Poem: “Christmas” by St. Augustine of Hippo

Maker of the sun, 

He is made under the sun.

In the Father he remains,

From his mother he goes forth.

Creator of heaven and earth,
He was born on under heaven.

Unspeakably wise,
He is wisely speechless.

Filling the world,
He lies in a manger.

Ruler of the stars,
He nurses at his mother’s bosom.

He is both great in the nature of God
and small in the form of a servant.

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Poem: “If you want …” by John of the Cross

If you want,
the Virgin will come walking down the road
pregnant with the holy,
and say, “I need shelter for the night.
Please take me into your heart, my time is so close.”

Then, under the roof of your soul,
you will witness the sublime intimacy, the divine, the Christ,
taking birth forever, as she grasps your hand for help;
for each of us is the midwife of God, each of us.

Yet there, under the dome of your being,
does creation come into existence eternally, through your womb,
dear pilgrim – the sacred womb of your soul,
as God grasps our arms for help;
for each of us is His beloved servant never far.

If you want, the Virgin will come walking down the street
pregnant with Light and sing …
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Poem: "Season of Fir and Pine" by Barbara Ryland

                    Season of Fir and Pine

 arrives from primeval forest and druidic grove

 dressing  all in festive array.

Balls and baubles dance on trees

singing with stars in darkest night;

boughs bend and drape,

perfuming the air   

with spicy pine

in deepest winter              

and hold mantle and door

in such tender caress of green delight

 that I marvel  at how we, too, are held,  

 breathed into life flowing

 from that ever-greening Center.    

                                        Barbra Ryland 2016

Día de Año Nuevo - La Solemnidad de María

Día de Año Nuevo - La Solemnidad de María

1 de enero de 2017

Números 6: 22-27; Salmo 67; Gálatas 4: 4-7; Lucas 2: 16-21

El Año Nuevo comienza con una bendición antigua de Moisés destinada a lanzarnos con la buena voluntad del Señor. El salmo responsorial refresca la bendición, y Gálatas nos dice que somos llevados a la familia de Dios - nunca estar lejos. En el Evangelio, María, realizando sus bendiciones, acaricia los acontecimientos memorables. Ella nos enseña que el silencio honra nuestras bendiciones.

¿Cuál es nuestra memoria de dar o recibir bendiciones? La buena voluntad de Dios es dada a tu alma. Empezamos la misa deseando la gracia y la paz y el amor comunicante de Dios. ¡Qué gran saludo! Imagine si saludamos a nuestra familia, amigos y colegas, de esta manera regularmente!

Bendecir a una persona es dar una consideración positiva incondicional. Deseamos a la persona bien porque nos preocupamos por ellos, incluso si no nos gusta mucho la persona. Ajusta nuestras actitudes. Deseamos lo mejor, y nos cambian para mejor. ¿Conoces a alguien que persistentemente te molesta? Desearías que se fueran. Por supuesto. Básicamente, les gusta y admira. Es posible que desee que se vayan, pero cuando los honras con palabras positivas, te sientes mucho mejor acerca de ellos y de ti mismo. Vemos bondad en ellos, especialmente cuando no queremos encontrar algo bueno. Sin embargo, está allí. Te gustará mejor porque tu bondad se encuentra con la suya. Se vuelven menos de una carga.

Cuando bendecimos, no criticamos. En cambio, nos levantamos, vemos, honramos y damos gloria. Las críticas hacen que otros se sientan mal y no queremos hacer esto. Los cristianos construyen puentes y crean nuevas posibilidades, que comienzan afirmando y alentando a otros. Las relaciones sanan cuando honramos a otra persona.

Comencemos este año bendiciendo y alabando apropiadamente a otros. Mírelos transformarse porque quieren su opinión positiva. Usted es significativo para ellos. Sus palabras son importantes. Habla para que levantes, dales esperanza y animes. Muchas personas necesitan alegría y aceptación. Dales la bendición de Dios como un regalo de vida. Su bondad crea la paz. Es el poder de Dios a través de sus palabras y acciones. Es el mejor regalo que puedes dar.

María, que nos bendice a todos, apreciará estas cosas en su corazón porque está feliz con el amor que está generando. No cuesta nada. Délo lejos, y libere a otros con su buena voluntad.

