#mind that i used the name i gave him which is zerah!!
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25th December >> Mass Readings (Except USA)
Christmas Day - Vigil Mass, Midnight Mass, Mass at Dawn & Mass during the Day.
Vigil Mass
(Liturgical Colour: White)
(Readings for the Vigil Mass, celebrated during the afternoon or evening before Christmas Day)
First Reading
Isaiah 62:1-5
The bridegroom rejoices in his bride
About Zion I will not be silent,
about Jerusalem I will not grow weary,
until her integrity shines out like the dawn
and her salvation flames like a torch.
The nations then will see your integrity,
all the kings your glory,
and you will be called by a new name,
one which the mouth of the Lord will confer.
You are to be a crown of splendour in the hand of the Lord,
a princely diadem in the hand of your God;
no longer are you to be named ‘Forsaken’,
nor your land ‘Abandoned’,
but you shall be called ‘My Delight’
and your land ‘The Wedded’;
for the Lord takes delight in you
and your land will have its wedding.
Like a young man marrying a virgin,
so will the one who built you wed you,
and as the bridegroom rejoices in his bride,
so will your God rejoice in you.
The Word of the Lord
R/ Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 88(89):4-5,16-17,27,29
R/ I will sing for ever of your love, O Lord.
‘I have made a covenant with my chosen one;
I have sworn to David my servant:
I will establish your dynasty for ever
and set up your throne through all ages.’
R/ I will sing for ever of your love, O Lord.
Happy the people who acclaim such a king,
who walk, O Lord, in the light of your face,
who find their joy every day in your name,
who make your justice the source of their bliss.
R/ I will sing for ever of your love, O Lord.
‘He will say to me: “You are my father,
my God, the rock who saves me.”
I will keep my love for him always;
with him my covenant shall endure.’
R/ I will sing for ever of your love, O Lord.
Second Reading
Acts of the Apostles 13:16-17,22-25
Paul's witness to Christ, the son of David
When Paul reached Antioch in Pisidia, he stood up in the synagogue, held up a hand for silence and began to speak:
‘Men of Israel, and fearers of God, listen! The God of our nation Israel chose our ancestors, and made our people great when they were living as foreigners in Egypt; then by divine power he led them out.
‘Then he made David their king, of whom he approved in these words, “I have selected David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart, who will carry out my whole purpose.” To keep his promise, God has raised up for Israel one of David’s descendants, Jesus, as Saviour, whose coming was heralded by John when he proclaimed a baptism of repentance for the whole people of Israel. Before John ended his career he said, “I am not the one you imagine me to be; that one is coming after me and I am not fit to undo his sandal.”’
The Word of the Lord
R/ Thanks be to God.
Gospel Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia!
Tomorrow there will be an end to the sin of the world
and the saviour of the world will be our king.
Alleluia!
Either:
Gospel
Matthew 1:1-25
The ancestry and birth of Jesus Christ, the son of David
A genealogy of Jesus Christ, son of David, son of Abraham:
Abraham was the father of Isaac,
Isaac the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah, Tamar being their mother,
Perez was the father of Hezron,
Hezron the father of Ram,
Ram was the father of Amminadab,
Amminadab the father of Nahshon,
Nahshon the father of Salmon,
Salmon was the father of Boaz, Rahab being his mother,
Boaz was the father of Obed, Ruth being his mother,
Obed was the father of Jesse;
and Jesse was the father of King David.
David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife,
Solomon was the father of Rehoboam,
Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asa,
Asa was the father of Jehoshaphat,
Jehoshaphat the father of Joram,
Joram the father of Azariah,
Azariah was the father of Jotham,
Jotham the father of Ahaz,
Ahaz the father of Hezekiah,
Hezekiah was the father of Manasseh,
Manasseh the father of Amon,
Amon the father of Josiah;
and Josiah was the father of Jechoniah and his brothers.
Then the deportation to Babylon took place.
After the deportation to Babylon:
Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel,
Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,
Zerubbabel was the father of Abiud,
Abiud the father of Eliakim,
Eliakim the father of Azor,
Azor was the father of Zadok,
Zadok the father of Achim,
Achim the father of Eliud,
Eliud was the father of Eleazar,
Eleazar the father of Matthan,
Matthan the father of Jacob;
and Jacob was the father of Joseph the husband of Mary;
of her was born Jesus who is called Christ.
The sum of generations is therefore: fourteen from Abraham to David; fourteen from David to the Babylonian deportation; and fourteen from the Babylonian deportation to Christ.
This is how Jesus Christ came to be born. His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph; but before they came to live together she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph; being a man of honour and wanting to spare her publicity, decided to divorce her informally. He had made up his mind to do this when the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you must name him Jesus, because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins.’ Now all this took place to fulfil the words spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son
and they will call him Emmanuel,
a name which means ‘God-is-with-us.’ When Joseph woke up he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do: he took his wife to his home and, though he had not had intercourse with her, she gave birth to a son; and he named him Jesus.
The Gospel of the Lord
R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Or
Gospel
Matthew 1:18-25
How Jesus Christ came to be born
This is how Jesus Christ came to be born. His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph; but before they came to live together she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph; being a man of honour and wanting to spare her publicity, decided to divorce her informally. He had made up his mind to do this when the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you must name him Jesus, because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins.’ Now all this took place to fulfil the words spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son
and they will call him Emmanuel,
a name which means ‘God-is-with-us.’ When Joseph woke up he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do: he took his wife to his home and, though he had not had intercourse with her, she gave birth to a son; and he named him Jesus.
The Gospel of the Lord
R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
---------------------------------------------
Midnight Mass
(Liturgical Colour: White)
(Readings for the Midnight Mass, celebrated during the night before Christmas Day)
First Reading
Isaiah 9:1-7
A Son is given to us
The people that walked in darkness
has seen a great light;
on those who live in a land of deep shadow
a light has shone.
You have made their gladness greater,
you have made their joy increase;
they rejoice in your presence
as men rejoice at harvest time,
as men are happy when they are dividing the spoils.
For the yoke that was weighing on him,
the bar across his shoulders,
the rod of his oppressor,
these you break as on the day of Midian.
For all the footgear of battle,
every cloak rolled in blood,
is burnt,
and consumed by fire.
For there is a child born for us,
a son given to us
and dominion is laid on his shoulders;
and this is the name they give him:
Wonder-Counsellor, Mighty-God,
Eternal-Father, Prince-of-Peace.
Wide is his dominion
in a peace that has no end,
for the throne of David
and for his royal power,
which he establishes and makes secure
in justice and integrity.
From this time onwards and for ever,
the jealous love of the Lord of Hosts will do this.
The Word of the Lord
R/ Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 95(96):1-3,11-13
R/ Today a saviour has been born to us: he is Christ the Lord.
O sing a new song to the Lord,
sing to the Lord all the earth.
O sing to the Lord, bless his name.
R/ Today a saviour has been born to us: he is Christ the Lord.
Proclaim his help day by day,
tell among the nations his glory
and his wonders among all the peoples.
R/ Today a saviour has been born to us: he is Christ the Lord.
Let the heavens rejoice and earth be glad,
let the sea and all within it thunder praise,
let the land and all it bears rejoice,
all the trees of the wood shout for joy
at the presence of the Lord for he comes,
he comes to rule the earth.
R/ Today a saviour has been born to us: he is Christ the Lord.
With justice he will rule the world,
he will judge the peoples with his truth.
R/ Today a saviour has been born to us: he is Christ the Lord.
Second Reading
Titus 2:11-14
God's grace has been revealed to the whole human race
God’s grace has been revealed, and it has made salvation possible for the whole human race and taught us that what we have to do is to give up everything that does not lead to God, and all our worldly ambitions; we must be self-restrained and live good and religious lives here in this present world, while we are waiting in hope for the blessing which will come with the Appearing of the glory of our great God and saviour Christ Jesus. He sacrificed himself for us in order to set us free from all wickedness and to purify a people so that it could be his very own and would have no ambition except to do good.
The Word of the Lord
R/ Thanks be to God.
Gospel Acclamation
Luke 2:10-11
Alleluia, alleluia!
I bring you news of great joy:
today a saviour has been born to us, Christ the Lord.
Alleluia!
Gospel
Luke 2:1-14
'In the town of David a saviour has been born to you'
Caesar Augustus issued a decree for a census of the whole world to be taken. This census – the first – took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria, and everyone went to his own town to be registered. So Joseph set out from the town of Nazareth in Galilee and travelled up to Judaea, to the town of David called Bethlehem, since he was of David’s House and line, in order to be registered together with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. While they were there the time came for her to have her child, and she gave birth to a son, her first born. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger because there was no room for them at the inn.
In the countryside close by there were shepherds who lived in the fields and took it in turns to watch their flocks during the night. The angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone round them. They were terrified, but the angel said, ‘Do not be afraid. Listen, I bring you news of great joy, a joy to be shared by the whole people. Today in the town of David a saviour has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. And here is a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.’ And suddenly with the angel there was a great throng of the heavenly host, praising God and singing:
‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and peace to men who enjoy his favour.’
The Gospel of the Lord
R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Mass at Dawn
(Liturgical Colour: White)
(Readings for the Dawn Mass, celebrated at dawn on Christmas Day)
First Reading
Isaiah 62:11-12
Look, your saviour comes
This the Lord proclaims
to the ends of the earth:
Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Look,
your saviour comes,
the prize of his victory with him,
his trophies before him.’
They shall be called ‘The Holy People’,
‘The Lord’s Redeemed.’
And you shall be called ‘The-sought-after’,
‘City-not-forsaken.’
The Word of the Lord
R/ Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 96(97):1,6,11-12
R/ This day new light will shine upon the earth: the Lord is born for us.
The Lord is king, let earth rejoice,
let all the coastlands be glad.
The skies proclaim his justice;
all peoples see his glory.
R/ This day new light will shine upon the earth: the Lord is born for us.
Light shines forth for the just
and joy for the upright of heart.
Rejoice, you just, in the Lord;
give glory to his holy name.
R/ This day new light will shine upon the earth: the Lord is born for us.
Second Reading
Titus 3:4-7
It was no reason except his own compassion that he saved us
When the kindness and love of God our saviour for mankind were revealed, it was not because he was concerned with any righteous actions we might have done ourselves; it was for no reason except his own compassion that he saved us, by means of the cleansing water of rebirth and by renewing us with the Holy Spirit which he has so generously poured over us through Jesus Christ our saviour. He did this so that we should be justified by his grace, to become heirs looking forward to inheriting eternal life.
The Word of the Lord
R/ Thanks be to God.
Gospel Acclamation
Luke 2:14
Alleluia, alleluia!
Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and peace to men who enjoy his favour.
Alleluia!
Gospel
Luke 2:15-20
The shepherds hurried to Bethlehem and found the baby lying in the manger
Now when the angels had gone from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.’ So they hurried away 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.
The Gospel of the Lord
R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Mass during the Day
(Liturgical Colour: White)
(Readings for the daytime Mass on Christmas Day)
First Reading
Isaiah 52:7-10
Rejoice, for the Lord is consoling his people
How beautiful on the mountains,
are the feet of one who brings good news,
who heralds peace, brings happiness,
proclaims salvation,
and tells Zion,
‘Your God is king!’
Listen! Your watchmen raise their voices,
they shout for joy together,
for they see the Lord face to face,
as he returns to Zion.
Break into shouts of joy together,
you ruins of Jerusalem;
for the Lord is consoling his people,
redeeming Jerusalem.
The Lord bares his holy arm
in the sight of all the nations,
and all the ends of the earth shall see
the salvation of our God.
The Word of the Lord
R/ Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 97(98):1-6
R/ All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
Sing a new song to the Lord
for he has worked wonders.
His right hand and his holy arm
have brought salvation.
R/ All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
The Lord has made known his salvation;
has shown his justice to the nations.
He has remembered his truth and love
for the house of Israel.
R/ All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation of our God.
Shout to the Lord, all the earth,
ring out your joy.
R/ All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
Sing psalms to the Lord with the harp
with the sound of music.
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
acclaim the King, the Lord.
R/ All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
Second Reading
Hebrews 1:1-6
God has spoken to us through his Son
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, the Son that he has appointed to inherit everything and through whom he made everything there is. He is the radiant light of God’s glory and the perfect copy of his nature, sustaining the universe by his powerful command; and now that he has destroyed the defilement of sin, he has gone to take his place in heaven at the right hand of divine Majesty. So he is now as far above the angels as the title which he has inherited is higher than their own name.
God has never said to any angel: You are my Son, today I have become your father; or: I will be a father to him and he a son to me. Again, when he brings the First-Born into the world, he says: Let all the angels of God worship him.
The Word of the Lord
R/ Thanks be to God.
Gospel Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia!
A hallowed day has dawned upon us.
Come, you nations, worship the Lord,
for today a great light has shone down upon the earth.
Alleluia!
Either
Gospel
John 1:1-18
The Word was made flesh, and lived among us
In the beginning was the Word:
and the Word was with God
and the Word was God.
He was with God in the beginning.
Through him all things came to be,
not one thing had its being but through him.
All that came to be had life in him
and that life was the light of men,
a light that shines in the dark,
a light that darkness could not overpower.
A man came, sent by God.
His name was John.
He came as a witness,
as a witness to speak for the light,
so that everyone might believe through him.
He was not the light,
only a witness to speak for the light.
The Word was the true light
that enlightens all men;
and he was coming into the world.
He was in the world
that had its being through him,
and the world did not know him.
He came to his own domain
and his own people did not accept him.
But to all who did accept him
he gave power to become children of God,
to all who believe in the name of him
who was born not out of human stock
or urge of the flesh
or will of man
but of God himself.
The Word was made flesh,
he lived among us,
and we saw his glory,
the glory that is his as the only Son of the Father,
full of grace and truth.
John appears as his witness. He proclaims:
‘This is the one of whom I said:
He who comes after me ranks before me
because he existed before me.’
Indeed, from his fullness we have, all of us, received –
yes, grace in return for grace,
since, though the Law was given through Moses,
grace and truth have come through Jesus Christ.
No one has ever seen God;
it is the only Son, who is nearest to the Father’s heart,
who has made him known.
The Gospel of the Lord
R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Or
Gospel
John 1:1-5,9-14
The Word was made flesh, and lived among us
In the beginning was the Word:
and the Word was with God
and the Word was God.
He was with God in the beginning.
Through him all things came to be,
not one thing had its being but through him.
All that came to be had life in him
and that life was the light of men,
a light that shines in the dark,
a light that darkness could not overpower.
The Word was the true light
that enlightens all men;
and he was coming into the world.
He was in the world
that had its being through him,
and the world did not know him.
He came to his own domain
and his own people did not accept him.
But to all who did accept him
he gave power to become children of God,
to all who believe in the name of him
who was born not out of human stock
or urge of the flesh
or will of man
but of God himself.
The Word was made flesh,
he lived among us,
and we saw his glory,
the glory that is his as the only Son of the Father,
full of grace and truth.
The Gospel of the Lord
R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
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WILL YOU BE MY VALENTINE~? <3 || Still Accepting
@salvajecho asked: ‘ – woah. i – wow. i mean. look at you! you look – incredible tonight. ’
Despite not much celebration of Valentione's Day in the First, some of the Scions—despite their own concerns—had conspired with The Exarch to hold a sort of festivity for the people. To lift their spirits, to celebrate the return of night, and to give those who had been at the helm of it all, some reprieve and light ways to remember to have fun. Even if the idea the Warrior of Darkness would have offered was something more akin to a tournament or some sort of feat of strength, it had been decided upon without her input to instead hold a ball of sorts.
The entirety of the Crystarium had become decorated with pink streamers and moderate décor, enough to transform the main plaza between the large Aetheryte and the Tower into a place of reverie. A band of bards played various tunes, ranging from lively music that the swarm of dancers took to using for an impromptu performance, to the slow melody that drew even the masked blue mages to cup their gloved hands against palms of locals in slow steps. A celebration for all, and something that the woman would do her best to be ready for.
Asking Zerah to attend with her earlier in the day had been nothing short of natural. After all, their friendship was blossoming, and even if she could not show off her martial skills in the night, his company would be better than others who simply speak nothing but hot air at her. Koya knew him well enough that if she wanted to escape to the Amaro pens, he would happily join her. It was a win for everyone involved, at least in her mind.
Even if she wasn’t going to plan on staying for the entire event, she did have one look she could don—a piece of equipment long shoved into her inventory. A long dress that swept at her ankles in a soft crimson, offering a strikingly similar semblance to an Ao Dai, the slit of the skirt teasing at the edge of her hip, revealing the creamy skin of her thigh with the slightest of movements. Long violet hair swept across her back, untied from her ponytail in a very rare occurrence. Black gloves rushed up from her fingers, halting just at her bicep, complementing the black heels that gave a small click when she stepped onto the wood flooring of the hallway.
What Koya did not expect was as soon as she opened the door was to see Zerah there, hand risen to tap on the barrier she had depleted between them. Blue optics were wide upon the man’s surprised gaze, soaking up his astonishment along with his fumbled words. True, normally even when she donned her casual wear, it was strictly attire to be worn in a fight, even if it offered a revealing curve here or there.
This time, he was able to see her with a small shade of pink adorned to her lips, which only seemed to pale in comparison to the crimson hue beginning to coat her cheeks from his surprised breath about her. “Just…J-just somethin’ I found, nothin’ too…” Her chin tilted away, each syllable bringing on more of the blush across her face. “Too much…is it?”
Swallowing, the small stir in her chest was strange—she wanted him to look at her. Admire the work she had put into calming her wild tresses of hair, in the way that the dress hugged her in a manner she would adore his arms to. No, she couldn’t speak of such things—She and U’Zerah were friends. He a Scion, and she the Warrior of Darkness.
Koya had to clamp down on those emotions, unless they get the best of her.
“Y-you don’t gotta stare, Zerah.” Her more intimate utterance of his name was all the give she would offer him, reaching down and taking up his hand in hers, cupping palms. “Come on, everybody’s probably waitin’ for us down near the Crystal Tower.” A short walk from the Pendants, but still, it was something to think about aside from that way that Zerah had looked at her.
And the way it made her heart thrum in her chest, and how she felt so bare without her chest plate now to hide it. For once, she was rather glad her hair was down—that made a decent barrier for her to obscure her burning face.
“Let’s…Let’s go have some fun.”
#salvajecho#asks#||Strongest Hybrid On Enterra|Koyakumo||#|V: FFXIV|#||ρσυη∂ ιт!| мємє αηѕωєя||#Me ordering icons just for this ask? More likely than you think
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Compiled by Jim Walker
Babylon Is Fallen
"And, behold, here cometh a chariot of men, with a couple of horsemen. And he answered and said, Babylon is fallen, is fallen; and all the graven images of her gods he hath broken unto the ground." (Isaiah 21:9)
Comment
Many soldiers have used Bible verses to justify horrific destruction against their enemy. Such beliefs can comfort the minds of men to do virtually any kind of atrocity against men, women, and children of the enemy. The Crusaders of the 12th century, slaughtered or tortured anyone who stood in their way. The Bible's words gave them their justification.
Even today, our government, military and religious leaders judge wars as "moral" based on Biblical reasoning. Fighting men feel, not only comforted, but glorious in their actions against the destruction of fellow human beings. In the Gulf War, for example, an F-16 fighter/bomber had "Isaiah 21:9" written on its bombs.
David Slaughters Them
"And he brought out the people that were in it, and cut them with saws, and with harrows of iron, and with axes..." (I Chronicles 20:3)
Comment
Chapters 17-19 (17-18-19) tells us that David killed 22,000 Syrians and that Abishai killed 18,000 Edomites. No one expresses shame at such slaughters.
Here in 20:3, we have David, counted as a great leader of the Israelites, slaughtering captives after the cessation of hostilities. From what high moral ground should we admire this action?
Decapitate Them!
"And Israel joined himself unto Baalpeor: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel. And the LORD said unto Moses, 'Take all the heads of the people and hang them up before the LORD against the sun, that the fierce anger of the LORD may be turned away from Israel.'" (Numbers 25:3-4)
Comment
Those who worshipped other gods must die, and even more horribly, their heads displayed publicly. Either God never said anything so cruel, or we truly live in a cursed universe, ruled by a maniac Supreme Being.
Millions of people, today, switch their religions. If God had any interest in this ongoing process, there appears no evidence of this.
Gideon Slaughters
"And Gideon said, Therefore when the Lord hath delivered Zebah and Zalmunna into mine hand, then I will tear your flesh with the thorns of the wilderness and with briers" (Judges 8:7)
"Now Zebah and Zalmunna were Karkor, and their hosts with them, about fifteen thousand men, all that were left of all the hosts of the children of the east: for there fell an hundred and twenty thousand men that drew sword." (Judges 8:10)
Comment
The Gideon Society places Bibles into motels and hotels across America. One would assume Gideon lived as a person of exemplary character and great worth to have a worldwide society named after him. Below describes some of Gideon's accomplishments:
Gideon slaughtered thousands in battle by plotting with the "Lord" to use Treachery.
