Reflection:
Mary will bear a son and his name is Jesus.  Notwithstanding the controversy that may have surrounded Mary’s conception at a time she was awaiting her own wedding to Joseph upon whom she had been betrothed was in fact in accord with the Jewish custom. In order for us to grasp this reality, we need to understand the custom of the Jewish people. This custom has at least three steps leading to a Jewish wedding.

First is the engagement which is often made when the couple were still children and it was normally the parents or a professional match-maker who arranges the marriage without the couple having even seen each other. The Jewish nation considers marriage as too serious a step that it should be left to the dictates of the human heart.

The second step is the betrothal.  This is what the Jewish call the ratification of the engagement; but even at this point, the engagement can be broken if the girl is unwilling to go on with the betrothal. Once this second step is entered into, it then becomes binding. This period of betrothal lasts for one year and the couple is known as man and wife but without the rights of a married couple. This union can only be terminated by divorce; this was the procedure that Joseph might have mulled when he came to know that Mary was pregnant.

The third stage is the marriage proper which takes place at the end of the betrothal period. And if we are to follow the Jewish customs, then the relationships of Joseph and Mary are perfectly clear.

Joseph had no choice but to bow down to the will of God after he was told that Mary is to bear a child that is begotten by the Holy Spirit and that he must call the child Jesus which is the Greek form of Joshua (Joshua means Jehovah or Salvation).  Joseph was also told that the child to be born would grow to be the Savior who would save the people of God from their sins.  Like any other Jew, Joseph believed that the Holy Ghost (as the Jews call the Holy Spirit) not only brought God’s truth to men, but also enabled men to recognize that truth when they saw it.  And by the power of the Holy Spirit, Joseph knew that Jesus who is yet to be born is being sent to open men’s eyes to the truth.

The Jews also relates the Spirit of God with the work of creation and it is through the Holy Spirit that God performed His work. The Spirit is the Creator of the World and the Giver of Life. Thus, it is through the birth of Jesus that God’s life-giving and creating power will come into the world. That power which is to come is what will bring order to our disordered life.  The power that will come with the birth of Jesus is what will breathe life into that which there was no life and this is the same power that will breathe life into our weaknesses and frustrations. The Jews also refers to the Spirit not only with the work of creation but with the work of re-creation. The Jews believe that when men are dead in sin and in lethargy, it is the Spirit of God which can waken them to life anew.

But what the Jews failed to grasp and which we Catholics and Christians alike now believe is that Jesus will come into the world with the power that can re-create life. The coming of Jesus can bring to life the soul which is dead in sin and only Jesus has the power to revive again the ideals that have died and, he can make strong again the will to goodness that has died among men who are surrounded by the world. Jesus can renew life when men have lost all that life means.

There is more to this passage than the fact that Jesus is to be born of a virgin mother.  The essence of this Gospel of Matthew particularly this passage is that in the birth of Jesus, the Spirit of God will become operative like never before in this world. It is the Spirit of God who will bring God’s truth to men and it is also the Spirit who will enable men to recognize the truth when they see it. In effect, it is the Spirit through the birth of Jesus who is going to be God’s agent in the re-creation of the world since it is only the Spirit who alone can re-create the human soul when it has lost the life it ought to have.

Now is the last chance to prepare ourselves for this great moment.  Now is the last chance to repent of our sins with a sincerity of heart and to receive the Sacrament of Confession.  As we come towards the end of the Advent Season, let us remember those who have not yet prepared themselves for the coming of the Lord.  Let us ask the Spirit of Jesus to implant within their hearts the urgency of being and remaining in a state of grace. The salvation that comes with the coming of Jesus is what everyone should look forward to in this Advent Season.

Reflection Questions:
1.In this Season when I am called to repentance and seek God’s forgiveness, what are the areas in my life that I need to change or give up that I may remain in a state of grace in preparation for the coming of the Messiah?

2. What are the things that I am prepared to do when He comes for me to become a true disciple?

This Week’s Daily Mass Reading Guide:
December 22, 2013 (Sun)     Is 7:10-14/Ps 24:1,2,3,4,5,6/Rom 1:17-/Mt 1:18-24
December 23, 2013 (Mon)     Mal 3:1-4,23,24/Ps 25:4,5,8,9,10,14.Lk 1:57-66
December 24, 2013 (Tues)    2Sm 7:1-5,8-11/Ps 89:2,3,4,5,27,29/Lk 1:67-79
December 25, 2013 (Wed)    Is 62:1-5/Ps 89:4,5,16,17,27,29/Acts 13:16,17,22,25/Mt 1:1-25
December 26, 2013 (Thur)    Is 52:7-10/Ps 98:1,2,3,4,5,6/Heb 1:1-6/Jn 1-18 or 1-9,9-14
December 27, 2013 (Fri)       Acts 6:8-10;7:54-59/Ps 31:3,4,6,8,17,21/Mt 10:17-22
December 28, 2013 (Sat)     1Jn 1:1-4/Ps 97:1,2,5,6,11,12/Jn 20:1,2-8

“Ignorance of the Bible is ignorance of Christ.  Read your Bible daily!”

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