Catholics for a Changing Church

Reflections for week beginning 4 December 2022

by Derek Reeve


Reflections on the Readings at Daily Mass

Sunday, December 4th, Second Sunday in Advent in Year One

Readings: Isaiah 11/1-10 : Paul’s Letter to the Romans 15/4-9 : Matthew 3/1-12

Not only the prophet Isaiah but John the Baptist also has an important place in this time of preparation for the feast of the Lord’s birth. This is, of course, because it was John who prepared the way for Jesus before he began his public ministry.

In Matthew’s Gospel which is read this year on Sundays, John the Baptist appears quite abruptly after the account of the visit of the Wise Men and the slaughter of the Innocents. Matthew makes a point of reminding his readers straightaway that the appearance of John fulfils the prophecy of Isaiah. Moreover, Matthew’s description of John’s clothing is calculated to remind the reader of the prophet Elijah who wore similar clothing.

John seems to have attracted large numbers of people. His baptism, unlike that already practised by the Jews, was much more concerned with confession of sins and repentance for them rather than a simple ritual of purification.

At this point Matthew also takes the opportunity of introducing those who would be Jesus’ chief critics and opponents. At the time this Gospel was written, probably towards the end of the first century, these would still have been the opponents of the Jewish Christian community for whom it was intended. Although the Gospel writer lumps them together, these two groups were very different and would have opposed Jesus for different reasons. The Pharisees were concerned with the exact observance of the Torah, the Jewish Law and for living devout and religious lives, and they would have seen in Jesus someone who sat lightly to the Law and its observances. The Sadducees were those who had power over the Temple and for them Jesus would have been someone who was a threat to their power and authority.

John reproaches the Pharisees and the Sadducees calling them vipers, dangerous men who were able to wound others. In spite of their devotion to the Law and its observances and the rituals that went with it, they showed no sign of care and concern for others, or in John’s words, they bore no fruit. John dismisses their claim to have Abraham as their father and unless they change their way of life, his baptism would have no meaning for them. Like trees that bear no fruit, they are doomed and John makes it clear that his baptism must follow a real change of heart and is the sign of beginning a new way of life.

Returning to the words of the prophet Isaiah, that John would prepare the way of the Lord, John declares that the One who will follow him will baptise not only with water. His baptism will be with the Holy Spirit and with fire. With great humility John declares that he is unworthy even to carry the sandals of the One who is to come. That One will bring about a complete and utter change, and the Kingdom of Heaven which John has been proclaiming will be truly ‘close at hand’.

The reading from the prophet Isaiah is one that is very familiar, and it paints a picture of the coming Kingdom or Reign of God. The prophet describes the One who is to come as one who is descended from Jesses, the father of King David and on him the fullness of God’s Spirit will rest. He will be on the side of the poor, and he will judge the rich and the powerful but all this he will do with integrity. He will be the faithful One upon whom the poor and the needy can rely.

The prophet then paints the idyllic picture of the Reign of God which is well known and in which even the animal creation is brought together to live in peace, one with another. The country will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord and all hurt and harm will disappear. This will be a sign for the whole world to see and all will gravitate towards it. Then, with powerful words, the prophet foretells that a ‘a little boy shall lead them’. It is the birth of that little boy that Advent prepares us to celebrate.

The reading from Paul’s letter to the Christian community in Rome backs up the Gospel’s constant reminder that Jesus was the fulfilment of all that the ancient Jewish prophets foretold. The writer reminds his hearers that the Scriptures, by which he means what we call the Old Testament, were meant to teach them, and he reminds them how Jesus has come, not only to be the fulfilment of the Hebrew Scriptures but also to proclaim God’s love to the whole world.

The Gospel reading is a reminder that the practice of our religion is not all about the Mass, the sacraments, prayer and so on. It is about the proclamation of the Kingdom or Reign of God’s love. That is what our Baptism into Christ and our membership of his body, the Church, really involves. We are called to be, both in our lives and in our Christian communities, the proclamation of the Reign of Love.

As we reflect on the reading from the prophet Isaiah, we are given several clues as to what that Reign or Kingdom is about. It is about justice for the poor and the oppressed, it is about integrity in our lives, and it is about the whole of creation.