Gideon murdered thousands more for worshipping "false Gods."
Gideon tortured and killed still more for daring to taunt him.
Gideon plundered the bodies of his victims (to fashion a jeweled priestly vestment).
Gideon fathered an offspring who killed 69 of his stepbrothers.
Read the story of Gideon in Judges, chapters thru 6-9 ( 6-7-8-9). The tale of Gideon describes just one of the many horror stories in the Bible, a book that glorifies behavior abysmal to modern society. The clergy and leaders have hoodwinked millions of people about the stories in the Bible. Don't let others decide for yourself.
God Buries Them Alive
"And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their houses, and all the men that appertained unto Korah, and all their goods. They, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them: and they perished from among the congregation. And all Israel that were round about them fled at the cry of them: for they said, Lest the earth swallow us up also. And there came out a fire from the LORD, and consumed the two hundred and fifty men that offered incense." (Numbers 16:32-35)
Comment
Moses relays a sadistic threat that asks us to believe that God punishes members of families, including innocent infants. And again we have the Satanic fire coming from God burning his creations.
God Kills The Firstborns!
"And it came to pass, that at midnight the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle. And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt; for there was not a house where there was not one dead." (Exodus 12:29-30)
Comment
If we believe every word in the Bible as coming from God, then it stands to reason that the violent actions from the God described in Exodus cannot give us a moral comparison to live our lives in a peaceful world.
If one wishes to believe that God possess love for His creations, then the killing of innocent children cannot possibly come from God, and therefore, these verses from the Bible must have come elsewhere. But note that if one takes the Bible's words as absolute truth, then not only did God smote the firstborn children, but all firstborn regardless of age. This means all firstborn teenagers, firstborn men & women, firstborn octogenarians, and even all firstborn cows and bulls. Regardless of how much love, charity, or goodness they may have imparted to the world, if they had the unfortunate luck to have first passed through their mother's vagina in the land of Egypt, according to the Bible, God killed them!
God Sends Pestilence
"Either three years' famine; or three months to be destroyed before thy foes, while that the sword of thine enemies overtaketh thee; or else three days the sword of the LORD, even the pestilence, in the land, and the angel of the LORD destroying throughout all the coasts of Israel..." (I Chronicles 21:12)
"So the LORD sent pestilence upon Israel: and there fell of Israel seventy thousand men." (I Chronicles 21:14)
Comment
David made an offense against God in taking a census of the people, so God gave David a choice. Oddly enough, David ignores God and never actually gets around to making a choice; so the Lord makes the decision for him and sends pestilence upon Israel.
It appears unclear as to why David committed a crime, but why shouldn't God have punished individual offenders instead of killing an army of innocent bystanders? Atrocities such as this appear outrageous enough when perpetrated by Attila the Hun, Hitler or Pol Pot, but when it comes from a, supposedly, loving God, it should make one wonder if this represents a Devil instead of a God.
God Slaughters Blacks
"And there came out against them Zerah the Ethiopian with an host of a thousand thousand, and three hundred chariots..." (II Chronicles 14:9)
So the LORD smote the Ethiopians before Asa, and before Judah; and the Ethiopians fled. (II Chronicles 14:12)
Comment
It appears that Black Christian Bible studies programs ignore these verses, for it says that the Lord God slaughtered over a million blacks.
The association of black with evil goes far back in Western Christian culture. The early Church fathers, Origen, Jerome, and Augustine of Hippo wrote about devils appearing as Ethiopians.
White racist groups (such as the Ku Klux Klan who think of themselves as opposite of black devils) see these Biblical verses as evidence to justify their beliefs. We still hear phrases such as "Prince of Darkness" or "Black magic" which link blackness with sin.
In the story of Ham and Japheth, the word "ham" has connotations of "hot" and "dark" in Semitic languages. To the ancient Israelites, as well as some modern Jews and Christians, the "children of Ham" had dark skin and lived in eastern Africa. Thus they see the "Curse of Ham" as a link with black skin and sexual license.
God's Threat To Kill
"And Moses said, Thus saith the LORD, About midnight will I go out into the midst of Egypt: And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the maidservant that is behind the mill; and all the firstborn of beasts." (Exodus 11:4-5)
Comment
After reading such verses, it would become apparent, even to a child, that this does not describe the actions of a loving Being. Anyone who reconciles the killing of innocent children with an intelligent and loving Creator can only come from great ignorance under the addiction of blind faith.
"Whenever we read the obscene stories, the voluptuous debaucheries, the cruel and tortuous executions, the unrelenting vindictiveness with which more than half the Bible is filled, it would be more consistent that we call it the word of a demon than the word of God. It is a history of wickedness that has served to corrupt and brutalize humankind."
--Thomas Paine
Godly Head Wounds
"But God shall wound the head of his enemies, and the hairy scalp of such a one as goeth on still in his trespasses. The Lord said, I will bring again from Bashan, I will bring my people again from the depths of the sea: That thy foot may be dipped in the blood of thine enemies, and the tongue of thy dogs in the same." (Psalms 68:21-23)
Comment
If anyone believes these sadistic words come from God, then it might serve prudence to stay away from such people. For anyone who holds to such beliefs may very well do the same to others.
Godly Mass Murder
"And he smote the men of Bethshemesh, because they had looked into the ark of the LORD, even he smote of the people fifty thousand and threescore and ten men: and the people lamented, because the LORD had smitten many of the people with a great slaughter." (I Samuel 6:19)
Comment
Here we have just one more instance of God performing mass murder, a sadistic killer far worse than Hitler, Attila the Hun or Pol Pot.
These verses should insult the intelligence of any person who thinks that God possesses a loving nature.
One should not dismiss the Old Testament's repeated demand for the vilest atrocities as something peculiar to the early Hebrews. Even today, our most atrocious wars, terrorism and hate crimes occur around the world based on ancient religious beliefs, many of them coming directly from verses in the Old and New Testament.
Kill All Unbelievers
"And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death; because he hath spoken to turn you away from the LORD your God..." (Deuteronomy 13: 5)
"If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend, which is as thine own soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which thou hast not known, thou, nor thy fathers;" (Deuteronomy 13: 6)
"Thou shalt not consent unto him, nor hearken unto him; neither shall thine eye pity him, neither shalt thou spare, neither shalt thou conceal him: But thou shalt surely kill him; thine hand shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people." (Deuteronomy 13:8-9)
"Thou shalt surely smite the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, destroying it utterly, and all that is therein, and the cattle thereof, with the edge of the sword." (Deuteronomy 13:15)
Comment
These severe laws commanded the members of the Hebrew religion to murder even their own children if they did not worship Yahweh (God).
These Bible words can justify, to a fanatical fundamentalist believer, the killing of friends or family simply because they may fail to change their beliefs.
Why anyone today would accept these words, much less allow them to exist in a sacred book goes against the nature of any tolerant and loving people.
Kill Man, Woman, Infant
"Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt. Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass." (I Samuel 15:2-3)
Comment
No matter how one can justify possible crimes from adults, suckling infants have no means of acting out crimes. And what evil against God could the animals have possibly performed? Only an evil entity could kill innocent infants and animals, no matter what their parents and owners may have done.
King David's Holocaust
"And he brought forth the people that were therein, and put them under saws, and under harrows of iron, and under the axes of iron, and made them pass through the brickkiln: and thus did he unto all the cities of the children of Ammon. So David and all the people returned unto Jerusalem." (II Samuel 12:31)
Comment
From the sacred scripts from the Bible we learn that the great King David carried out atrocities that rivaled the cruel acts from the holocaust of World War II. If we condemn the Nazi's for their atrocities, why should we not do the same for David's bloodthirsty actions?
Moses' Mass Murder
"Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against the LORD in the matter of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the LORD. Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman that hath known man by lying with him. But all the women children, that have not known a man by lying with him, keep alive for yourselves." (Numbers 31:16-18)
Comment
Moses commands the murder of approximately 100,000 young males and, roughly, 68,000 helpless women.
Consider women and children of your own family: No matter how sick they may lay, or how they may go against a religion, how would you feel if a man named Moses, claiming to speak for God, sent men into your house and hacked to pieces the women and male children? Also, how would you react if they spotted a female child, dragged her off with them to do as they please with her? Note that these innocent virgins served for their own sexual pleasures.
Midian, the land of the Midianites, did not reside in an area regarded as a natural enemy of Israel for centuries, and in fact lay hundreds of miles away from the Israelite encampment. Moses, himself, had lived in Midian as fugitive after committing his first murder. In short, Midian presented no threat to God's "Chosen People."
Nail His Head!
"Then Jael Heber's wife took a nail of the tent, and took an hammer in her hand, and went softly unto him, and smote the nail into his temples, and fastened it into the ground: for he was fast asleep and weary. So he died." (Judges 4:21)
Comment
In verse 16 the Israelites surprise Sisera's army and that "there was not a man left," except Sisera who deserts his army and flees, a deed punishable by court martial today. Sisera then goes to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber. Jael takes him in, hides him under a blanket, gives him milk to quench his thirst, and promises to stand guard at the door while he sleeps. Then Jael kills Sisera!
We see no telling of the slightest shame, but rather, Jael proudly flaunts her kill. The author of this piece of Scripture makes it clear that the passage represents a deed, not only as grand and heroic but also consistent with the will of God (see Judges 4:23).
Raping And Killing
"Every one that is found shall be thrust through; and every one that is joined unto them shall fall by the sword. Their children also shall be dashed to pieces before their eyes; their houses shall be spoiled, and their wives ravished." (Isaiah 13:15-16)
Comment
These verses foretold the deaths of the people of Babylon. Fortunately not everyone in Babylon (now modern Iraq) fell by the sword or had their children dashed to pieces or their wives raped (just another instance of errors in the Bible). How some people who believe in an infallible Bible can accept these verses as God inspired, or morally uplifting can only give evidence to the blinding nature of belief. For if we believe these words as God inspired, then the killing of children and the raping of wives must also come as an inspiration from the Supreme Being.
Shed The Blood
"And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man. Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made the man." (Genesis 9:5-6)
Comment
Some anti-abortionists have used these words to justify the killing of abortionists. As such, these words helped inspire Michael Griffin to kill Doctor David Gunn on March 10, 1993.
Consider that the Bible never directly addresses abortion, much the less the condemnation of it. On the contrary, God himself has condoned, not only miscarriages, but has personally called for the killing of suckling infants and the bashing of children against the rocks.
(See Numbers 5:26-27, I Samuel 15:2-3, and Psalm 137:9)
Slaughter Of Innocents
"And we took all his cities at that time, and utterly destroyed the men, and the women, and the little ones, of every city, we left none to remain." (Deuteronomy 2:34)
"And we utterly destroyed them, as we did unto Sihon king of Hesbon, utterly destroying the men, women, and children, of every city. But all the cattle, and the spoil of the cities we took for a prey to ourselves." (Deuteronomy 3:6-7)
Comment
Such words helped give justification to mediaeval Crusaders who slaughtered men, women and children along their way to Jerusalem and stole the spoils of the cities. Even today, many Christian military men use Scripture to justify their actions. If any soldier harbors doubt about killing his fellow humans, he need only consult a military chaplain or read the Bible to calm their worries. Even George Bush (the First), with Billy Graham beside him, proclaimed the Gulf War as "moral." George Bush (the Second) continued in his father's steps by killing thousands of Iraqi civilians in the Iraqi war. Such moral wars result in thousands of "utterly destroyed" innocent men, women and children.;
(For a few more examples [but not all] see also Deuteronomy 3:3, 7:2, 20:16-17 , 25:19; Joshua 6:21, 8:26, 10-28-40; Numbers 31:17-18; I Samuel 15:3; Isaiah 13:16; and Hosea 13:16)
Slay Old And Young
"And to the others he said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity: Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and woman: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house." (Ezekiel 9:5-6)
Comment
These words, commanded by God, orders the slaying of not only women and the old, but of little children. These accounts of cold-blooded massacres occurred simply because people refused to accept Yahweh. These phrases should give warning to anyone who knows a person who believes every word in the Bible.
For what sense of moral reasoning should we allow ourselves to admire such Biblical verses?
The Survivors
"Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel." (Revelation 7:3-4)
"And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads." (Revelation 9:3-4)
"And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty [and] four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads." (Revelation 14:1)
"...the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth. These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins." (Revelation 14:3-4)
Comment
Here we have the great future destruction where billions of people will die. Only 144,000 virgin Jews with a protective mark on their heads will survive. (I suppose the 'Jews for Jesus' cult would serve as the leading candidates.)
How many believers realize that this means the death of everyone on earth but a few virgin Jews? And this includes the destruction of all Christians! (Of course the alleged Jesus, a virgin Jew, who claimed only a few would enter heaven would agree with this).
Note: Of course faithful Christians cannot accept the 144,000 figure so they must either become atheists, ignore these verses, reject Revelation as just dream nonsense, or try to revise its meaning to something they can accept. Some try to get creative by claiming that
Rev. 7:-9
,"...a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues...," means an unlimited number will enter heaven. Not so. The "all" in this verse speaks about all the tribes of Israel (the Jews) scattered around the nations of the world. The verse comes right after listing the tribes in
Rev. 7:1-8
. And man doesn't name the number but rather the angel who speaks in John's dream. And John reports the number, three times, in chapters 7 and 14, as shown above. Sorry Christians but all of you will have to suffer with all the atheists and unbelievers in God's hell. Welcome to the club!
Beware of a future "Armageddon" caused by religious people. Belief in self-fulfilling prophesies creates self-fulfilling acts.
Utter Destruction, 1
"And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword." (Joshua 6:21)
Comment
These "God inspired" words give not a hint of mercy to innocent slaughtered women, children or the old.
After Moses and Aaron died, Joshua assumed command and the Israelites entered Jericho. Note that in the same siege, "all the silver, and gold, and vessels of brass and iron, are consecrated unto the Lord: they shall come into the treasury of the Lord" (Joshua 6:19)
In the battle of Ai, the Bible tells that twelve thousand, the whole population of Ai, got slaughtered. (Josh. 8:25)
Note that many invaders throughout history have used such words as justification for wars and looting.
Utter Destruction, 2
"Ye shall utterly destroy all the places, wherein the nations which ye shall possess served their gods, upon the high mountains, and upon the hills, and under every green tree: And ye shall overthrow their altars, and break their pillars, and burn their groves with fire; and ye shall hew down the graven images of their gods, and destroy the names of them out of that place." (Deuteronomy 12:2-3)
Comment
The Lord, here commands the destruction of all the places where people worship other gods. There appears not a shred of religious tolerance here!
"I cannot imagine a God who rewards and punishes the objects of his creation, whose purposes are modeled after our own-- a God, in short, who is but a reflection of human frailty. Neither can I believe that the individual survives the death of his body, although feeble souls harbor such thoughts through fear or ridiculous egotism."
--Albert Einstein
(For other examples of utter destructions, see Numbers 21:2; Deuteronomy 3:6-7, 7:2, 13:15, 20:17, Judges 21:11, II Chronicles 20:23; I Kings 20-42; Isaiah 11:15, 15:3, 9, 18; Jeremiah 12:17, 25-9, 50;21, 26, 51:3; Daniel 11;44; Amos 9:8 )
Washing Feet In Blood
"The righteous shall rejoice when he sees the vengeance. He shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked." (Psalms 58:10)
Comment
How many "good" Christians realize that such a verse appears in the Bible? Of course most preachers keep these bloodthirsty words away from their congregations, and the few Christians who do come across these verses, re-interpret them for their own purposes, not realizing the impact these words can have on others. Unfortunately the few that take these verses literally can justify atrocities against anyone who they wish to define as "wicked."
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The Genealogy of Jesus Christ
11 This is the genealogy[1] of Jesus the Messiah[2] the son of David, the son of Abraham: 2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, 3 Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar, Perez the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, 4 Ram the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, 5 Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah's wife, 7 Solomon the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asa, 8 Asa the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Jehoram, Jehoram the father of Uzziah, 9 Uzziah the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, 10 Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amon, Amon the father of Josiah, 11 and Josiah the father of Jeconiah[3] and his brothers at the time of the exile to Babylon. 12 After the exile to Babylon: Jeconiah was the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, 13 Zerubbabel the father of Abihud, Abihud the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor, 14 Azor the father of Zadok, Zadok the father of Akim, Akim the father of Elihud, 15 Elihud the father of Eleazar, Eleazar the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob, 16 and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah. 17 Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Messiah.
The Birth of Jesus Christ
18 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about[4] : His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 19 Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet[5] did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. 20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,[6] because he will save his people from their sins." 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 "The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"[7] (which means "God with us"). 24 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. 25 But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.
The Visit of the Wise Men
21 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi[1] from the east came to Jerusalem 2 and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him." 3 When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 When he had called together all the people's chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 "In Bethlehem in Judea," they replied, "for this is what the prophet has written: 6 " 'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.'[2] " 7 Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him."
9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.
The Slaying of the Infants
13 When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. "Get up," he said, "take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him." 14 So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, 15 where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: "Out of Egypt I called my son."[3]
16 When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. 17 Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled: 18 "A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more."[4]
19 After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt 20 and said, "Get up, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who were trying to take the child's life are dead." 21 So he got up, took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee, 23 and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said through the prophets, that he would be called a Nazarene.
The Preaching of John the Baptist
31 In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea 2 and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near." 3 This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: "A voice of one calling in the wilderness, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.' "[1] 4 John's clothes were made of camel's hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. 5 People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. 6 Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.
7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. 9 And do not think you can say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. 10 The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. 11 "I baptize you with[2] water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with[2] the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire."
The Baptism of Jesus
13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to deter him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" 15 Jesus replied, "Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness." Then John consented. 16 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."
The Temptation of Jesus
41 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted[1] by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." 4 Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'[2]" 5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. 6 "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down. For it is written: " 'He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.'[3] " 7 Jesus answered him, "It is also written: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'[4]" 8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 "All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me." 10 Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.'[5]" 11 Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.
Jesus Begins His Ministry
12 When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he withdrew to Galilee. 13 Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali- 14 to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah: 15 "Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles- 16 the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned."[6] 17 From that time on Jesus began to preach, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near."
Jesus Calls Four Fishermen
18 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 19 "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will send you out to fish for people." 20 At once they left their nets and followed him. 21 Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, 22 and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
Jesus Ministers to a Great Multitude
23 Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. 24 News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed; and he healed them. 25 Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis,[7] Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed him.
The Beginning of the Sermon on the Mount
51 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them. He said:
The Beatitudes
3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
The Salt of the Earth
13 "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
The Light of the World
14 "You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
Jesus' Attitude toward the Law
17 "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19 Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
Jesus' Attitude toward Anger
21 "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'You shall not murder,[1]and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' 22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister[2][3] will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, 'Raca,'[4] is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell. 23 "Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift. 25 "Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. 26 Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.
Jesus' Attitude toward Adultery
27 "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall not commit adultery.'[5] 28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.
Jesus' Attitude toward Divorce
31 "It has been said, 'Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.'[6] 32 But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
Jesus' Attitude toward Oaths
33 "Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not break your oath, but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made.' 34 But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne; 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36 And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37 All you need to say is simply 'Yes' or 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.[7]
Love for Enemies
38 "You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.'[8] 39 But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. 40 And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. 41 If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. 42 Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
43 "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor[9] and hate your enemy.' 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47 And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Jesus' Teaching on Almsgiving
61 "Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2 "So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Jesus' Teaching on Prayer
5 "And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
9 "This, then, is how you should pray: " 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation,[1]but deliver us from the evil one.[2]' 14 For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
Jesus' Teaching on Fasting
16 "When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Treasure in Heaven
19 "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
The Light of the Body
22 "The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy,[3]your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eyes are unhealthy,[4]your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!
God and Mammon
24 "No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
Judging Others
71 "Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. 3 "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye. 6 "Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.
Ask, Seek, Knock
7 "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. 9 "Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!
12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
The Narrow Gate
13 "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
A Tree Is Known by Its Fruit
15 "Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
I Never Knew You
21 "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?' 23 Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'
The Two Foundations
24 "Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash." 28 When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, 29 because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law.
Jesus Cleanses a Leper
81 When Jesus came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. 2 A man with leprosy[1] came and knelt before him and said, "Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean." 3 Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. "I am willing," he said. "Be clean!" Immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy. 4 Then Jesus said to him, "See that you don't tell anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift Moses commanded, as a testimony to them."
A Centurion's Servant Healed
5 When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help. 6 "Lord," he said, "my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly." 7 Jesus said to him, "Shall I come and heal him?" 8 The centurion replied, "Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. 9 For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and that one, 'Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it." 10 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, "Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith. 11 I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." 13 Then Jesus said to the centurion, "Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would." And his servant was healed at that moment.
Jesus Heals Peter's Mother-in-Law
14 When Jesus came into Peter's house, he saw Peter's mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever. 15 He touched her hand and the fever left her, and she got up and began to wait on him. 16 When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. 17 This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: "He took up our infirmities and bore our diseases."[2]
The Would-be Followers of Jesus
18 When Jesus saw the crowd around him, he gave orders to cross to the other side of the lake. 19 Then a teacher of the law came to him and said, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go." 20 Jesus replied, "Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head." 21 Another disciple said to him, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father." 22 But Jesus told him, "Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead."