Escritura para la misa diaria

Primera lectura:
Lunes: (1 Juan 2) El mentiroso es aquel que niega que Jesús es el Cristo. Quien niega al Hijo también niega al Padre. Deja que lo que has oído desde el principio permanezca contigo.
Martes: (1 Juan 2) Vea qué amor el Padre nos ha concedido para que seamos llamados hijos de Dios. El mundo no nos conoce porque no lo conocen.
Miércoles: (1 Juan 3) La persona que actúa en justicia es justa. Quien peca pertenece al diablo. Permanezcan en la Luz como los hijos de Dios.
Jueves: (1 Juan 3) La manera en que llegamos a conocer el amor fue que él dio su vida por nosotros; Así que debemos dar nuestras vidas por nuestros hermanos y hermanas.
Viernes (1 Juan 5) ¿Quién es el vencedor de este mundo? El que cree en Jesús, que vino a través del agua y la sangre, y el Espíritu le da testimonio.
Sábado (1 Juan 5) Tenemos confianza en que si pedimos algo según su voluntad, Dios nos oye.

Evangelio:
Lunes: (Juan 1) Este es el testimonio de Juan: Yo soy la voz de uno que clama en el desierto: Enderezad el camino del Señor.
Martes: (Juan 1) Juan el Bautista vio a Jesús y dijo: "He aquí el Cordero de Dios, que quita el pecado del mundo" El Espíritu vendrá sobre él y permanecerá con él.
Miércoles (Juan 1) Jesús les preguntó a los discípulos: "¿Qué buscan?" Ellos preguntaron: "¿Dónde están ustedes?" Vengan a ver.
Jueves (Juan 1) En Galilea, Jesús llamó a Felipe, quien encontró a Natanael y lo trajo a Jesús. "Es un verdadero israelita en quien no hay engaño".
Viernes (Marcos 1) Juan bautizó a Jesús en el río Jordán. Los cielos se abrieron y el Espíritu, como una paloma, descendió sobre él.
Sábado (Juan 2) En Caná, Jesús y sus discípulos asistieron a una boda, pero el vino se había agotado. A instancias de su madre, Jesús realizó su primer milagro.

Santos de la Semana

2 de enero: Basil el grande y Gregorio Nanzianzen, obispos y doctores (cuarto siglo), son dos de los cuatro grandes doctores de la iglesia del este. Son conocidos por su predicación especialmente contra los herejes arrianos. Basilio comenzó como un ermitaño antes de ser nombrado arzobispo de Cesarea. Influyó a Gregorio que eventualmente se convirtió en arzobispo de Constantinopla. Sus enseñanzas influyeron tanto en las iglesias romana como en las orientales.

3 de enero: El nombre de Jesús fue dado al niño como el ángel predicho. En el mundo mediterráneo, el nombre de la persona representaba a toda la persona. A los seres humanos se les dio el poder de nombrar durante los relatos de creación del Génesis. Si uno honra el nombre de la persona, ellos honran a la persona. El nombre de Jesús significa "Yavé salva".

4 de enero: Elizabeth Ann Seton, religiosa (1774-1821), nació en una casa episcopaliana donde se casó y tuvo cinco hijos. Cuando su esposo murió, se convirtió en católica y fundó una escuela para niñas en Baltimore. Ella entonces fundó a las Hermanas de la Caridad y comenzó la fundación para el sistema de la escuela parroquial en los E. Ella es el primer americano nativo-ser canonizado.

5 de enero: John Neumann, obispo (1811-1860), emigró de Bohemia a Nueva York y se unió a los Redentoristas en Pittsburgh antes de ser nombrado obispo de Filadelfia. Construyó muchas iglesias en la diócesis y puso gran énfasis en la educación como fundamento de la fe.

6 de enero: Andre Bessette, religioso (1845-1937), nació en Quebec, Canadá. Se unió a la Congregación de la Santa Cruz y enseñó durante 40 años en el Colegio de Notre Dame. Cuidaba de los enfermos y era conocido como un intercesor de los milagros. Construyó el Oratorio de San José, un popular lugar de peregrinación en Canadá.

7 de enero: Raymond de Penyafort, sacerdote (1175-1275), fue entrenado en filosofía y derecho y fue ordenado en 1222 para predicar a los moros y cristianos. Aunque fue nombrado obispo del estragón, declinó la posición. En cambio, organizó los decretos papales en la primera forma de ley canónica. Más tarde fue elegido Maestro de la Orden Dominicana.