As we think about Jesus’ coming at Christmas we have also to think of his coming in the here and now. He comes in the poor of the world, in the victims of war and oppression and even in those who perpetrate such dreadful atrocities. Christ is there in each and every one who is in need and, although it is easier to find him in the victims, those who do terrible things are, for the most part, victims themselves.

Whereas John’s Baptism had to be preceded by repentance and a change in one’s life, Baptism into Jesus makes us members of his Body in the world and calls us to ongoing repentance, conversion and renewal. Each day Jesus challenges us to live the new life of the Kingdom. We have to ask ourselves how much am I truly concerned for those in need and what am I doing about it? How much am I concerned for the earth on which we live and the richness and diversity of its inhabitants and what I am doing to preserve all this for the future?

Advent is the time for us to reflect on these things and to take a stand against the commercialization which characterises this season of the year.

The Letter to the Romans calls us to take the Scriptures seriously as a way of hearing the Word of God speaking to us as we allow ourselves to be taught by that Word.

It is interesting that in the old selection of readings before the renewed Mass which we now have, this reading from the Letter to the Romans was already the one appointed for this Sunday every year. After the break with Rome this reading was retained in the Book of Common Prayer for the reformed Church of England. It is for that reason that this Sunday came to be known as Bible Sunday and Cranmer wrote a magnificent Collect Prayer to be used today. You may remember it was the prayer being practised by the young lad in the film, ’The Go-Between’. It is such a beautiful prayer that you may like to use it. The language, though old-fashioned, is superb:

Blessed Lord,
who hast caused all holy Scriptures
to be written for our learning:
grant that we may in such wise hear them,
read, mark, learn and inwardly digest them:
that by patience and comfort of thy holy Word,
we may embrace and ever hold fast
the blessed hope of everlasting life,
which thou hast given us
in our Saviour, Jesus Christ.
  Amen.

Monday, December 5th, Monday in the Second Week of Advent

Readings: Isaiah 35/1-10 : Luke 5/17-26

The readings today would seem, almost, to follow on from those of yesterday. Isaiah was foretelling the One who was to come to care for the wretched and the poor and in today’s Gospel reading Jesus fulfils that prophecy.

The scene picks up all yesterday’s themes. The Pharisees and the experts in the Jewish Law appear again and are all set to criticise Jesus in what he is doing. The paralysed man in the story has friends who are so concerned about him that they are ready to take drastic steps to bring him into Jesus’ presence. Jesus’ reaction to the man’s being lowered into the house, which must have caused quite a commotion, is to tell the man that his sins are forgiven him. Though this may not have been what his friends were expecting this may have been exactly what the man himself needed to hear. The man’s condition would have been seen as the result of sin, either his own or his parents’. Jesus’ simple statement establishes the innocence of the man, which was, perhaps, more important for him than his being healed.

The Pharisees and the legal experts immediately accuse Jesus of blasphemy since he appeared to be doing what only God could do although, in fact, Jesus doesn’t say that he forgives the man’s sins but that they are forgiven. Jesus responds to this accusation by telling the man to get up and walk. The man does so and, carrying his stretcher, he gets up and goes off praising God. In this way, Jesus shows his authority over not only physical ailments but, above all, over sin.

The reading from the prophet Isaiah looks forward to the restoration of the whole of creation as did the reading yesterday, but it also speaks of the coming of God to save his people. ‘The lame shall leap like a deer’ the prophet says and ‘Strengthen all weary hands, steady all trembling knees’. In the Gospel story Jesus is fulfilling this prophecy.

As we journey through Advent, we are reminded that we are often like the paralysed man. We get stuck in our old ways and habits and often find it difficult to get up and move on. Jesus tells us that, whatever else we may worry about, our sins are forgiven. Though it may sound almost blasphemous, God cannot help but forgive us our sinfulness and our failings, because God is love, total unconditional love. It is that which give us the strength and the determination to get up and start again, whatever our failings or our weaknesses may be.