Jesus Calms a Storm
23 Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. 24 Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25 The disciples went and woke him, saying, "Lord, save us! We're going to drown!" 26 He replied, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. 27 The men were amazed and asked, "What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!"
The Gergesene Demoniacs
28 When he arrived at the other side in the region of the Gadarenes,[3] two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs met him. They were so violent that no one could pass that way. 29 "What do you want with us, Son of God?" they shouted. "Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?" 30 Some distance from them a large herd of pigs was feeding. 31 The demons begged Jesus, "If you drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs." 32 He said to them, "Go!" So they came out and went into the pigs, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and died in the water. 33 Those tending the pigs ran off, went into the town and reported all this, including what had happened to the demon-possessed men. 34 Then the whole town went out to meet Jesus. And when they saw him, they pleaded with him to leave their region.
Jesus Heals a Palsied Man
91 Jesus stepped into a boat, crossed over and came to his own town. 2 Some men brought to him a paralyzed man, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, "Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven." 3 At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, "This fellow is blaspheming!" 4 Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, "Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts? 5 Which is easier: to say, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up and walk'? 6 But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins." So he said to the paralyzed man, "Get up, take your mat and go home." 7 Then the man got up and went home. 8 When the crowd saw this, they were filled with awe; and they praised God, who had given such authority to man.
The Call of Matthew
9 As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector's booth. "Follow me," he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him. 10 While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew's house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. 11 When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?" 12 On hearing this, Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13 But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.'[1]For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."
The Question about Fasting
14 Then John's disciples came and asked him, "How is it that we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?" 15 Jesus answered, "How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast. 16 "No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse. 17 Neither do people pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved."
The Ruler's Daughter and the Woman Who Touched Jesus' Garment
18 While he was saying this, a synagogue leader came and knelt before him and said, "My daughter has just died. But come and put your hand on her, and she will live." 19 Jesus got up and went with him, and so did his disciples. 20 Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. 21 She said to herself, "If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed." 22 Jesus turned and saw her. "Take heart, daughter," he said, "your faith has healed you." And the woman was healed at that moment. 23 When Jesus entered the synagogue leader's house and saw the noisy crowd and people playing pipes, 24 he said, "Go away. The girl is not dead but asleep." But they laughed at him. 25 After the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up. 26 News of this spread through all that region.
Two Blind Men Receive Sight
27 As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, calling out, "Have mercy on us, Son of David!" 28 When he had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he asked them, "Do you believe that I am able to do this?""Yes, Lord," they replied. 29 Then he touched their eyes and said, "According to your faith let it be done to you"; 30 and their sight was restored. Jesus warned them sternly, "See that no one knows about this." 31 But they went out and spread the news about him all over that region.
A Dumb Man Speaks
32 While they were going out, a man who was demon-possessed and could not talk was brought to Jesus. 33 And when the demon was driven out, the man who had been mute spoke. The crowd was amazed and said, "Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel." 34 But the Pharisees said, "It is by the prince of demons that he drives out demons."
The Harvest Is Plenteous
35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field."
Jesus Chooses the Twelve
101 Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. 2 These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; 3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; 4 Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.
The Mission of the Twelve
5 These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: "Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. 6 Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. 7 As you go, proclaim this message: 'The kingdom of heaven has come near.' 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy[1], drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give. 9 "Do not get any gold or silver or copper to take with you in your belts- 10 no bag for the journey or extra shirt or sandals or a staff, for the worker is worth his keep. 11 Whatever town or village you enter, search there for some worthy person and stay at their house until you leave. 12 As you enter the home, give it your greeting. 13 If the home is deserving, let your peace rest on it; if it is not, let your peace return to you. 14 If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet. 15 Truly I tell you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.
Coming Persecutions
16 "I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. 17 Be on your guard; you will be handed over to the local councils and be flogged in the synagogues. 18 On my account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles. 19 But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, 20 for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. 21 "Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death. 22 You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. 23 When you are persecuted in one place, flee to another. Truly I tell you, you will not finish going through the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes. 24 "The student is not above the teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for students to be like their teachers, and servants like their masters. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebul, how much more the members of his household!
Whom to Fear
26 "So do not be afraid of them, for there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. 27 What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. 28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father's care.[2] 30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. 32 "Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. 33 But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven.
Not Peace, but a Sword
34 "Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I have come to turn " 'a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law- 36 a man's enemies will be the members of his own household.'[3] 37 "Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.
Rewards
40 "Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. 41 Whoever welcomes a prophet as a prophet will receive a prophet's reward, and whoever welcomes a righteous person as a righteous person will receive a righteous person's reward. 42 And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones who is my disciple, truly I tell you, that person will certainly not lose their reward."
The Messengers from John the Baptist
111 After Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and preach in the towns of Galilee.[1] 2 When John, who was in prison, heard about the deeds of the Messiah, he sent his disciples 3 to ask him, "Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?" 4 Jesus replied, "Go back and report to John what you hear and see: 5 The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy[2]are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. 6 Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me."
7 As John's disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: "What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swayed by the wind? 8 If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings' palaces. 9 Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10 This is the one about whom it is written: " 'I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.'[3] 11 Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 12 From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence,[4]and violent people have been raiding it. 13 For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. 14 And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come. 15 Whoever has ears, let them hear.
16 "To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: 17 " 'We played the pipe for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.' 18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.' 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.' But wisdom is proved right by her deeds."
Woes to Unrepentant Cities
20 Then Jesus began to denounce the towns in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. 21 "Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 22 But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. 23 And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted to the heavens? No, you will go down to Hades.[5]For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. 24 But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you."
Come unto Me and Rest
25 At that time Jesus said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. 26 Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do. 27 "All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 28 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
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8th September >> Fr. Martin’s Gospel Reflections / Homilies on Matthew 1:1-16,18-23 for the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary: ‘She was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit’.
Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Gospel (Europe, Africa, New Zealand, Australia & Canada)
Matthew 1:1-16,18-23
The ancestry and conception of Jesus Christ
A genealogy of Jesus Christ, son of David, son of Abraham:
Abraham was the father of Isaac,
Isaac the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah, Tamar being their mother,
Perez was the father of Hezron,
Hezron the father of Ram,
Ram was the father of Amminadab,
Amminadab the father of Nahshon,
Nahshon the father of Salmon,
Salmon was the father of Boaz, Rahab being his mother,
Boaz was the father of Obed, Ruth being his mother,
Obed was the father of Jesse;
and Jesse was the father of King David.
David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife,
Solomon was the father of Rehoboam,
Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asa,
Asa was the father of Jehoshaphat,
Jehoshaphat the father of Joram,
Joram the father of Azariah,
Azariah was the father of Jotham,
Jotham the father of Ahaz,
Ahaz the father of Hezekiah,
Hezekiah was the father of Manasseh,
Manasseh the father of Amon,
Amon the father of Josiah;
and Josiah was the father of Jechoniah and his brothers.
Then the deportation to Babylon took place.
After the deportation to Babylon:
Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel,
Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,
Zerubbabel was the father of Abiud,
Abiud the father of Eliakim,
Eliakim the father of Azor,
Azor was the father of Zadok,
Zadok the father of Achim,
Achim the father of Eliud,
Eliud was the father of Eleazar,
Eleazar the father of Matthan,
Matthan the father of Jacob;
and Jacob was the father of Joseph the husband of Mary;
of her was born Jesus who is called Christ.
This is how Jesus Christ came to be born. His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph; but before they came to live together she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph; being a man of honour and wanting to spare her publicity, decided to divorce her informally. He had made up his mind to do this when the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you must name him Jesus, because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins.’ Now all this took place to fulfil the words spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son
and they will call him Emmanuel,
a name which means ‘God-is-with-us.’
Gospel (USA)
Matthew 1:1-16, 18-23
For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her.
The Book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Abraham became the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar. Perez became the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, Ram the father of Amminadab. Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab. Boaz became the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth. Obed became the father of Jesse, Jesse the father of David the king.
David became the father of Solomon, whose mother had been the wife of Uriah. Solomon became the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asaph. Asaph became the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, Joram the father of Uzziah. Uzziah became the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah. Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amos, Amos the father of Josiah. Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers at the time of the Babylonian exile.
After the Babylonian exile, Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, Zerubbabel the father of Abiud. Abiud became the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor, Azor the father of Zadok. Zadok became the father of Achim, Achim the father of Eliud, Eliud the father of Eleazar. Eleazar became the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Of her was born Jesus who is called the Christ.
Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with child through the Holy Spirit. Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:
Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall name him Emmanuel,
which means “God is with us.”
Reflections (6)
(i) Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
On the feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we read one of the gospel accounts of the nativity or birth of Jesus. We remember the day of Mary’s birth because of the role she would go on to play in the life of Jesus. Jesus had many disciples in the course of his public ministry, but he only ever had one mother. Mary’s relationship with Jesus was truly unique. Yet, as well as being his mother, Mary was also his most faithful disciple. This aspect of her relationship to Jesus is one she shares with us all. Today’s gospel reading speaks of Mary as having conceived Jesus ‘by the Holy Spirit’. The gospels portray Mary as a woman of the Spirit, completely open to the Spirit’s promptings. Not only was her son conceived by the Spirit, but her whole life was shaped by the Spirit. As a woman of the Spirit, she was not only the mother of Jesus but, in the words of Paul in today’s second reading, she was a true image of God’s Son. Paul declares in that reading that God intends all of us to become true images of God’s Son. It is the Holy Spirit at work in our lives who will enable us to become true images of God’s Son. We look to Mary to show us the person that God intends us to become, people of the Spirit who reflect God’s Son to others by our whole way of life. In celebrating Mary’s birthday, we are also celebrating our own baptismal calling. We will not be fully conformed to the image of God’s Son in this earthly life, but each day of our lives we are called to grow into this image, in the power of the Spirit. As we do so, we can look to Mary as our inspiration and also as our help and support on this journey, calling on her to pray for us, sinners, now and at the hour of our death.
And/Or
(ii) Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
We cannot be sure when Mary was born but today is the day that the church has traditionally celebrated the birthday of Mary. Generally, when we celebrate the feast of saints, their feast coincides with the date of their death. There are only three exceptions to this, when we celebrate the birth of someone who is recognized to be especially holy. We celebrate the birth of Jesus on December 25, the birth of John the Baptist on June 24 and the birth of Mary on September 8. John the Baptist and Mary had a unique relationship with Jesus. Mary gave birth to Jesus and John the Baptist prepared people for his coming. We remember the birthdays of both Mary and John the Baptist because of the person they went on to become. We remember Mary’s birthday because she was the one through whom Jesus came to us. God chose this woman above all other women to be the one who would give birth to God’s Son and Mary accepted this unique role she had in God’s purpose on behalf of us all. Her ‘yes’ to God’s choice of her, God’s call, was also a saying ‘yes’ to all of us, to whom God’s Son was being sent. Her generous response to God’s call was an extraordinary grace for us all. Her Son who was given to us was none other than, in the words of today’s gospel reading, Emmanuel, God-with-us, sent to save God’s people from their sins. Because of her ‘yes’ to God’s call, God has drawn close to all of us in a loving and merciful way. It was through Mary that God gained a human face. Jesus was and is the human face of God’s love and mercy. Jesus not only reveals God to us but he also reveals ourselves to us. He shows us what it is to be fully human. In Jesus we see the person we are called to become if we are to be fully human. As Paul tells us in our reading today, God intends us to become true images of his Son, so that his Son might be the eldest of many brothers and sisters. Our calling is to grow up into the image of Mary’s Son and, in so far as we do that, we become fully ourselves. We celebrate Mary’s birthday because of all that we have received through her, all that God has given to us through her.
And/Or
(iii) Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
We remember the birthdays of those who are significant for us in life. We also remember the birthday of those who are significant for our faith life. The most significant person in terms of our faith life as Christians is, of course, Jesus, and we remember his birthday on Christmas day. Next to Jesus, Mary is the most significant person for the faith life of many Christians, and it is only fitting that the church remembers her birthday. It is impossible to know when exactly Mary was born, but September 8 has traditionally been the day when the church celebrates Mary’s birthday. When we wish someone a happy birthday we are, in a sense, giving thanks for that person’s birth and life. Today we give thanks for Mary’s birth and life. The gospel reading for today’s feast has to do with the birth of Jesus, rather than the birth of Mary, and that is only right and fitting. We celebrate Mary’s birth and life because of the birth of Jesus, because she became the mother of the Saviour. She is the one through whom we receive Emmanuel, God-with-us. Mary doesn’t offer us herself; she offers us her Son. She holds out her Son to us. She would have been happy to make her own the words of John the Baptist in relation to himself: ‘He, Jesus, must increase, but I must decrease’. The best way to honour Mary is to receive the Son of God whom she offers to us, to become, like herself, people who, in the words of Luke’s gospel, ‘hear the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patient endurance’.
And/Or
(iv) Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
There are very few people whose birthday we celebrate as feast days. I can only think of three, Jesus, of course, whose birth we celebrate on December 25, John the Baptist, whose birth we celebrate on June 24, and Mary, whose birth we celebrate today, September 8. What John the Baptist and Mary have in common is that they are both defined by their relationship to Jesus. Mary gave birth to Jesus; she gave Jesus to the world. John directed people, including his own disciples, to Jesus. If Mary brought Jesus to the world, John tried to bring the world to Jesus. We honour the birthdays of John the Baptist and Mary because of the unique roles they each had in the life of Jesus. John pointed out Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. According to this morning’s gospel reading, Mary’s child was called Jesus because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins. John and Mary in different ways point to Jesus as the revelation of God’s mercy. Matthew in this morning’s gospel reading gives another name to Mary’s child, Emmanuel, God-with-us. Mary’s child is above all God with us in his mercy. We celebrate Mary’s birthday because of the precious gift she gave to the world.
And/Or
(v) Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
There are very few people whose birthday we celebrate as feast days. I can only think of three, Jesus, of course, whose birth we celebrate on December 25, John the Baptist, whose birth we celebrate on June 24, and Mary, whose birth we celebrate today, September 8. What John the Baptist and Mary have in common is that they are both defined by their relationship to Jesus. Mary gave birth to Jesus; she gave Jesus to the world. John directed people, including his own disciples, to Jesus. If Mary brought Jesus to the world, John tried to bring the world to Jesus. We honour the birthdays of John the Baptist and Mary because of the unique roles they each had in the life of Jesus. John pointed out Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. According to this morning’s gospel reading, Mary’s child was called Jesus because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins. John and Mary in different ways point to Jesus as the revelation of God’s mercy. Matthew in this morning’s gospel reading gives another name to Mary’s child, Emmanuel, God-with-us. Mary’s child is above all God with us in his mercy. We celebrate Mary’s birthday because of the precious gift she gave to the world.
And/Or
(vi) Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
We do not know when Mary was born but the church has chosen the 8th of September to celebrate the day of her birth. We celebrate the birth of Mary because of who she was to become, the mother of God’s Son. Her birth points ahead to that special child who was to be born from her. This morning’s gospel reading gives the child that was to be born of her two names, Jesus and Emmanuel. In the Semitic world, names were very important because each name carried a specific meaning. The name Jesus in Hebrew means ‘the Lord saves’. As the gospel reading says, ‘he is the one who is to save his people from their sins’. The name Emmanuel in Hebrew means, ‘God is with us’. These two names reveal a great deal about the child who was born of the woman whose birthday we celebrate today. God was present among us through Mary’s son as a merciful God, as a God who works to deliver us from our sins and to reconcile us to himself. As Pope Francis never tires of telling us, especially in this Year of Mercy, Jesus is the face of God’s mercy. Jesus is God with us in a merciful way. Saint Paul gives expression to one aspect of God’s mercy in today’s first reading. He declares that God co-operates with all those who love him by turning everything to their good. In other words, if we are open in love to the God present in Jesus, this God will turn everything to our good, all the experiences of our lives, including those we consider totally negative. Jesus reveals a God who works in a life-giving way in the midst of all our experiences. It is through Mary that we have come to know this God, which is why it is right and fitting for us to celebrate the day of her birth.
Fr. Martin Hogan.
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Saints&Reading: Sunday, Dec., 24, 2017
Eve of nativity
Nun Martyr Eugenia and her Companions
The Holy Martyr Eugenia, was a Roman by birth. She lived at Alexandria, where her father Philip was sent by the emperor Commodus (180-192) to be Prefect of Egypt. Eugenia received a fine upbringing and was noted for her beauty and good disposition. Many illustrious youths sought her hand, but she did not wish to marry anyone, for she was determined to preserve her virginity.
Providentially, she became acquainted with the Epistles of the Apostle Paul. She yearned with all her soul to become a Christian, but kept this a secret from her parents. At that time, Christians were banished from Alexandria by the command of the emperor. Wishing to learn more about Christian teachings, she asked permission to visit one of the family estates outside the city, supposedly to enjoy the countryside. She left in the company of her two servants Protus and Hyacinthus, dressed in men’s clothes. She and her companions were baptized at a certain monastery by Bishop Elias (July 14), who learned about her in a vision. He blessed her to pursue asceticism at the monastery disguised as the monk Eugene...continues
Heb 11: 9-10, 17-23,32-40
9 By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; 10 for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.
17 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, 18 of whom it was said, “In Isaac your seed shall be called,”[d]19 concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.
20 By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come.
21 By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.
22 By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the departure of the children of Israel, and gave instructions concerning his bones.
The Faith of Moses
23 By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and they were not afraid of the king’s command.
32 And what more shall I say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets: 33 who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. 35 Women received their dead raised to life again.
Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. 36 Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. 37 They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted,[f] were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented— 38 of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth.
39 And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, 40 God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us.
Matt 1:1-25
The Genealogy of Jesus Christ
1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:
2 Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers. 3 Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram. 4 Ram begot Amminadab, Amminadab begot Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salmon. 5 Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, 6 and Jesse begot David the king.
David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife[a] of Uriah. 7 Solomon begot Rehoboam, Rehoboam begot Abijah, and Abijah begot Asa.[b] 8 Asa begot Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat begot Joram, and Joram begot Uzziah. 9 Uzziah begot Jotham, Jotham begot Ahaz, and Ahaz begot Hezekiah. 10 Hezekiah begot Manasseh, Manasseh begot Amon,[c] and Amon begot Josiah. 11 Josiah begot Jeconiah and his brothers about the time they were carried away to Babylon.
12 And after they were brought to Babylon, Jeconiah begot Shealtiel, and Shealtiel begot Zerubbabel. 13 Zerubbabel begot Abiud, Abiud begot Eliakim, and Eliakim begot Azor. 14 Azor begot Zadok, Zadok begot Achim, and Achim begot Eliud. 15 Eliud begot Eleazar, Eleazar begot Matthan, and Matthan begot Jacob. 16 And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ.
17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations, from David until the captivity in Babylon arefourteen generations, and from the captivity in Babylon until the Christ are fourteen generations.
Christ Born of Mary
18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. 19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. 20 But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”
22 So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”
24 Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, 25 and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son.[d] And he called His name Jesus.
Footnotes:
Matthew 1:6 Words in italic type have been added for clarity. They are not found in the original Greek.
Matthew 1:7 NU-Text reads Asaph.
Matthew 1:10 NU-Text reads Amos.
Matthew 1:25 NU-Text reads a Son.
New King James Version Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
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every person on earth
originates from the genesis spark of egg and sperm that fertilizes it to become a son or a daughter to a mother and a father. this originated with God our Creator who Authored the sacred Union of sex that joins 2 bodies as “One”
which is why, since sex is a sacred bond, that it is only permissible when shared in a marital relationship, although many people stray from this because of natural attraction and the fact that sex feels good. but no matter how people act, the spiritual truth of sex still stands. we either obey its rules, or not.
and in Today’s reading of the Scriptures we see a unique miracle of a birth through Mary since she supernaturally conceived a man who was and is “God with us” who is our King, the King of all earthly kings, and who is Lord, Christ. His name in Hebrew: Yeshua (Jesus) to whom all people will bow and confess as Lord, even those who pass away from this world into the eternal realm yet refuse to believe while here. everything will be seen clear on the opposite side of time. and it matters what we choose to believe while here in a physical body.
and Today we begin at the start of the New Testament once again with the first chapter of the book of Matthew that has been written to conserve the seed of eternal life revealed in grace:
This is the family history, the genealogy, of Jesus the Anointed, the coming King. You will see in this history that Jesus is descended from King David, and that He is also descended from Abraham.
