When God chooses us … it doesn’t matter how prepared or not we imagine ourselves to be. Father Jean-Pierre Ruiz reflects on the prophet’s call as he explains this week’s Sunday Scriptures.
Sunday Scriptures
Building on God’s Foundation
Father Jean-Pierre Ruiz discusses the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, books focusing on a vitally important period in the centuries before Christ: the return of the Judean exiles from Babylon after the fall of the Babylonian empire to the Persian armies, the rebuilding of the ruined walls of Jerusalem and the reconstruction of the Temple.
Heeding Mary’s Words
Father Jean-Pierre Ruiz reflects on the nine words Mary says in this Sunday’s Gospel reading and other times the Mother of God is quoted in the Gospels.
Dive Into Your Mission in Christ
In Luke’s Gospel this week we read about an adult who took a dip at the deep end, so to speak. That’s Jesus, the feast of whose baptism by John we celebrate this Sunday.
Inspired by the Magi
Father Jean-Pierre Ruiz reflects on the Scripture readings for the Feast of the Epiphany, when the magi undertook a journey of discovery that brought them to Jerusalem, where they found a little Child with a high calling.
Jesus, Mary and Joseph: No Ordinary Family
ONE OF THE most beautiful Christmas cards I have seen is a play on the typical picture of the Holy Family. In this particular scene, Mary is asleep on a cot made of hay and Joseph is walking while cradling the Infant in his arms. It is a tender scene of the healthy love of a father for his son which, I must admit, makes me very jealous. I have often said that if I have any regrets about my vocation, the regret would be that I will never have a son. So, I find the image of Joseph holding his newborn baby boy quite touching.
Led by Faith to Imitate Christ
At the moment of the Visitation it is not Elizabeth who recognizes the presence of Jesus, but John who leaps in her womb to let his mother know that she is in His presence. It is his joy that causes Elizabeth to proclaim Mary’s blessedness, and question her own worthiness that the mother of her Lord should come to her. But it is precisely because Mary has come to know that she is the mother of the Lord that she went to Elizabeth.
Waiting and Preparing for The Promised One
Waiting for the arrival of a blind date causes anxiety and the arrival, at times, disappointment. Waiting for the return of a loved one from military service causes excitement and the arrival brings great joy. The difference is in the preexistence of a love relationship. Advent is an opportunity to evaluate our love relationship with Christ as preparation for the holy days that are near as well as the eventual meeting with Him face to face.
We Have Work to Do
IN THE FIRST reading from the prophet Baruch, the word “glory” is used six times. He proclaims a joyful message, calling all of Jerusalem to rejoice because they have been remembered by God, Who comes in splendor to bring them into a share of His glory. Their sufferings and pains are at an end and God’s majesty and justice is to be revealed through them.
Jesus: Dark Stranger or Bright Brother?
It is hardly the biggest surprise in the world, but one that we forget so frequently that it would be funny if it were not so sad: Jesus is on our side. He is no one of whom to be afraid. In Advent, when we confront the fact that the Second Coming is closer now than ever before, we start to think about the end of the world and do so with discomfort. Do we forget so easily the one with whom we are dealing? I’m afraid we do.