Category: Parish News & Events

O Key of David

The reality of my failure to plan appropriately for this season is beginning to show. The super cute cardboard houses that I just had to paint and cover with glitter so they could decorate our home are still covering our dining room table in varying stages of incompleteness. It seems like with the shortened daylight, by 6 PM, I am trying to find an excuse to head to bed, and my loving husband has to remind me that going to bed so early will just throw my internal clock farther off. I just seem out of sync. Forget my Christmas crafting, just the tasks of daily living seem to be piling up on me. No matter how I try, it seems I am always behind on dishes or laundry or both. Let’s not even talk about the kitchen counter; I really think that stuff multiplies and creates clutter whenever I turn my back.

For the first part of Advent, our reflections guided us to wake up and be aware that the time is now to prepare for the Second Coming of Our Lord. Starting on the 17th, we turned our focus to the Incarnation. We turn to look to the nativity, to Mary and Joseph’s first encounter with their son, and through them to our own encounter with the Son of God. We prepare ourselves for the graces available as we meet at the altar with all the heavenly hosts, with all our loved ones who have gone before us, where we are witness to the re-presentation of Jesus as he offers his body and blood to his disciples.

The O Antiphons lead us through this last week before Christmas by recalling the names given to the Messiah by the prophets.

O Key of David, opening the gates of God’s eternal Kingdom: come and free the prisoners of darkness!

Just like the pink candle on our Advent wreath signals the first light of dawn, just like tomorrow’s winter solstice marks the gradual lengthening of daylight, the cycle of daylight is turning and the days will grow longer once again, and we look to you, Lord Jesus, to free us from the darkness. It isn’t just the darkness of the physical night, but the darkness of all our bad habits, our sin, and from a focus that pays more attention to the created instead of the Creator.

As we travel this last leg of the journey to the nativity, pray for the grace to keep the focus on the one who left heaven to be with us, to the one who returned to heaven but didn’t leave us alone, the one who loves us with love beyond understanding. Remember that when we are in sync with God, sometimes we are out of sync with the rest of the world. When we get in sync with eternity, we are out of sync with the culture around us. Sometimes, being out of sync is a good thing because we can help us to refocus on what is most important and let go of lesser things. The pink of dawn is at the horizon, look to the light.

O Key of David, come and free us, the prisoners of darkness!

May God continue to bless you through these final days of Advent and may His graces cover you as we celebrate together, his entrance into Creation.

Contact the author

Sheryl delights in being the number 1 cheerleader and supporter for her husband, Tom who is a candidate for the Permanent Diaconate in the Diocese of Kalamazoo. They are so grateful for the opportunity to grow together in this process whether it is studying for classes, deepening their prayer life or discovering new ways to serve together. Sheryl’s day job is serving her community as the principal for St. Therese Catholic School in Wayland, Michigan. Since every time she thinks she gets life all figured out, she realizes just how far she has to go, St. Rita of Cascia is her go-to Saint for intercession and help. Home includes Brea, a Bernese Mountain dog and Carlyn, a very, very goofy Golden Retriever.

Friday of the Third Week of Advent

Reading 1 Is 7:10-14

The LORD spoke to Ahaz:
Ask for a sign from the LORD, your God;
let it be deep as the nether world, or high as the sky!
But Ahaz answered,
“I will not ask! I will not tempt the LORD!”
Then Isaiah said:
Listen, O house of David!
Is it not enough for you to weary men,
must you also weary my God?
Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign:
the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and shall name him Emmanuel.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 24:1-2, 3-4ab, 5-6

R.(see 7c and 10b) Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory.
The LORD’s are the earth and its fullness;
the world and those who dwell in it.
For he founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the rivers.
R. Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory.
Who can ascend the mountain of the LORD?
or who may stand in his holy place?
He whose hands are sinless, whose heart is clean,
who desires not what is vain.
R. Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory.
He shall receive a blessing from the LORD,
a reward from God his savior.
Such is the race that seeks for him,
that seeks the face of the God of Jacob.
R. Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory.

Alleluia

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
O Key of David,
opening the gates of God’s eternal Kingdom:
come and free the prisoners of darkness!
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Lk 1:26-38

In the sixth month,
the angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David,
and the virgin’s name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”
But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
Then the angel said to her,
“Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.
Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,
and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his Kingdom there will be no end.”

But Mary said to the angel,
“How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?”
And the angel said to her in reply,
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore the child to be born
will be called holy, the Son of God.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God.”

Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word.”
Then the angel departed from her.

– – –
Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

How Can I Know This?

