2012 MASS HOMILIES BY FATHER JEROME MACHAR,

Click on the blue links to access the homilies.

Blessed Mother

Mary: Totally Surrendered to the Word of God

Faith

Accompanying the Young on the Journey to the Father

Cultivating a Spirit of Calm in the Midst of Crisis

Faith to Bring Others to Christ

God

The (Un)Fairness of God

Prayer

The Great Prayer of Esther

Repentance

Doing Battle with Sin

God Sees the Heart

HOMILIES 

The (Un)Fairness of God

". . . My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways" (Isa 55:8). If we were being totally honest, we'd have to admit that God does not seem fair, nor does He play by the rules - at least not the rules we write! The quote that I used to begin this reflection is taken from the prophet Isaiah. In it, and in many other such divinely revealed comments, God has told us not to expect divine actions to conform to human norms or presumptions. We find it hard to wrap our brains around a God who could get angry and punish wrong doing and not hold a grudge or resentment. After all, who ever heard of "letting someone off the hook"? None of us really believes in "wiping the slate clean" in an act of absolution, so how can God have the audacity to do so? Without taking a poll, I think many people would think the older brother, in Jesus’ Gospel parable about the prodigal son, got a raw deal. As we listen to his complaint to the father, I am sure some of us heard him say, "It's not fair!" Probably many of us would say the same thing if we were in his shoes.

"Justice" and "rights" have become buzz words, and "fairness" is both sought and expected. We don't think it fair that certain groups are granted exemptions when it comes to paying to support society’s projects. Our legal system aspires to fairness - handling everyone equally (or at least we expect it to). These ideals are surely not wrong - especially given the fact that, as fallible humans, we cannot assess true need. Fairness seems to be the only way we have for distributing the varied goods of our society - the things to which we have a right, either by birth or by citizenship. However, these expectations crumble when we move to the level of divine love. Sure, the prodigal didn't "deserve" the welcome he got, anymore than his brother "deserved" his father's love. Saint Luke tells us that the prodigal came to his senses, decided to turn his life around, and return to the household which he had abandoned.

Love isn't a human commodity, even when we humans act out of love. It is not something one can earn or merit. Love is a divine gift, which God offers us without strings - unconditionally. The prophet Micah makes that abundantly clear. God "removes guilt and pardons sin . . . does not persist in anger but delights rather in clemency . . . treading underfoot our guilt". The Son of God willingly accepted and chose the supreme sacrifice of death upon the cross whereby He became the source of our justification and our salvation. When we read the parable of the prodigal son, we are reminded of the depths of divine love. What we have to do is to drop our concerns about fairness and accept what God freely offers. Look at it this way. As soon as I say "It's not fair", where's my focus? It's on me. God is not focused on Himself; God is focused instead on the repentant sinner. God goes out to the sinner and the two are reconciled. How can I be, in any sense, true to the image in which I am made, when I am concerned first about me? About getting my fair share? Yet even when we don't get it, God cares for us. He pardons our sins. He heals our ills and crowns us with love and compassion. It certainly feels good to experience the Father's loving embrace. Perhaps it's a good thing that God is not always fair!

Father Jerome Machar, OSCO

God Sees the Heart

In 1 Samuel, we heard how David was chosen king. In Mark’s Gospel we hear an account of a Pharisee confronting Jesus because He allowed His disciples to violate the Sabbath by picking grain. Both of these illustrate the truism, "Not as man sees does God see, because man sees the appearance but God looks into the heart" (1 Sam. 16:7). God peers into the depths of the human heart and lays bare the motives for our actions, data that no other being can access. In a word, we can fool others, we can even fool ourselves, but we cannot fool God. Saint Benedict takes up the theme in the fourth chapter of his Rule for Monks: "Hour by hour keep careful watch over all you do, aware that God's gaze is upon you, wherever you may be" (R 4. 48-49).