One further point is that, astonishingly, it is not the faith of the paralysed man which brings him healing. It is the faith of his friends who bring him to Jesus. Our faith can bring others to the Lord. Not by preaching or talking about religion but simply by doing the sort of thing that the man’s friends did for him. The helping hand, the simple gesture of friendship, even just a smile can bring others closer to the Lord though his name is not mentioned. They may not realise it but by the experience of our love and care they experience God’s love and care.

Those whom we meet day by day, those with whom we live and work or even those with whom we enjoy leisure can all be brought into our prayer. Not to tell God we think they need but just to hold them lovingly in God’s presence, on the stretcher of our love as it were.

Tuesday, December 6th, Commemoration of Nicholas of Myra, patron saint of Portsmouth

For those of you who live in Portsmouth it always seems sad that one of the ancient patrons of our city is often forgotten.  There is an ancient church dedicated to Nicholas, now known as the Domus Dei, in Old Portsmouth. This is the site of an alms house built in 1212 by the bishop of Winchester, Peter des Roches. It was cared for by a community consisting of a Master, six brothers and six sisters. In 1450 there was a brawl in the church, and a murder took place. As a result, the whole town was placed under an interdict which forbade the celebration of all religious ceremonies and sacraments. This was lifted in 1508 on the condition that chantry chapel be built in honour of Saint Nicholas and this is the present church building, partially destroyed during the Second World War.

Nicholas was enormously popular in both the Eastern and the Western Church but little is known of his life. He was bishop of Myra, now known as Mugia, in south-western Turkey in the fourth century.

There are many legends about Nicholas and his ability to work miracles. What we can draw from these is that Nicholas must have been a man of great compassion and care for anyone in need. Legends, such as that which tells of his giving three bags of gold to a father to provide his three daughters with a dowry so that they could be married and be saved from prostitution (from where the three gold balls that hang outside a pawnbrokers’ shop are derived) or of the three young boys who had been murdered by a butcher and whose bodies had been placed in brine tubs and raised to life by Nicholas, and many others – all make him a suitable patron for many people and someone of universal popularity. For these reasons and many others Nicholas is the patron saint of children, of sailors, of unmarried girls, merchants, pawnbrokers, apothecaries and perfumers, the latter because of the sweet-smelling substance that was said to have sprung from his tomb.

Nicholas’ relics were taken from Myra and brought to Bari in 1087 when Myra was captured by Muslims where they are said to remain.

Nicholas is best known to us as Santa Claus, the name given to him in the Low Countries because of his care for children. He is also the patron saint of Russia, which would seem to be a reminder to continue to pray for that country and its people.

Today then we pray for all children but especially those who have become lost or abandoned in fleeing from their own country as refugees. We pray too for street children and all who abused and trafficked all over the world, and we remember their abusers (may God forbid them).

Readings: Isaiah 40/1-11 : Matthew 18/12-14

In the reading from the prophet Isaiah, the prophet foretells the coming of the Lord and speaks of the preparation that must be made for that event, and his words remind us of John the Baptist. Although the Lord will come in power and majesty, he will be a like a shepherd who tends his flock, ‘gathering lambs in his arms, holding them against his breast and leading to their rest the mother ewes’.  In these words, the prophet reminds us of the tender love of God for all those who are in need of help and support and who are wearied of life.

The Gospel reading might have been chosen for Nicholas since it shows us the God who is love and who, as the prophet says, cares for each and every one of us like a shepherd. The promised Messiah will reveal to the people a God who is love and Jesus will show that love and care in his life and ministry and in his teaching.

Although we know nothing of Nicholas, the legends about him remind us that, like him, we, the Church, must continue his ministry of care and love both in our own lives and in our communities. We are called to be a church where all who are in any kind of need are made to feel welcome and loved.

We pray for Portsmouth and all those who live in it, both Christians, those of other faiths and those of none that all may seek to make of the city a place of welcome where people are truly cared for.

There are special readings for Nicholas, though, almost certainly those for the day will be used. Those for Nicholas are: Isaiah 6/1-8, which relates the great vision of Isaiah in the Temple when he received the call from God to be his prophet. Luke 10/1-9, which tells of Jesus sending out the seventy-two to proclaim the Good News of God’s love.

