “I will not ask, I will not put Yahweh to the test.“

Then Isaiah said, “Now listen, descendants of David. Have you not been satisfied trying the patience of people, that you also try the patience of my God? Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign:

The Virgin is with child and bears a son and calls his name Immanuel.

Gospel: Lk 1:26-38

In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God, to a town of Galilee called Nazareth. He was sent to a virgin, who was betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the family of David; and the virgin‘s name was Mary.

The angel came to her and said, “Rejoice, full of grace, the Lord is with you!“ Mary was troubled at these words, wondering what this greeting could mean.

But the angel said, “Do not fear, Mary, for God has looked kindly on you. You shall conceive and bear a son; and you shall call him Jesus. He will be great, and shall rightly be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the kingdom of David, his ancestor; he will rule over the people of Jacob forever; and his reign shall have no end.“

Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?“ And the angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore, the holy child to be born of you shall be called Son of God. Even your relative, Elizabeth, is expecting a son in her old age, although she was unable to have a child; and she is now in her sixth month. With God nothing is impossible.“

Then Mary said, “I am the handmaid of the Lord, let it be done to me as you have said.“ And the angel left her.

REFLECTION:

We call ourselves “Pueblo Amante de Maria“. But we can only prove this if we really follow the examples of Mary. We hear in the gospel that the angel announced to her that she would be the mother of Jesus. How did she accept this? There are three qualities of Mary‘s response to God‘s invitation for her to be the mother of God ( 3Fs):

1) Faithful-In the annunciation, we hear about Mary‘s Fiat. Mary uttered her yes to the word of the angel, and from that instance the Word, the second person in the Trinity, was incarnated in her. The plan of God began to realize because of Mary‘s faithfulness. Wonderful things can happen to us, if only, we are faithful to God.

2) Fruitful–When Mary accepted God‘s invitations, she became pregnant of Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit. Her faithfulness led to fruitfulness. In the same manner, the Word, the Son of God, is also incarnated in us every time we say yes to him. This is our own FIAT that we do every day; this is our own “Yes“ to God that gives birth to Jesus in our life.

3) For-ever or lasting commitment. Her fidelity is not a one time yes to God but a series of yeses. In her entire life she became faithful to her calling and vocation as the mother of God. She was a true mother to Jesus and she remained as such until the end. His disciples have denied and abandoned him. One disciple has even betrayed him. But Mary remained by his side even at the foot of the cross.

This is what we pray for today to imitate Mary in her fidelity and loyalty to God till the end of our life. May the example of Mary serve as our inspiration so that Jesus may be born in our life and so that we can also give birth to Jesus in others‘ lives.

Daily Reflection

Daily Gospel ® is a product Claretian Publications, a division of Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc. (CCFI) which is a pastoral endeavor of the Claretian Missionaries in the Philippines that brings the Word of God to people from all walks of life. CCFI aims to promote integral evangelization and renewed spirituality that is geared towards empowerment and total liberation in response to the needs and challenges of the Church today.

CCFI is a member of Claret Publishing Group, a consortium of the publishing houses of the Claretian Missionaries all over the world: Bangalore, Barcelona, Buenos Aires, Chennai, Colombo, Dar es Salaam, Lagos, Madrid, Macao, Manila, Owerry, São Paolo, Varsaw , Yaoundé.

Biblical Texts are taken from Christian Community Bible, Catholic Pastoral Edition (57^th Edition) The New English Translation for the ROMAN MISSAL

With permission from the EPISCOPAL COMMISION ON LITURGY of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines

 

DAILY GOSPEL ® 2017
Readings and Reflections
Copyright © 2O16
Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc.
U.P. P.O. Box 4, Diliman,
1101 Quezon City, Philippines
Tel.: (63-2) 921-3984
Fax: (6352) 921-7429
Email: ccfi@claretianpublicationscom
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Web: www.claretianph.com

3rd WEEK OF ADVENT
 Psalter: Week 3 / (Violet)

Ps 71:3-4a, 5-6ab, 16-17
My mouth shall be filled with your praise, and I will sing your glory!

1^st Reading: Jdg 13:2-7, 24-25a

There was a man of Zorah of the tribe of Dan, called Manoah. His wife could not bear children. The angel of Yahweh appeared to this woman and said to her, “You have not borne children and have not given birth, but see, you are to conceive and give birth to a son. Because of this, take care not to take wine or any alcoholic drink, nor to eat unclean foods from now on, for you shall bear a son who shall be a Nazirite of Yahweh from the womb of his mother. Never shall his hair be cut for he is consecrated to Yahweh. He shall begin the liberation of the Israelites from the Philistine oppression.”