There are times when I find these words neither comforting nor consoling. While I cannot speak for anyone else, I can speak for myself. There is plenty in my heart that I don't want anyone else to see, not even God. Tucked away in the dark recesses of my heart are all of my weaknesses, my shame, my lustful desires, my unholy thoughts and my burning rage. There in the closet of my soul I cower for shame, considering myself the runt of the litter. It seems the apostle and evangelist John understood these feelings. "By this we can know that we belong to the truth, so that we can be confident in his presence whenever our heart condemns us for having done wrong; for God is greater than our heart and He knows everything" (1 Jn. 3:19-22).

It is a good thing for us that God does not judge people the same way we do. This is demonstrated in the way God overrode Samuel's choice of king and singled out David. Not focusing on the externals, God judges the movements of the heart. In his list of beatitudes, Matthew includes: "Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God" (Mat. 5:8). Having been made in the image and likeness of the One Whom we seek, we should not judge one another based on the world's standards. The world judges us on how we look, how we dress, and how successful we are. The reading from 1 Samuel reminds us that God knows all our deep, dark secrets. God knows the shameful things that have been done to us. He also knows the addictive behaviors in which we are trapped. Knowing all our struggles, He proceeds to judge us on how we have formed our hearts and how well we have lived according to our consciences.

Saint Paul took up this theme in his letter to the Romans. "After saying this, what can we add? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?  Is it conceivable that He Who did not spare his own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, would not graciously give us all His gifts along with Him?” (Rom. 8: 31-32) This being said, we should not worry about what others think when they look at us. We should be concerned about what God sees when He turns His gaze towards us. Through the mystery of the Incarnation, the Father sees and loves in us what He sees and loves in His Son. Salvation is presented to us as a gift that we are invited to accept.  None of us is ever worthy of this grace. The Bible tells us that the great king David was a deeply flawed human being. Actually, many of the Psalms are anthems to his regrets for his sins. In Christ, God extends His hand and waits for us to take it. God transcends physical appearance, in order that we might adore Him, receive Him, become one with Him, and live forever with Him. With the eyes of faith we transcend physical appearance and come into communion with the risen and glorious Lord.

I will leave you with the words of the prayer recited while the sacred vessels are purified after each Mass: "What has passed our lips as food, O Lord, may we possess in purity of heart, that what has been given to us in time may be our healing for eternity".

Father Jerome Machar, OSCO

Doing Battle with Sin

Many of us are familiar with how Solomon prayed for wisdom rather than for riches when he ascended the throne of Israel. Because of that prayer, he is considered a folk-hero by many who would exercise authority or who have to render judgments. Certainly we have seen pictures of him holding an infant in one hand and clutching a sword with the other. We all know the story. Two women are also pictured before the throne, each claiming to be the mother of the child that Solomon intended to chop in two. One of the women looks straight ahead with eyes blazing, defiantly waiting her half of the cadaver. The other, half-mad with grief, pleads for the baby's life, showing her maternal heart. Being a man of godly integrity, Solomon saved the life of the child and safeguarded the nurturing heart of the mother. Herein we find the true wisdom of one who would rule.

Another significant event in Solomon's life is recorded in the eighth chapter of the First Book of Kings. The sacred writer tells us how the son of David had built a magnificent temple with the precious stones his father had collected. Caught up in the wonder of the moment, Solomon uttered a beautiful prayer of dedication, imploring God to allow His Name to be worshipped in the Temple that he had built and there to hear the supplications of His Holy People. Oh, for the devotion and ardor of youth! 

Recalling the stories of Solomon's youth, we wonder what went wrong when he grew older. How was it possible for so wise and devout a man to fall prey to his carnal desires? It seems that with the passage of time, Solomon believed himself to be truly wise and no longer needed recourse to the Lord in order to control the circumstances of his life. 

We need to be careful. Whether men or women, we love having our egos puffed up and our feathers preened. This weakness in our character opens us to become self-absorbed and cocky. The consequences are monumental. Solomon's infidelity and refusal to reform resulted in the division of the kingdom that his father David had worked so hard to solidify. The consequences for us are even more dire. Our infidelity and refusal to reform can result in our exclusion from the Heavenly Kingdom that Christ established with His blood poured out on the cross. The decision is ours. God is faithful to His promises, and His love is everlasting. God's justice is tempered by mercy. He does not ignore our wrong doing; however, He is eager to forgive our sins whenever we are willing to repent.