Wednesday, December 7th, Commemoration of Ambrose of Milan (339-397)

Ambrose was born in 339 in Trier, the son of the Praetorian Prefect of Gaul. He studied Greek, Rhetoric and Poetry and became a successful advocate. In 370, he was appointed Governor of Aemilia and Liguria, being based in Milan. On the death of the Arian bishop Auxentius, in 374, Ambrose was at the assembly called together to choose his successor and, during his speech a voice was raised, often said to have been that of a child, which shouted out ‘Ambrose for bishop!’ The whole crowd took up the cry and, in spite of Ambrose not having been baptised as yet, he was chosen. Within a week he had been baptised and ordained bishop. He was only 34 years of age!

Ambrose set himself to study, and he became one of the most important Christian thinkers of his day. He was accessible to his people, and he encouraged the monastic life. It was he who was largely responsible for the conversion of the great Augustine.

Since Milan was the administrative centre of the Western Empire, Ambrose found himself having to play an important part in politics, guiding and, sometimes reproving rulers. Ambrose was also much involved in the ongoing struggle with the Arians who were, at that time, supported by the Emperor, and he showed great courage in standing up to the imperial power.

Ambrose also wrote a great deal on the Sacraments and the ministry of the Church together with instructions for those who were preparing to be baptised. Because of his teaching, Ambrose is numbered among the four great teachers of the Western Church, together with Augustine, Jerome and Gregory. He also left his mark on the Western Church by introducing hymns into the daily worship of the Church, some of which are still used today.

Ambrose died before he reached the age of sixty. His body was reburied in the great basilica of Sant Ambrogio in 853 on this day, and it still rests there today.

Today is not the anniversary of Ambrose’ death but the day on which he was ordained bishop.

Ambrose is usually depicted in bishop’s vestments, often with a beehive. This because a swarm of bees is said to have settled on him when he was a child, thus foretelling his future eloquence.

Readings: Isaiah 40/25-31 : Matthew 11/28-30

In the reading from the prophet Isaiah today he speaks of the might and majesty of God which is beyond all human telling. At the same time the prophet reminds us that this mighty God is the one whose ‘understanding is beyond our fathoming, who gives strength to the wearied and strengthens the powerless’ Those who hope in the Lord, the prophet says ‘renew their strength …  they do not grow weary … never tire’.

In today’s Gospel reading Jesus translates the prophet’s words into a language that can be understood by all, ‘Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened, and I will give you rest’. ‘Shoulder my yoke’ he says’ and learn from me’.

This is the God whom Jesus comes to reveal to us and this is the One whom we, the Church, must reveal to the world by our love and compassion for one another and our love and concern for all who come our way.

The wooden yoke worn by people of Jesus’ time, to carry things, was shaped to their shoulders so that it would not rub or cause pain. The yoke Jesus has taken upon himself is our humanity, and it is this yoke that he shares with us, if we let him. It is not a yoke that tries to mould us into something different, it is the yoke of our true selves, the yoke of humanity which Jesus helps us to bring to perfection so that we may be what we are meant to be.

Ambrose would seem to have been just such a man, fully human, loving his people and caring for them yet also courageous in standing up for them and for what was right and just.

We pray today for the bishops and leaders of the churches that they, like Ambrose, may be loving and caring shepherds yet courageous in standing up for what is right and just. We also remember today the great church of Milan with its unique way of worship. We pray for its bishop and its people.

There are special readings for Ambrose though, almost certainly, those for the day will be used. Those for Ambrose are: Paul’s letter to the Ephesians 3/8-12, which speaks of Paul’s calling to proclaim the mystery of God’s love to the non-Jewish people and refers to Ambrose’ call to serve the people of Milan as their bishop. John 10/11-16, where Jesus speaks of himself as the good shepherd, something which Ambrose became for his people.

Thursday, December 8th, The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of Mary

This feast is unusual in that it celebrates a belief and not a person or an event although it does, of course, celebrate the event which is never mentioned and that is the lovemaking of Mary’s parents, usually known as Joachim and Anne, which brought about her conception.