Zechariah. Elderly. Devoted. Righteous. Carefully carrying out his priestly duty, entering the sanctuary to burn incense. Focused on his duties…

I’m chuckling to myself as I think of it. How often I am focused on my duties. Keeping track of details. Attentive to relationships. Planning and managing… And like good Zechariah I am totally not expecting an angel to announce to me the joyous news that what I have longed for my whole life, prayed for over and over again, was about to be given to me over and above anything I could have dreamt of. “Your wife will bear you a son, and you shall name him John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth….”

You can almost hear in the angel’s words the blaring of trumpets in heaven by excited angel choirs…

And Zechariah deflates the joyful party with a question that can’t escape his tattered and sorrow-worn idea of himself: “How can I know this? For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years.” That question is repeated by every human being down through the ages at some point or other in their lives: “How can I know this?” How can something be different from what I have experienced in my life? How can I be sure before I commit? How is it possible that I could be happy? How is it that my life could be part of something bigger? How is it that I could matter to God after what I’ve done or what has happened to me?

Friends, this is what Advent and Christmas are all about! You matter! Your life matters! You are part of a plan bigger than you! You can bring forth joy! You can be happy again!

I am not talking about throwing a party for ourselves or pretending we have high self-esteem. I am talking about the Christmas mystery that God intervenes in individual lives and in the collective history of mankind. We are that important to him. And for that we can be humbly and gratefully at peace and filled with at least quiet joy.

So what good news of great joy has been announced to you in your life by angels—heavenly or earthly—that you have been slow to believe? Today, why not change your response to that of the Virgin, and tell God simply: Behold, I am the handmaiden of the Lord. Be it done unto me according to your word.

Contact the author

Kathryn James Hermes, FSP, is the author of the newly released title: Reclaim Regret: How God Heals Life’s Disappointments, by Pauline Books and Media. An author and spiritual mentor, she offers spiritual accompaniment for the contemporary Christian’s journey towards spiritual growth and inner healing. She is the director of My Sisters, where people can find spiritual accompaniment from the Daughters of St. Paul on their journey.

Website: www.touchingthesunrise.com

Public Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/srkathrynhermes/

For monthly spiritual journaling guides, weekly podcasts and over 50 conferences and retreat programs join my Patreon community: https://www.patreon.com/srkathryn.

Thursday of the Third Week of Advent

Reading 1 Jgs 13:2-7, 24-25a

There was a certain man from Zorah, of the clan of the Danites,
whose name was Manoah.
His wife was barren and had borne no children.
An angel of the LORD appeared to the woman and said to her,
“Though you are barren and have had no children,
yet you will conceive and bear a son.
Now, then, be careful to take no wine or strong drink
and to eat nothing unclean.
As for the son you will conceive and bear,
no razor shall touch his head,
for this boy is to be consecrated to God from the womb.
It is he who will begin the deliverance of Israel
from the power of the Philistines.”

The woman went and told her husband,
“A man of God came to me;
he had the appearance of an angel of God, terrible indeed.
I did not ask him where he came from, nor did he tell me his name.
But he said to me,
‘You will be with child and will bear a son.
So take neither wine nor strong drink, and eat nothing unclean.
For the boy shall be consecrated to God from the womb,
until the day of his death.’”

The woman bore a son and named him Samson.
The boy grew up and the LORD blessed him;
the Spirit of the LORD stirred him.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 71:3-4a, 5-6ab, 16-17

R. (see 8)  My mouth shall be filled with your praise, and I will sing your glory!
Be my rock of refuge,
a stronghold to give me safety,
for you are my rock and my fortress.
O my God, rescue me from the hand of the wicked.
R. My mouth shall be filled with your praise, and I will sing your glory!
For you are my hope, O LORD;
my trust, O God, from my youth.
On you I depend from birth;
from my mother’s womb you are my strength.
R. My mouth shall be filled with your praise, and I will sing your glory!
I will treat of the mighty works of the LORD;
O God, I will tell of your singular justice.
O God, you have taught me from my youth,
and till the present I proclaim your wondrous deeds.
R. My mouth shall be filled with your praise, and I will sing your glory!

Alleluia

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
O Root of Jesse’s stem,
sign of God’s love for all his people;
come to save us without delay!
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Lk 1:5-25

In the days of Herod, King of Judea,
there was a priest named Zechariah
of the priestly division of Abijah;
his wife was from the daughters of Aaron,
and her name was Elizabeth.
Both were righteous in the eyes of God,
observing all the commandments
and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly.
But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren
and both were advanced in years.

