SEND HER AWAY…

FEAST OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY. 

Micah 5:1-4 
1 Now you are walled about with a wall; siege is laid against us; with a rod they strike upon the cheek the ruler of Israel.
2 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days.
3 Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in travail has brought forth; then the rest of his brethren shall return to the people of Israel.
4 And he shall stand and feed his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth.

Matthew 1:1-16,19-23

1 THE book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,3 and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram,
4 and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon,
5 and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse,
6 and Jesse the father of David the king. And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah,
7 and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asa,8 and Asa the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah,9 and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah,
10 and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah,
11 and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.12 And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of She-alti-el, and She-alti-el the father of Zerubbabel,13 and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor,14 and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud,15 and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob,16 and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit;19 and her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to send her away quietly.20 But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit;
21 she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:23 “Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel” (which means, God with us).

MEDITATION

THE PROPHET MICAH foresee the capture and subjucation of the Jewish people that will be a sign for the manifestation of the promised Messiah in a least known town of Bethlehem—the house of bread—signifying the Ark that shall be the place of rest of the Lord. Henceforth the Messiah shall be with His flock and feed them with supernatural Bread of the Presence untill the second coming.

St MATTHEW set out the genealogy foretelling the manifestation of the Messiah from the root of Abraham, following the Davidic lineage up to Joseph who betrothed the virgin Mary, the one chosen by God to conceive a son named Emmanuel. 

Christs stupendous supernatural act of love, grace and mercy made it possible for God to live within His people, in the form of supernatural bread of the Presence and drink—flesh and blood—that heal, transform and nourish us who hunger. Before giving up His spirit, Christ bequeathed Mary the “ark,” a holy vessel who was the resevoir and—house of bread— to be our mother also. Jn 19:26 It stands to reason that like David (2Sam 6:9), Joseph and Elizabeth (Lk 1:41-42) we must not be afraid or sceptical to welcome Mary into our homes also to reignite our faith in Christ her son. To ignore her and treat her as nothing more than a vessel to be discarded, is to reject the One whom she ‘delivered’ for our salvation! 

LET US PRAY:Psalms 13:6 

:6 I will sing to the LORD, because he has dealt bountifully with me.

Commentary. Henry R SYLVESTER Note: The daily scripture readings are taken from the Roman Missal which the Catholic Church use in the daily Celebration of the Holy Eucharist throughout the world.Some weekly readings may differ because of the celebration of local feast days