As is almost always the case with feasts, this celebration of Mary’s conception began to be celebrated in the Eastern Church from the seventh century and from there it spread to the West, not arriving in England until the eleventh century.

At first, the feast celebrated the simple fact of Mary’s conception in the womb of her mother, but it gradually became associated with a long-running dispute within the Western Church as to whether Mary was free from Original Sin from the moment of her conception, unlike the rest of the human race who inherited it from the moment of conception.

Various great theologians took sides on this teaching, Saint Bernard being opposed to it in the twelfth century and being joined by all the great theologians of the thirteenth century, Albert the Great, Bonaventure and Thomas Aquinas. The great proponents of the doctrine were the Franciscans led by Dun Scotus in the late thirteenth century, and it was, for the most part, the Dominicans who opposed it.

In 1439, the Council of Basle declared that this teaching was a ‘pious opinion’ and this gradually became accepted so that in 1476 Pope Sixtus IV approved the feast and in 1708 Pope Clement XI extended the observance of the feast to the whole of the Western Church and even imposed its observance as a feast of obligation. The Council of Trent (1545-1563) declared in its decree on Original Sin that the Blessed Virgin Mary was exempt from this Sin and this teaching from then on was generally accepted by the Roman Catholic Church.

The mediaeval theologians who opposed this doctrine did so because they said that Original Sin was passed on at every natural conception and, since Mary was conceived in the normal way, she must have inherited this Sin. Those who defended the doctrine and this was what was eventually defined by the Pope in 1854, maintained that ‘by a singular grace and privilege of Almighty God and in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of humankind’ Mary was ‘kept free of all stain of Original Sin’.

There are, of course, quite a number of problems here which deserve a little reflection and consideration. Firstly, while readily acknowledging that every human person has a tendency to do those things that are known to be wrong, it must be asked if this inclination springs from the sin of Adam? Most Christians of every church accept now that the story of Adam and Eve is not meant to be an historical account though it is recognised that, as a myth, it has enormous value. Various theories are offered concerning the origins of the human race, but it seems completely unlikely that it sprang from one unique couple. To believe then that our tendency to wrong doing is the result of the sin of a mythical couple which is passed on at the moment of conception seems to make no sense at all.

Secondly, the very foundation of our faith is that the Word of God took our flesh from his mother Mary to become totally and utterly human. If Mary were free from Original Sin and not subject to the consequences said to derive from Original Sin, that which we call concupiscence or the tendency to do wrong things, then she would never have had the desire to do anything wrong. That makes her humanity questionable, and she would have, presumably, passed on to Jesus a humanity of the same kind, free from all tendencies to do wrong. In that case Jesus would not have been like us in all things as the Scriptures state.

For many Catholic Christians who think these things through it is, therefore, difficult to accept this teaching. The gradual development of it would seem to be the result of an ever-increasing devotion to Mary and the desire to heap on her honour after honour, this being the last and greatest of them all rather than from sound theological reasoning.

Although this doctrine was solemnly defined by the Pope in 1854 it might be asked whether it actually falls within the limits set on Papal Infallibility by the First Vatican Council. At that Council the gathered bishops of our church declared, though many of them dissented, that the Pope would be preserved from error when he defined something of revealed doctrine concerning faith or morals. It is difficult to see how this matter can be said to be revealed doctrine since there is no mention of it in Scripture unless the text is twisted enormously nor in the teachings of the first Christian centuries.

Finally, it must be said that this doctrine as it has been developed in the Western Catholic Church is unknown in the Eastern and Oriental Churches who all stem from the same origins as does the Roman Catholic Church.

Having said all that, it is still important to celebrate this feast since it is, uniquely, the celebration of love-making! This feast is, in some way, an affirmation of the goodness of sex and the pleasure that it gives to those who love each other. So let this day be one of joy and celebration that Mary was conceived and came into the world like all of us and that her conception was the beginning of that series of events which culminated in the Word becoming flesh.