It is always a good time for us to implore the guidance of the Spirit as we examine our consciences. Thomas Merton once wrote, "Grace is given us for the precise purpose of enabling us to discover and actualize our deepest and truest self, which is hidden with Christ in God. Unless we find this deep self, we will never know ourselves as persons. Nor will we know God. For it is by the door of this deep self that we enter into the spiritual knowledge of God" (New Seeds of Contemplation).

The desert Fathers speak of sin and demons as tangible realities. Our forebears saw the flight to the monastery as a means of doing combat with their baser selves. Each of them spoke of their inability to overcome the demons that attacked them. Their only hope was crying out to the Lord whom they came to serve. One can only wonder if the desert fathers would ever have called out to God for help had they not been overwhelmed by what they had to contend with. In this context, it might be good to consider these words written by Julian of Norwich. "Sin is necessary, but all will be well, and all will be well, and every kind of thing will be well. In this naked word 'sin', our Lord brought generally to my mind all which is not good, and the shameful contempt and the direct tribulation which he endured for us in his life, and his death and all his pains, and the passions, spiritual and bodily, of all his creatures. . . and yet this was shown to me in an instant and it quickly turned into consolation" (Showings (long text)). May the Lord who came into the world to save sinners, free us from all evil and bring us to everlasting life.

Father Jerome Macher, OSCO

Cultivating a Spirit of Calm in the Midst of Crisis

The story of Jesus sleeping in the boat helps me to remember how important it is to cultivate a spirit of calm even in the midst of crisis. We had a chance to test this out last Saturday when the divider broke down. It is easy to get swept away in the tempest of anxiety, frustration and helplessness. At those moments, it is hard to sort out our thoughts, let alone to discern the presence of God in our lives. The Gospel story of Jesus sleeping in the boat during a raging and dangerous storm comes at the end of the fourth chapter of Mark. You might recall the sequence of events leading up to this event. Jesus had been preaching to the crowds of people who were gathering around Him. Because of the press of the crowd, He got into the boat as a safe haven from the people who kept trying to touch Him. Sitting in the barque of Peter, Jesus spoke to the people who had gathered on the seashore. The boat was a comfortable and safe pulpit for Jesus' sermon by the sea. The people heard the Word of the Lord and were satisfied.

In the aftermath of the sermon, Mark tells us that the Barque of Peter became a dangerous place to be, once the disciples and Jesus set out for the opposite shore. As we ponder these events, it would be good to keep before our minds the words Paul wrote to the church in Philippi: "Our citizenship is in heaven [on the other shore] from where the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, whom we are eagerly awaiting, will come" (Phil. 3:20). Sitting on the dry land, the Gospel is a nice story to listen to. However, the teaching of Jesus is extremely challenging when one attempts to plumb the depths of its content. Leaving the tranquil shores, the disciples encounter the treacherous seas of the pilgrimage where the Barque of Peter is tossed about by the seas of betrayal from within and persecution from without. As the waves crash over the bow, it is easy to lose sight of the Master in our midst. In the face of fierce winds, we must not be afraid. It is then that we need to keep our eyes fixed on the destination to which we are called.

Most of us would prefer the boat never be tempest-tossed. Like Saint Paul, we may pray that the Lord remove the thorn from our side. Even as we pray, we need to recall the Lord's reply to that request of the Apostle to the Gentiles: "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness" (2 Cor. 12:9). We must keep in mind that even if the Lord is asleep, He is still in the Boat. The dialogue between Jesus and His disciples is interesting, even mystifying. Tossed about by this horrific wind, the disciples fear for their lives. This was the moment that they needed their Master's support more than ever, and they find Him sound asleep. Can you imagine the Master of the Universe sleeping through a howling gale? How can God be asleep when the Barque of Peter is being threatened by adverse winds? Saint Mark tells us that, not only were the disciples scared, but they were also confused: "Master, does it mean nothing to you that we are perishing?" (Mk. 4:38) Clearly the disciples needed Jesus' help. But the help He gave was not what they expected. As things turned out, the wind was the least of their problems. Jesus' question went to the heart of the issue: their faith. We, too,  are in the Barque of Peter, and like the disciples, we sometimes get the feeling that Jesus is sleeping on the job. Mark's Gospel reminds us that we are not in control of whatever threatens us. In the midst of the challenges we face, may we always recognize the power of God-with-us.

