December 13, 2015
Gospel: Lk 3:10-18
The crowds asked John the Baptist, “What should we
do?” He said to them in reply, “Whoever has two cloaks should share with the
person who has none. And whoever has food should do likewise.” Even tax
collectors came to be baptized and they said to him, “Teacher, what should we
do?” He answered them, “Stop collecting more than what is prescribed.” Soldiers
also asked him, “And what is it that we should do?” He told them, “Do not
practice extortion
(1), do not falsely accuse anyone, and be satisfied with your
wages.”
Now the people were filled with expectation, and all
were asking in their hearts whether John might be the Christ. John answered
them all, saying, “I am baptizing you with water, but one mightier than I is
coming. I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals. He will baptize
you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan (2) is in his hand to clear his threshing floor (3)
and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff (4) he will burn with
unquenchable fire.” Exhorting (5) them in many other ways, he preached
good news to the people.
(http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/121315.cfm)
The difficult words
(1) Extortion means taking something from
someone wrongfully and by force.
(2,3,4) John is using images from the
wheat harvest. Farmers would collect wheat from fields and put it on a threshing floor, where they would beat it. This
beating action would make the good wheat (which was heavier) fall to the
bottom, and the chaff (skins and other unwanted
things) would come to the top. Then they would use a winnowing fan to blow the chaff away from the
wheat.
(5) To exhort means to encourage someone to
do something.
This week’s spotlight
Waiting for the Messiah
The Jewish people had been waiting for centuries for
God's most beautiful promise to come true. They were waiting for a messenger
from God, the Messiah, who would save them. The prophets foretold the Messiah’s
coming and urged the people to prepare for his arrival. The Messiah the Jewish
people were waiting for is Jesus. Some of them did not recognize that Jesus was
the Messiah because they were expecting a warrior king, not a messenger of
love.
"Through him, with him, in him"
The words “Eucharist'’ and “eucharistic" come
from a Greek word meaning "thanks." The eucharistic prayer is a
beautiful prayer of thanks to God the Father. We thank him in many ways
throughout the prayer. We are especially grateful for Jesus, our Savior. The
whole prayer is made in thanksgiving for Jesus, through Jesus, with Jesus, and
in Jesus. It concludes with this
powerful prayer of praise known as the doxology: “Through him, with him, in
him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, almighty
Father for ever and ever." The congregation joins in the prayer of the
priest by responding with the great "Amen”.
Reflection
True joy
For some of us, Christmas isn’t always a happy time. There can be great
tension in a family, or painful memories of difficult times. How does God want
us to respond to such sadness? The Scriptures this week give us the answer.
They command us to rejoice! They promise us that no matter what happens, God
never wants us to be afraid or discouraged. He calls us to be glad and full of
hope. Why? We rejoice because God is coming to be with us, to save and renew
us. Our joy doesn’t come from easily getting what we want, but from the love of
God that evil can never conquer. This is the joy of love. Even when things are
difficult, we can still share our food and clothing with those who don’t have
enough, as John the Baptist suggests in the Gospel. There is no better way to
prepare for Christmas than by turning to others and sharing our joy.
Discussion questions
1. What are some of the things John tells the people to do?
2. Whom did people think John might be?
3. What did John answer them?
4. Who is the Messiah that John is preaching about?
5. This week, what changes of your lives are you going to make to
welcome God?
Praying after Communion
After
receiving Holy Communion,
you can say this prayer silently to yourself. If you
have not yet
received your First Communion, you can still say this prayer because of your desire to
receive Jesus.
Father, through Jesus, in
communion with the whole Church, I thank you for coming into my heart. May this
communion strengthen us in your love, so that we can pay more attention to
those around us, especially those who are unhappy or in need. Help us to be
joyful messengers of the Good News of your coming as we prepare for Christmas.
Crossword Puzzle
http://usccb.org/bible/readings-audio.cfm