Faithfulness and Love

Category Archives: Solemnity

Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

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Among the many Feast days and Solemnities which we celebrate each month, one Solemnity which some people may be wondering why it is being celebrated is the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Some wonder whether we are giving too much reverence or too much “face” to the Blessed Virgin Mary, so to speak. But if we look closely at what we are doing, we are actually celebrating not the glory of Mary in herself, but the wonderful works of God and His abundant grace. Mary is assumed into heaven only because of God’s grace, which transforms a docile, humble and simple person like Mary into the person whom we admire today. Therefore, on this Solemnity, it is God whom we are actually glorifying and praising.

The Solemnity of the Assumption gives us several messages of faith and hope. It helps us affirm our faith and hope that we Christians will share in the resurrection of Christ. We can believe in the resurrection because it has already happened to mother Mary and she is proof that the resurrection is a reality. It reminds us of the goodness and beauty of our physical bodies. Mary is assumed into heaven not only in soul, but in both body and soul into heaven. The body is not evil and not the cause for our sinfulness, since the body is created good by God. It is we who are tempted and choose to sin and commit evil. The Solemnity of the Assumption also reaffirms and reminds us of the unity of the body and the soul. A body without a soul is a lifeless thing. But a body with a soul is a person that deserves respect and dignity. If we forget or ignore the spiritual dimension of persons and treat persons only as a physical body, we would start treating such persons as a thing to be used, abused and discarded when no longer useful. We are reminded that the body may decay but the soul continues for eternity. Because of this, we should focus more on what happens for eternity rather than focusing too much attention on what is temporary.

If we call ourselves Christians, then Mary should have a special place in our hearts, for we believe that she is the mother of Jesus, and since Jesus is both God and man, Mary is also mother of God. But our love for Mary is meant to lead us ultimately to love Jesus her son. She brought Jesus into this world and Jesus brought her into eternal life.Thus we should, together with mother Mary, praise God and thank Him for the many things He has done in our lives, and thank Him especially for the gift of His Son, Jesus.

The Annunciation of the Lord – Solemnity

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Usually, when a married woman finds herself pregnant, she would be quite happy, since she and her husband may have tried several times to become pregnant. There would be weeks of anxious expectation, highs and lows, getting clothes for the new baby, preparing everything necessary, but the budding parents-to-be would be excited and willing to get things ready. When the child is born, all in the family would be extremely happy and proud with having a new addition to the family.

But imagine for a moment, a woman being told she would become pregnant and she was betrothed. Betrothal meant the man and the woman were legally bound to each other although they could not live together until the wedding had taken place. In Israel, a woman who was unfaithful during betrothal was stoned to death. So, when the angel Gabriel said said to Mary, “Do not be afraid,” and then explained that Mary would give birth to Jesus whose father would be the Holy Spirit, Mary could have been perplexed and petrified for a while. She knew that she would face much gossiping and many other nasty things being said about her, as well as the many nasty looks that she would have to endure, but what was Mary’s response to the angel Gabriel? Mary simply said: “Be it done unto me according to your word.” Her response was faith. She believed. We see how strong her faith really was, for she was willing even to risk death for the sake of obeying God.

In recent times, some of us may have become quite attracted to things being explained scientifically. Some of us may think that science can explain and prove many things. But there are also many instances where science cannot explain or prove. Faith means believing even when science cannot explain or prove. It is because of faith that Mary, a virgin, conceived by the Holy Spirit; and an old couple, Zechariah and Elizabeth gave birth to John the Baptist. Faith believes, as the angel Gabriel said, that “Nothing is impossible to God.”

Saint Joseph, husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary – Solemnity

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Some of us seem to misunderstand the silent types. Some think that people who are silent or do not say much seem to be anti-social, or appear to be not so approachable, or even appearing to be aloof. But as we know, we should never judge a book by its cover. What appears to be something in our mind, could be quite different in reality, especially in personality and character, once we get to know the person. We sometimes call these sort of people “introverts” and for some of those among us who are extroverts or like to yakkity yak yak, meeting an introvert could be quite a harrowing or unnerving experience for some, especially if we do not know how to reach out to one.

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of Saint Joseph, husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary. That is quite a long (and impressive) title for someone we do not know much about. We do not have any record from the Gospels of what he said, and we would notice in the alternative Gospel that it was Mary who did the talking when they found Jesus in the temple. But what may seem lacking in words and sayings in the Gospel, Saint Joseph more than made up for it in action. Even though in the Gospel he found out that Mary was pregnant with Jesus, he still listened and did what the angel told him to do and took Mary to be his wife. When they found out that Jesus was missing, he became a pillar of strength for Mary and could be counted on as they frantically looked for Jesus.

From these few instances where Saint Joseph are mentioned, we can deduce that Saint Joseph trusted in the Lord and he was faithful to what was entrusted to him. In his silence, humility and trust, we learn that one can be silent, and be a source of strength. We also learn that action speaks louder than words, as what we do could sometimes mean more to another than what we merely say. So the next time you come across these silent types, be aware that these folks could sometimes be a great source of strength and dependence. We just need to be willing and humble enough to accept others for who they are and learn to appreciate their gifts, abilities and talents, giving thanks to God.

Mary, Mother of God – Solemnity

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Have you ever paused for a while to ponder what sort of life you are living? A great philosopher, Socrates, once said: “The unexamined life is not worth living.” When we do not take time to take a step back and look at our lives, some of us may begin to find life mundane and some of us may even repeat the same mistakes made by others or even by ourselves, mistakes which could have been avoided if we had properly reflected and noted what has happened.