Father Jerome Machar, OSCO 

The Great Prayer of Esther

Throughout his papacy, Blessed John Paul challenged us to develop a great, intense and deep prayer life. Great prayer draws us into closer relationship with the Living Word as well as with the God of Revelation. Esther’s prayer in the Biblical book named for her is a wonderful example of great prayer. This Jewish woman was ready to risk her life in order to save the lives of her people. The prayer she offers to God is a matter of life and death, salvation or damnation.

We learn from Esther that prayer is not an escape from reality, but it is a flight towards Someone. "Esther, the queen, seized with deathly anxiety, fled to the Lord" (Est. 14:1). She, like her people, was under a death sentence. Her only escape was to throw herself into the hands of God. This is the flight of the wise virgins with lighted lamps who went out to greet the bridegroom (Mt 25:6-7). In every celebration of the Eucharist, this is the flight of the Church towards Christ and with Christ towards the Father, in the Holy Spirit. "Let our hearts be lifted high! We hold them up before the Lord!"

Esther stands as an icon of the penitent Church, the interceding Church. We see her "prostrate upon the ground, together with her handmaids" praying "from sunrise until sunset": a community of faith gathered in prayer. Esther took off her splendid apparel, put on the garments of distress and mourning, utterly humbled her body, and prayed. In Esther, we see a prototype of the Church, the "utterly humbled" Bride of Christ that stands in the breech pleading for her children. 

Queen Esther prayed, "Make Yourself known in this time of our affliction" (Est. 14:12). Our post-modern age is a time of great distress for true believers. The Church is in exile, wandering in a land of affliction and trial. During our pilgrimage in an alien land, we come to know the dangers of living the life of the Gospel. Martyrdom need not be bloody. However, like Esther, we must be willing to risk losing everything. Only then will we have the opportunity of profoundly experiencing God, an experience that makes the spirit strong, confirms faith, nourishes hope, animates charity--an experience that makes us partakers of Christ's victory over sin and death through the Sacrifice of the Cross. 

This teaching of Our Lord perfects the example of Esther: "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you" (Mt 7:7). The Eucharist is the action of the Church in obedience to the teaching of Jesus on prayer. Through the liturgy, Christ the Eternal Priest in communion  with His Bride, the Church, addresses the Eternal Father, asking Him to give us all "good things" (Mt 7:11), and to sustain us by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit (Lk 11:13). 

The mission of the Church is to take up the "good things" of creation and prepare them for the Eucharist. At the altar, bread and wine mixed with water are set apart as signs of "the good things" that fill the earth. These "good things", brought to the altar by the Church for the Breaking of the Bread, are given back to her, transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit into the mysteries of Christ's glorious Body and life-giving Blood. In the Eucharist, we find Esther's prayer most wonderfully answered. Our Lord Jesus Christ makes Himself known in the breaking of the bread (Lk 24:35), and transfigures the time of our affliction, here and now, into the Hour of His glory. In the Eucharist, the stewardship of Adam and Eve over the "good things" of creation is restored and wonderfully renewed. My brothers and sisters, in these forty days during which we prepare for the great Paschal Feast, may we find the courage to accept with patience and faith situations of difficulty, of affliction and of trial, knowing that, from the darkness, Christ will make a new day dawn. If we remain faithful to Him and follow Him on the way of His passion and death, the bright world of God, the world of light, truth and joy will be given to us once more. Then, when we gather for the Vigil of vigils at Easter, we will experience the dawning of the Kingdom that the Father brought about in His Son. To Him be glory and praise both now and forever. Amen.