Abraham was the father of Isaac; Isaac was the father of Jacob; Jacob was the father of Judah and of Judah’s 11 brothers; Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah (and Perez and Zerah’s mother was Tamar);
Perez was the father of Hezron; Hezron was the father of Ram; Ram was the father of Amminadab; Amminadab was the father of Nahshon; Nahshon was the father of Salmon; Salmon was the father of Boaz (and Boaz’s mother was Rahab);
Boaz was the father of Obed (his mother was Ruth, a Moabite woman who converted to the Hebrew faith); Obed was the father of Jesse; and Jesse was the father of David, who was the king of the nation of Israel. David was the father of Solomon (his mother was Bathsheba, and she was married to a man named Uriah);
Solomon was the father of Rehoboam; Rehoboam was the father of Abijah; Abijah was the father of Asa; Asa was the father of Jehoshaphat; Jehoshaphat was the father of Joram; Joram was the father of Uzziah; Uzziah was the father of Jotham; Jotham was the father of Ahaz; Ahaz was the father of Hezekiah; Hezekiah was the father of Manasseh; Manasseh was the father of Amon; Amon was the father of Josiah; Josiah was the father of Jeconiah and his brothers, and Josiah’s family lived at the time when God’s chosen people of Israel were deported from the promised land to Babylon.
After the deportation to Babylon, Jeconiah had a son, Shealtiel. Shealtiel was the father of Zerubbabel; Zerubbabel was the father of Abiud; Abiud was the father of Eliakim; Eliakim was the father of Azor; Azor was the father of Zadok; Zadok was the father of Achim; Achim was the father of Eliud; Eliud was the father of Eleazar; Eleazar was the father of Matthan; Matthan was the father of Jacob; Jacob was the father of Joseph, who married a woman named Mary. It was Mary who gave birth to Jesus, and it is Jesus who is the Savior, the Anointed One.
Abraham and David were linked with 14 generations, 14 generations link David to the Babylonian exile, and 14 more take us from the exile to the birth of the Anointed.
So here, finally, is the story of the birth of Jesus the Anointed (it is quite a remarkable story):
Mary was engaged to marry Joseph, son of David. They hadn’t married. And yet, some time well before their wedding date, Mary learned that she was pregnant by the Holy Spirit. Joseph, because he was kind and upstanding and honorable, wanted to spare Mary shame. He did not wish to cause her more embarrassment than necessary.
Now when Joseph had decided to act on his instincts, a messenger of the Lord came to him in a dream.
Messenger of the Lord: Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to wed Mary and bring her into your home and family as your wife. She did not sneak off and sleep with someone else—rather, she conceived the baby she now carries through the miraculous wonderworking of the Holy Spirit. She will have a son, and you will name Him Jesus, which means “the Lord saves,” because this Jesus is the person who will save all of His people from sin.
Years and years ago, Isaiah, a prophet of Israel, foretold the story of Mary, Joseph, and Jesus:
A virgin will conceive and bear a Son,
and His name will be Immanuel
(which is a Hebrew name that means “God with us”).
Joseph woke up from his dream and did exactly what the messenger had told him to do: he married Mary and brought her into his home as his wife (though he did not consummate their marriage until after her son was born). And when the baby was born, Joseph named Him Jesus, Savior.
The Book of Matthew, Chapter 1 (The Voice)
Today’s paired chapter of the Testaments with the beginning chapter of Matthew is Numbers 24 where Balaam refused to curse Israel as Balak requested which made Balak very angry:
Meanwhile, it was obvious to Balaam that the Eternal One was quite happy to bless Israel, so he didn’t go through the trouble of looking for omens of God’s intent. Instead, Balaam contemplated the wilderness stretched out before him. Seeing the Israelites camping there, in their orderly arrangement by tribes, he was suddenly overcome by God’s Spirit. He recited God’s words.
Balaam: This is an oracle of Balaam (Beor’s son),
a man whose eyes have been opened,
Whose ears hear God-given words,
and whose eyes see visions from the God of the Mountains.
I fall down with eyes opened.
“O, the lovely tents of Jacob,
even the dwelling places of Israel.
Like date trees spread out as a garden along the river,
as aloe trees planted by the Eternal,
Like cedar trees along the waters.
I can see overflowing water, its seed in many waters
and its king lifted higher than Agag,
even its kingdom lifted up.
God leads them from Egypt like the splendor of a wild bull.
He will devour the nations, even his adversaries,
And he will crush their bones and strike them through with his arrows.
He lies low and crouches down as a lion or lioness.
Who would dare rouse him?
Blessed are those who bless you and cursed those who curse you.”
He was absolutely furious with Balaam, smacking his hands together with anger.
Balak (confronting Balaam): I can’t believe this! I brought you all this way and asked you to curse my enemies, but instead you actually blessed them. And you did that not just once, mind you, or twice, but three times. Now get out of here! Get out of my sight—go back to that miserable place you call home. Yeah, sure, I said I’d greatly honor you, but the Eternal has withheld the honor that I had planned for you.
Balaam (to Balak): Remember the first time that you sent messengers to get me? Even then I told them I don’t care how much silver and gold you have or what all you’d give to me; I cannot alter what God would have me say. Whatever the Eternal One puts into my mouth is what will come out, whether good or evil words. So, yes, I’m heading home. But before I go, I will tell you what those people will do to your nation when your time is up.
He recited God’s words.
Balaam: This is an oracle of Balaam (Beor’s son),
a man whose eye has been opened,
Whose ears hear God-given words,
who understands the very thoughts of the Most High God,
And whose eyes see visions from the God of the Mountains.
I fall down with eyes opened.
I see him, but at a later time, I’ll recognize him, even though he is far away.
A star will come out of Jacob,
A scepter shall rise out of Israel.
It will break Moab and tear down the people of Seth.
Edom will be its possession, even Seir will belong to its enemies,
but Israel will have power.
One from Jacob will rule,
and he’ll destroy whatever remains of the city.
Then Balaam turned toward the land of the Amalekites and spoke his prophecy.
Balaam: Amalek was first among the nations,
but its end is destruction.
Then Balaam turned toward the land of the Kenites and spoke his prophecy.
Balaam: Your dwelling is lasting,
and your nest is set on a rock;
Yet Kain will be burned up.
“Until when?” When Asshur takes you away as captives.
Balaam took up his answers:
Balaam: I ask, “Woe, for who will remain alive when God does this?
Who will survive?”
Ships will come from Kittim and will afflict Asshur and Eber,
who is also set for destruction.
Then Balaam went his way to his country, and Balak went his way toward his country.
The Book of Numbers, Chapter 24 (The Voice)
my personal reading of the Scriptures for Tuesday, june 16 of 2020 with a paired chapter from each Testament along with Today’s Psalms and Proverbs
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Genesis 46:5-34 comments: Jacob goes down to Egypt
Genesis 46:5 ¶ And Jacob rose up from Beersheba: and the sons of Israel carried Jacob their father, and their little ones, and their wives, in the wagons which Pharaoh had sent to carry him. 6 And they took their cattle, and their goods, which they had gotten in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Jacob, and all his seed with him: 7 His sons, and his sons’ sons with him, his daughters, and his sons’ daughters, and all his seed brought he with him into Egypt. 8 And these are the names of the children of Israel, which came into Egypt, Jacob and his sons: Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn. 9 And the sons of Reuben; Hanoch, and Phallu, and Hezron, and Carmi. 10 And the sons of Simeon; Jemuel, and Jamin, and Ohad, and Jachin, and Zohar, and Shaul the son of a Canaanitish woman. 11 And the sons of Levi; Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. 12 And the sons of Judah; Er, and Onan, and Shelah, and Pharez, and Zerah: but Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan. And the sons of Pharez were Hezron and Hamul. 13 And the sons of Issachar; Tola, and Phuvah, and Job, and Shimron. 14 And the sons of Zebulun; Sered, and Elon, and Jahleel. 15 These be the sons of Leah, which she bare unto Jacob in Padanaram, with his daughter Dinah: all the souls of his sons and his daughters were thirty and three. 16 And the sons of Gad; Ziphion, and Haggi, Shuni, and Ezbon, Eri, and Arodi, and Areli. 17 And the sons of Asher; Jimnah, and Ishuah, and Isui, and Beriah, and Serah their sister: and the sons of Beriah; Heber, and Malchiel. 18 These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah his daughter, and these she bare unto Jacob, even sixteen souls. 19 The sons of Rachel Jacob’s wife; Joseph, and Benjamin. 20 And unto Joseph in the land of Egypt were born Manasseh and Ephraim, which Asenath the daughter of Potipherah priest of On bare unto him. 21 And the sons of Benjamin were Belah, and Becher, and Ashbel, Gera, and Naaman, Ehi, and Rosh, Muppim, and Huppim, and Ard. 22 These are the sons of Rachel, which were born to Jacob: all the souls were fourteen. 23 And the sons of Dan; Hushim. 24 And the sons of Naphtali; Jahzeel, and Guni, and Jezer, and Shillem. 25 These are the sons of Bilhah, which Laban gave unto Rachel his daughter, and she bare these unto Jacob: all the souls were seven. 26 All the souls that came with Jacob into Egypt, which came out of his loins, besides Jacob’s sons’ wives, all the souls were threescore and six; 27 And the sons of Joseph, which were born him in Egypt, were two souls: all the souls of the house of Jacob, which came into Egypt, were threescore and ten.
Verse 15 tells us for that either Dinah wasn’t Jacob’s only daughter or, as said earlier, the daughters could logically include daughters-in-law. Arguing about the count becomes nonsensical when we know everyone wasn’t included in the count of those that mattered to God’s ministry of reconciliation. There are obviously servants to consider, as well, which are not mentioned.
We also come to differences in the count given for different reasons at different times.
Exodus 1:5 And all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls: for Joseph was in Egypt already.
Deuteronomy 10:22 Thy fathers went down into Egypt with threescore and ten persons; and now the LORD thy God hath made thee as the stars of heaven for multitude.
Acts 7:14 Then sent Joseph, and called his father Jacob to him, and all his kindred, threescore and fifteen souls.
Some argue about these differences with fundamentalists trying to gloss over what they fear naggingly in the back of their minds is an error in the text. However, the problem is with the modern reader who is infected with a mental problem I call modernism. You read the Bible like you would read the owner’s manual for your car rather than as you would read a letter sent to you from afar, in this case a distant time, a personal account of something dear to the writer. The Holy Ghost, through the wisdom and understanding, the meaning of Biblical inspiration which is not word-for-word dictation, given to Moses, refers to events from the perspective of their importance to the point He is trying to get across (see Job 32:8; 2Peter 3:15). In one reference He may include wives who are not included in another or He may be referring to an event from another angle and only include specific others. The modern fundamentalist who claims to believe the Bible literally, which they don’t really, in their attempts to explain by juggling numbers what the Bible says, is really expressing their own disbelief and lack of faith by trying to explain a contradiction that isn’t there.
I went over this kind of thinking when I was discussing years, back in my comments on 15:12-16, regarding the length of years that the Hebrews were to be persecuted. The point is all of the number references are correct and any differences can be explained by the Holy Ghost counting people in one who are not counted in another. We will find this again in the numbers who will die in a plague later in another book. Verses 26 and 27 warn us that our calculations may not be based on God’s calculations which will keep the doubter or the skeptic spinning his or her wheels trying to find an equation that will make him or her feel better.
Genesis 46:28 ¶ And he sent Judah before him unto Joseph, to direct his face unto Goshen; and they came into the land of Goshen. 29 And Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel his father, to Goshen, and presented himself unto him; and he fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while. 30 And Israel said unto Joseph, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, because thou art yet alive. 31 And Joseph said unto his brethren, and unto his father’s house, I will go up, and shew Pharaoh, and say unto him, My brethren, and my father’s house, which were in the land of Canaan, are come unto me; 32 And the men are shepherds, for their trade hath been to feed cattle; and they have brought their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have. 33 And it shall come to pass, when Pharaoh shall call you, and shall say, What is your occupation? 34 That ye shall say, Thy servants’ trade hath been about cattle from our youth even until now, both we, and also our fathers: that ye may dwell in the land of Goshen; for every shepherd is an abomination unto the Egyptians.
Chapter 45, verse 10 told us that Goshen was close to where Joseph ruled from. It is commonly understood that the New Kingdom period of ancient Egypt, the period of the Egyptian Empire was from around the 16th century BC to the 11th century BC. This marked the peak of Egypt’s power. It includes the time that Egypt had hegemony over the land of Canaan which is important to understanding Numbers 14:9 and various extra-Biblical documents from Canaan pleading for help from the Egyptians. It was preceded by the Hyksos invasion and rule. I believe that Joseph’s Pharaoh was from this time, that he was a Hyksos, and that is why he was favorable to Joseph and his family. This is called Egypt’s Second Intermediate Period. Of course, much of this is educated guesswork as the Egyptians did not refer to any of their eras the way we refer to them and no one ever called themselves, “the Hyksos.” These are all made-up terms by scholars.
In any event, Judah went first to meet Joseph and Jacob and the rest followed. Christ is the first to rise from the dead never to physically die again, to be resurrected. Judah is Christ’s physical ancestor. Here is more typology that is great subject material for sermons. Joseph prepared himself to greet his father in Goshen.
Joseph promised to introduce them to Pharaoh. Here is more evidence for my view that the Pharaoh of Joseph’s time was a Hyksos, of the so-called Shepherd-kings. To the leadership Joseph’s family of herders would be welcome but to the Egyptians they were an abomination. The land of Goshen separates their living from the rest of Egypt.
The word cattle includes all herd animals not just beef cows as we use the word today.
Genesis 13:7 And there was a strife between the herdmen of Abram’s cattle and the herdmen of Lot’s cattle: and the Canaanite and the Perizzite dwelled then in the land.
Genesis 30:32 I will pass through all thy flock to day, removing from thence all the speckled and spotted cattle, and all the brown cattle among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats: and of such shall be my hire.
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25th December >> Fr. Martin’s Gospel Reflection on Matthew 1:1-25 and John 1:1-18 for the Christmas Vigil And Christmas Day: ‘The Word was made flesh’. Christmas Vigil And Christmas Day Christmas Vigil Gospel (Europe, Africa, New Zealand, Australia & Canada) Matthew 1:1-25 The ancestry of Jesus Christ, the son of David A genealogy of Jesus Christ, son of David, son of Abraham: Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah, Tamar being their mother, Perez was the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, Ram was the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, Salmon was the father of Boaz, Rahab being his mother, Boaz was the father of Obed, Ruth being his mother, Obed was the father of Jesse; and Jesse was the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife, Solomon was the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asa, Asa was the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, Joram the father of Azariah, Azariah was the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, Hezekiah was the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amon, Amon the father of Josiah; and Josiah was the father of Jechoniah and his brothers. Then the deportation to Babylon took place. After the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, Zerubbabel was the father of Abiud, Abiud the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor, Azor was the father of Zadok, Zadok the father of Achim, Achim the father of Eliud, Eliud was the father of Eleazar, Eleazar the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob; and Jacob was the father of Joseph the husband of Mary; of her was born Jesus who is called Christ. The sum of generations is therefore: fourteen from Abraham to David; fourteen from David to the Babylonian deportation; and fourteen from the Babylonian deportation to Christ. This is how Jesus Christ came to be born. His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph; but before they came to live together she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph; being a man of honour and wanting to spare her publicity, decided to divorce her informally. He had made up his mind to do this when the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you must name him Jesus, because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins.’ Now all this took place to fulfil the words spoken by the Lord through the prophet: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son and they will call him Emmanuel, a name which means ‘God-is-with-us.’ When Joseph woke up he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do: he took his wife to his home and, though he had not had intercourse with her, she gave birth to a son; and he named him Jesus. Gospel (USA) Matthew 1:1–25 The genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David. The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham became the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar. Perez became the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, Ram the father of Amminadab. Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab. Boaz became the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth. Obed became the father of Jesse, Jesse the father of David the king. David became the father of Solomon, whose mother had been the wife of Uriah. Solomon became the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asaph. Asaph became the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, Joram the father of Uzziah. Uzziah became the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah. Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amos, Amos the father of Josiah. Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers at the time of the Babylonian exile. After the Babylonian exile, Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, Zerubbabel the father of Abiud. Abiud became the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor, Azor the father of Zadok. Zadok became the father of Achim, Achim the father of Eliud, Eliud the father of Eleazar. Eleazar became the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Of her was born Jesus who is called the Christ. Thus the total number of generations from Abraham to David is fourteen generations; from David to the Babylonian exile, fourteen generations; from the Babylonian exile to the Christ, fourteen generations. Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with child through the Holy Spirit. Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means “God is with us.” When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home. He had no relations with her until she bore a son, and he named him Jesus. Reflections (3) (i) Christmas Vigil It is lovely to see so many people here in our parish church tonight. Apart from the Easter Vigil this is the only time we gather in church at nine o’clock at night. We are here because we want to be here. We feel drawn to join in the celebration of the Eucharist on this night above all nights. Our gathering together in church tonight as brothers and sisters in the Lord is one example of the gatherings that Christmas seems to inspire among us. In all kinds of ways we gather at Christmas time. People make a special effort to gather with their families at Christmas; our airports and ports and roads are exceptionally busy. All kinds of other gatherings happen at this time. In our own parish recently members of the hospitality group gathered the senior members of the parish community for a Christmas party in the parish centre. Tomorrow there will be a great gathering of Dublin’s poor and homeless in the Mansion House for a Christmas dinner. People tend to be very sensitive to those living on their own at this time of the year and often make a special effort to include them in some Christmas gathering or other. Instinctively we seem to make a special effort to include each other, at this time of the year. We may even go out of our way to connect with those from whom we have become estranged for one reason or another. Our particular gathering in this church springs from our faith in Jesus, whom tonight’s gospel reading speaks of as Saviour and Christ the Lord. We could be somewhere else at this time, but we are here and our presence here in this gathering is an expression of our faith. At times, we may feel that our faith in the Lord is not very strong. We may identify very easily with the prayer that the disciples once addressed to Jesus, ‘Lord, increase our faith’, or with the prayer of the father who approached Jesus to heal his son, ‘Lord, I believe, help my unbelief’. None of us would feel a stranger to those prayers. Yet, it is our shared faith in Jesus that has brought us here this Christmas night. We want to celebrate the birth of someone who has become significant for us, and we want to celebrate this birth not just on our own but with others for whom this particular birth is also significant. We gather because we recognize that the birth of this child in a stable at Bethlehem is good news for us all. The angel announced to the shepherds in tonight’s gospel reading, ‘Listen, I bring you news of great joy, a joy to be shared by the whole people’. The birth of this child was not just good news for a select few, but for the whole people, for everyone without exception. The impact of the birth of any child into a family will be felt by that family into eternity. The impact of the birth of this child will be felt by the whole people into eternity. We gather to savour this good news which is addressed to all of us and to each one of us personally. There is no shortage of bad news these days. Tonight we gather in faith to allow some truly good news to wash over us and renew us. Faith is always a response to God’s initiative. Tonight we gather in response to the extraordinary initiative that God took to enter into communion with the whole of humanity. God entered into communion with us by becoming one of us. The Word who was God became flesh and dwelt among us. It is God’s initiative to become flesh for our sakes that gathers us here in this church tonight. God became vulnerable in Mary’s child. God took the risk of becoming vulnerable so as to enter into a deeper communion with us all, and it was a risk. The vulnerable child who was born outside of Bethlehem went on to become the vulnerable adult who was crucified outside of Jerusalem. In between his birth and death as an outsider he spoke of himself as the Son of Man who had nowhere to lay his head. According to the letter to the Hebrews, he was like us in all things, but sin. God loves us enough to take the risk of entering into the deepest possible communion with us through his Son, Jesus. We are here this evening because, at some level of our being, we recognize the lengths God has gone to enter into our experience and we want to respond to God’s gracious initiative towards us. We want to be in communion with God through Jesus, in response to God’s desire to be in communion with us through Jesus. It has been said that the birth of every child is a small protest against the tired view that there is nothing new under the sun. The birth of the child we celebrate this night is a very large protest against such a view. Jesus spoke of his life and ministry as new wine. Tonight we are invited to drink of that new wine. As we do so we will hear the call to be as generous in our dealings with each other as God has been with us. In the words of tonight’s second reading, this Christmas feast calls on us to have no ambition except to do good. And/Or (ii) Christmas Vigil It is striking the efforts people make to get home for Christmas. Christmas is a feast that moves people to get back to their roots. It draws people to make contact with those who have helped to shape and form them. The feast of Christmas seems to have the power to bring us back to basics as it were. A striking example of that was to be found among the trenches near Armentieres on Christmas Day 1914. A twenty-five year old Lieutenant wrote a letter home in which he said: ‘Detachments of British and Germans formed a line and a German and British chaplain read some prayers alternately. The whole of this was done in great solemnity and reverence’. Here were sworn enemies fighting a bitter war. But, they also knew that at a much more basic level, they were fellow human beings, who had been equally graced by the birth of God’s Son. The feast of that day helped those men to see each other with new eyes. They beheld each other in a new light, the light of God’s love revealed in the birth of his Son. It is hard to conceive of any other Christian feast, or indeed the feast of any other religion, having that kind of power. The feast of Christmas can touch all our lives in an equally powerful way. We are not at war with others in the way those soldiers were at war with each other on that Christmas day almost 90 years ago. Yet, we might find ourselves coming to this feast of Christmas battered and bruised in various ways. Some of us here today may have come through, or be in the midst of, a painful experience of one kind or another. We may be embroiled in some form of conflict that leaves us drained. We may have suffered some significant loss in recent months. Some hope we cherished may not have materialized. Our health may have deteriorated. Our faith may have grown weak. We may be troubled by some wrong we did or some good we failed to do. What may be true of any one of us as individuals is true of our church. The church comes to this Christmas somewhat battered and bruised. The damage done by some priests to young children, and the failure of our bishops to deal with this situation adequately has affected us all. Wherever and however we find ourselves this Christmas, today’s feast invites us to look up, as it were, with the shepherds in the gospel reading. We hear for ourselves the words the shepherds heard: ‘Do not be afraid. Listen, I bring you news of great joy, a joy to be shared by the