Focus
The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph… And coming to her, he said, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you”…. The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. …[F]or nothing will be impossible for God.” Mary said, “…May it be done to me according to your word.”
One-Minute-Homily
> How often in life are we confounded by events which are totally unexpected, improbable, even impossible—and usually unwelcome? Our first response is often anger or denial: “This can’t be!” we say. “This isn’t fair!” “This must be a mistake!”
> “How can this be?” was Mary’s only reaction according to Luke, so we are left to imagine the other feelings she had. The immediate shame and embarrassment would be obvious; only time would tell the pain and suffering which she would experience as the mother of this child.
> Only time and experience teach us that unexpected and unwelcome surprises often turn out to be blessings in disguise. Even faith doesn’t make it easy, but it does make the impossible possible. Our challenge as disciples is to give witness to the fact that nothing is impossible for God and those who trust in God.
> We often take the Eucharist for granted, without stopping to realize how improbable, even impossible – and frightening – it is that God lives among us
For Discussion or Reflection
> Question for Children: Can you think of something that happened that seemed impossible and unwelcome?
> Question for Youth: The lives of young adults are filled with surprises—some welcome, some not. What does Mary’s example suggest about responding to these surprises?
> Question for Adults, Families and Faith Communities: How do we respond, as individuals or communities, to the unexpected and unwelcome? Do our lives witness to our faith in God’s providence?
Learn More
• Read Sunday's readings
• Read a commentary on Sunday’s readings
• Learn more about the cultural context of the Gospel
• Reflect on an image for Sunday's Gospel
• Hear the Gospel from a Third World perspective
• • •
Third Sunday of AdventFocus
A man named John was sent from God. He came…to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him…. And this is the testimony of John.... "I am the voice of one crying out in the desert, 'make straight the way of the Lord’....I baptize with water; but there is one among you whom you do not recognize, the one who is coming after me....
One-Minute-Homily
> As a general rule, we don't much appreciate advice, but we sometimes value people who understand things in a different and more helpful way. They have insight or wisdom which we value more than advice. They inspire options we would not have see on our own.
> Like John the Baptist, these special people are the voices crying out in the deserts where we find ourselves confused and afraid. Like John, they point to a new option we would not have otherwise recognized. They offer ways we might straighten things out.
> As people of faith, our challenge is both to hear these voices and to be these voices for others – to be people with encouragement and hope, people with vision who believe that there is something better – Some-One-Better -- revealing God's love in the midst of an imperfect and unfinished world.
> Eucharist is a Word of hope too, the celebration of Some-One-Better who is present among us, offering an alternative to the deserts in our lives.
For Discussion or Reflection
> Question for Children: Who is someone who helps you feel better when you are sad or worried? Do you think of them as Jesus?
> Question for Youth: Young people get a lot of unwelcome advice; where do you find encouragement and inspiration in the midst of the confusion and uncertainty of growing up?
> Question for Adults, Families and Faith Communities: Do we offer more advice than inspiration? Do we act like people filled with despair or hope?
Learn More
• Read Sunday's readings
• Read a commentary on Sunday’s readings
• Learn more about the cultural context of the Gospel
• Reflect on an image for Sunday's Gospel
• Hear the Gospel from a Third World perspective
• • •
Second Sunday of Advent
December 6, 2020
Focus
As it is written in Isaiah the prophet: "Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you…. A voice of one crying out in the desert: 'Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.'" John the Baptist appeared in the desert proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.... And this is what he proclaimed: "One mightier than I is coming after me...."
One-Minute-Homily
> When something goes wrong, we often say "I'll straighten this out" or "I'll make this right." It's our way of acknowledging that something needs to change, that we’re headed in the wrong direction, that we need to turn back or around.
> John the Baptist calls the people of Jesus' time to change--to turn around, to "repent.” He calls them, as he calls us, to prepare for a new understanding of God and a new relationship with the God who will be revealed by one mightier than himself.
> The God Jesus reveals to us is so amazing--so loving, so merciful, so determined to redeem humankind--that we must regularly stop to correct our inadequate and mistaken impressions of God. Unless we do that, we can’t live in right-relationship with God or with our brothers and sisters.
> The Eucharist is naturally an experience of reconciliation; each week it calls us to change, to turn around, to reorder our relationship to God and each other.
For Discussion or Reflection
> Question for Children: What are some things you could change that would make you a better person?
> Question for Youth: Young people face so many options; are you choosing those which reveal a God of love and forgiveness?
> Question for Adults, Families and Faith Communities: What are the inadequate impressions of God which we give people, and what do we need to do to change them?
Learn More
• Read Sunday's readings here
• Read a commentary on Sunday’s readings here
• Learn more about the cultural context of the Gospel
• Reflect on an image for Sunday's Gospel here
• Hear the Gospel from a Third World perspective
• • •
First Sunday of Advent
November 29, 2020
Focus
Jesus said to his disciples: "Be watchful! Be alert! ...[Y]ou do not know when the Lord of the house is coming, whether in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or in the morning. May he not come suddenly and find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to all: 'Watch!'"
One-Minute-Homily
> With children, it seems that the longer they wait for something the more excited and impatient they get. Adults, on the other hand, seem to tire of waiting and go on with life; “I don’t have time for this,” we say--running the risk that we will miss what we were waiting for.
> The Lord's coming occurs gradually over time; we run the risk of missing where and how he is being gradually incarnate--made present--here and now unless we are expecting and watching, patiently, at the right time in the right place.
> For us disciples, it’s not just waiting and watching for the end of time (or the end of our lives on earth), but being watchful and alert for the many unexpected and untimely ways in which the incarnate Lord appears in our lives, often when we least expect him, or have given up waiting.
> The Eucharist is not just about the Lord's future coming, but about his real presence among us now. If the Gospel says "Be watchful! Be alert!", the Eucharist, in its broadest sense, says "Look here!"
For Discussion or Reflection
> Question for Children: Where do you see signs of Jesus’s presence? Who do you know who acts like Jesus?
> Question for Youth: Young people do a lot of waiting – mostly, waiting to grow up and be on their own. How do you connect this waiting with people waiting for Jesus’ coming?
> Question for Adults, Families and Faith Communities: Are we focused on the Lord’s presence here and now, outside as much as inside the church? Do we share our experience of Jesus’ coming with others?
Learn More
• Read Sunday's readings
• Read a commentary on Sunday’s readings
• Learn more about the cultural context of the Gospel
• Reflect on an image for Sunday's Gospel
• Hear the Gospel from a Third World perspective
• • •
[Last Update: 05.06.22]