Readings: Genesis 3/0-15, 20 : Paul’s letter to the Ephesians 1/3-6, 11-12 : Luke 1/26-38

The reading from Genesis tells part of the story of the Fall of Adam and Eve where Adam blames Eve for having tempted him and Eve blames the serpent. God tells them that, firstly the serpent will be accursed and, secondly, there will be enmity between the serpent and the woman. The serpent’s offspring may attack the woman’s offspring, but he will be crushed by him. Traditionally, this has been interpreted as a prophecy that Mary’s offspring would crush the power of the serpent, the devil.

For some reason, the verses following are omitted. These tell how for the woman, as a result of her sin, her childbearing would be painful and for the same reason work for the man would be hard and unrewarding and that they would, both of them, return to the dust from which they were made. These verses, of course, do make it clear that the whole account is not meant to be understood as historical.

The extract from the Letter to the Ephesians is a wonderful account of God’s mysterious and loving choice from before time began. Mary was in the divine plan from the beginning but so are each and every one of us for, like Mary, we have also been chosen to bring Christ into the world. She gave him flesh in her womb, and we give him flesh in our being part of the Church, his mystical body here on earth. Like Mary, we too are the instruments of his coming into the world!

In the Gospel account of Mary’s receiving the news that she was to be the mother of the Messiah the moment of Jesus’ conception is also recalled when he took her flesh to become human. Like Mary, we are called to be Christ-bearers, and like Mary we are free to say ‘Yes’ or to say ‘No’. And it is our privilege, as it was Mary’s, to accept that role and to be the Church in the world.

Today then, in spite of any reservations we may have about the doctrinal background to the feast, there is much to celebrate. We celebrate Mary, the one chosen to be the Lord’s mother, and we celebrate ourselves, chosen to be the Church in the world, bringing Christ to all those around us by our love and our concern.

It is also, surely, a day to celebrate our sexuality, that great gift from God which makes us the person that we are and gives so much joy to the human family when it is used in a truly loving way.

In the diocese of Portsmouth we pray for our diocese, its people and all those called to serve them with our bishop, Philip, since today is the Patronal Festival of the diocese whose first patron is the Mother of God.

Friday, December 9th, Commemoration of Juan Diego Cuahtlatoatzin (1474-1548)

Juan Diego was an Aztec Indian born in 1474 whose native name, which is pronounced Kwah-TEE-tlah-toe-ah-tzeen means ‘singing eagle’. He lived in Mexico, which was then under Spanish rule, with his wife and uncle and had been among the first of the Aztec Indians to be baptised by the missionaries from Spain. He lived in a village near what is now Mexico City in a one-room hut with a dirt floor and a roof made of woven cornstalks. He was among the poorest people in his village, and his diet consisted mainly of the corn and beans that he himself grew.

In 1531 Juan Diego had a mysterious experience in which he believed he had encountered a young woman dressed as an Aztec princess in a way which indicated that she was bearing a child in her womb. The woman told Juan Diego that she wanted a church built on the spot where he saw her and that she wished to be a source of consolation for the people. His bishop did not believe Juan Diego but eventually, he asked for a sign that might convince him of the truth of his story. Under the guidance of the woman Juan Diego found a patch of brilliant roses, in spite of it being winter time. He gathered them into his peasant’s cloak and took them to the bishop but when he unfurled his cloak before the bishop, the woman’s image had been imprinted on it. As a result of this, the bishop believed that the woman must have been the Mother of God, pregnant with her son Jesus, and a chapel was built in accordance with her wish, and people began to flock to it. Juan Diego cared for this chapel and lived as a hermit beside it until his death at 74 in 1548.

Whatever one may think of the story, the cloak of Juan Diego is still venerated at the shrine now known as Guadalupe. One of the important outcomes of this is that this strange event gave back their dignity to the Aztec Christians who had been shocked and scandalised by the way in which their Spanish conquerors failed to live the Gospel which they preached. It also gave new dignity to women and brought about a massive conversion among the Aztec people. While the rich and the powerful Spanish had failed to convince the Aztec people of the truth of the Gospel, a poor peasant succeeded, and the Gospel was proclaimed to the poor by the poor.

Our Lady of Guadalupe is the patron of Mexico and is venerated throughout the Americas so that today we pray for that vast continent and its people, for peace and prosperity among them and for a respect for people of every race and background.