whole people. Today a saviour has been born to you’. A child has been born for all of us, whoever we are, whatever situation we find ourselves in. The birth of a child is a wonderful time for any family, a time of grace. Today we celebrate a birth that has graced us all, and continues to grace us all. The child of Mary and Joseph reveals the kindness and love of God for us all. God has given us the gift of his Son, and, having given this gift, God will never take it back. God’s Son has become our brother, our companion on the way, becoming like us in all things, but sin. God has become flesh and dwelt, and continues to dwell, among us. God’s Son who dwells among us invites us to receive from his fullness, grace upon grace. In receiving from him in this way, we are empowered to rise above all that oppresses us and diminishes us. Here is a wonderful gift that calls us out of our trenches, as it were, and has the potential to transform how we see ourselves and each other. Christmas is a feast of light. It is celebrated just as the days begin to get longer. Within our own tradition we have recognized this dimension of the feast of Christmas, with our custom of lighting candles and placing them in front of the windows of our homes. At Christmas we celebrate the coming into the world of the true light who enlightens everyone. The glory of the Lord shone around the shepherds and shines around all of us. We are invited to stand under that light, the light of God’s favour, and to allow that light to fill us and renew us. We are not asked to do anything to make this light shine. It is there; it is given to us. We are only asked to receive it and to become the light that we receive. The feast of Christmas assures us that the light shines in the darkness and the darkness will not overcome it. God has graced us in a very definitive way, and God’s gracious presence to us is a more fundamental reality than the darkness in which we find ourselves and which we sometimes help to create. This is the good news of great joy that was given to the shepherds on that first Christmas night and that is given to us today. It is this good news that is at the heart of all our Christmas celebrations. And/Or (iii) Christmas Vigil We don’t often gather here in our parish church so late in the evening, at 9.00 pm. There are only two times in the year when we do that, on Christmas night and at the Easter Vigil. On those two nights we gather to celebrate the birth of Jesus and the resurrection of Jesus, the beginning and end of the story of Jesus as we find it in the gospels. On both occasions we gather in darkness, at night time. The story of the birth of Jesus which we have just heard is told by Luke as a night time event. It was while the shepherds were watching their flocks by night that the angels appeared to them and proclaimed the good news of a wonderful event that had just taken place, ‘a Saviour has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord’. It is that same good news that is proclaimed to us tonight and that brings us together in this church long after the sun has set, at a time when we would normally be thinking about winding down for the day and getting ready for bed. As we gather in the darkness, we celebrate this feast of Christmas with candles and lights. The five candles on the Advent wreath, including the white one for the feast of Christmas, are all lighting; the lights of the Christmas tree are on. There was a tradition in the past of a candle being lit in the widow of our homes on this night. Christmas is a feast of light. In the wonderful opening words of our first reading tonight, ‘the people that walked in darkness has seen a great light; on those who live in a land of deep shadow a light has shone’. The child whose birth we celebrate tonight is the light of God’s love shining upon us. This light does not eliminate the darkness but it shines brightly within in. As Saint John says at the beginning of his gospel, ‘the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it’. We each have our own share of darkness, and for each of us the darkness is different. For some, this time of the year can accentuate the darkness. The loneliness of the bereaved and the isolated can be felt more sharply at this time of the year. Whatever darkness we may find ourselves in this Christmas, we are invited this night to allow ourselves to be bathed in the light of that wonderful news that the angels announced to the shepherds, ‘Today, in the town of Bethlehem, a Saviour has been born to you’ – to you, to each of us personally. In the mystery of a new born baby lying in a manger, a feeding trough for animals, we are being reminded that God is breathing his Spirit into the darkness of our lives. The child of Bethlehem is God’s gift to humanity, to each one of us. We give gifts to each other at this time of the year. It is as if deep down we realize that we have been greatly gifted or graced, and we want to give out of what we have received. Because of this night, we have each been wonderfully graced by God. In the opening words of tonight’s second reading, ‘God’s grace has been revealed’. A genuine gift is not something we have worked for or have earned or deserved. It is simply give to us out of love, and all that is asked of us is that we receive the gift and the love that it expresses. Jesus is God’s greatest gift to us. God does not ask us to earn or work for this gift. In the child of Bethlehem, God accepts us as we are and loves us without any merit on our part. All that God asks of us is that we receive this gift of his Son in faith and then to live out of the gift we have received. God desperately wants us to receive this gift because it is the gift of life. Jesus is the life-giver, given to us so that we can live fully human lives in this earthly life, and enter into eternal life beyond this earthly life. Sometimes giving can come easier to us than receiving. Many of us can find it easier to give than to receive. This feast of Christmas requires us to fine tune our capacity to receive, especially to receive from God. If we struggle to receive from others, we can struggle even more to receive from God, because we can image God as one who is constantly looking to receive from us. Yet, tonight’s feast reminds us that the initiative is always with God. In the words of the first letter of Saint John, ‘God first loved us’. Tonight we are called to have something of the openness of the shepherds to God’s gift. We are invited to go with them to the manger and to welcome this extraordinary grace into our lives. We find it easy to receive a new born child. We delight in taking the child into our arms. Perhaps God was making it easy for us to receive his love by immersing himself in the tiny, fragile flesh of a new born child. If this is how God has chosen to approach us, it may be saying something about how God wants to be approached by us. We come close to God in the way we come close to a child, gently and noiselessly, with no solemn talk but only plains words coming from a graced and grateful heart. ———————- Christmas Day Gospel (Europe, Africa, New Zealand, Australia & Canada) John 1:1-18 The Word was made flesh, and lived among us In the beginning was the Word: and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things came to be, not one thing had its being but through him. All that came to be had life in him and that life was the light of men, a light that shines in the dark, a light that darkness could not overpower. A man came, sent by God. His name was John. He came as a witness, as a witness to speak for the light, so that everyone might believe through him. He was not the light, only a witness to speak for the light. The Word was the true light that enlightens all men; and he was coming into the world. He was in the world that had its being through him, and the world did not know him. He came to his own domain and his own people did not accept him. But to all who did accept him he gave power to become children of God, to all who believe in the name of him who was born not out of human stock or urge of the flesh or will of man but of God himself. The Word was made flesh, he lived among us, and we saw his glory, the glory that is his as the only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth. John appears as his witness. He proclaims: ‘This is the one of whom I said: He who comes after me ranks before me because he existed before me.’ Indeed, from his fullness we have, all of us, received – yes, grace in return for grace, since, though the Law was given through Moses, grace and truth have come through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God; it is the only Son, who is nearest to the Father’s heart, who has made him known. Gospel (USA) John 1:1–18 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be. What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race; the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. A man named John was sent from God. He came for testimony, to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world came to be through him, but the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, but his own people did not accept him. But to those who did accept him he gave power to become children of God, to those who believe in his name, who were born not by natural generation nor by human choice nor by a man’s decision but of God. And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth. John testified to him and cried out, saying, “This was he of whom I said, ‘The one who is coming after me ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.’” From his fullness we have all received, grace in place of grace, because while the law was given through Moses, grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. The only Son, God, who is at the Father’s side, has revealed him. Reflections (3) (i) Christmas Day Words are important at this Christmas time of the year, both the spoken and the written word. This shows itself, in particular, in our efforts to speak to those close to us who are away from us at this time. We make a special effort to speak with members of our families who are living abroad. My sister has been living in the United States for the past twenty five years or more. She rarely gets to Dublin for Christmas but the Christmas telephone call is very important to her. She will make a real effort to connect with all of us by phone. We feel the need to speak with those who are dear to us even if we cannot see them face to face. The written word is also important at this time of the year. Even in this digital age, we continue to write Christmas cards and send them off to people with a written greeting, including people we may not see from one Christmas to the next. In various ways we feel the need to connect with each other at this time of the year; we sense a call to communicate with one another. Language is one of the primary ways that we communicate with each other. Words carry greater significance than is usual in these days and weeks. Perhaps we attach so much significance to words at this time of the year because we appreciate that the deeper meaning of Christmas has everything to do with communication. The gospel reading this morning puts it very simply but very profoundly, ‘In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. The Word was made flesh, he lived among us, and we saw his glory’. We all struggle to express ourselves, whether in the spoken word or the written word. We often end up with the nagging feeling that we haven’t said all we wanted to say or in the way we wanted to say it. We feel that there is a great deal more within us, in our minds and hearts, than we have managed to put into words. God, however, expresses himself fully and completely, so perfectly that the Word God spoke was itself God. It was that perfect Word who became flesh, a human person, whose name was Jesus. The most perfect and precious Word that God spoke became a person. As a result, those who looked on the face of the new born child of Mary and Joseph were looking on the face of God. That child was the complete self-communication of God. Here was a baby who was God’s perfect word to us. That word would unfold itself in the life, death and resurrection of this child. Christmas celebrates the good news that in Jesus God spoke a complete word to us, a word that said all that God could possibly say in human language, a word that was the culmination of all the words that God had spoken before the birth of Jesus. As the beginning of this morning’s second reading puts it, ‘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’. We all know from our own experience the power of words. We understand that words can have a power for good or for ill. They can heal or hurt. They can bring light or cast a shadow. They can energize people or drain them of life. In certain situations especially, we know that we have to be very careful about what we say and how we say it. The Word that God spoke and that became a human person was the most life-affirming word that was ever spoken. It was a creative Word, a word that brought life to everyone who received it, a life that endures beyond this earthly life. There wasn’t any hint of darkness in the word that God spoke and that took human flesh in the person of Jesus; it was full of light. It was light itself. In the words of the gospel reading this morning, ‘the Word was the true light that enlightens everyone’. Those who open their minds and their hearts to this word are bathed in God’s light, the light of God’s love and God’s truth. This was a word that was full of everything good; in the words of the gospel reading this morning it was ‘full of grace and truth’. There was a wonderful abundance about this word. We know from our own experience that the best of human language, the most profound of human words, take time to digest. We find ourselves going back to such words over and over again. This is supremely true of that word of God that became flesh in Jesus. We need to keep returning to it over and over again to receive from its fullness. That is the call which today’s feast makes on us, to keep returning to this rich Word that God spoke and continues to speak to us, and to keep on receiving from its fullness so that we ourselves can become fully mature with the fullness of Christ himself. And/Or (ii) Christmas Day I would like on your behalf to congratulate the children on the wonderful way that they acted out the Christmas story. I am always struck by how easily children enter into the Christmas story and how well they announce it to us all. Perhaps that is because at the centre of the Christmas story is a family - a mother, a father and their child – not unlike the children’s own families. Many of the children will have baby brothers and sisters, and they can relate easily to the baby who is the very heart of the Christmas story. The word ‘God’ can suggest someone remote, very far above us, somewhat inaccessible. However, there is nothing more accessible than a new born baby. Everyone wants to get close to a new born baby. They exert a certain fascination on all of us. We look at this new bundle of life, mesmerized. The parents who are here this morning know that better than I do. Christmas celebrates the extraordinary good news that the new born child of Mary and Joseph is God - God-with-us, Emmanuel. Those who looked into the eyes of this child were looking into the eyes of God. It is hard to imagine how God could have become more accessible to us than by taking the form of a new born child. If God wanted to draw close to us, to engage us, to draw us into relationship, this was a very good way to do it. In Jesus, the first born child of Mary and Joseph, God became vulnerable, accessible, engaging. Perhaps that is why the feast of Christmas continues to engage us at the more spiritual level of our make up. Yes, Christmas has become overly commercialized. We all spend more than we need to; if we are not careful we can easily go overboard. Yet, the numbers who come to church on Christmas day are always well up on other times of the year. God who reached out to us through a new born babe continues to draw us at this time of the year. It somehow feels right to come to church on this day of all days. It is as if we sense, at some level, that if God has gone to such lengths to connect with us, the least we can do is attempt to connect with God. Like the shepherds in today’s gospel reading, we hear the call to come to the crib. On reaching it, we are invited to let our eyes and our minds roam free as we ponder the wonderful mystery of Jesus’ birth, the mystery of Emmanuel, God-with-us. Mary and Joseph’s child, of course, became an adult, a vigorous young man who placed his life’s energy at the disposal of God the Father for the service of all men and woman. As the adult Jesus went on to say, ‘the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many’. He gave his life for us all, and, having been raised from the dead, he continues to give himself to us all. Indeed, at this Eucharist which we now celebrate, the risen Lord gives himself to each of us as the bread of life. We come here on this Christmas morning not only to ponder the image of the child Jesus in the crib, but to receive into our lives in the Eucharist the glorious and risen adult Jesus. He calls us who are adults into an adult relationship with him. He says to us what he said to his disciples on the night before he died, ‘I no longer call your servants, I call you friends’. He waits for us to reciprocate, to befriend him as he has befriended us, to reach out towards him as he has reached out towards us, to accept him as our companion on our life’s way. The second reading this morning speaks of God’s Son as ‘the radiant light of God’s glory’. When John the evangelist wanted to express the mystery of this feast of Christmas, he wrote: ‘A light… shines in the darkness, a light that darkness could not overpower’. The adult Jesus spoke of himself as the light of the world and promised that those who follow him will never walk in darkness. Many of us today experience a sense of darkness in one form of another. It might be the darkness of depression, of illness, of a broken relationship, of a deep loss, or the darkness that envelopes us when we look at all that is not right with our world. At Christmas we celebrate the coming of Jesus as light into our darkness. On this Christmas morning, we might make our own that wonderful prayer of John Henry Newman, a great scholar and writer of the 19th century, an Anglican who became a Roman Catholic, a prayer addressed to the risen Jesus as light in our darkness: ‘Lead kindly light amid the encircling gloom, lead Thou me on. The night is dark and I am far from home, lead Thou me on. I do not ask to see the distant scene. One step enough for me’. And/Or (iii) Christmas Day There has been quite a bit of bad news in recent times. We know the economy has taken a serious downturn and many people who had jobs last Christmas don’t have jobs this Christmas. The future is more uncertain for many people than it might have been this time last year. We have also heard news of murders in broad daylight at either end of our parish here in Clontarf. For those who have been affected by those murders this Christmas will be an ordeal. There has been bad news for the church this Christmas, as well, with the recent report on Cloyne Diocese. Today’s feast sends a ray of light into the doom and gloom. The first line of this morning’s first reading sets the tone for the feast, ‘How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of one who brings good news’. What is this good news, according to that reading? It is the good news that the Lord is returning to Zion and consoling his people and that all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God. As Christians we recognize the fulfilment of that promise of good news in the birth of Jesus who is both the son of Mary and Joseph, and Son of God. On that first Christmas night, a child was born for us, a son was given to us, who brought God to us in a way that no human being ever did before or since. In bringing God to us with such clarity, he showed the name of that God to be love. In his gospel St John would put it very succinctly, ‘God so loved the world that he gave his only Son’. That is why we have cribs in our churches and in our homes at this time of the year, to remind us of that good news. Children can get more excited by good news than us adults. We are often more attuned to bad news. It can be the open-eyed wonder of children before the crib that helps all of us to hear and be touched by the good news that is at the heart of today’s feast. The adult Jesus would go on to say, ‘unless you become like little children you will not enter the kingdom of God’. The gospel reading we have just heard acknowledges the reality of the darkness in our world, and yet it also announces the good news that there is a more fundamental reality enveloping us, which the reading simply refers to as ‘light’. ‘A light shines in the darkness, a light that darkness could not overpower’. That reading reassures us that no matter how dark things may appear to be in our own personal lives, in the lives of our family, in the life of our church, in the life of our nation, there is a light shining there, a light that is stronger than the darkness and that is destined to overcome the darkness. The gospel reading for Christmas morning invites us to ask the question, ‘Where is the light in our darkness?’ It encourages us to search for the light, because it is there. The reading speaks of this light as the true light, and it then identifies this true light with the Word of God who became flesh and was given the name Jesus. We come to the crib at this time of the year because we are drawn by the light that shines in the darkness, and deep down we are convinced that the darkness will not overcome this light. What is this light? It is ultimately the light of love, the light of God’s love. In the New Testament, there are two three word statements identifying who God is, and they are both to be found in the first letter of Saint John, ‘God is light’, and ‘God is love’. The gospel reading assures us that God’s love is always shining in whatever darkness we may find ourselves, and because genuine love is always life-giving, and God’s love is infinitely life-giving, at the heart of all darkness we will find not only light but also new life. In the words of our gospel reading, ‘that life was the light of all’. God works in life-giving ways even in situations that appear to be hopeless. Even when human beings threw God’s gift of his Son back in his face by crucifying his Son, God turned that to our good, by raising his Son from the dead and giving him to us as a light that endures forever. In the words of the second reading, the risen Lord ‘is the radiant light of God’s glory’. The light of God’s love for us simply cannot be extinguished. Paul put that very simply and very profoundly when he declared that nothing ‘will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord’. That is why we celebrate Christmas the way we do. The gifts we give to each other remind us of the greater gift of God’s Son that we rejoice in at this time of the year; the candles we light, the lights we turn on, remind us of the light of God’s love which shines brightly even when darkness seems to be triumphing, the visits we make to each other remind us of that great visitation of God to his people through his Son. We can allow ourselves to be happy in these days, because we have something to be happy about. Fr. Martin Hogan, Saint John the Baptist Parish, Clontarf, Dublin, D03 AO62, Ireland. Email: [email protected] or [email protected] Parish Website: www.stjohnsclontarf.ie Please join us via our webcam. Twitter: @SJtBClontarfRC. Facebook: St John the Baptist RC Parish, Clontarf. Tumblr: Saint John the Baptist Parish, Clontarf, Dublin.
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Christmas Family Drama
Family
Have you ever tried to define what family is? Its one of those words we use often but we each have a different way of interpreting it. I struggled with defining it on my own so I decided to look it up.
According to Merriam-Webster.com family is
(Entry 1 of 2)
1a : the basic unit in society traditionally consisting of two parents rearing their children also : any of various social units differing from but regarded as equivalent to the traditional family a single-parent family
b : spouse and children want to spend more time with my family
2 : a group of individuals living under one roof and usually under one head : household
3a : a group of persons of common ancestry : clan
b : a people or group of peoples regarded as deriving from a common stock : race
4a : a group of people united by certain convictions or a common affiliation : fellowship
b : the staff of a high official (such as the President)
5 : a group of things related by common characteristics: such as
a : a closely related series of elements or chemical compounds
b : a group of soils with similar chemical and physical properties (such as texture, pH, and mineral content) that comprise a category ranking above the series and below the subgroup in soil classification
c : a group of related languages descended from a single ancestral language
6a : a group of related plants or animals forming a category ranking above a genus and below an order and usually comprising several to many genera
b in livestock breeding
(1) : the descendants or line of a particular individual especially of some outstanding female
(2) : an identifiable strain within a breed
7 : a set of curves or surfaces whose equations differ only in parameters
8 : a unit of a crime syndicate (such as the Mafia) operating within a geographical area
Good job Merriam-Webster! You were much more thorough than I would have been. But even though Merriam-Webster give us 8 different definitions, there are many more, just look it up online.
I know that these challenges with defining family can lead to some drama. For example, we will have a small wedding, we will only invite family members, or we will spend the holidays with family. Who gets included? Who will be excluded? How will that go over?
Maybe you have a perfectly balanced family and never have to struggle with this, or maybe you’re from a different country and you have a solution to these types of situations. I know plenty of people that dread the holidays because of their relationship with their “family.” Maybe you feel bad talking about it, perhaps you feel like everyone else has perfectly happy families, and you’re the only one walking on eggshells afraid of offending someone or setting someone off.
Maybe you wonder about peace on earth, and how the holidays are supposed to bring people together. But you’re not the first one to have family issues, and you’re not the last one. I always find comfort when I read a Bible story that helps guide me through challenging situations, and the first chapter of Matthew has some great ones!
Matthew chapter 1
Matthew begins with something many just skip right over, a genealogy. Matthew begins that way because it is important to establish Jesus as a direct descendant of Abraham and David in order for his Jewish audience to accept Jesus as the Jewish Messiah. Luke’s genealogy (Luke 3:23-38) traces Jesus’ ancestry all the way back to Adam making Jesus the universal Savior. Though in modern days where you came from seems to matter less, at least in some parts of the world, in the time of Jesus it made all the difference. Jesus’ lineage was part of His claim to legitimacy so it would make sense to highlight all the great men in his family line all the people that would be admired by others.
The Genealogy of Jesus Christ
1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:
2 Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers. 3 Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram.
