TODAY'S WORD

By


Fr. Aloysius Santiago sdb
Rector and Parish Priest
Don Bosco Shrine
Lingarajapuram, Bangalore


As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Luke: 1:44

TODAY'S REFLECTION

The 1st reading is also about the joy of God's blessings, which is described as shouting for joy, a rejoicing heart, with no evil to fear.

The 1st reading even describes how much God wants to give His blessings: He will exult with joy over you, he will renew you by his love, he will dance with shouts of joy for you.

God is theologically interpreted as the lover and we the beloved.

Today, he advances to meet the beloved and calls out to the beloved to come out and meet him in love along the way.

He is near, and is coming into our lives; he wants us to come out of ourselves to meet him with faith and love. One way to do that is to reach out to others, share in their joys and console the sorrowful.

The gospel passage is indeed about the joy of God's blessings.

Mary went to rejoice with Elizabeth and to assist her. In Mary, God visited the household of Zechariah and brought them so much joy that even a child in the womb felt it.

She made choices to grow in imitation of Her Son and helped others to experience Divine Joy

We too can be agents of divine visitation to others, bringing them joy, love and peace.

Yes, God is so eager to give His blessings on us. We just have to ask and we will receive.

As the words of St Teresa of Avila…
“Christ has no body but yours,

No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks compassion on this world,
Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,
Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world”

RESOLUTION

Let's resolve to share God's blessings with others, as Mary did, then we will receive blessing upon blessing.

May we deepen our resolve to live a “life of sharing”…especially as we approach the Nativity of Christ

Mother Mary is our model towards this.

TODAY'S SAINT

SAINT PETER CANISIUS

Peter Canisius was born in Holland in 1521. He joined the Society of Jesus and was sent to Germany at the time of the Counter Reformation. He lived most of his life in Germany where he worked hard as a catechist, preacher, missionary, papal legate as well as founder of seminaries and colleges. He wrote a famous “Little Catechism” to teach, defend and strengthen the Catholic faith. He died in 1597.