Father Jerome Machar, OSCO

Faith to Bring Others to Christ

In recounting the story of the paralytic, Saint Mark highlights the importance of the faith that was manifested by the four men who brought the paralytic to Jesus. Their fidelity to their friend is depicted as an essential part of the individual's being forgiven and healed. Motivated by love and concern, they were men on a mission. Nothing would keep them from presenting their stricken comrade at the feet of the Master. With their goal in mind, they overcame any obstacle that stood in their path. Focusing on the one thing that mattered, they set their gaze on the One they believed could and would heal their friend. Their love and unwavering faith was instrumental in bringing the man to Christ. This story in the Gospel is an example of social action motivated by faith. Faith that does not prompt one to charitable action is empty piety; and charitable action that is not rooted in faith is mere humanitarianism. It is always good for us to reassess our life's direction: are we pious hypocrites or are we misguided activists? The questions are not meant to demean or belittle. They are offered as a springboard to insight. Once we can face the truth about ourselves, then we can decide to make changes in our lives. With the decision to correct our misdirection, we can progress on the paths of holiness.

We have been grafted into Christ through the sacrament of Baptism. By the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, we have become Members of His Body, the Church. Through our participation in the Sacrament of the Altar, we have been drawn in to communion with the Risen and Glorious Lord and heirs of the Kingdom. Like the stretcher bearers who brought the paralyzed man to Christ, we are our brothers’, our sisters’ keepers. When they are too weak to come to the Lord on their own power, we carry them, confident that Jesus will be faithful to His word, "The time is fulfilled and the Kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the Good News" (Mk. 1:14-15). 

Jesus’ forgiveness of the man’s sins and then his subsequent healing from paralysis show the witnesses what the good news looks like. Physical disability and sin were linked together in people’s minds during Jesus’ day. Through the mystery of the incarnation, God has drawn close to heal the hurts of humanity. Recall these few lines taken from the Prophet Isaiah. "You have not brought me sweet-smelling cane, neither have you given me pleasure with the fat of your offerings. Instead, you have burdened me with you sins and you have wearied me with your offenses. I, for my part, have blotted out your transgressions. I will remember your sins no more" (Is. 43: 24-25). In Jesus' time, people linked sin and sickness. If you got sick, you must have done something wrong and so God was punishing you. Some people still seem to think in this way for when something bad happens to them, they ask, "I wonder what I've done wrong that God is punishing me?!" So, Jesus did something visible--the healing--to show that He had power to perform what He announced, a full healing for the man -- the forgiveness of his sins as well as a physical cure. The message should have been clear to them; if the man was cured, then he must have been forgiven. Jesus was telling the truth, He could forgive sin, and the healing proved it. 

It is a good story of friendship and faith. Jesus is preaching and is interrupted by the movement of a paralytic coming through the roof. The four friends expect Jesus to heal his physical impairment. Jesus is aware of the thinking that all physical illnesses are a result of sin. Jesus, for the first time in Mark's gospel, begins displaying Himself as the redeeming-healer and so announces that the man's sins are forgiven. Jesus came into the world, not to recall the past, but to make present the loving and forgiving God. He does not say, "Be healed." The physical miracle is important because it points to the deeper healing God wants to bring about: the healing of a broken spirit caused by sin. Jesus makes the point of the miracle very clear, "But that you may know that the Son of Man has the authority to forgive sins...." The healing of soul and body is intended to bring about a continued growth in God's people so that they might live in peace and praise His holy Name.

It is important that we pay close attention to the role of the community in the story of the paralyzed man. Four concerned and compassionate men brought the paralytic to Jesus. They advocated the man's cause and worked selflessly to get him a hearing. When the crowds blocked their access to Jesus, they thought outside the box, so to speak. They went over everyone's head! They climbed up on the roof and ripped a hole in it--no problem! Then they simply lowered the man down before Jesus. While reading this account, my mind drifted to a verse taken from Psalm twenty-four. "Lift high your heads, O gates; yes, rise up, you ancient portals so that the King of Glory may come in" (Ps. 24:9). In this case, enlarge the gathering place so that the Children of God may come in. As sinners and marginalized people come in, Jesus begins to do something new, something no one has seen. With the cure of the paralytic we are given a foretaste of "things that no eye has seen, that no ear has heard, that no mind has imagined; such things as God has prepared for them that love him" (1 Cor. 2:9).