Readings: Isaiah 48/17-19 : Matthew 11/16-19

The brief reading from the prophet Isaiah reproaches the Jewish people for not having followed the way that God had offered to them, a way which would have led them to happiness and fulfilment, whereas they were now on the road that leads to doom. This is not just because God would punish them for not having obeyed his laws and commandments. It was because the observance of God’s Law leads to fulfilment and joy and to fail to follow it leads to the opposite.

We judge and condemn ourselves by not following the way that leads to life.

The equally brief reading from Matthew’s Gospel finds Jesus also condemning what he calls ‘this generation’, in other words, the people to whom he had been addressing his message and in particular, these were the Scribes and the Pharisees. Jesus uses the example of children at play, on the one hand the ‘funeral game’ and on the other ‘the wedding game’. John the Baptist’s ascetic lifestyle and preaching identify him with the funeral game. Instead of responding to John’s call to repentance, Jesus says, they claimed that he was possessed or mad. His own lifestyle identifies him with the wedding game, sharing meals with those his opponents thought to be sinners and enjoying himself with them. Although this foreshadowed the coming reign of God his opponents find in his behaviour cause to criticise him and to ignore his message.

The closing sentence is obscure but might well be taken to mean ‘I told you so!’. This was to be expected of those who were so full of themselves that they were unable to hear the Word of God when either John or Jesus proclaimed it to them.

Juan Diego is a good example of how God turns things upside down so that those who ought to recognise that which comes from God fail to do so while a poor peasant does.

We pray today that we may be on the alert and ready to hear the Lord when he speaks to us, most especially in the cry of the poor and the needy. As John the Baptist invites us, may we turn our lives around each day to follow Jesus’ teaching more faithfully and, like Jesus, try to be the friend of all who are poor and in need.

There are special readings for Juan Diego though, almost certainly, those for the day will be used. Those for Juan Diego are: Isaiah 40/1-11, which speaks of God’s compassion and the allusions to nature remind us of Juan Diego’s experience. Matthew 18/12-14, which speaks of the humility and childlikeness, which were characteristics of Juan Diego.

Saturday, December 10th, Commemoration of Our Lady of Loreto

Loreto, near Ancona in Italy, is the site of the shrine of Our Lady of Loreto where the Holy House of Nazareth is venerated. This house was alleged to have been the house in which the Mother of God was living at the time of the Annunciation. Legend had it that the house had been miraculously transported by angels from Nazareth to Tersatz in Dalmatia in 1291 and, subsequently, through the same agency, to Loreto in 1295.

The earliest attestation of this legend is in an account of the Sanctuary written in about 1470.  The whole story is now regarded as unhistorical, even by Roman Catholic writers, which makes one wonder why its celebration has been restored to our Calendar.  This was done very recently and with no particular explanation being given.

Though the story may be fictitious there is still some gain to be had by the celebration of this feast as we prepare for Christmas.

Loreto is now a place of pilgrimage, and the shrine is enclosed in a massive baroque edifice. The small house at its centre is of extraordinary simplicity being a simple box-shaped structure completely unadorned. The only thing in the house is a simple altar over which is inscribed ‘Hic Verbum caro factum est’, ‘Here, the Word was made flesh’. It is this ‘Hic’ that is so striking, that here, though this may not be the actual place but in a real little house in Nazareth the Word became flesh.

Recent research has shown that this actual house is almost certainly a first century structure from Palestine. It must have become associated with the Incarnation and brought to Italy at the time of the Crusades, perhaps even by a knight named de Angelis!

Loreto is a remarkably sane sort of place, and the whole emphasis there is on the Incarnation, which is, of course, very relevant during this time of Advent.

Whatever the intentions of those who restored the feast to our Calendar, it is one which makes us reflect on the wonderful reality that the Word became flesh in the womb of a real woman and in a real place. God leapt into our history as it were and still does all the time.

Readings: Ecclesiasticus 48/1-4, 9-11 : Matthew 17/10-13

Today’s readings are about the great prophet Elijah and the Gospel reading follows on immediately from the moment when Jesus was transfigured before his chosen disciples, Peter, James and John. It was in this strange event that Jesus had been seen by the apostles with Elijah and Moses and so the question that the disciples ask of Jesus follows on naturally from what they have just experienced.