Esta Semana en la Historia de los Jesuitas

• 1 de enero de 1598: Fr. Afonso Barréna, apellidado Apóstol del Perú, murió. Fue el primero en llevar la fe a los guaraníes y chiquitos en Paraguay.
• 2 de enero de 1619: En Roma, John Berchmans y Bartholomew Penneman, su compañero escolástico de Bélgica, entraron en el Colegio Romano.
• 3 de enero de 1816: El general Brzozowski y 25 miembros de la Sociedad, custodiados por soldados, dejaron a San Petersburgo, Rusia, desterrado por el gobierno civil.
• 4 de enero de 1619: La misión inglesa pasa al estado de provincia.
• 5 de enero de 1548: Francis Suárez, uno de los más grandes teólogos de la iglesia, nació en Granada.
• 6 de enero de 1829: Publicación del rescripto del Papa León XII, declarando que la Sociedad será restaurada canónicamente en Inglaterra.
• 7 de enero de 1566: el cardenal Ghislieri fue elegido papa como Pío V. Fue un gran amigo de los Francis Borgia y nombró a Salmeron ya Toletus como predicadores apostólicos en el Vaticano. Deseaba imponer el cargo de coro a la Sociedad e incluso lo ordenaba. Fue canonizado como San Pío V.

New Year's Day: The Solemnity of Mary

Ignatian Spirituality: Set the World Ablaze

predmore.blogspot.com

New Year’s Day – The Solemnity of Mary

January 1, 2017

Numbers 6:22-27; Psalm 67; Galatians 4:4-7; Luke 2:16-21

            We begin the new year with an ancient blessing from Moses that is designed to launch us with the Lord’s renewed goodwill. The responsorial Psalm refreshes the blessing and the reading from Galatians tells us that we are estranged no longer, but are brought into the bosom of God’s family – never to stray far from the Lord’s protection. In the Gospel, Mary, realizing how blessed she was, cherishes the solemn events in her memory. One of the most profound ways we can honor our blessings is to let it be nourished by our silent reverence.

              What is our history with giving or receiving blessings? We receive a blessing routinely at the end of mass, but for many, it is just something we do, but when we think of it, God’s goodwill is being imparted to your soul. We start mass by wishing grace and peace and the communing love of God as a standard greeting. What a terrific way to greet people! Imagine if we did that throughout the day, to our family, co-workers, and colleagues, in a way they could hear the goodwill we intend.

            To give a blessing is to give a person your unconditional positive regard. We wish well for the person because we care for one’s humanity, even if we are not so well disposed to the person. It is quite an attitude adjustment that keeps us feeling very level. We wish the best for the person despite the relationship, and when we do so, we are changed for the better. Did you ever have an encounter with a persistently annoying person who you just wish would go away? Of course, you have. Try spending some time with him or her and acknowledge that they are trying to converse with you because they like you or admire you. You may want to brush them away, but when you spend time with them and honor them with positive words, you feel much better about them and yourself. It is an effort well spent. We learn to the see goodness in others, especially when we do not want to bother to find something good. However, it is there. You will like yourself better because your goodness meets theirs, and they become less burdensome.

            When we bless a person, we do not criticize. Instead, we lift up, we behold, we honor, and we appropriately give glory. This is a good way to live. We all know those people who offer critical analyses all the time. It may be helpful in particular professions and it is important to dissect essential details, but it is not the most fulfilling way to develop one’s soul. We can separate our profession from our being. Criticisms take people down and deconstruct and we do not want to be people who do that. We want to build bridges, to construct possibilities, to link and forge future opportunities, and we do that by finding that which is possible, which begins by affirming and encouraging others. Relationships mend when we honor another person and discover our common humanity.

            Let’s begin this year by blessing those around us, and by appropriately praising them, especially when we are prone to criticizing.  Watch the change you see in people because they want your positive regard. You are meaningful to them and your words will carry much weight. Use your words to lift people up and give them hope and encouragement. Too many people need joy or even just acceptance. They want to know from you whether you will still regard them well even though they are mired in chaos. Gift them with your blessing and watch them transform into even more beautiful people. This is the gift of life. This is kindness that creates peace. This is the power of God being honored through your words and actions. Give God’s blessing to those who come to you today. It is the best gift you can give someone.