May we walk into God's future, like the friends of the paralytic, accompanying those who find themselves in desperate straits. They laid the man down in faith, and Jesus raised him up and sent him out. It is the perfect sacramental moment.  We also are invited to lower ourselves in humble acceptance of our truth so that Jesus might see our faith, embrace that same truth and send us, like the healed paralytic, back home, freed from our pasts to be and do the "new thing".

Father Jerome Machar, OSCO

Accompanying the Young in the Journey to the Father

The vocation story of Samuel is truly extraordinary! Think of it. Is there anything more ordinary than going to church and falling asleep? When I was in the seminary, the bishop came to celebrate Mass with us. While he was preaching, one of the professors fell asleep. While he was sleeping, he started carrying on a conversation with someone. Things really got interesting when he started talking louder than the bishop. I am sure each of you has a similar experience. I think it is safe to say that most people consider falling asleep in church quite ordinary. 

The child Samuel is asleep when God calls him. While he was wrapped in holy slumber, Samuel's heart was freed to hear the voice that the daily din had obscured. In the darkness, from the depths of his being, Samuel heard the Lord call him by name. Reading this story brought to mind a passage in the Prophet Isaiah: "For the sake of Jacob, my servant, of Israel my chosen one, I have called you by your name, giving you a title, though you knew me not. I am the LORD and there is no other, there is no God besides me. It is I who arm you, though you know me not" (Is. 45:4-5). It is worth noting that Samuel readily answered each call, "Here I am" even though he did not know who was actually calling him. God's grace had already been working in him, preparing him to hear and respond to the call.

In the story is a beautiful account of spiritual accompaniment. The old man Eli accompanies the young man Samuel in his formation as a servant of God's people. If the young people of our age are to respond to God's call, it is the duty of us elders to be present to them and to listen to their struggles. The mentor must be able to see beyond himself and his own interests so as to recognize the actions of God in the life of the one he is accompanying. Samuel hears the voice, but it is Eli who identifies the Speaker. With that piece of information, Samuel was able to respond with a heartfelt, "Speak, Lord, for your Servant is listening." As we pass through this world, a world that has known the footsteps of the savior, may we recognize the presence of God in our midst and respond to the words He speaks to our hearts. Let’s listen to these extraordinary words of Gerard Manley Hopkins.

THE WORLD is charged with the grandeur of God. 

It will flame out,  

like shining from shook foil;

It gathers to a greatness,

like the ooze of oil

Crushed. Why do men then now not

reck his rod?

Generations have trod, have trod,

have trod;

And all is seared with

trade; bleared, smeared with toil;

And wears man's smudge

and shares man's smell: the soil

Is bare now, nor can foot feel,

being shod.

And for all this, nature is never

spent;

There lives the

dearest freshness deep down things;

And though the last lights off the

black West went

Oh, morning, at the

brown brink eastward, springs-

Because the Holy Ghost over the

bent

World broods with warm

breast and with ah! bright wings.

Father Jerome Machar, OSCO

Mary: Totally Surrendered to the Word of God

Numbers 6: 22-27

Galatians 4:4-7

Luke 2:16-21

Today as we gaze upon the manger scene, our attention is drawn to the young woman nursing the newborn at her virginal breasts. We see before our eyes the effect of God's self-emptying for the sake of mankind. The bishops who gathered for the Second Vatican Council declared that "only in the mystery of the Incarnate Word does the mystery of man take on light." This is indeed a high point among all the gifts of grace conferred in the history of man and of the universe: Mary is "full of grace," because it is precisely in her that the Incarnation of the Word, the hypostatic union of the Son of God with human nature, is accomplished and fulfilled. Mary is "the Mother of the Son of God. As a result she is also the favorite daughter of the Father and the temple of the Holy Spirit. Because of this gift of sublime grace, she far surpasses all other creatures, both in heaven and on earth." By her total self-surrender to the message of the Angel she perfectly fulfilled the divine vocation of human race. Elizabeth, her aged cousin, confirmed this when she said: "Blessed is she that believed that the things that had been spoken to her by the Lord would be accomplished" (Lk. 1:45). Mary listened to the message addressed to her by the angel and pondered them in her heart (CF RB Prol.1). The obedience of faith must be given to God who reveals Himself in the person of the Son, an obedience by which man entrusts his whole self freely to God. The human reality created through the word finds its most perfect image in Mary's obedient faith. Her obedient faith shaped her life at every moment according to God's plan. 