Matthew 1:1-3 NKJV (bold mine)
If I was writing the genealogy of Jesus, in an effort to convince Jews that Jesus was the Messiah, I would have tried to make it as impressive as possible. Don’t politicians do that? Don’t they try to cover up any potentially embarrassing part of their past? Why would Matthew include a woman, which was unusual, but to make things more surprising, why would he choose to include Tamar?
Tamar
The story of Tamar can be found in Genesis 38:1-30. I want to one day do a whole post just on Genesis 38, it is a fascinating chapter, especially in its context (literary and historical). But for now, I will only hit some of the key points of the story of Tamar.
Judah moves away from the main compound of Jacob, marries a Canaanite woman, and becomes the friend of a Canaanite leader.
Tamar is the Canaanite wife of Judah’s oldest son Er. (Canaanite = outside God’s special blessings promised to Abraham and his descendants)
Er is so wicked in the sight of the LORD that the LORD kills him. (Genesis 38:7)
Onan is Er’s younger brother and he now has the responsibility of marrying his brother’s wife and raising an heir to his brother. Onan refused to raise an heir for his brother and the LORD killed him also. (Genesis 38:8-10)
Judah then sends Tamar back to her father’s house as a widow to wait until his youngest son is grown. (verse 11)
If the story was not odd enough, it gets worse.
Tamar covers herself and sat by the road. Judah sees her and thinks she’s a harlot and gets her pregnant. She holds on to the equivalent of his ID until he sends payment. (verses12-19)
Soon after, Judah sends a servant to pay the harlot and his servant is unable to find her. (verses 20-23)
Three months later Judah hears that Tamar is pregnant. Judah wants to literally burn her when she shows him his ID saying that the man who owned it is responsible for getting her pregnant. (verses 24-25)
From that pregnancy she gave birth to twins Perez and Zerah as mentioned in Matthew 1:3.
I imagine you have many questions about Genesis 38, it is a fascinating story, but that will have to wait until it gets its own post.
Why would Matthew bring up the story of Tamar? Imagine if that was your family, would you talk about the past?
Rahab
4 Ram begot Amminadab, Amminadab begot Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salmon. 5 Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, 6 and Jesse begot David the king.
David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah.
Matthew 1:4-6 NKJV (bold mine)
Matthew continues his genealogy and things seem normal for a while until he mentions Rahab. To learn more about Rahab we need to read Joshua 2,6.
Now Joshua the son of Nun sent out two men from Acacia Grove to spy secretly, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.”
So they went, and came to the house of a harlot named Rahab, and lodged there.
Joshua 2:1 NKJV (bold mine)
Yep. Rahab the harlot. Rahab lived int he city of Jericho, she was part of a community that God had ordered Israel to completely wipe out. So it ought to make you wonder how a prostitute, from a wicked city, who was not part of God’s chosen people (she was not born a Jew), finds herself in the genealogy of the Messiah!?
A brief overview of who Rahab was:
Rahab was a harlot who lived in a house in the wall Jericho. She knew that God had given the city to the Israelites and she lied to save the lives of the spies from Israel who were staying at her house. The day that Israel attacked Jericho Rahab and her family were the only ones who were spared. (For more information read Joshua 2, 6)
Ruth
5 Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse,
Matthew 1:5 NKJV (bold mine)
I have several posts on the book of Ruth (Love is series, first one here), and I would encourage you to read/listen to those messages. In essence:
Ruth is a Moabitess who decides to follow her mother-in-law back to Israel and worship her God (the LORD).
Bathsheba?
and Jesse begot David the king.
David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah.
Matthew 1:6 NKJV (bold mine)
To learn more about Bathsheba we need to read 2 Samuel 11-12.
Bathsheba was the wife of Uriah the Hittite. We don’t know what nationality she was. But David had Uriah killed and married Bathsheba.
This was the lowest point, morally speaking, of David’s life. Why would Matthew bring up Uriah’s wife? Why not just mention that David was the father of Solomon?
A less than perfect family
Matthew does not mention any other women besides these four, and Mary the mother of Jesus, at the very end. (Matthew 1:16)It is unusual to mention women in genealogies, and why would Matthew choose mention especially the women who don’t seem to belong?
Why mention the family members that people would rather forget?
Why bring up stories that make everyone feel uncomfortable?
Why would Matthew bring up these characters that remind us of how messy life can get?
Could it be to keep us from thinking that our life is too messy for Jesus to accept us?
Perhaps to remind us that Jesus was born into a chaotic world surrounded by messy people with less than perfect lives?
Jesus came to bring healing, harmony, peace, salvation to a world that desperately needs Him. We still need Him today. Out life is not too messy. Look at His earthly lineage!
An Inclusive Family
Keep in mind that Tamar was a Canaanite. Rahab the harlot lived in Jericho, a city doomed to destruction, full of enemies of Israel. Ruth was a Moabitess, and a widow. Bathsheba was the wife of a Hittite, who became pregnant by King David while she was still married to Uriah.
These women were mostly outsiders, yet they were not only included in God’s special people, but they also had the privilege of playing a role in the lineage that eventually led to the coming of Jesus, the Savior of the world.
Mary
The last woman mentioned by Matthew in the genealogy of Jesus is Mary, the mother of Jesus. But even that had some drama involved. t was so bad that Matthew tells us that Joseph had plans to divorce her. (Matthew 1:19) In those days, though the marriage was not fully consummated during the betrothal period, the betrothal couple was legally binding and could only be dissolved by a certificate of divorce.
Joseph could have had Mary stoned (Deuteronomy 22:23-24), but he was kind and preferred to get a private divorce. When Mary agreed to be the mother of Jesus she literally put her life on the line. (Luke 1:26-38) A careful reading of Luke 2:5 reveals that when Mary and Joseph made their trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem they were still not married. There is a possibility that Joseph had intended to divorce Mary in Bethlehem so that she would not be ostracized by her community. At least in Bethlehem no one knew her, as opposed to the place where she grew up and was well known.
The timeline is tight in Luke 2. There is a possibility that when Jesus was born Mary was betrothed to Joseph but not yet married. Even nowadays, when someone has a child out of wedlock, people talk, imagine back then, in small communities where everyone likely knew everyone else.
Besides the humbling place where Jesus was born, He was also born in a less than ideal social setting. There was drama. That first Christmas was not without drama. Jesus’ family was dysfunctional, when you look at His genealogy you see people mentioned that don’t seem to belong. But Jesus intentionally came into a messy world to bring harmony, peace, and salvation to all of us and our messy lives.
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Saturday (September 8): Mary's call to be the mother of Jesus the Savior
Scripture: Matthew 1:1-16, 18-23 (alternate reading: Luke 6:1-5)
1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. 2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, 3 and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram, 4 and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, 5 and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of David the king. And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, 7 and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asa, 8 and Asa the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, 9 and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, 10 and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah, 11 and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon. 12 And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, 13 and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor, 14 and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud, 15 and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, 16 and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.
18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit; 19 and her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 20 But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; 21 she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 23 "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel" (which means, God with us).
Meditation:
Do you rejoice in the promises of God and trust in his saving plan for your life? There is a long venerable tradition among many Christians of celebrating the birth of Mary, the mother of Jesus our Savior, on this day. Her birth prepared for our redemption in Jesus Christ. Matthew begins his Gospel account with the genealogy of Jesus from Abraham's lineage through the line of David, King of Israel. Matthew concludes his genealogy by indicating that both Mary, Jesus' mother and Joseph, his legal foster father, came from the line of David.
Do you believe and trust in God's promises?
Mary was asked to assume in faith a burden of tremendous responsibility. It had never been heard of before that a child could be born without a natural father. Mary was asked to accept this miraculous exception to the laws of nature. That required faith and trust. Second, Mary was not yet married. Pregnancy outside of wedlock was not tolerated in those days. Mary was only espoused to Joseph, and such an engagement had to last for a whole year. She was asked to assume a great risk. She could have been rejected by Joseph, by her family, by all her own people. Mary knew that Joseph and her family would not understand without revelation from God. She nonetheless believed and trusted in God's promises.
Joseph, a just and God-fearing man, believed the message given to him to take Mary as his wife and to accept the child in her womb as the promised Messiah. Like Mary, Joseph is a model of faith for us. He is a faithful witness and servant of God's unfolding plan of redemption. Are you willing to trust and obey the Lord as Mary and Joseph did?
Jesus the Messiah is a direct descendant of King David and Abraham
What is the significance of Matthew's genealogy? His genealogy is arranged in three sections portraying three great stages in the spiritual history of the people of the old covenant. The first stage begins with Abraham, the father of the chosen people, and ends with David, God's anointed King. The second stage takes us to the exile of God's people in Babylon. This is the period of Israel's shame and disaster due to her unfaithfulness.
The third stage takes us to Jesus, God's anointed Messiah. Jesus the Messiah is the direct descent of Abraham and David, and the rightful heir to David's throne. God in his mercy fulfilled his promises to Abraham and to David that he would send a Savior and a King to rule over the house of Israel and to deliver them from their enemies.
Jesus the Savior is the fulfillment of God's promises to us
Jesus is the fulfillment of all God's promises. He is the hope not only for the people of the Old Covenant but for all nations as well. He is the Savior of the world. In him we receive adoption into a royal priesthood and holy nation as sons and daughters of the living God (see 1 Peter 1:9). Do you recognize your spiritual genealogy and do you accept God as your Father and Jesus as the sovereign King and Lord of your life?
"Lord Jesus, you came to save us from the power of sin and death and give us abundant everlasting life in your kingdom. May I always rejoice in your saving work and trust in your plan for my life".
Psalm 145:2-3, 10-13
2 Every day I will bless you, and praise your name for ever and ever.
3 Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable.
10 All your works shall give thanks to you, O LORD, and all your saints shall bless you!
11 They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom, and tell of your power,
12 to make known to the sons of men your mighty deeds, and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations. The LORD is faithful in all his words, and gracious in all his deeds.
Daily Quote from the early church fathers: Jesus' humanity revealed in the genealogy, by Severus of Antioch (488-538 AD)
"One must bear in mind therefore that the Evangelists, or rather the Spirit speaking through them, took pains to ensure that their readers believed that Christ was truly God and truly human. Because of what they wrote, no one could possibly doubt that he is God by nature, beyond all variation, mutation or illusion, and that according to the ordered plan of God he was truly human. This is why John could say, on the one hand, 'In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.' John immediately adds, 'The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us' (John 1:1-2,14). Hence Matthew wrote appropriately, 'The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.' On the one hand he is not able to be counted simply from natural generation among families, since it is written, 'Who shall declare his generation'? (Isaiah 53:8)
"He is before the centuries and of one substance with the Father himself, from the standpoint of eternity. But by this genealogy he is also numbered among the families of humanity according to the flesh. For in truth, while remaining God, Christ became man without ceasing to be God, unaltered till the end of time. This is why there is also mention of the ancient patriarchs in the lineage, the narrative and observation of the times and vicissitudes that are indeed proper to human history. Through all this Matthew made it clear that Christ participates in our human generation and in our nature. Otherwise some might claim that he appeared in illusion and in imagination only, rather than by becoming genuinely human. Think of what might have been said if none of this had been written?" (excerpt from CATHEDRAL SERMONS, HOMILY 94)
Friday (September 7): The unity of the new and the old
Scripture: Luke 5:33-39
33 And they said to him, "The disciples of John fast often and offer prayers, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink." 34 And Jesus said to them, "Can you make wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? 35 The days will come, when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days." 36 He told them a parable also: "No one tears a piece from a new garment and puts it upon an old garment; if he does, he will tear the new, and the piece from the new will not match the old. 37 And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; if he does, the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. 38 But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. 39 And no one after drinking old wine desires new; for he says, `The old is good.'"
Meditation: Which comes first, fasting or feasting? The disciples of John the Baptist were upset with Jesus' disciples because they did not fast. Fasting was one of the three most important religious duties, along with prayer and almsgiving. Jesus gave a simple explanation. There's a time for fasting and a time for feasting (or celebrating).
A time to weep and fast - a time to rejoice and celebrate
To walk as a disciple with Jesus is to experience a whole new joy of relationship akin to the joy of the wedding party in celebrating with the groom and bride their wedding bliss. But there also comes a time when the Lord's disciples must bear the cross of affliction and purification. For the disciple there is both a time for rejoicing in the Lord's presence and celebrating his goodness and a time for seeking the Lord with humility and fasting and for mourning over sin. Do you take joy in the Lord's presence with you and do you express sorrow and contrition for your sins?
A mind closed to God's wisdom
Jesus goes on to warn his disciples about the problem of the "closed mind" that refuses to learn new things. Jesus used an image familiar to his audience - new and old wine skins. In Jesus' times, wine was stored in wine skins, not bottles. New wine poured into skins was still fermenting. The gases exerted gave pressure. New wine skins were elastic enough to take the pressure, but old wine skins easily burst because they became hard as they aged. What did Jesus mean by this comparison?
The Old Testament points to the New - the New Testament fulfills the Old
Are we to reject the old in place of the new? Just as there is a right place and a right time for fasting and for feasting, so there is a right place for the old as well as the new. Jesus says the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old (Matthew 13:52).
A very common expression, dating back to the early beginnings of the Christian church, states that the New Testament lies hidden in the Old and the Old Testament is unveiled in the New - the two shed light on each other. The New Testament does not replace the Old - rather it unveils and brings into full light the hidden meaning and signs which foreshadow and point to God's plan of redemption which he would accomplish through his Son, Jesus Christ. How impoverished we would be if we only had the Old Testament or the New Testament, rather than both.
New "wine" of the Holy Spirit
The Lord Jesus gives us wisdom so we can make the best use of both the old and the new. He doesn't want us to hold rigidly to the past and to be resistant to the new action of his Holy Spirit in our lives. He wants our minds and hearts to be like the new wine skins - open and ready to receive the new wine of the Holy Spirit. Are you eager to grow in the knowledge and understanding of God's word and plan for your life?
"Lord Jesus, fill me with your Holy Spirit, that I may grow in the knowledge of your great love and truth. Help me to seek you earnestly in prayer and fasting that I may turn away from sin and wilfulness and conform my life more fully to your will. May I always find joy in knowing, loving, and serving you."
Psalm 100:1-5
1 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the lands!
2 Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing!
3 Know that the LORD is God! It is he that made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him, bless his name!
5 For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures for ever, and his faithfulness to all generations.
Daily Quote from the early church fathers: Christ will send you wise men and scribes, by Clement of Alexandria, 150-215 A.D.
"A scribe is one who, through continual reading of the Old and New Testaments, has laid up for himself a storehouse of knowledge. Thus Christ blesses those who have gathered in themselves the education both of the law and of the gospel, so as to 'bring forth from their treasure things both new and old.' And Christ compares such people with a scribe, just as in another place he says, 'I will send you wise men and scribes' (Matthew 23:34)" (excerpt from FRAGMENT 172)
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5th September >> Mass Readings (Europe, Africa, New Zealand, Australia & Canada)
Saturday, Twenty Second Week in Ordinary Time
or
Saturday memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Saturday, Twenty Second Week in Ordinary Time
(Liturgical Colour: Green)
First Reading
1 Corinthians 4:6-15
What do you have that was not given to you?
Take Apollos and myself as an example and remember the maxim: ‘Keep to what is written.’ It is not for you, so full of your own importance, to go taking sides for one man against another. In any case, brother, has anybody given you some special right? What do you have that was not given to you? And if it was given, how can you boast as though it were not? Is it that you have everything you want – that you are rich already, in possession of your kingdom, with us left outside? Indeed I wish you were really kings, and we could be kings with you! But instead, it seems to me, God has put us apostles at the end of his parade, with the men sentenced to death; it is true – we have been put on show in front of the whole universe, angels as well as men. Here we are, fools for the sake of Christ, while you are the learned men in Christ; we have no power, but you are influential; you are celebrities, we are nobodies. To this day, we go without food and drink and clothes; we are beaten and have no homes; we work for our living with our own hands. When we are cursed, we answer with a blessing; when we are hounded, we put up with it; we are insulted and we answer politely. We are treated as the offal of the world, still to this day, the scum of the earth.
I am saying all this not just to make you ashamed but to bring you, as my dearest children, to your senses. You might have thousands of guardians in Christ, but not more than one father and it was I who begot you in Christ Jesus by preaching the Good News.
The Word of the Lord
R/ Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 144(145):17-21
R/ The Lord is close to all who call him.
The Lord is just in all his ways
and loving in all his deeds.
He is close to all who call him,
who call on him from their hearts.
R/ The Lord is close to all who call him.
He grants the desires of those who fear him,
he hears their cry and he saves them.
The Lord protects all who love him;
but the wicked he will utterly destroy.
R/ The Lord is close to all who call him.
Let me speak the praise of the Lord,
let all mankind bless his holy name
for ever, for ages unending.
R/ The Lord is close to all who call him.
Gospel Acclamation
cf. Psalm 26:11
Alleluia, alleluia!
Instruct me, Lord, in your way;
on an even path lead me.
Alleluia!
Or:
John 14:6
Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, says the Lord;
No one can come to the Father except through me.
Alleluia!
Gospel
Luke 6:1-5
The Son of Man is master of the sabbath
One sabbath Jesus happened to be taking a walk through the cornfields, and his disciples were picking ears of corn, rubbing them in their hands and eating them. Some of the Pharisees said, ‘Why are you doing something that is forbidden on the sabbath day?’ Jesus answered them, ‘So you have not read what David did when he and his followers were hungry how he went into the house of God, took the loaves of offering and ate them and gave them to his followers, loaves which only the priests are allowed to eat?’ And he said to them, ‘The Son of Man is master of the sabbath.’
The Gospel of the Lord
R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
————————
Saturday memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary
(Liturgical Colour: White)
(Readings for the memorial)
(There is a choice today between the readings for the ferial day (Saturday) and those for the memorial. The ferial readings are recommended unless pastoral reasons suggest otherwise)
First Reading
Genesis 3:9-15,20
The mother of all those who live
After Adam had eaten of the tree the Lord God called to him. ‘Where are you?’ he asked. ‘I heard the sound of you in the garden;’ he replied ‘I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.’ ‘Who told you that you were naked?’ he asked ‘Have you been eating of the tree I forbade you to eat?’ The man replied, ‘It was the woman you put with me; she gave me the fruit, and I ate it.’ Then the Lord God asked the woman, ‘What is this you have done?’ The woman replied, ‘The serpent tempted me and I ate.’
Then the Lord God said to the serpent, ‘Because you have done this,
‘Be accursed beyond all cattle,
all wild beasts.
You shall crawl on your belly and eat dust
every day of your life.
I will make you enemies of each other:
you and the woman,
your offspring and her offspring.
It will crush your head
and you will strike its heel.’
The man named his wife ‘Eve’ because she was the mother of all those who live.
The Word of the Lord
R/ Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm
1 Samuel 2:1,4-8
R/ My heart exults in the Lord my Saviour.
My heart exults in the Lord.
I find my strength in my God;
my mouth laughs at my enemies
as I rejoice in your saving help.
R/ My heart exults in the Lord my Saviour.
The bows of the mighty are broken,
but the weak are clothed with strength.
Those with plenty must labour for bread,
but the hungry need work no more.
The childless wife has children now
but the fruitful wife bears no more.
R/ My heart exults in the Lord my Saviour.
It is the Lord who gives life and death,
he brings men to the grave and back;
it is the Lord who gives poverty and riches.
He brings men low and raises them on high.
R/ My heart exults in the Lord my Saviour.
He lifts up the lowly from the dust,
from the dungheap he raises the poor
to set him in the company of princes
to give him a glorious throne.
For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s,
on them he has set the world.
R/ My heart exults in the Lord my Saviour.
Gospel Acclamation
cf. Luke 1:28
Alleluia, alleluia!
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee!
Blessed art thou among women.
Alleluia!
Or:
cf. Luke 1:45
Alleluia, alleluia!
Blessed is the Virgin Mary, who believed
that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.
Alleluia!
Or:
cf.Lk2:19
Alleluia, alleluia!
Blessed is the Virgin Mary,
who treasured the word of God
and pondered it in her heart.
Alleluia!
Or:
Lk11:28
Alleluia, alleluia!
Happy are those
who hear the word of God
and keep it.
Alleluia!
Or:
Alleluia, alleluia!
Blessed are you, holy Virgin Mary,
and most worthy of all praise,
for the sun of justice, Christ our God,
was born of you.
Alleluia!
Or:
Alleluia, alleluia!
Happy is the Virgin Mary,
who, without dying,
won the palm of martyrdom
beneath the cross of the Lord.
Alleluia!
EITHER:
Gospel
Matthew 1:1-16,18-23
The ancestry and conception of Jesus Christ
A genealogy of Jesus Christ, son of David, son of Abraham:
Abraham was the father of Isaac,
Isaac the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah, Tamar being their mother,
Perez was the father of Hezron,
Hezron the father of Ram,
Ram was the father of Amminadab,
Amminadab the father of Nahshon,
Nahshon the father of Salmon,
Salmon was the father of Boaz, Rahab being his mother,
Boaz was the father of Obed, Ruth being his mother,
Obed was the father of Jesse;
and Jesse was the father of King David.
