Sunday, December 23, 2012

WHAT  WERE ST. THOMAS' 
SERMONS LIKE?




New Quote - December 23,  2012

"When you preach the Gospel, beware of preaching it as the religion which explains everything."

Albert Schweitzer [1875-1965]

Painting: Doubting Thomas by Caravaggio [1573-1610]

Saturday, December 22, 2012



WRITE YOUR 
OWN  MAGNIFICAT

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for December 22, is, “Write Your Own Magnificat!”

Most of us would respond: “You mean my ‘Insignficat?’”

I’m suggesting taking some time and write at least that - and then looking deeper  into one’s life, write one’s “Significat” - and bringing God into the picture, make it one’s Magnificat.

TODAY’S READINGS

In today’s first reading from 1st Book of Samuel 1: 24-28, we have the story of Hannah. She goes to the temple of the Lord in Shiloh and makes a presentation to the Lord of her son. Then in the Psalm response - notice it’s not a psalm today - we have Hannah’s magnificat prayer to God - from the beginning of Chapter 2 of Samuel.

In today’s gospel from Luke 1: 46-56, we have Mary’s Magnificat , which we are more familiar with.

TRY THESE TWO MAGNIFICATS ON FOR SIZE

The thought hit me, “Write Your Own Magnificat!”

The first step would be to go through Hannah’s and then Mary’s magnificat and then ask, “Could I say this of myself?”

Could I say, “I’m giving myself to the Lord”?

Could I say, “My heart exults in the Lord”?

Could I say,  “My soul magnifies the Lord!”?

Could I say, “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord!”?

Could I say, “The Lord has done great things for me”?

Could I say, “There are times I fear the Lord”?

Could I say, “I realize that the hungry, the poor, the empty, the lowly are seen by God as the rich ones”?

Could I say, “When I look at my life I realize God has remembered to me his promise of mercy”?

WRITE YOUR OWN MAGNIFICAT

The title of my homily is, “Write Your Own Magnificat!”

My first draft would go something like this:

My soul magnifies  the goodness of the Lord  ---- sometimes.

My soul minimizes the goodness of the Lord  ---- sometimes.

The almighty has done great things for me: good family, good friends - great life so far. Thank You God for helping me to understand Chesterton’s words, “People are the million masks of God.”

The almighty has fed me with his bread when I was hungry and at times I was unaware of these riches - and so I walked away feeling I was empty.  Sorry God.

When I’m filled with myself, I sound so empty ---- sometimes.

When I’m poor or with the poor, I realize my riches ---- sometimes.

When I was proud he knocked me off my throne - scattering me till I admitted my conceit ---- sometimes.

When I realized I was his servant he came to my aid and in doing this I remembered his promise of mercy, the promise he made to our ancestors.

When I’m stinking like a stable, You, Lord Jesus are born in the midst of my messes, so my soul does magnify the Lord ---- sometimes.

So Lord  help me to be like Mary and bring you to our world ---- all the time. Amen.


TAILORING JESUS 
TO FIT OUR AGENDA


Quote for Today - December 22, 2012

"In every decade we instruct Christ as to what He was and is, instead of allowing ourselves to be instructed by Him."

Amos N. Wilder [1895-1993], Theology and Modern Literature, [1958}


Book cover of a book about Thornton and Amos Wilder - brothers from a very fascinating family. Check them out on line!

Friday, December 21, 2012




  CHRISTMAS  SCENE 

The cow chewing her cud ….
The sheep eating her hay ….
The donkey resting after
that long journey from Nazareth ….
looking at the baby born of Mary,
not knowing her grand-donkey
will carry this same child
into Jerusalem some 33 years
from now - and into the lives
of billions of people to come.
Oh my God, you’re calling me
to be a donkey - to carry Jesus to
others. Oh come let us adore him.
O come let us adore him:
Christ the Lord. Amen.

© Andy Costello, Reflection 2012

ADVENT  PRAYER 

          Watching and waiting 
                   for you, Lord Jesus,
          watching and waiting
                   for you in prayer.

          Jesus, you are the beginning
                   and the end of my everything. 
          You touch my life from A to Z.
          You are the Alpha and the Omega.
          You are the center around which
                   my life keeps spinning
                   from birth till death:
                   my Bethlehem to my Calvary.

          Watching and waiting
                   for you, Lord Jesus,
          watching and waiting
                   for you in prayer.
          Jesus, you stand there
                   on the shore of my life,
          calling me to drop everything,
                   and follow you.
          You are still the Story Teller,
                   telling me about the Kingdom.
          You are still the Healer,
                   ready to heal me
                   of bad memories and of my mistakes.
          You are still the Lover,
                   standing on the lake shore of my death,
                   ready to feed me,
                   ready to love me,
                   ready to bring me into eternity.


© Andy Costello, Prayers for Markings, December 1991
ON  THIN ICE 




Quote for Today  - December 21, 2012

"What a sea 
Of melting ice I walk on!"

Philip Massinger [1583-1646], The Maid of Honour, [1632], a Tragicomedy in 5 acts.

Comment: At some point in our life, we need to look at the foundations of our life - what we stand for - what our life is built on. We need to name our present platform. We ought to then name our dream platform - whether it's justice for all, listening, family, God, leaving the earth better than we found it or what have you.  We need to ask: "Am I standing on a sea of melting ice?"

Thursday, December 20, 2012

O 
NOW  - I GET CHRISTMAS



“Ero Cras!”
“Ero” - Latin future tense
for “I will be”.
“Cras” - Latin word
for “tomorrow”.
“ERO  CRAS”:
it's Latin phrase for
“I will be there tomorrow.”

Wait a minute!
Are you saying
the world is going to end
tomorrow, December 21, 2012?

No - I’m saying that Christ
will come again today, 
tomorrow and again 
and again and then at the End.

“ERO CRAS!”
An acrostic, an acronym -
each letter standing for
the first letter of a Latin word
describing “Christ”.

Way back before they
had TV and techy stuff,
that had time to write
things like “O Come,
O Come, Emmanuel” -
listing 7 titles for Jesus - 
with those 7 letters in Latin 
of “ERO CRAS.”

E -  Emmanuel - Jesus God is with us.
R -  Rex - Jesus is King of the Gentiles.
O - Oriens - Jesus is Orient - the morning light.
C - Clavis Jesus is the Key.
R - Radix - Jesus is the Root of Jesse.
A - Adonai - Jesus is Leader.  
S - Sapientia - Jesus is Wisdom.

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2012