The extract from Ecclesiasticus praises the greatness of the prophet Elijah and the wonders that he did and ends by affirming that he will come again, and those who will see him will be truly happy.

The Gospel reading would seem to suggest that the question of the return of Elijah to herald the coming of the Messiah was being discussed by the Scribes. Jesus answers the question that the disciples have put to him by telling them that Elijah has already returned in the person of John the Baptist. He tells them that those who should have done so were unable to recognise him. Just as John the Baptist will suffer at the hands of men, Jesus says, so will he.

One lesson that may be learnt from these readings is that things may not always be as they seem. The Scribes and the others believed that Elijah would come again to herald the coming of the Messiah, but they failed to recognise him in the person of John the Baptist. During Advent the readings give us a constant reminder that the Lord does come to us, but we often fail to recognise him because he doesn’t come as we expect he will.

An example may help. We may think that we recognise Jesus in the needy person sitting on the street and begging, and we may give them something, but we may have failed to notice the Lord in the needy neighbour who is not her usual cheery self. Had we noticed this we might have discovered that she is not her usual self because she has received the results of some medical checks, and she will have to go into hospital and who will look after her dog? It is because we think we know how the Lord might come to us that we may miss him when he does.

So Advent is the time for being on the alert and trying to see a little deeper than the surface to find the Lord, coming to us in unexpected ways and places.

There are special readings for Our Lady of Loreto though, almost certainly, those for the day will be used. Those for Our Lady are: Isaiah 7/10-14, 8/10, which contains the prophecy that a maiden will conceive and bear a son whose name will be Emmanuel, reminding us of the underlying meaning of Loreto which is the Incarnation. Luke 1/26-38, which is the story of the Annunciation, the mystery that Loreto celebrates, the Word made flesh and dwelling among us.

In the diocese of Portsmouth there is also the commemoration of Blessed Swithun Wells.

Swithun was born in Bembridge in Hampshire, in 1536, of a wealthy country family. He was educated locally but was well-travelled, a poet, musician and a sportsman. He lived the life of a country gentleman, but he and his family remained faithful to the old religion. At one time he was tutor to the Earl of Southampton but, after marrying, he began his own school at Monkton Farleigh in Wiltshire.

In 1582, Swithun came under suspicion because of his allegiance to the old faith, and so he gave up his school. He supported and protected the priests who came from mainland Europe to care for those faithful to the old ways. In 1586, although by then impoverished, Swithun and his wife moved to London to Grays Inn Fields where their house became a centre of hospitality for the recusants as they were called, and a place of welcome where many priests from the continent were sheltered.

Swithun was twice arrested but no evidence could be found against him. However, in 1591, two priests, Edmund Gennings and Polydore Plasden were arrested in Swithun’s house while they were presiding at the Mass. They were accused of high treason and executed. Swithun and his wife were also arrested and tried for harbouring priests and condemned to death. Swithun’s wife was reprieved but spent the remaining ten years of her life in prison. Swithun was executed at Grays Inn Fields on December 10th. He used his last moments on the scaffold to pray for his executioners and to express his forgiveness of them.

Today is also International Human Rights Day, which commemorates the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations on this day in 1948. The Declaration proclaims the thirty rights that all human beings need to live a truly human life. It proclaims that everyone on this planet, regardless of race, sex, language or religion has a right to certain basic freedoms. Among these are the right to life, to health care, education and to privacy. People are also entitled to freedom from imprisonment without trial and have the right to leave and re-enter their own country and to seek protection in another country if they are persecuted in their own.

Like Swithun Wells, many people are refused the right to practice their own faith today and every one of these rights is being infringed in many places at this very moment in various parts of the world.

We know this all too well and today we pray for all those who suffer the loss of their rights in one way or another. We pray too for all those people and agencies who work to ensure that everywhere people are able to enjoy these basic rights.

We remember especially the millions who seek refuge from persecution and warfare and who have become refugees, and we pray too for all those work with them and for them.