David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife,
Solomon was the father of Rehoboam,
Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asa,
Asa was the father of Jehoshaphat,
Jehoshaphat the father of Joram,
Joram the father of Azariah,
Azariah was the father of Jotham,
Jotham the father of Ahaz,
Ahaz the father of Hezekiah,
Hezekiah was the father of Manasseh,
Manasseh the father of Amon,
Amon the father of Josiah;
and Josiah was the father of Jechoniah and his brothers.
Then the deportation to Babylon took place.
After the deportation to Babylon:
Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel,
Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,
Zerubbabel was the father of Abiud,
Abiud the father of Eliakim,
Eliakim the father of Azor,
Azor was the father of Zadok,
Zadok the father of Achim,
Achim the father of Eliud,
Eliud was the father of Eleazar,
Eleazar the father of Matthan,
Matthan the father of Jacob;
and Jacob was the father of Joseph the husband of Mary;
of her was born Jesus who is called Christ.
This is how Jesus Christ came to be born. His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph; but before they came to live together she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph; being a man of honour and wanting to spare her publicity, decided to divorce her informally. He had made up his mind to do this when the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you must name him Jesus, because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins.’ Now all this took place to fulfil the words spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son
and they will call him Emmanuel,
a name which means ‘God-is-with-us.’
OR:
Gospel
Matthew 1:18-23
How Jesus Christ came to be born
This is how Jesus Christ came to be born. His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph; but before they came to live together she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph; being a man of honour and wanting to spare her publicity, decided to divorce her informally. He had made up his mind to do this when the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you must name him Jesus, because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins.’ Now all this took place to fulfil the words spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son
and they will call him Emmanuel,
a name which means ‘God-is-with-us.’
OR:
Gospel
Matthew 2:13-15,19-23
The flight into Egypt and the return to Nazareth
After the wise men had left, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother with you, and escape into Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, because Herod intends to search for the child and do away with him.’ So Joseph got up and, taking the child and his mother with him, left that night for Egypt, where he stayed until Herod was dead. This was to fulfil what the Lord had spoken through the prophet:
I called my son out of Egypt.
After Herod’s death, the angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother with you and go back to the land of Israel, for those who wanted to kill the child are dead.’ So Joseph got up and, taking the child and his mother with him, went back to the land of Israel. But when he learnt that Archelaus had succeeded his father Herod as ruler of Judaea he was afraid to go there, and being warned in a dream he left for the region of Galilee. There he settled in a town called Nazareth. In this way the words spoken through the prophets were to be fulfilled:
‘He will be called a Nazarene.’
OR:
Gospel
Matthew 12:46-50
My mother and my brothers are anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven
Jesus was speaking to the crowds when his mother and his brothers appeared; they were standing outside and were anxious to have a word with him. But to the man who told him this Jesus replied, ‘Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?’ And stretching out his hand towards his disciples he said, ‘Here are my mother and my brothers. Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven, he is my brother and sister and mother.’
OR:
Gospel
Luke 1:26-38
'I am the handmaid of the Lord'
The angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the House of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. He went in and said to her, ‘Rejoice, so highly favoured! The Lord is with you.’ She was deeply disturbed by these words and asked herself what this greeting could mean, but the angel said to her, ‘Mary, do not be afraid; you have won God’s favour. Listen! You are to conceive and bear a son, and you must name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David; he will rule over the House of Jacob for ever and his reign will have no end.’ Mary said to the angel, ‘But how can this come about, since I am a virgin?’ ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you’ the angel answered ‘and the power of the Most High will cover you with its shadow. And so the child will be holy and will be called Son of God. Know this too: your kinswoman Elizabeth has, in her old age, herself conceived a son, and she whom people called barren is now in her sixth month, for nothing is impossible to God.’ ‘I am the handmaid of the Lord,’ said Mary ‘let what you have said be done to me.’ And the angel left her.
OR:
Gospel
Luke 1:39-47
Blessed is she who believed the promise
Mary set out and went as quickly as she could to a town in the hill country of Judah. She went into Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth. Now as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. She gave a loud cry and said, ‘Of all women you are the most blessed, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord? For the moment your greeting reached my ears, the child in my womb leapt for joy. Yes, blessed is she who believed that the promise made her by the Lord would be fulfilled.’
And Mary said:
‘My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord
and my spirit exults in God my saviour.’
OR:
Gospel
Luke 2:1-14
'In the town of David a saviour has been born to you'
Caesar Augustus issued a decree for a census of the whole world to be taken. This census – the first – took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria, and everyone went to his own town to be registered. So Joseph set out from the town of Nazareth in Galilee and travelled up to Judaea, to the town of David called Bethlehem, since he was of David’s House and line, in order to be registered together with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. While they were there the time came for her to have her child, and she gave birth to a son, her first born. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger because there was no room for them at the inn.
In the countryside close by there were shepherds who lived in the fields and took it in turns to watch their flocks during the night. The angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone round them. They were terrified, but the angel said, ‘Do not be afraid. Listen, I bring you news of great joy, a joy to be shared by the whole people. Today in the town of David a saviour has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. And here is a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.’ And suddenly with the angel there was a great throng of the heavenly host, praising God and singing:
‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and peace to men who enjoy his favour.’
OR:
Gospel
Luke 2:15-19
The shepherds hurried to Bethlehem and found the baby lying in the manger
Now when the angels had gone from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.’ So they hurried away 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.
OR:
Gospel
Luke 2:27-35
'A sword will pierce your soul too'
Prompted by the Spirit Simeon came to the Temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the Law required, he took him into his arms and blessed God; and he said:
‘Now, Master, you can let your servant go in peace,
just as you promised;
because my eyes have seen the salvation
which you have prepared for all the nations to see,
a light to enlighten the pagans
and the glory of your people Israel.’
As the child’s father and mother stood there wondering at the things that were being said about him, Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, ‘You see this child: he is destined for the fall and for the rising of many in Israel, destined to be a sign that is rejected – and a sword will pierce your own soul too – so that the secret thoughts of many may be laid bare.’
OR:
Gospel
Luke 2:41-52
Mary stored up all these things in her heart
Every year the parents of Jesus used to go to Jerusalem for the feast of the Passover. When he was twelve years old, they went up for the feast as usual. When they were on their way home after the feast, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem without his parents knowing it. They assumed he was with the caravan, and it was only after a day’s journey that they went to look for him among their relations and acquaintances. When they failed to find him they went back to Jerusalem looking for him everywhere.
Three days later, they found him in the Temple, sitting among the doctors, listening to them, and asking them questions; and all those who heard him were astounded at his intelligence and his replies. They were overcome when they saw him, and his mother said to him, ‘My child, why have, you done this to us? See how worried your father and I have been, looking for you.’
‘Why were you looking for me?’ he replied. ‘Did you not know that I must be busy with my Father’s affairs?’ But they did not understand what he meant.
He then went down with them and came to Nazareth and lived under their authority.
His mother stored up all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom, in stature, and in favour with God and men.
OR:
Gospel
Luke 11:27-28
'Happy the womb that bore you and the breasts you sucked!'
As Jesus was speaking, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said, ‘Happy the womb that bore you and the breasts you sucked!’ But he replied, ‘Still happier those who hear the word of God and keep it!’
OR:
Gospel
John 2:1-11
'My hour has not come yet' - 'Do whatever he tells you'
There was a wedding at Cana in Galilee. The mother of Jesus was there, and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited. When they ran out of wine, since the wine provided for the wedding was all finished, the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.’ Jesus said ‘Woman, why turn to me? My hour has not come yet.’ His mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever he tells you.’ There were six stone water jars standing there, meant for the ablutions that are customary among the Jews: each could hold twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, ‘Fill the jars with water’, and they filled them to the brim. ‘Draw some out now’ he told them ‘and take it to the steward.’ They did this; the steward tasted the water, and it had turned into wine. Having no idea where it came from – only the servants who had drawn the water knew – the steward called the bridegroom and said, ‘People generally serve the best wine first, and keep the cheaper sort till the guests have had plenty to drink; but you have kept the best wine till now.’
This was the first of the signs given by Jesus: it was given at Cana in Galilee. He let his glory be seen, and his disciples believed in him.
OR:
Gospel
John 19:25-27
'Woman, this is your son'
Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. Seeing his mother and the disciple he loved standing near her, Jesus said to his mother, ‘Woman, this is your son.’ Then to the disciple he said, ‘This is your mother.’ And from that moment the disciple made a place for her in his home.
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The meaning of my first name
My first name is Yovav (יוֹבָב). Only recently I found out what it means. I assume it isn't immediately obvious to you as it wasn't to me, so I hope you'll enjoy this.
If you grew up secular in Israel you’re probably asking yourself why anyone would name their son after the villain in Pinocchio. Of course that’s not it. My immigrant parents didn't see that one coming, plus the villain Cat isn’t named Yovav in the original Italian [1].
"Yovav is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible" I answered my 9th grade bible teacher. Not much is said about biblical Yovav so I can’t blame her.
For our purposes, it's worth pointing out the name Yovav appears in various Semitic tribes, Including Israelites and Ishmaelites [2].
The Yo part of Yovav is the easy part. Yo is the short-form name of the god of Israel Yahwe.
Take for example the name Yoel (Joel). El in plain Hebrew means a god, thus Yoel tells us that Yahwe is a god.
Well, dah...
Consider these common Hebrew names:
Yoav (Joab), god is a father;
Yoaz, god is mighty;
Yoad, god is eternal;
Yoram, god is high;
Yonatan (Jonathan), god gave;
Yonadav, god generously gave;
Yoshua, (aka Jesus), reads as god is noble.
Done with Yo, we are left with the problem of VAV in Yovav. The examples above hint that VAV is either a verb or a title attributed to god.
I used to think VAV was a hapax legomenon, a root that appears only once in the bible, and since it appears only in the form Yovav, there's no context to help us guess what it stands for.
Then I started taking Arabic lessons to enhance my work with Palestinians. I was lucky to have an etymologist for a teacher at the wonderful JICC. For three consecutive years I would badger my teacher about the origin of whatever new word I found interesting that day in class. He never failed to provide an answer. A very detailed answer.
Finally I thought I could really challenge him. I asked if there's an Arabic root that would shed light on the forgotten Hebrew root VAV. Immediately he said it relates to BAB, a very basic Arabic word for door. Hebrew speakers are familiar with Bab el-Wad (the valley’s gate) a powerful 1948 war song.
youtube
Bab el-Wad by Shoshana Damari
If we explore this root a little further, it leads to the profession Bawwab (بَوّاب), which means doorkeeper, guardian. Read VAV as a title and Yovav means Yahwe the protector.
With that connection in mind, it became apparent that BAB actually still exists in Hebrew, and that VAV isn't a hapax legomenon after-all.
Look at the Book of Zecharia II, verse 12. It contains the phrase [in his] Bavat Ain which we understand as the gate of his eye, his pupil [3].
כֹה אָמַר, יְהוָה צְבָאוֹת... שְׁלָחַנִי אֶל-הַגּוֹיִם הַשֹּׁלְלִים אֶתְכֶם כִּי הַנֹּגֵעַ בָּכֶם נֹגֵעַ בְּבָבַת עֵינוֹ.
Zecharia is saying that those who harm us, it is as if they stuck a finger in the pupil of Yahwe! The pupil is a highly sensitive organ, thus the term Bavat Ain describes something sensitive we protect dearly.
Sure enough, pupil in Arabic is precious of the eye (حَبّةُ العَيْن). Zohar Argov, "the king", sings about the flower in his garden, his precious lady, whom he calls Bavat Eini (“כי לי היית בבת עיני בכל יום וכל ליל”).
Simply put, Bavah in Hebrew is BAB (gate) in Arabic. Bubu (بُؤْبُؤ), yet again, is a simple Arabic word for pupil, clearly derived from the same root.
We recognize this word in the familiar Aramaic term Bav, as in the division of the Mishna into sections or “gates” [4]:
Bava Kamma (בבא קמא, The First Gate).
Bava Metzia (בבא מציעא, The Middle Gate).
Bava Batra (בבא בתרא, The Last Gate).
Revisiting the Arabic verb Bawwab in the infinitive, it implies "classification; division into chapters or sections; grouping; sorting; tabulation" (تَبْوِيب), exemplified by the Bavs of the Mishna.
So my Arabic teacher got it right. Surprise surprise. The VAV in Yovav is like BAB in Arabic. Read VAV as a noun and Yovav means gate to god.
If indeed it is a connecting portal, then we find the gate to god in Arabic as Bab-Allah. See for example the song على باب الله (at the gate to god).
This is such a powerful concept there is even a religious movement called Bábism. Babists broke away from Islam after their leader proclaimed himself the gate to the hidden Imam, even as the gate to Allah proper.
In the Jewish tradition we also encounter the gate to god, or more precisely the gate to heaven (שער השמים). It is attributed to Bet-El where Jacob had a dream of angles trafficking betwen heaven and earth. Elsewhere in the bible Jerusalem is promoted as the true gate to god or to heaven [5].
Looking further into antiquity, we find an earthly portal to heaven in The Tower of Babel. By now you can probably decode it yourself: Bab-El.
The Confusion of Tongues, Gustave Doré (1865)
Adding to the confusion, Yovav (Babel) Kalifon (2017)
So, having given it some thought, I finally conclude that my name Yovav means Babel - a portal to god.
The good news is that even if I am wrong and my name actually mean god is the gatekeeper, then it nicely complement the meaning of my last name!
---
[1] In the original Pinocchio story, the villain Fox and Cat have no names. In the Hebrew animation series they are Samson and Yovav, for no particular reason.
[2] Yovav ben Yaktan ben Ever, from the line of Shem (Genesis 10).
Yovav ben Zerah of Basra, king of Edom, line of Esau (Genesis 36).
Yovav king of Madon, whose confederacy lost to Israel (Joshua 11).
Yovav from the heads of the line of Binyamin (Chronicles 8).
[3] Don't mind the T in Bavat. It is not part of the root. It is a feature of the construct state in Semitic languages.
[4] Bav in Aramaic is a gate, and Bava is the gate.
[5] There is little distinction between god and heaven in Hebrew, as we see in the Hebrew god-fearing (יראת שמים, sky-fearing) and for god’s sake (לשם שמים, for heaven’s sake).
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Day 1
Genesis 1:1-31 (NIV2011)
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness.
5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.
6 And God said, “Let there be a vault between the waters to separate water from water.”
7 So God made the vault and separated the water under the vault from the water above it. And it was so.
8 God called the vault “sky.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day.
9 And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so.
10 God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good.
11 Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so.
12 The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.
13 And there was evening, and there was morning—the third day.
14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years,
15 and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so.
16 God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars.
17 God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth,
18 to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good.
19 And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day.
20 And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.”
21 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
22 God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.”
23 And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth day.
24 And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so.
25 God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.
26 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
27 So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
28 God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
29 Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.
30 And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so.
31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.
Genesis 2:1-25 (NIV2011)
1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.
2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work.
3 Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
4 This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, when the LORD God made the earth and the heavens.
5 Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth and no plant had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground,
6 but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground.
7 Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
8 Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed.
9 The LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
10 A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters.
11 The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold.
12 (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there.)
13 The name of the second river is the Gihon; it winds through the entire land of Cush.
14 The name of the third river is the Tigris; it runs along the east side of Ashur. And the fourth river is the Euphrates.
15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
16 And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden;
17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”
18 The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”
19 Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name.
20 So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals. But for Adam no suitable helper was found.
21 So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh.
22 Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.
23 The man said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.”
24 That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.
25 Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.
Matthew 1:1-25 (NIV2011)
1 This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham:
2Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
3Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar, Perez the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram,
4Ram the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon,
5Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse,
6and Jesse the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife,
7Solomon the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asa,
8Asa the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Jehoram, Jehoram the father of Uzziah,
9Uzziah the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah,
10Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amon, Amon the father of Josiah,
11and Josiah the father of Jeconiah and his brothers at the time of the exile to Babylon.
12After the exile to Babylon: Jeconiah was the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,
13Zerubbabel the father of Abihud, Abihud the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor,
14Azor the father of Zadok, Zadok the father of Akim, Akim the father of Elihud,
15Elihud the father of Eleazar, Eleazar the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob,
16and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.
17Thus there were fourteen generations in all from Abraham to David, fourteen from David to the exile to Babylon, and fourteen from the exile to the Messiah.
18This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit.
19Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.
20But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
21She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”
22All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:
23The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).
24When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.
25But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.
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8th September >> Fr. Martin’s Gospel Reflections / Homilies on Matthew 1:1-16,18-2 for The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary: ‘She was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit’.
Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Gospel (Europe, Africa, New Zealand, Australia & Canada)
Matthew 1:1-16,18-2
The ancestry and conception of Jesus Christ
A genealogy of Jesus Christ, son of David, son of Abraham:
Abraham was the father of Isaac,
Isaac the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah, Tamar being their mother,
Perez was the father of Hezron,
Hezron the father of Ram,
Ram was the father of Amminadab,
Amminadab the father of Nahshon,
Nahshon the father of Salmon,
Salmon was the father of Boaz, Rahab being his mother,
Boaz was the father of Obed, Ruth being his mother,
Obed was the father of Jesse;
and Jesse was the father of King David.
David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife,
Solomon was the father of Rehoboam,
Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asa,
Asa was the father of Jehoshaphat,
Jehoshaphat the father of Joram,
Joram the father of Azariah,
Azariah was the father of Jotham,
Jotham the father of Ahaz,
Ahaz the father of Hezekiah,
Hezekiah was the father of Manasseh,
Manasseh the father of Amon,
Amon the father of Josiah;
and Josiah was the father of Jechoniah and his brothers.
Then the deportation to Babylon took place.
After the deportation to Babylon:
Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel,
Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,
Zerubbabel was the father of Abiud,
Abiud the father of Eliakim,
Eliakim the father of Azor,
Azor was the father of Zadok,
Zadok the father of Achim,
Achim the father of Eliud,
Eliud was the father of Eleazar,
Eleazar the father of Matthan,
Matthan the father of Jacob;
and Jacob was the father of Joseph the husband of Mary;
of her was born Jesus who is called Christ.
This is how Jesus Christ came to be born. His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph; but before they came to live together she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph; being a man of honour and wanting to spare her publicity, decided to divorce her informally. He had made up his mind to do this when the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you must name him Jesus, because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins.’ Now all this took place to fulfil the words spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son
and they will call him Emmanuel,
a name which means ‘God-is-with-us.’
Gospel (USA)
Matthew 1:1-16, 18-23
For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her.
The Book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
Abraham became the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar. Perez became the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, Ram the father of Amminadab. Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab. Boaz became the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth. Obed became the father of Jesse, Jesse the father of David the king.
David became the father of Solomon, whose mother had been the wife of Uriah. Solomon became the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asaph. Asaph became the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, Joram the father of Uzziah. Uzziah became the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah. Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amos, Amos the father of Josiah. Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers at the time of the Babylonian exile.
After the Babylonian exile, Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, Zerubbabel the father of Abiud. Abiud became the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor, Azor the father of Zadok. Zadok became the father of Achim, Achim the father of Eliud, Eliud the father of Eleazar. Eleazar became the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Of her was born Jesus who is called the Christ.
Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with child through the Holy Spirit. Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:
Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall name him Emmanuel,
which means “God is with us.”
Reflections (7)
(i) Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary is one of several feasts of Mary in the church’s liturgical calendar. We consider the birth of Mary a blessed day for all of us because as a young woman she would say ‘yes’ to God’s call to become the mother of God’s Son, Jesus. With the birth of Mary, the story of Jesus has already begun. The gospel reading this morning declares that Mary conceived her child, Jesus, through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was at work in Mary’s life not only at the moment of Jesus’ conception, but throughout her earthly life. She was a woman of the Spirit, even before the Holy Spirit came down upon her and Jesus’ first disciples at Pentecost. We are all called to be men and women of the Spirit, as Mary was. Our baptismal calling is to allow the Holy Spirit to shape our lives, all we do and say, just as the Holy Spirit shaped the life of Mary. According to Saint Paul in today’s second reading, God’s purpose for our lives is that we become ‘true images of his Son, so that his Son might be the eldest of many brothers and sisters’. Just as Mary brought Jesus into the world, we are called to bring Jesus into the world by becoming true images of Jesus, God’s Son. Just as Mary brought Jesus into the world through the power of the Holy Spirit, we can only become images of God’s Son, bringing him into our world, through the power of the same Holy Spirit. We need the Holy Spirit to keep overshadowing us if we are to grow into the image of God’s Son, so that we can continue Mary’s work of bringing Jesus into our world today.