The woman went to her husband and told him, “A messenger of God who bore the majesty of an angel spoke to me. I did not ask him where he came from nor did he tell me his name.

But he said to me: ‘You are to conceive and give birth to a son. Henceforth, you shall not drink wine or fermented drinks, nor eat anything unclean, for your son shall be a Nazirite of God from the womb of his mother until the day of his death.’”

The woman gave birth to a son and named him Samson. The boy grew and Yahweh blessed him. Then the Spirit of Yahweh began to move him when he was in Mahane Dan between Zorah and Eshtaol.

Gospel: Lk 1:5-25

In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there lived a priest named Zechariah, belonging to the priestly clan of Abiah. Elizabeth, Zechariah’s wife, also belonged to a priestly family. Both of them were upright in the eyes of God, and lived blamelessly, in accordance with all the laws and commands of the Lord, but they had no child. Elizabeth could not have any and now they were both very old.

Now, while Zechariah and those with him were fulfilling their office, it fell to him by lot, according to the custom of the priests, to enter the Sanctuary of the Lord and burn incense. At the time of offering incense, all the people were praying outside; it was then, that an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. On seeing the angel, Zechariah was deeply troubled and fear took hold of him.

But the angel said to him, “Don’t be afraid, Zechariah, be assured that your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son and you shall name him John. He will bring joy and gladness to you, and many will rejoice at his birth.

This son of yours will be great in the eyes of the Lord. Listen: he shall never drink wine or strong drink; but he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb. Through him, many of the people of Israel will turn to the Lord their God. He, himself, will open the way to the Lord, with the spirit and power of the prophet Elijah; he will reconcile fathers and children; and lead the disobedient to wisdom and righteousness, in order to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

Zechariah said to the angel, “How can I believe this? I am an old man and my wife is elderly, too.” The angel replied, “I am Gabriel, who stands before God; and I am the one sent to speak to you, and to bring you this good news! My words will come true in their time. But you would not believe; and now, you will be silent and unable to speak until this has happened.”

Meanwhile, the people waited for Zechariah; and they were surprised that he delayed so long in the Sanctuary. When he finally appeared, he could not speak to them; and they realized that he had seen a vision in the Sanctuary. He remained dumb and made signs to them.

When his time of service was completed, Zechariah returned home; and, some time later, Elizabeth became pregnant. For five months she kept to herself, remaining at home, and thinking, “This, for me, is the Lord’s doing! This is his time for mercy, and for taking away my public disgrace.”

REFLECTION:

A family of 12, one member can easily be forgotten of busy parents. A child‘s request is sometimes unintentionally neglected or confused with the request of another child. For God, it is not so. He never forgets anyone and his promise to each one. In today‘s gospel, God is fulfilling His promise to Zechariah. The promised son, the forerunner of the Redeemer is announced by the Angel.

The fulfilment of God‘s promise to man is also conditioned by man‘s life. Zechariah and Elizabeth “were righteous in the eyes of God, observing all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly.“ They persevered in prayer. Thus, the angel Gabriel addressed them; “Do not be afraid, your prayer has been heard.“ “Your wife Elizabeth will bear a son and you shall name him John.“ God granted their request in his time and due to the righteousness of the couple and perseverance in prayer.

Let us learn to trust God completely and never doubt his faithfulness. Many times God surprises. And like Zechariah who thought the words of the Angel was “too good to be true.“

Doubt in God displeases Him. It will not bring good. Lord increase our faith that we may not doubt but believe.

Daily Reflection

Daily Gospel ® is a product Claretian Publications, a division of Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc. (CCFI) which is a pastoral endeavor of the Claretian Missionaries in the Philippines that brings the Word of God to people from all walks of life. CCFI aims to promote integral evangelization and renewed spirituality that is geared towards empowerment and total liberation in response to the needs and challenges of the Church today.

CCFI is a member of Claret Publishing Group, a consortium of the publishing houses of the Claretian Missionaries all over the world: Bangalore, Barcelona, Buenos Aires, Chennai, Colombo, Dar es Salaam, Lagos, Madrid, Macao, Manila, Owerry, São Paolo, Varsaw , Yaoundé.

Biblical Texts are taken from Christian Community Bible, Catholic Pastoral Edition (57^th Edition) The New English Translation for the ROMAN MISSAL

With permission from the EPISCOPAL COMMISION ON LITURGY of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines

 

DAILY GOSPEL ® 2017
Readings and Reflections
Copyright © 2O16
Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc.
U.P. P.O. Box 4, Diliman,
1101 Quezon City, Philippines
Tel.: (63-2) 921-3984
Fax: (6352) 921-7429
Email: ccfi@claretianpublicationscom
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Web: www.claretianph.com