Today we are given the example of Mary, Mother of God, who as the Gospel tells us, “treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart.” In our frantic and frenzied efforts to celebrate this New Year with a bang, we sometimes forget to follow the example of Mary to treasure and give thanks for all the things we have received in the past year and to ponder on where God is leading us. We need to reflect on one’s life because it is only through reflection and prayer that we will understand God’s plan for us. God is our constant guide who continually speaks to us, and if we do not take time to pray and reflect, we may find ourselves moving from one activity to another, possibly aimlessly and without purpose. It is only with prayer and reflection that we can come to recognise God’s presence in many different life’s situations.

As we celebrate this New Year, let us cast off our old ways, our bad habits, our selfishness, and put on the ways of Christ. Some of us like to make New Year resolutions, but making such New Year resolutions is pointless, if we do not evaluate from time to time how far we have progressed, and seek God’s guidance to help us get back onto the right track. Change can come into our lives and in the lives of the community around us, if we are willing to imitate Mary and take time to treasure all these things and ponder them in our hearts. Are we willing to make the change happen this year?

The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary – Solemnity

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Do we make it a practice to do the will of God, or are we doing our own will? Sometimes we say we are doing God’s will, but in actuality, we are doing our own thing. It seems easier to do things we are comfortable with, and to avoid those things which are less desirable or unpleasant.

In today’s readings, we see a contrast between the response of Adam and Eve, and the response of Mother Mary. Adam disobeyed God by eating the forbidden fruit, and hid in fear and shame. On the other hand, Mary responded to God’s promptings and said “I am the handmaid of the Lord, let what you have said be done to me.”

Mary said yes to the angel, knowing fully well of the unknown future ahead of her and trusting that God would take care of things. Sometimes we fear the unknown and we prefer to have some amount of certainty, but how many of us are willing to follow Mary’s example and confidently and trustingly say Yes to the many things God bestows on us? Let us look toward Mary as our example and reflect on our own response to God’s call. God invites us to dwell in His loving care, let us fear no more and remain in Him.

The Annunciation of the Lord – Solemnity

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Whose agenda are you following? Your agenda or God’s agenda? Whose will are you doing? Your will or God’s will? Whose kingdom are you building up? Your kingdom or God’s kingdom? Mary in today’s Gospel was certainly not following her agenda or doing her will or building her kingdom when she said ‘Yes’ to the angel Gabriel to become the mother of Jesus.

Imagine the consequences she faced. She could have been stoned to death according to the law of that time. For that reason Mary knew that from the human point of view she may not even be able to bring her pregnancy to its full term, but she had faith to believe that what is impossible for us is possible for God. And so with that faith she said “yes.” She surrendered into the hands of God, and it really was surrendering because she was dwelling into the unknown. She had faith to believe that no matter what difficulties would follow, God would provide a way out and a solution. Mary’s final words to the angel are a model for each of us, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.”

Surrendering to God, making that act of trust or abandonment into the hands of God, is not easy. It means letting go and like Mary facing the unknown and the unknown scares us. When we are faced with a decision like Mary, will we surrender to God and allow God to do what seems impossible from our human point of view ? Will we surrender our agenda, our will and our kingdom to God and allow God’s agenda, will and kingdom to become a reality?

Saint Joseph, husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary – Solemnity

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Many of us would know something about our fathers and we would have grown under their guidance over the years. Some of us, due to one reason or another, may have not known much about our fathers. Saint Joseph, husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary, was one father whom we know very little about. The Gospels do not mention him much, except for the beginning from the time Jesus was conceived till He was lost and found at the Temple when He was twelve.

From the little we can glean about Saint Joseph in today’s Gospel, we read that Saint Joseph was “a man of honour and wanting to spare Mary her publicity, decided to divorce her informally.” However, when the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream with a message of reassurance, Joseph “did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do.” These verses already give us some idea of the sort of person Saint Joseph was. Though he was an upright man, he was also submissive to the will of God. Today’s Gospel reminds us too of our role as fathers. Being a father or being called one is not enough; we need to show good example and yet be humble enough to listen to God’s voice. Let us be lovingly macho in our relationship with God and with others, and follow the example of Saint Joseph.

The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary – Solemnity

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Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In today’s readings, we see the response of Adam who disobeyed and hid in fear and shame. On the other hand we see Mary who responds as a disciple and said “I am the handmaid of the Lord, let what you have said be done to me.”

Mary trusted God totally even though she could have doubted and feared the consequences of saying yes to God. Despite the dangers and challenges she would face, she still said yes. She was the faithful disciple, the first to believe in Jesus, the first to receive him and give flesh to His body.

Mary said yes to the angel, yes to a life she never expected, yes to the sword that would pierce her heart, yes to the cross, yes to the unknown future ahead of her and always yes to her Son. God is always seeking us out, to love us, to care for us. When God calls us as he called Adam “Where are you”? How do we respond? Do we respond like Adam, embarrassed by our sins and hiding in fear, hoping that God will eventually leave us alone and let us be, or do we respond like Mary did, saying  “I am the handmaid of the Lord, let what you have said be done to me.”

Let us look toward Mary as our model of discipleship, and reflect on our own response to God’s call. Have we been selective in our response, picking and choosing only that which suits us? Or have we been striving hard to be like our Heavenly Mother, Mary, who gave her all, inspiring us to also give our all for the greater glory of God?