And/Or
(ii) Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
We cannot be sure when Mary was born but today is the day that the church has traditionally celebrated the birthday of Mary. Generally, when we celebrate the feast of saints, their feast coincides with the date of their death. There are only three exceptions to this, when we celebrate the birth of someone who is recognized to be especially holy. We celebrate the birth of Jesus on December 25, the birth of John the Baptist on June 24 and the birth of Mary on September 8. John the Baptist and Mary had a unique relationship with Jesus. Mary gave birth to Jesus and John the Baptist prepared people for his coming. We remember the birthdays of both Mary and John the Baptist because of the person they went on to become. We remember Mary’s birthday because she was the one through whom Jesus came to us. God chose this woman above all other women to be the one who would give birth to God’s Son and Mary accepted this unique role she had in God’s purpose on behalf of us all. Her ‘yes’ to God’s choice of her, God’s call, was also a saying ‘yes’ to all of us, to whom God’s Son was being sent. Her generous response to God’s call was an extraordinary grace for us all. Her Son who was given to us was none other than, in the words of today’s gospel reading, Emmanuel, God-with-us, sent to save God’s people from their sins. Because of her ‘yes’ to God’s call, God has drawn close to all of us in a loving and merciful way. It was through Mary that God gained a human face. Jesus was and is the human face of God’s love and mercy. Jesus not only reveals God to us but he also reveals ourselves to us. He shows us what it is to be fully human. In Jesus we see the person we are called to become if we are to be fully human. As Paul tells us in our reading today, God intends us to become true images of his Son, so that his Son might be the eldest of many brothers and sisters. Our calling is to grow up into the image of Mary’s Son and, in so far as we do that, we become fully ourselves. We celebrate Mary’s birthday because of all that we have received through her, all that God has given to us through her.
And/Or
(iii) Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
We remember the birthdays of those who are significant for us in life. We also remember the birthday of those who are significant for our faith life. The most significant person in terms of our faith life as Christians is, of course, Jesus, and we remember his birthday on Christmas day. Next to Jesus, Mary is the most significant person for the faith life of many Christians, and it is only fitting that the church remembers her birthday. It is impossible to know when exactly Mary was born, but September 8 has traditionally been the day when the church celebrates Mary’s birthday. When we wish someone a happy birthday we are, in a sense, giving thanks for that person’s birth and life. Today we give thanks for Mary’s birth and life. The gospel reading for today’s feast has to do with the birth of Jesus, rather than the birth of Mary, and that is only right and fitting. We celebrate Mary’s birth and life because of the birth of Jesus, because she became the mother of the Saviour. She is the one through whom we receive Emmanuel, God-with-us. Mary doesn’t offer us herself; she offers us her Son. She holds out her Son to us. She would have been happy to make her own the words of John the Baptist in relation to himself: ‘He, Jesus, must increase, but I must decrease’. The best way to honour Mary is to receive the Son of God whom she offers to us, to become, like herself, people who, in the words of Luke’s gospel, ‘hear the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patient endurance’.
And/Or
(v) Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
There are very few people whose birthday we celebrate as feast days. I can only think of three, Jesus, of course, whose birth we celebrate on December 25, John the Baptist, whose birth we celebrate on June 24, and Mary, whose birth we celebrate today, September 8. What John the Baptist and Mary have in common is that they are both defined by their relationship to Jesus. Mary gave birth to Jesus; she gave Jesus to the world. John directed people, including his own disciples, to Jesus. If Mary brought Jesus to the world, John tried to bring the world to Jesus. We honour the birthdays of John the Baptist and Mary because of the unique roles they each had in the life of Jesus. John pointed out Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. According to this morning’s gospel reading, Mary’s child was called Jesus because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins. John and Mary in different ways point to Jesus as the revelation of God’s mercy. Matthew in this morning’s gospel reading gives another name to Mary’s child, Emmanuel, God-with-us. Mary’s child is above all God with us in his mercy. We celebrate Mary’s birthday because of the precious gift she gave to the world.
And/Or
(vi) Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
There are very few people whose birthday we celebrate as feast days. I can only think of three, Jesus, of course, whose birth we celebrate on December 25, John the Baptist, whose birth we celebrate on June 24, and Mary, whose birth we celebrate today, September 8. What John the Baptist and Mary have in common is that they are both defined by their relationship to Jesus. Mary gave birth to Jesus; she gave Jesus to the world. John directed people, including his own disciples, to Jesus. If Mary brought Jesus to the world, John tried to bring the world to Jesus. We honour the birthdays of John the Baptist and Mary because of the unique roles they each had in the life of Jesus. John pointed out Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. According to this morning’s gospel reading, Mary’s child was called Jesus because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins. John and Mary in different ways point to Jesus as the revelation of God’s mercy. Matthew in this morning’s gospel reading gives another name to Mary’s child, Emmanuel, God-with-us. Mary’s child is above all God with us in his mercy. We celebrate Mary’s birthday because of the precious gift she gave to the world.
And/Or
(vii) Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
We do not know when Mary was born but the church has chosen the 8th of September to celebrate the day of her birth. We celebrate the birth of Mary because of who she was to become, the mother of God’s Son. Her birth points ahead to that special child who was to be born from her. This morning’s gospel reading gives the child that was to be born of her two names, Jesus and Emmanuel. In the Semitic world, names were very important because each name carried a specific meaning. The name Jesus in Hebrew means ‘the Lord saves’. As the gospel reading says, ‘he is the one who is to save his people from their sins’. The name Emmanuel in Hebrew means, ‘God is with us’. These two names reveal a great deal about the child who was born of the woman whose birthday we celebrate today. God was present among us through Mary’s son as a merciful God, as a God who works to deliver us from our sins and to reconcile us to himself. As Pope Francis never tires of telling us, especially in this Year of Mercy, Jesus is the face of God’s mercy. Jesus is God with us in a merciful way. Saint Paul gives expression to one aspect of God’s mercy in today’s first reading. He declares that God co-operates with all those who love him by turning everything to their good. In other words, if we are open in love to the God present in Jesus, this God will turn everything to our good, all the experiences of our lives, including those we consider totally negative. Jesus reveals a God who works in a life-giving way in the midst of all our experiences. It is through Mary that we have come to know this God, which is why it is right and fitting for us to celebrate the day of her birth.
Fr. Martin Hogan, Saint John the Baptist Parish, Clontarf, Dublin, D03 AO62, Ireland.
Email: [email protected] or [email protected]
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Gen 35-37; Psalm 12; Mark 14
Discuss in the comments section.
The following text is from the New International Version. Occasionally we will rotate the translations just to have some variety.
Gen 35-37
God said to Jacob, “Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there. Make an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.” 2 So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Put away the foreign gods that are among you and purify yourselves and change your garments. 3 Then let us arise and go up to Bethel, so that I may make there an altar to the God who answers me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone.”4 So they gave to Jacob all the foreign gods that they had, and the rings that were in their ears. Jacob hid them under the terebinth tree that was near Shechem.
5 And as they journeyed, a terror from God fell upon the cities that were around them, so that they did not pursue the sons of Jacob. 6 And Jacob came to Luz (that is, Bethel), which is in the land of Canaan, he and all the people who were with him, 7 and there he built an altar and called the place El-bethel,[a] because there God had revealed himself to him when he fled from his brother. 8 And Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died, and she was buried under an oak below Bethel. So he called its name Allon-bacuth.[b]
9 God appeared[c] to Jacob again, when he came from Paddan-aram, and blessed him. 10 And God said to him, “Your name is Jacob; no longer shall your name be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name.” So he called his name Israel. 11 And God said to him, “I am God Almighty:[d] be fruitful and multiply. A nation and a company of nations shall come from you, and kings shall come from your own body.[e] 12 The land that I gave to Abraham and Isaac I will give to you, and I will give the land to your offspring after you.” 13 Then God went up from him in the place where he had spoken with him. 14 And Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he had spoken with him, a pillar of stone. He poured out a drink offering on it and poured oil on it. 15 So Jacob called the name of the place where God had spoken with him Bethel.
The Deaths of Rachel and Isaac
16 Then they journeyed from Bethel. When they were still some distance[f] from Ephrath, Rachel went into labor, and she had hard labor.17 And when her labor was at its hardest, the midwife said to her, “Do not fear, for you have another son.” 18 And as her soul was departing (for she was dying), she called his name Ben-oni;[g] but his father called him Benjamin.[h] 19 So Rachel died, and she was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem), 20 and Jacob set up a pillar over her tomb. It is the pillar of Rachel’s tomb, which is there to this day. 21 Israel journeyed on and pitched his tent beyond the tower of Eder.
22 While Israel lived in that land, Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father’s concubine. And Israel heard of it.
Now the sons of Jacob were twelve. 23 The sons of Leah: Reuben (Jacob’s firstborn), Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun. 24 The sons of Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin. 25 The sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s servant: Dan and Naphtali. 26 The sons of Zilpah, Leah’s servant: Gad and Asher. These were the sons of Jacob who were born to him in Paddan-aram.
27 And Jacob came to his father Isaac at Mamre, or Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had sojourned. 28 Now the days of Isaac were 180 years. 29 And Isaac breathed his last, and he died and was gathered to his people, old and full of days. And his sons Esau and Jacob buried him.
Esau’s Descendants
36 These are the generations of Esau (that is, Edom). 2 Esau took his wives from the Canaanites: Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, Oholibamah the daughter of Anah the daughter[i] of Zibeon the Hivite,3 and Basemath, Ishmael’s daughter, the sister of Nebaioth. 4 And Adah bore to Esau, Eliphaz; Basemath bore Reuel; 5 and Oholibamah bore Jeush, Jalam, and Korah. These are the sons of Esau who were born to him in the land of Canaan.
6 Then Esau took his wives, his sons, his daughters, and all the members of his household, his livestock, all his beasts, and all his property that he had acquired in the land of Canaan. He went into a land away from his brother Jacob. 7 For their possessions were too great for them to dwell together. The land of their sojournings could not support them because of their livestock. 8 So Esau settled in the hill country of Seir. (Esau is Edom.)
9 These are the generations of Esau the father of the Edomites in the hill country of Seir. 10 These are the names of Esau’s sons: Eliphaz the son of Adah the wife of Esau, Reuel the son of Basemath the wife of Esau.11 The sons of Eliphaz were Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, and Kenaz.12 (Timna was a concubine of Eliphaz, Esau’s son; she bore Amalek to Eliphaz.) These are the sons of Adah, Esau’s wife. 13 These are the sons of Reuel: Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah. These are the sons of Basemath, Esau’s wife. 14 These are the sons of Oholibamah the daughter of Anah the daughter of Zibeon, Esau’s wife: she bore to Esau Jeush, Jalam, and Korah.
15 These are the chiefs of the sons of Esau. The sons of Eliphaz the firstborn of Esau: the chiefs Teman, Omar, Zepho, Kenaz, 16 Korah, Gatam, and Amalek; these are the chiefs of Eliphaz in the land of Edom; these are the sons of Adah. 17 These are the sons of Reuel, Esau’s son: the chiefs Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah; these are the chiefs of Reuel in the land of Edom; these are the sons of Basemath, Esau’s wife.18 These are the sons of Oholibamah, Esau’s wife: the chiefs Jeush, Jalam, and Korah; these are the chiefs born of Oholibamah the daughter of Anah, Esau’s wife. 19 These are the sons of Esau (that is, Edom), and these are their chiefs.
20 These are the sons of Seir the Horite, the inhabitants of the land: Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah, 21 Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan; these are the chiefs of the Horites, the sons of Seir in the land of Edom. 22 The sons of Lotan were Hori and Hemam; and Lotan’s sister was Timna. 23 These are the sons of Shobal: Alvan, Manahath, Ebal, Shepho, and Onam. 24 These are the sons of Zibeon: Aiah and Anah; he is the Anah who found the hot springs in the wilderness, as he pastured the donkeys of Zibeon his father. 25 These are the children of Anah: Dishon and Oholibamah the daughter of Anah. 26 These are the sons of Dishon: Hemdan, Eshban, Ithran, and Cheran. 27 These are the sons of Ezer: Bilhan, Zaavan, and Akan. 28 These are the sons of Dishan: Uz and Aran. 29 These are the chiefs of the Horites: the chiefs Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah, 30 Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan; these are the chiefs of the Horites, chief by chief in the land of Seir.
31 These are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom, before any king reigned over the Israelites. 32 Bela the son of Beor reigned in Edom, the name of his city being Dinhabah. 33 Bela died, and Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his place. 34 Jobab died, and Husham of the land of the Temanites reigned in his place. 35 Husham died, and Hadad the son of Bedad, who defeated Midian in the country of Moab, reigned in his place, the name of his city being Avith. 36 Hadad died, and Samlah of Masrekah reigned in his place. 37 Samlah died, and Shaul of Rehoboth on the Euphrates[j] reigned in his place. 38 Shaul died, and Baal-hanan the son of Achbor reigned in his place. 39 Baal-hanan the son of Achbor died, and Hadar reigned in his place, the name of his city being Pau; his wife’s name was Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred, daughter of Mezahab.
40 These are the names of the chiefs of Esau, according to their clans and their dwelling places, by their names: the chiefs Timna, Alvah, Jetheth,41 Oholibamah, Elah, Pinon, 42 Kenaz, Teman, Mibzar, 43 Magdiel, and Iram; these are the chiefs of Edom (that is, Esau, the father of Edom), according to their dwelling places in the land of their possession.
Joseph’s Dreams
37 Jacob lived in the land of his father’s sojournings, in the land of Canaan.
2 These are the generations of Jacob.
Joseph, being seventeen years old, was pasturing the flock with his brothers. He was a boy with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father’s wives. And Joseph brought a bad report of them to their father. 3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his sons, because he was the son of his old age. And he made him a robe of many colors.[k] 4 But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peacefully to him.
5 Now Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers they hated him even more. 6 He said to them, “Hear this dream that I have dreamed: 7 Behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and behold, my sheaf arose and stood upright. And behold, your sheaves gathered around it and bowed down to my sheaf.” 8 His brothers said to him, “Are you indeed to reign over us? Or are you indeed to rule over us?” So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words.
9 Then he dreamed another dream and told it to his brothers and said, “Behold, I have dreamed another dream. Behold, the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” 10 But when he told it to his father and to his brothers, his father rebuked him and said to him, “What is this dream that you have dreamed? Shall I and your mother and your brothers indeed come to bow ourselves to the ground before you?” 11 And his brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the saying in mind.
Joseph Sold by His Brothers
12 Now his brothers went to pasture their father’s flock near Shechem.13 And Israel said to Joseph, “Are not your brothers pasturing the flock at Shechem? Come, I will send you to them.” And he said to him, “Here I am.” 14 So he said to him, “Go now, see if it is well with your brothers and with the flock, and bring me word.” So he sent him from the Valley of Hebron, and he came to Shechem. 15 And a man found him wandering in the fields. And the man asked him, “What are you seeking?” 16 “I am seeking my brothers,” he said. “Tell me, please, where they are pasturing the flock.” 17 And the man said, “They have gone away, for I heard them say, ‘Let us go to Dothan.’” So Joseph went after his brothers and found them at Dothan.
18 They saw him from afar, and before he came near to them they conspired against him to kill him. 19 They said to one another, “Here comes this dreamer. 20 Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits.[l] Then we will say that a fierce animal has devoured him, and we will see what will become of his dreams.” 21 But when Reuben heard it, he rescued him out of their hands, saying, “Let us not take his life.” 22 And Reuben said to them, “Shed no blood; throw him into this pit here in the wilderness, but do not lay a hand on him”—that he might rescue him out of their hand to restore him to his father. 23 So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe, the robe of many colors that he wore. 24 And they took him and threw him into a pit. The pit was empty; there was no water in it.
25 Then they sat down to eat. And looking up they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead, with their camels bearing gum, balm, and myrrh, on their way to carry it down to Egypt. 26 Then Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is it if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? 27 Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and let not our hand be upon him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And his brothers listened to him. 28 Then Midianite traders passed by. And they drew Joseph up and lifted him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty shekels[m] of silver. They took Joseph to Egypt.
29 When Reuben returned to the pit and saw that Joseph was not in the pit, he tore his clothes 30 and returned to his brothers and said, “The boy is gone, and I, where shall I go?” 31 Then they took Joseph’s robe and slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood. 32 And they sent the robe of many colors and brought it to their father and said, “This we have found; please identify whether it is your son’s robe or not.” 33 And he identified it and said, “It is my son’s robe. A fierce animal has devoured him. Joseph is without doubt torn to pieces.” 34 Then Jacob tore his garments and put sackcloth on his loins and mourned for his son many days. 35 All his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted and said, “No, I shall go down to Sheol to my son, mourning.” Thus his father wept for him. 36 Meanwhile the Midianites had sold him in Egypt to Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard.
Psalm 12
Save, O Lord, for the godly one is gone;
for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.
2 Everyone utters lies to his neighbor;
with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.
3 May the Lord cut off all flattering lips,
the tongue that makes great boasts,
4 those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,
our lips are with us; who is master over us?”
5 “Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,
I will now arise,” says the Lord;
“I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”
6 The words of the Lord are pure words,
like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
purified seven times.
7 You, O Lord, will keep them;
you will guard us[b] from this generation forever.
8 On every side the wicked prowl,
as vileness is exalted among the children of man.
Mark 14
It was now two days before the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to arrest him by stealth and kill him, 2 for they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar from the people.”
Jesus Anointed at Bethany
3 And while he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper,[a] as he was reclining at table, a woman came with an alabaster flask of ointment of pure nard, very costly, and she broke the flask and poured it over his head. 4 There were some who said to themselves indignantly, “Why was the ointment wasted like that? 5 For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii[b] and given to the poor.” And they scolded her. 6 But Jesus said, “Leave her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. 7 For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good for them. But you will not always have me. 8 She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for burial. 9 And truly, I say to you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.”
Judas to Betray Jesus
10 Then Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve, went to the chief priests in order to betray him to them. 11 And when they heard it, they were glad and promised to give him money. And he sought an opportunity to betray him.
The Passover with the Disciples
12 And on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the Passover lamb, his disciples said to him, “Where will you have us go and prepare for you to eat the Passover?” 13 And he sent two of his disciples and said to them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him, 14 and wherever he enters, say to the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says, Where is my guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ 15 And he will show you a large upper room furnished and ready; there prepare for us.” 16 And the disciples set out and went to the city and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover.
17 And when it was evening, he came with the twelve. 18 And as they were reclining at table and eating, Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me.” 19 They began to be sorrowful and to say to him one after another, “Is it I?” 20 He said to them, “It is one of the twelve, one who is dipping bread into the dish with me. 21 For the Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.”
Institution of the Lord’s Supper
22 And as they were eating, he took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.” 23 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. 24 And he said to them, “This is my blood of the[c] covenant, which is poured out for many. 25 Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”
Jesus Foretells Peter’s Denial
26 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. 27 And Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away, for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’ 28 But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” 29 Peter said to him, “Even though they all fall away, I will not.” 30 And Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” 31 But he said emphatically, “If I must die with you, I will not deny you.” And they all said the same.
Jesus Prays in Gethsemane
32 And they went to a place called Gethsemane. And he said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. 34 And he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.”[d] 35 And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36 And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” 37 And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? 38 Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” 39 And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words. 40 And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer him. 41 And he came the third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand.”
Betrayal and Arrest of Jesus
43 And immediately, while he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. 44 Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man. Seize him and lead him away under guard.” 45 And when he came, he went up to him at once and said, “Rabbi!” And he kissed him. 46 And they laid hands on him and seized him. 47 But one of those who stood by drew his sword and struck the servant[e] of the high priest and cut off his ear. 48 And Jesus said to them, “Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to capture me? 49 Day after day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize me. But let the Scriptures be fulfilled.”50 And they all left him and fled.
A Young Man Flees
51 And a young man followed him, with nothing but a linen cloth about his body. And they seized him, 52 but he left the linen cloth and ran away naked.
Jesus Before the Council
53 And they led Jesus to the high priest. And all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes came together. 54 And Peter had followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest. And he was sitting with the guards and warming himself at the fire. 55 Now the chief priests and the whole council[f] were seeking testimony against Jesus to put him to death, but they found none. 56 For many bore false witness against him, but their testimony did not agree. 57 And some stood up and bore false witness against him, saying, 58 “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another, not made with hands.’” 59 Yet even about this their testimony did not agree. 60 And the high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus, “Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?”[g] 61 But he remained silent and made no answer. Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?”62 And Jesus said, “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” 63 And the high priest tore his garments and said, “What further witnesses do we need? 64 You have heard his blasphemy. What is your decision?” And they all condemned him as deserving death. 65 And some began to spit on him and to cover his face and to strike him, saying to him, “Prophesy!” And the guards received him with blows.
Peter Denies Jesus
66 And as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came, 67 and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him and said, “You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus.” 68 But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you mean.” And he went out into the gateway[h] and the rooster crowed.[i] 69 And the servant girl saw him and began again to say to the bystanders, “This man is one of them.” 70 But again he denied it. And after a little while the bystanders again said to Peter, “Certainly you are one of them, for you are a Galilean.” 71 But he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know this man of whom you speak.” 72 And immediately the rooster crowed a second time. And Peter remembered how Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” And he broke down and wept.[j]
The reading plan I’ve chosen is from Bible Class Material and it’s a 5 day plan, with weekend days to catch up or get ahead or just take a break!
http://ift.tt/2hfNLzf
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