There is much to ponder as we stand before the stable under the watchful eye of Mary, the God-bearer. As members of the Body of Christ, we can allow this woman of faith to care for us and protect us. The Incarnate Word, out of the abundance of His love, has entrusted us to the care of His mother. Her goal and purpose is to draw us into fellowship with her Son. Were we to spend the rest of our days trying to decipher the reason for this wondrous event, the only explanation we would find is sheer grace. "For God had such a great love for the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believed in Him might not come to destruction, but have everlasting life" (Jn. 3:16).

Mary, the Mother of the Redeemer, stands at the heart of God's plan of salvation. "When the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, 'Abba, Father'" (Gal. 4:4-6). Think about it. From the Annunciation to Pentecost, Mary appears as the woman completely open to the will of God. She is the Immaculate Conception, the one whom God made "full of grace". Because she surrendered to the movements of grace, Mary was unconditionally docile to his word. The incarnation of the Word cannot be conceived apart from the freedom of this young woman who by her assent decisively cooperated with the entrance of the eternal Word into our mortal world. Mary is the image of the Church in attentive listening to the word of God, which took flesh in her. Mary also symbolizes openness to God and others. Hers is an active listening that interiorizes and assimilates one into the mind and heart of God. Through prayer and reflection, the word becomes a way of life.

Mary is the most blessed among women. The first Reading for Mass on January 1 recalls one of the many conversations the Holy One had with Moses. The subject of this exchange is the formula that Aaron and his sons are to use when calling down God's blessings on His people. "May the Lord send His blessing upon you and keep you safe. May the Lord let his face shine upon you and be gracious to you. May the Lord look upon you kindly and give you peace" (Num. 6: 24-26). The Bible shows us how big a part blessings play in the story of salvation. A blessing is presented as a gift that is given to an individual. It is an act of unmerited favor and unconditional acceptance. A blessing can never be earned. It is important to notice that God makes use of an instrument, a mediator, whose faith is necessary and whose words God employs to be active among the people. God uses human beings to make known His unconditional love. God is using human persons to make tangible His provident care for all the members of the human race. The special person God has used to bless us on New Year’s Day is Mary, the ever-virgin Mother of God.

Saint Luke presents her as a model believer who seeks to understand all that God has done for the world. She turns over in her heart everything that she has heard. She not only remembers these things, but she also ponders them. As she listens to the shepherds speaking of angelic messages, she recalls her own encounter with Gabriel. With the Mother of God and the Mother of the Church, we are to ponder all that we have heard. Ruminating on the Revealed Word, we are challenged to allow the mystery of Divine Love to be our companion throughout life's journey. Looking to the Theotokos, we see how God's activity in the world always engages our freedom, because through faith the Divine Word transforms us. As we contemplate in Mary a life totally shaped by the Word, we realize that we too are called to enter into the mystery of faith, whereby Christ comes to dwell in our lives. Every Christian believer, Saint Ambrose tells us, in some way interiorly conceives and gives birth to the Word of God: even though there is only one Mother of Christ in the flesh, in the faith, Christ is the progeny of us all. 

The Lord in Christ is blessing and keeping us. The Lord's face has been shining upon us since his presence in the world was heralded by the star at Bethlehem. He is ever gracious to us and continues to look upon us and offer us His peace. May every day of our lives be shaped by a renewed encounter with Christ, the Word made flesh: he stands at the beginning and the end, and "in him all things hold together" (Col 1:17). Let us be still and know that He is God. Let us be silent and hear the word of the Lord. Having heard, let us ponder it, so that by the working of the Holy Spirit it may remain in our hearts and direct our lives. In this way the Church will always be renewed and rejuvenated, thanks to the word of the Lord which remains forever and ever.

May God's love wrap and enfold you, embrace you and guide you, and bring you comfort.

Peace be with you,

Father Jerome