             Mary, who blesses us all, will cherish all these things in her heart because she will be more than content with the love you are generating because she first has generated this love within you. It is free. Give it away, and free others with your goodwill.

Scripture for Daily Mass

First Reading: 

Monday: (1 John 2) The liar is the one who denies Jesus is the Christ. Anyone who denies the Son also denies the Father. Let what you heard from the beginning remain with you.

Tuesday: (1 John 2) See what love the Father has bestowed on us that we may be called the children of God. The world doesn’t know us because they don’t know him.

Wednesday: (1 John 3) The person who acts in righteousness is righteous. Whoever sins belongs to the Devil. Stay in the Light as the children of God.  

Thursday: (1 John 3) The way we came to know love was that he laid down his life for us; so we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.      

Friday (1 John 5) Who is the victor of this world? The one who believes in Jesus, who came through water and Blood, and the Spirit testifies to him.   

Saturday (1 John 5) We have confidence that if we ask anything according to his will, God hears us.

Gospel: 

Monday: (John 1) This is the testimony of John: I am the voice of one crying out in the desert: Make straight the way of the Lord.    

Tuesday: (John 1) John the Baptist saw Jesus and said, “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” The Spirit will come upon him and remain with him.

Wednesday (John 1) The disciples of John were asked by Jesus, “What are you looking for?” They asked, “Where are you staying?” Come and see.

Thursday (John 1) In Galilee, Jesus called Philip, who found Nathaniel and brought him to Jesus. “He is a true Israelite in whom there is no guile.”

Friday (Mark 1) John baptized Jesus in the Jordan River. The heavens were torn open and the Spirit, like a dove, descended upon him.

Saturday (John 2) In Cana, Jesus and his disciples attended a wedding, but the wine had run out. At his mother’s urging, Jesus performed his first miracle.  

Saints of the Week

January 2: Basil the Great and Gregory Nanzianzen, bishops and doctors (fourth century), are two of the four great doctors of the Eastern Church. They are known for their preaching especially against the Arian heretics. Basil began as a hermit before he was named archbishop of Caesarea. He influenced Gregory who eventually became archbishop of Constantinople. Their teachings influenced both the Roman and Eastern Churches.

January 3: The Name of Jesus was given to the infant as the angel foretold. In the Mediterranean world, the naming of person stood for the whole person. Humans were given the power to name during the Genesis creation accounts. If one honors the name of the person, they honor the person. The name Jesus means “Yahweh saves.”

January 4: Elizabeth Ann Seton, religious (1774-1821), was born into an Episcopalian household where she married and had five children. When her husband died, she became a Catholic and founded a girls’ school in Baltimore. She then founded the Sisters of Charity and began the foundation for the parochial school system in the U.S. She is the first native-born American to be canonized.

January 5: John Neumann, bishop (1811-1860), emigrated from Bohemia to New York and joined the Redemptorists in Pittsburgh before being named bishop of Philadelphia. He built many churches in the diocese and placed great emphasis on education as the foundation of faith.

January 6: Andre Bessette, religious (1845-1937), was born in Quebec, Canada. He joined the Congregation of the Holy Cross and taught for 40 years at the College of Notre Dame. He cared for the sick and was known as a intercessor for miracles. He built St. Joseph’s Oratory, a popular pilgrimage site in Canada.

January 7: Raymond of Penyafort, priest (1175-1275), was trained in philosophy and law and was ordained in 1222 to preach to the Moors and Christians. Though he was appointed bishop of Tarragon, he declined the position. Instead he organized papal decrees into the first form of canon law. He was later elected Master of the Dominican Order.

This Week in Jesuit History

·      Jan. 1, 1598: Fr. Alphonsus Barréna, surnamed the Apostle of Peru, died. He was the first to carry the faith to the Guaranis and Chiquitos in Paraguay.

·      Jan. 2, 1619: At Rome, John Berchmans and Bartholomew Penneman, his companion scholastic from Belgium, entered the Roman College.

·      Jan. 3, 1816: Fr. General Brzozowski and 25 members of the Society, guarded by soldiers, left St. Petersburg, Russia, having been banished by the civil government.

·      Jan. 4, 1619: The English mission is raised to the status of a province.

·      Jan. 5, 1548: Francis Suarez, one of the greatest theologians of the church, was born at Granada.

·      Jan. 6, 1829: Publication of Pope Leo XII's rescript, declaring the Society to be canonically restored in England.

