CHRISTMAS DAY: Is 52:7-10; Heb 1:1-6; Jn 1:1-18 or 1: 1-5, 9-14 Anecdotes: 1) A vision test: Once there was a Rabbi who asked his disciples the following question: “How do you know when the darkness has been overcome, when the dawn has arrived?” One of the disciples answered, “When you can look into the… Continue reading »
One-page summary: Christmas Dawn Mass (Is 62:11-12; Ti 3: 4-7; Lk 2:15-20) Introduction: The main theme of this Mass at Dawn is an invitation to enjoy, by a life of sharing love, the lasting peace and celestial joy brought by the Divine Savior. St. John gives the main reason for our Christmas joy in his… Continue reading »
Synopsis: Christmas Midnight Is 9:1-6; Titus 2:11-14; Lk 2:1-14 Introduction: Today we celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, which occurred some 2,000 years ago. Looking through the telescope of Christ’s Resurrection, the New Testament authors, as well as the Fathers of the Church, reexamined foreshadowings of the coming of Jesus, the Messiah,… Continue reading »
Christmas Vigil: Is 62:1-5, Acts 13:16-17, 22-25, Mt 1:1-25 /1:18-25 (L/18) Central theme: The Scripture lessons for today focus on the first Christmas, or the birthday of Jesus, which we celebrate today in all its solemnity. We are celebrating the fulfillment of the prophecies about our merciful God Who sent His own Son to save… Continue reading »
First, Christmas is a feast of light: Today’s readings center around the theme of light, and the Baby in the manger is the Light of the world. In the Gospel Reading of today, we are told that light from Heaven surrounded the shepherds as the Angels sang their praises of God. The Christmas reading, taken from… Continue reading »
Christmas is a feast of great rejoicing (Lk 2: 1-14) Why do we celebrate Christmas with great rejoicing? #1: First, Christmas is the Feast of God’s sending us a Savior : God undertook the Incarnation of Jesus as God-Man to save us from the bondage of sin. The Hindus believe in ten incarnations of God…. Continue reading »
One-page summary: Feast of the Holy Family [C] ( Lk 2:41-52 (L-18) Central theme: On the last Sunday of the calendar year, we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family. On this feast day we are offering our own families and all their members on the altar to ask God’s blessing on them and to obtain… Continue reading »
Advent IV-C Sunday Homily – (One-page Summary) Central theme: Today’s readings remind us that Jesus is reborn every day in ordinary people living ordinary lives, who have the willingness to respond to God’s call and the openness to do God’s will. They suggest that Christmas should inspire us to carry out God’s word as Mary… Continue reading »
Advent III Sunday Homily – (One-page Summary) The central theme of today’s readings is the command “Rejoice!” We are to do so mainly by realizing the presence of Jesus in our midst and by receiving him into our lives through our repentance, our renewal of life and our doing of God’s will. Today is called “Gaudete”… Continue reading »
One-page summary: Homily on Immaculate Conception of BVM L/18 Mary’s prophecy, given in her Magnificat, “Behold all generations will call me blessed,” was fulfilled when the Catholic Church declared four dogmas of Faith about her: 1-The Immaculate Conception, 2-The Perpetual Virginity, 3-The Divine Maternity, 4-The Assumption. The Immaculate Conception is a dogma based mainly on… Continue reading »