Sunday 24 December
4th Sunday of Advent First reading - 2 Samuel 7:1-5,8-12,14,16 The Word of God through the Prophet Nathan is a summary of the Plan of God for our salvation. God wants to create a place for all of us where there can be personal relationship between God and each one of us. “I will provide a place for my people Israel; I will plant them there and they shall dwell in that place and never be disturbed again.” God want to plant us, and nothing will disturb us. “I will give them rest from all their enemies. The Lord will make you great; the Lord will make you a House”. No enemies can touch us and the Lord is promising that He will make us a house. How did He make the house? He made the house by coming down to stay with us. With Him, the House is built in our personal relationship with Jesus in the Church. Let’s reflect: How much I recognize what God did to have a personal relationship with me?
Saturday 23 December
First reading - Malachi 3:1-4,23-24 Who will be able to resist the day of his coming? The Lord is sending His messenger to prepare His way. This is show that Lord is coming as He is. Incarnation does not mean that there is any transformation in God. This is the same God. We must not forget the transcendental dimension of the Lord when we are celebrating His incarnation. Jesus is born in the manger, but He is the second person of the Holy Trinity. He is God. The transcendental dimension of the Lord is to be celebrated with awe and wonder through the symbols and signs available in our liturgy and in our traditions. Our internal preparation is the center of this: Let’s reflect: Do I prepare myself to welcome the transcendental dimension present in the mystery of Incarnation?
Friday 22 December
First reading - 1 Samuel 1:24-28 “There she left him, for the Lord”. This is so profound. This is the model of a beautiful relationship between God and man. Read the prayer of Hannah the mother of Samuel, “This is the child I prayed for, and the Lord granted me what I asked him. Now I make him over to the Lord for the whole of his life. He is made over to the Lord.” She asked for this child and the Lord granted it. But she leaves the child for the Lord. This freedom of exchange is the liberty of the sons and daughters of God. To be fully for God or to abandon completely for the Lord, this freedom is the one which our faith should give us. The freedom to abandon ourselves for the Lord as He is the creator. This is the freedom of the second person of the Holy Trinity when He incarnated to save us. The freedom to abandon ourselves to the Lord. He can decide my future, my life and my being. Let’s reflect: Do I have the freedom to abandon myself to the Lord?
Thursday 21 Decembe
Saint Peter Canisius, Priest, Doctor First reading - Song of Songs 2:8-14 ‘Come then, my love, my lovely one, come. For see, winter is past, the rains are over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth. The season of glad songs has come, the cooing of the turtledove is heard in our land”. In the book of the Song of Songs we can understand that our relationship to God must be a relationship of love. We have to fall in love with our God as He is in love with us. The mystery of incarnation changes everything. The winter is past. The flowers appear on the earth. God who is in love with us is not anymore away from us, He is with us. He is the one calling us to fall in love with him. Let’s reflect: Am I in love with my Lord?