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·      Jan. 7, 1566: Cardinal Ghislieri was elected pope as Pius V. He was a great friend of the Francis Borgia and appointed Salmeron and Toletus as apostolic preachers at the Vatican. He desired to impose the office of choir on the Society and even ordered it. He was canonized as St. Pius V.

Poem: "Be Comforted and Glad" by Rainer Maria Rilke

Is there anything that can take from you the hope of being someday in the God you are helping to create in each attentive act of Love?

Please celebrate this Christmas with the earnest faith that He may need this very anguish of yours in order to begin. These very days that are such a trial for you may well be the time when everything in you is working at Him/She, as you so urgently did as a child. Be patient and without resentment, and know that the least we can do is to make His Becoming not more difficult than the Earth makes it for spring when it wants to arrive. Be comforted and glad.

- Rainer Maria Rilke
Rome, December 23, 1903
Letters to a Young Poet

Spirituality: "The Lord is Near" by Pope Saint John XXIII (1881-1963)

“The Lord is near!” What can the whole year offer us more precious, lovely, and joyful? Christmas is the shining Feast of nature and of life, full of grace and charm. Everything comes to us from that Child whom his Mother gives to every one of us and presents to the whole world.

After two thousand years the beloved image is still the same, wonderful, vivid, full of fascination and appeal …

Christmas is the joy of our homes, bringing happiness even where there are tears, where there are anxieties and sadness. This vision is enough to soothe the most anguished hearts, and to arouse tenderness, compassion, and impulses of kindness and generosity.

Now more eagerly than ever the redeemed of the Savior join with his representative on earth to come into the presence of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, and to draw from this sublime reality new inspirations for doing good and for bringing about the true brotherly union of the sons of God.

We all belong to our Lord Jesus Christ, our brother; we all share in the Redemption he wrought. It is true that there are still some who have not received this gift of faith, for reasons extraneous to themselves for which they are not responsible. But there is the great family, not only of Christians, but of the whole universe, for all is the work of God, and dependent upon him.





Source: Prayers and Devotions from Pope John XXIII: His Personal Thoughts for Every Day of the Year, pp. 319-320.

Poem: “Voices in the Mist” by Alfred, Lord Tennyson

The time draws near the birth of Christ:
The moon is hid; the night is still;
The Christmas bells from hill to hill
Answer each other in the mist.

Four voices of four hamlets round,
From far and near, on mead and moor,
Swell out and fail, as if a door
Were shut between me and the sound:

Each voice four changes in the wind,
That now dilate, and now decrease,
Peace and goodwill, goodwill and peace,
Peace and goodwill, to all mankind.

Spirituality: “Christmas Eve Vigil” By Kathleen Norris

By Christmas Eve, most of us find ourselves vert far from our true reasons for celebrating, reasons that are so eloquently expressed in the processional of the Christmas Vigil in the Byzantine rite: “Rejoice, Jerusalem! All you lovers of Sion, share our festivities! On this day age-old bonds of Adam’s condemnation were broken, paradise was opened for us, the serpent was crushed, and the woman, whom he once deceived, lives now as the mother of the creator.”

Here, in just a few simple words, is the essence of Christmas. It is not merely the birth of Jesus we celebrate tonight, although we recall it joyfully, in song and story. The feast of the Incarnation invites us to celebrate also Jesus’ death, resurrection, and coming again in glory. It is our salvation story, and all of creation is invited to sing, dance, and feast. But we are so exhausted. How is it possible to bridge the gap between our sorry reality and the glad, grateful recognition of the Incarnation as the mainstay of our faith? We might begin by acknowledging that if we have neglected the spiritual call of Advent for yet another year, and have allowed ourselves to become thoroughly frazzled by December 24, all is not lost. We are, in fact, in very good shape for Christmas.

It is precisely because we are weary, and poor in spirit, that God can touch us with hope. This is not an easy truth. It means that we accept our common lot, and take up our share of the cross. It means that we do not gloss over the evils we confront every day, both within ourselves and without …

Tonight we are asked to acknowledge that the world we have made is in darkness … At tonight’s vigil, in a world as cold and cruel and unjust as it was at the time of Jesus’ birth in a stable, we desire something better. And in desiring it, we come to believe that it is possible. We await its coming in hope.

Source:Goodness and Light: Readings for Advent and Christmas, pages 186-188.