The Nexus

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Lectionary Readings for Feast of the Holy Family,
Year A

“…the angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in
a dream to Joseph…”

The gospel for this Sunday is taken from the gospel
of Matthew. It tells the story of how the angel of
the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, to tell him
that Herod has plans to kill the Child Jesus; and
Joseph must flee with his family to Egypt.  Upon
waking up, Joseph immediately took the child and his
mother and left that night for Egypt.  In another
gospel passage, also in Matthew, we are told that
because Herod felt deceived by the Magi with regard
to the child, Herod had infant boys two years and
younger killed in the whole town of Bethlehem.

This is not the first time the angel of the Lord
appeared to Joseph in a dream.  The first time was
when Joseph wanted to divorce Mary quietly because
he found out that she was with child.  However, the
angel told him in a dream that the child within the
womb of Mary has been conceived by the Holy Spirit.
From these gospel accounts, we can see that Joseph
is gifted with dreams that communicate to him the
messages of the Lord.  Another Joseph who is also
gifted in relation to dreams, but with the sensing
of their meaning is the Joseph in the Old Testament
- the son of Jacob.  We now understand that in Jewish
religious tradition, dreams are occasions for God
sending his messages to us and not only for our
selves alone but like in the case of Joseph, for
the sake of the whole family [especially the Child
Jesus].

Let me tell you a story of how God uses dreams to
save us from danger.  This is a true story.  And
the context is the Second World War.  It tells of
an army doctor with the rank of lieutenant who was
travelling with his companion soldiers.  When he
was sleeping, he dreamt of his deceased father telling
him to go away from that place he was in.  So, upon
waking up, he left the place and also told his
companion soldiers to vacate the area.  Within a
short time after they had left, the very area upon
which he was sleeping was bombed by the Japanese.
This army doctor was a very religious Catholic and
he never stopped relating this story of how God
had saved him through the warning of his father.

The family is such a well-bonded social unit that
they share together the securities they need in
life.  In the story of Joseph saving the Child
Jesus, we see how a father, guided by the Spirit
of God, takes charge of the safety of the whole
family.  In the true story of the army doctor, it
was also the image of his deceased father that
warned him of the impending danger to come. Fathers
have very special roles in the family. They are
the “security guards”, so to speak, who are always
on the lookout so that his family may not be
harmed.  In our gospel passage, even if Joseph
never spoke a word, we see him as a man of action
- acting on the word of God to him in a dream and
implementing it as immediately as he could.

Let us pray especially for the fathers of the
family to be always alert, keen, watchful and
vigilant, so that any harmful element that may
destroy any member of his family may be avoided.
Let us pray that fathers of the family may wisely
and prudently steer the direction of their families
to safety by being docile to the Holy Spirit, who
will make Himself known through many means, even
to means as common as human dreams.
 

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Lectionary Readings for the 4th Sunday of Advent,
Year A

“It is by the Holy Spirit that she has conceived
this child.”

The gospel for this Sunday is taken from the gospel
of Matthew. It tells the story of how Mary was already
engaged to Joseph, but when Joseph found that she was
already with child, he wanted to quietly divorce
her.  The Lord however appeared in a dream to Joseph
telling him that the child in Mary’s womb was not
conceived by flesh, but by the Holy Spirit.  And the
Lord told Joseph that he is to name this child Jesus.
This occasion then found its reference in the Old
Testament prophet Isaiah who said: “The virgin shall
be with child and give birth to a son, and they
shall call him Emmanuel, a name which means ‘God
is with us’”.

Some scientists say that virgin births are recorded
in their experiments with animals.  This is of course
of the natural order and may have been occasioned by
a rare genetic evolvement in the animal’s genes.  But
what is related here in the gospel is something beyond
the natural order.  It is a supernatural mystery and
one that invites us to believe with the gift of faith.
Since Mary had already been conceived “immaculately”,
meaning without sin, then she was filled with so much
supernatural graces from God that when the Holy Spirit
overshadowed her, the Word of God became flesh in her
womb.  And we know that the fruit of her womb did not
grow and live like any ordinary man.  In his public
life, He preached about God’s Kingdom, He taught God’s
ways through parables, and He healed so many people
from their ills and evils - casting away demons and
devils.

Though Jesus was the Son of God and capable of great
miracles and wonders, He looked just like any other
Jewish man of His time.  And He ate and drank with
people - eating the same food as they ate and drinking
the same drink as they drank.  He truly lived out His
name which means “God is with us”.  No other world
religion has this same incarnational mystery as we
Christians have.  This is the mystery that truly
expresses the great love God has for us: that even
though we are sinful, He took on our human form, so
that our humanity may be dignified again and we can
be what we should really be: sons and daughters of
God!  So, when we have the occasion to gaze upon the
statue of the Child Jesus in the crib, let us remember
that God came to be like us at one point of our human
history to tell us that He loves us and wants us to
spread the gospel of hope.  He wants us to tell others
that there is hope for all of us, without exception,
as long as we respond to God in faith and charity.