Once when he was serving as priest
in his division’s turn before God,
according to the practice of the priestly service,
he was chosen by lot
to enter the sanctuary of the Lord to burn incense.
Then, when the whole assembly of the people was praying outside
at the hour of the incense offering,
the angel of the Lord appeared to him,
standing at the right of the altar of incense.
Zechariah was troubled by what he saw, and fear came upon him.

But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah,
because your prayer has been heard.
Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son,
and you shall name him John.
And you will have joy and gladness,
and many will rejoice at his birth,
for he will be great in the sight of the Lord.
He will drink neither wine nor strong drink.
He will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb,
and he will turn many of the children of Israel
to the Lord their God.
He will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah
to turn the hearts of fathers toward children
and the disobedient to the understanding of the righteous,
to prepare a people fit for the Lord.”

Then Zechariah said to the angel,
“How shall I know this?
For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.”
And the angel said to him in reply,
“I am Gabriel, who stand before God.
I was sent to speak to you and to announce to you this good news.
But now you will be speechless and unable to talk
until the day these things take place,
because you did not believe my words,
which will be fulfilled at their proper time.”

Meanwhile the people were waiting for Zechariah
and were amazed that he stayed so long in the sanctuary.
But when he came out, he was unable to speak to them,
and they realized that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary.
He was gesturing to them but remained mute.

Then, when his days of ministry were completed, he went home.

After this time his wife Elizabeth conceived,
and she went into seclusion for five months, saying,
“So has the Lord done for me at a time when he has seen fit
to take away my disgrace before others.”

– – –
Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

A Righteous Man

One of my favorite things about St. Joseph is the fact that he never speaks in Scripture, yet we can learn so much about the man he was. In today’s Gospel, we can learn a great deal about the integrity of his character, the strength of his faith, and his will of obedience.

One of the first facts we learn about Joseph is that he is a righteous man, meaning he is virtuous. He does what is right, even when it is hard. We are told of his righteousness in regard to his decision to quietly break off his engagement with Mary. It states in Scripture that he was “unwilling to expose her to shame.” For context, the shame the author is referring to does not mean the shame one might have today of embarrassment or gossip. Historically, if a woman of their time was pregnant outside of marriage, it meant death. Mary would have been stoned to death, and yes, she knew that when she said yes to bearing Jesus. The mere fact that Joseph was deciding to leave her quietly was to protect Mary and the child’s life. What love he must have had for Mary, that he wished no harm upon her.

We learn that an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and told him not to fear taking Mary as his wife and into his home. This shows us that perhaps Joseph was scared to do this, scared to take Mary as his wife when he didn’t know whose child it was that she bore. I’m sure he experienced confusion and fear in this situation. The angel assures him not to fear and tells him the truth that the Holy Spirit has conceived this child within her, and he is to name him Jesus. Since Joseph was a good and faithful Jew, he probably knew the prophecy that “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel.” Joseph shows strength in his faith and obedience to God’s will, for when he woke, “he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him.”

I don’t know about you, but St. Joseph inspires me. He inspires me in the call of trust. Like Mary, Joseph had to trust God completely. He had to trust that what he encountered in his dream was real and was God’s will for him. He had to trust that he was called to be the foster father of Jesus, the husband of the Mother of God. He didn’t say “why me?” or doubt. In the act of trust came his free will to choose. He chose to do as the angel commanded. Today, let us call up St. Joseph to guide us in integrity, trust, and obedience, to whatever God commands us to. May we know, like Joseph, that the Son of God, Emmanuel, is with us. May we welcome Him into our homes with trust and obedience, like St. Joseph.

St. Joseph, the Worker
St. Joseph, Husband of Mary
St. Joseph, Foster Father of Jesus
St. Joseph, Patron of the Dying
St. Joseph, Patron of the Universal Church
St. Joseph, Patron of Fathers
St. Joseph, Patron of Immigrants
St. Joseph, Illustrious Son of David
St. Joseph, Splendor of Patriarchs
St. Joseph, Chaste Protector of the Virgin
St. Joseph, Zealous Defender of Christ
St. Joseph, Most Pure
St. Joseph, Most Obedient
St. Joseph, Mirror of Patience
St. Joseph, Terror of Demons,
Pray for us!

Contact the author

Briana is the Pastoral Minister at St. Mark Church in Cleveland, OH. She is also a district manager at Arbonne. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Theology and Catechetics from the Franciscan University of Steubenville, OH and is excited to use these skills to serve the Church. “My soul has been refined and I can raise my head like a flower after a storm.” -St. Therese