December 29, 2012

The Fifth Day in the Octave of Christmas

Read about Octaves.

On the fifth day of Christmas, my True Love gave to me...5 golden rings.

The 5 rings are the Pentateuch.  The Pentateuch or Torah is the name given to the first five books of the Bible.  They are considered the books which Moses wrote.  They consist of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.   I'm only speculating, but I "rings" remind me of the Covenant of Matrimony.  And each one of these books of the Old Covenant, remind us of our union with God.

Lectionary: 202

Reading 1 from the first letter of St. John to the Church
1 Jn 2:3-11

Beloved:
The way we may be sure that we know Jesus
is to keep his commandments.
Whoever says, "I know him," but does not keep his commandments
is a liar, and the truth is not in him.

Some people don't think that the St. John who wrote the Gospel is the same St. John who wrote the Epistles or Letters.  But the elements of the Gospel of St. John are so similar to the Letters that I have no doubt they are one and the same.  In this case, this verse reminds me very firmly, of what St. John said in the 14th Chapter of his Gospel:

John 14:21-23
King James Version (KJV)
21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.  22 Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world?  23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

But whoever keeps his word,
the love of God is truly perfected in him.
This is the way we may know that we are in union with him:
whoever claims to abide in him ought to walk just as he walked.

St. John reminds us that in order to follow Christ, we must pick up our Cross:

Luke 9:23
And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.

Beloved, I am writing no new commandment to you
but an old commandment that you had from the beginning.
The old commandment is the word that you have heard.
And yet I do write a new commandment to you,

This reminds me of another Johanine verse (i.e. another verse in St. John's Gospel).


John 13:34
A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.

which holds true in him and among you,
for the darkness is passing away,
and the true light is already shining.

John 1:9
That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.

Whoever says he is in the light,
yet hates his brother, is still in the darkness.

John 3:19
And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

Whoever loves his brother remains in the light,
and there is nothing in him to cause a fall.

John 8:12
Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

Whoever hates his brother is in darkness;
he walks in darkness
and does not know where he is going
because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

John 12:46
I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 96:1-2a, 2b-3, 5b-6

R. (11a) Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice!

Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all you lands.
Sing to the LORD; bless his name.

R. Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice!

Announce his salvation, day after day.
Tell his glory among the nations;
among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.

R. Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice!

The LORD made the heavens.
Splendor and majesty go before him;
praise and grandeur are in his sanctuary.

R. Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice!

This is a prophecy of the Song of the Angels when they came to proclaim the Glory of God to the Shepherds on that glorious day!  GLORIA IN EXELSIS DEO!

Luke 2:8-14
King James Version (KJV)
8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke
Lk 2:22-35

When the days were completed for their purification
according to the law of Moses,
the parents of Jesus took him up to Jerusalem
to present him to the Lord,
just as it is written in the law of the Lord,
Every male that opens the womb shall be consecrated to the Lord,
and to offer the sacrifice of
a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons,
in accordance with the dictate in the law of the Lord.

This sacrifice is a ritual sin offering which is offered by the woman who bore a male child.  Frequently, it is questioned, why Mary had to pay a sin offering.  The answer is simply that it is a ritual sin offering required by the law.  It doesn't mean that she sinned.  In essence, we can give the same response which Jesus gave St. John when He was baptized:

Matthew 3:15
King James Version (KJV)
15 And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him.

Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon.
This man was righteous and devout,
awaiting the consolation of Israel,
and the Holy Spirit was upon him.
It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit
that he should not see death
before he had seen the Christ of the Lord.
He came in the Spirit into the temple;
and when the parents brought in the child Jesus
to perform the custom of the law in regard to him,
he took him into his arms and blessed God, saying: 

"Lord, now let your servant go in peace;
your word has been fulfilled:
my own eyes have seen the salvation
which you prepared in the sight of every people,
a light to reveal you to the nations
and the glory of your people Israel."

The extraordinarily holy St. Simeon.  He left us a beautiful canticle which the Catholic Breviary traditionally includes in our nightly prayers.

The child's father and mother were amazed at what was said about him;
and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother,
"Behold, this child is destined
for the fall and rise of many in Israel,
and to be a sign that will be contradicted
(and you yourself a sword will pierce)
so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed."

There is a beautiful devotion which is associated with this verse.  It is called the Seven Sorrows of Mary and is depicted by a heart with 7 swords piercing it.  I imagine only a mother can identify with the suffering Mary endured seeing her only Child nailed to a cross.

Sincerely,

De Maria