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Lectionary Readings for the 3rd Sunday of Advent,
Year A

“Go back and report to John what you hear and
see…”

Last Sunday, we found John the Baptist baptizing the
people in the Jordan river.  In the gospel for this
Sunday, we find him again but in a different context.
In the present gospel situation, he has been put in
prison because of his prophetic stand against the king.
While in prison, John heard about the works that
Jesus was performing. Because of his predicament, it
is but human for John the Baptist to question whether
Jesus was indeed the Messiah and the Saviour.  Whereas,
while he was still free in the Jordan river baptizing
people and definitely sure of Jesus as the Lamb of God
who takes away the sins of the world, now that he has
lost his freedom, his very situation of limitation
and suffering has caused him to question: “Are you
the One who is to come, or must we wait for someone
else?”

Suffering, discomfort, situations of slavery or
lack of freedom, pain, illness, losses, broken
relationships and many more human situations where
people are in bondage, lead mankind to hope for a
future and for an ideal time where there will be
freedom, joy, peace and justice.  This hope is
especially expressed every 3rd Sunday of Advent -
a time always traditionally known as “Gaudete
Sunday”: a Sunday of joyful expectation and the
knowledge that our Savior is coming to redeem us
from all our slavery and bondage.  In the gospel
for this Gaudete Sunday, Jesus points to this “joyful
expectation” of the coming of the Kingdom of God thru
His mission and works where: the blind see, the
cripples walk, the lepers are cured, the deaf hear,
the dead are alive again, and the poor hear the
Good News.  During this time of Advent, we find
ourselves called to look at these works of Jesus
as a way to “joyfully expect” the coming of the
Kingdom in our lives and touch our families with
the peace of Christ.

As Christmas day approaches in a few days, each day
becomes merrier.  Christmas songs are played more often
and many more symbols of Christmas are placed not only
in the home but also all around the city through
beautiful lights and decorations. The family feels
happy that Christmas day will come soon.  And yet,
despite this joyful expectation, the family knows and
is still aware of the hardships of life.  Someone gets
sick.  There are less Christmas gifts under the Christmas
tree this year.  Christmas bonuses are not as big as
the year before.  And in some countries, Christmas is
even “attacked” as not appropriate for the modern times. 
Even with all the hardships and difficulties of life,
the Catholic family continues to hope with a joyful
expectation of the presence of Christ and His peace
this Christmas. It is prayer and participation in the
celebration of the Eucharistic miracle which strengthens
the family’s hope and helps them ground this hope in
God’s saving grace and healing power.  So, inspite of
all we hear on the news all over the world, nothing can
take away our hope in Christ if we place our whole
trust in Him and make Him the center of our family’s
life.

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Lectionary Readings for the 2nd Sunday of Advent,
Year A

“Reform your lives! The reign of God is at
hand.”

In the gospel for the 2nd Sunday of Advent, we find
the person of John the Baptist making his appearance
as a preacher in the desert of Judea.  He was calling
the people of Israel to repentance and to be baptized
by water in the river Jordan.  John the Baptizer was
such a strong prophet that when even the Pharisees
and Sadducees wanted to be baptized, he berated them
and bared their intentions that were not sincere. 
Although John’s presence was strong among the people,
he admits and makes known to them that One who is
more powerful than him is coming - and this One will
baptize the people not by water but in the Holy
Spirit and fire.

When we listen to the words of John the Baptist in
the gospel, his strong call for us to repent and
reform our lives is a call that must be heeded not
only every Advent season, but also throughout all
our life.  The need for us to reform is not once
and for all.  Just as the coming of Christ in our
life happens many times. Every time we seek to
reform our lives for love of God, we prepare our
souls to be purified and purged of all that is not
of God.  And when we do, we should also be aware
that it is not by our strength alone that we can
change for the better. It is by the help of the
graces that we receive through the Sacraments and
by letting God’s Word seep down into our minds
and hearts until it is integrated in the very fiber
of our being.

Advent is a sacred season.  We sometimes forget
that it is because of the many celebrations and
commercial events that are happening all around us. 
But if we take Advent as the sacred season it is,
we shall find and discover Christ again in our
life and probably know Him better. If we already
sense the presence of Christ in the celebrations
of the Eucharist, how much more shall we feel His
being among us when Christmas time comes and the
family is gathered together as one and celebrating
the peace and hope He gives to all.  Let us really
make our Advent preparation one that shall let
Christ dwell more intensely in our hearts this
coming Christmas season.