December 22, 2012

Saturday of the Third Week of Advent
Lectionary: 198

Reading 1 from the first book of Samuel
1 Sm 1:24-28

In the previous days, we've read about the announcement of the birth of Samson, Hezekiah,  and St. John the Baptist.  All of which have something in common with the birth of Our Lord, Jesus Christ.  Today we will read about the announcement of the birth of....OOPS!   I jumped to conclusions, at this point, the great High Priest of the nation of Israel, Samuel,  is already born.  Because he is a High Priest, he foreshadows the eternal High Priest, Jesus Christ.  Here is the text which I thought we were going to read:

1 Samuel 1:12-17
King James Version (KJV)
12 And it came to pass, as she continued praying before the Lord, that Eli marked her mouth.
13 Now Hannah, she spake in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard: therefore Eli thought she had been drunken.
14 And Eli said unto her, How long wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee.
15 And Hannah answered and said, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the Lord.
16 Count not thine handmaid for a daughter of Belial: for out of the abundance of my complaint and grief have I spoken hitherto.
17 Then Eli answered and said, Go in peace: and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of him.

Let us begin the actual reading for today.

In those days,Hannah brought Samuel with her,along with a three-year-old bull,an ephah of flour, and a skin of wine,and presented him at the temple of the LORD in Shiloh.

 After the boy's father had sacrificed the young bull,
Hannah, his mother, approached Eli and said:
"Pardon, my lord!
As you live, my lord,
I am the woman who stood near you here, praying to the LORD.
I prayed for this child, and the LORD granted my request.
Now I, in turn, give him to the LORD;
as long as he lives, he shall be dedicated to the LORD."
She left Samuel there.

The wonderful Hannah gave back to God the dearest thing in her life.  Her faith and love of God is greater than anyone whom I can imagine, except Abraham:

Hebrews 11:17
By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son,

And Our Blessed Mother, who without complaint, witnessed the death of her only Son upon the Cross:

John 19:25
Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, ....

Pray, because today our Church is in need of many heroic mothers and fathers who are willing to give the Church Priests of the most High God.

Responsorial Psalm from the first book of Samuel
1 Sm 2:1, 4-5, 6-7, 8abcd

Today we draw our canticle from the first book of the great High Priest, Samuel

R. (see 1a) My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.

"My heart exults in the LORD,
my horn is exalted in my God.
I have swallowed up my enemies;
I rejoice in my victory."

R. My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.

"The bows of the mighty are broken,
while the tottering gird on strength.
The well-fed hire themselves out for bread,
while the hungry batten on spoil.
The barren wife bears seven sons,
while the mother of many languishes."

R. My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.

"The LORD puts to death and gives life;
he casts down to the nether world;
he raises up again.
The LORD makes poor and makes rich,
he humbles, he also exalts."

R. My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.

"He raises the needy from the dust;
from the dung heap he lifts up the poor,
To seat them with nobles
and make a glorious throne their heritage."

R. My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.

Rejoice in the Lord all of you who love God.  Although you may suffer much in His name in this life, be assured that you will be compensated beyond your wildest dreams in the next:

Mark 10:28-30
King James Version (KJV)
28 Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee.
29 And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel's,
30 But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke
Lk 1:46-56

This beautiful prayer is known as the Magnificat. This prayer explains why Mary is a great model of our faith whom we must emulate.

Mary said:
"My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my savior.

In the older texts, it says:

Luke 1:46
And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, 

This is why this prayer is known as the Magnificat.  But "proclaim" is ok, I guess.

In any case, this is the reason why meditating upon Mary and emulating her is so important for a true Christian life.  She loves God, her Son more than any living person is capable of loving Him, because he is her Son.  Parents, especially moms, have a special insight into this fact of life.

for he has looked upon his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed:

This is a reference to the fact that from the beginning, Catholics have celebrated the blessedness of Our Blessed Mother.

the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.

This is a reference to all the great gifts of grace which Our Father in heaven has bestowed upon His grace filled daughter.   The Catholic Church celebrates them as feast days of Our Lady, the Mother of God, the Immaculate Conception, the Assumption and many others.

He has mercy on those who fear him
in every generation.

This is a recognition and proclamation of the mercy and love of God upon all who obey Him and keep His Commandments:

Revelation 22:13-15
King James Version (KJV)
13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
15 For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.

He has shown the strength of his arm,
and has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel
for he remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children for ever."

This recalls the Judgment to come, wherein God will separate the sheep and the goats and reward the just with everlasting life and the unjust will be condemned to everlasting punishment (Matt 25:31-46).

Mary remained with Elizabeth about three months
and then returned to her home.

And after the birth of St. John the Baptist, Mary returned to her own home in Nazareth.

Sincerely,

De Maria