December 24 2018
Mi 5:1-4a; Heb 10:5-10; Luke 1:39-45

Mary is the finest flower of such obedience.

Gospel reading invites us to recognize Mary, the maiden with child, as the fulfillment of the Emmanuel prophecy, and Jesus, her son, as the fulfillment of the promises made to David.
He is the universal king and lawgiver and those who live according to his commandments (that is, with interior “pure heart” and exterior “clean hands” righteousness) will enjoy his blessings: “Emmanuel, our King and lawgiver, come and save us, Lord our God.”
Now, this is our journey:
We have come to the fourth week of Advent. We have journeyed together for preparing ourselves to welcome his coming. The question is:

What do you long for, with all your heart, at this time of your life

—especially at this moment?

Some of us may be seeking love, companionship, understanding, or peace of mind.  Some may struggle in the thought how to get better from any illness. Others may desire more specific things: a home, employment, the strength to make a hard decision. Some may be praying just to get through this holiday season in one piece. Some want to escape the harsh experiences of the past year or cling to the things and to people that they may feel are slipping away. There are still so many desires and longings… which somehow unthinkable…

Whatever the deepest desires of your heart, the message is, to lay them at the feet of the Christ child today.

These are the truths that we have known:
We are taught to venerate God more than anything else. God also wants to be with us and invites us into the divine life, at the heart of which is love. God is revealed in the commandments and in Jesus as Emmanuel: “God is with us.” We can talk with God, just as prophets, Moses, Mary did. All we need to do is speak and listen. All we need is to recognize our longings, and sincerely to trust, to hope, and to surrendering those longings. Up to the point when we can say: “Behold, I come to do your will, O God.” Amen.