Memorial of Saint Ambrose, bishop and doctor of the Church
Biographical Information about St. Ambrose
Readings for Thursday of the First Week in Advent
Commentary:
Reading 1 Is 26:1-6
Isaiah, today, continues his prophetic vision of the victory of the Messiah to come. The passage today describes first the New Jerusalem which is the heavenly kingdom and the entrance of the faithful.
The second part of the reading we hear echoed in the Blessed Mother’s Canticle in the Gospel of Luke (“he casts down the mighty from their thrones and lifts up the lowly”. This is another image of the Lord’s justice and care for the poor.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 118:1 and 8-9, 19-21, 25-27a
R. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
This is a hymn of praise for the faithful who would rather place their trust in God than in the strength of people of earthly kingdoms. We hear once more of the triumphant entry into God’s heavenly kingdom, linking the image to the reading from Isaiah and the Advent Season.
Gospel Mt 7:21, 24-27
This passage of St. Matthew’s Gospel speaks to a topic that has caused great tension in Christian ranks. The question has been asked; are we justified (or saved) by our faith in Jesus alone or are we justified by our actions? The Lord himself answers that question in this passage as he says; “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.”
Matthew goes on with the story of the person who builds their house (analogy for faith demonstrated through actions) upon a rock that withstands a storm as opposed to the person who only gives lip service (does not act upon them) who is like the person who builds their house upon sand. That person collapses and is completely ruined.
There is a strong link back to the passage we have from Isaiah; “Trust in the Lord forever!
For the Lord is an eternal Rock.” Referring to the foundation of faith, an image Jesus uses many times.
Homily:
It was just a week ago at the celebration of the Feast of St. Andrew the Apostle that we talked about how the river of Saints, many of them lesser known have had a tremendous impact on the Church. Today we celebrate the Feast of yet another great name in the Church, St. Ambrose.
It was St. Ambrose whose great gift for oration unified the faithful under his charge in the face of the Arian heresy that denied the Trinity. It was St. Ambrose who, while wealthy at a time when wealth and property were acceptable for clergy, gave away all he owned to the poor and the Church. It was St. Ambrose who first converted and then baptized Augustine of Hyppo (St. Augustine). His great intellect and oratory skill earned him the title of Doctor of the Church while his humility and hunger for justice earned him sainthood. He is our example as we make our Advent journey.
It has been suggested that we view this Advent season as a time of preparation for the arrival of the Lord and that we use, as an analogy, the preparation we would make for a new baby in our lives. Today we need to hear God’s word and realize that, while our interior must be made ready through prayer and the foundations of faith made strong through the grace that flows from the sacraments, the exterior, what people see, must also be made ready.
The Lord tells us today; “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.” This means that the deep and abiding faith we develop through our prayer and participation in the sacraments must be translated in to actions. That what we promise as we in prayer; “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us” actually needs to be done. We cannot in one breath praise God for his mercy and in the next say; “This one is lazy and no mercy should be shown to him.”
No, for those of us who are using this season to prepare for the coming of the Nativity of the Lord, we must pay special attention to our actions. They must reflect the gift God gives us and the home for the Holy Spirit that dwells within us.
Pax
Biographical Information about St. Ambrose
Readings for Thursday of the First Week in Advent
Commentary:
Reading 1 Is 26:1-6
Isaiah, today, continues his prophetic vision of the victory of the Messiah to come. The passage today describes first the New Jerusalem which is the heavenly kingdom and the entrance of the faithful.
The second part of the reading we hear echoed in the Blessed Mother’s Canticle in the Gospel of Luke (“he casts down the mighty from their thrones and lifts up the lowly”. This is another image of the Lord’s justice and care for the poor.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 118:1 and 8-9, 19-21, 25-27a
R. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
This is a hymn of praise for the faithful who would rather place their trust in God than in the strength of people of earthly kingdoms. We hear once more of the triumphant entry into God’s heavenly kingdom, linking the image to the reading from Isaiah and the Advent Season.
Gospel Mt 7:21, 24-27
This passage of St. Matthew’s Gospel speaks to a topic that has caused great tension in Christian ranks. The question has been asked; are we justified (or saved) by our faith in Jesus alone or are we justified by our actions? The Lord himself answers that question in this passage as he says; “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.”
Matthew goes on with the story of the person who builds their house (analogy for faith demonstrated through actions) upon a rock that withstands a storm as opposed to the person who only gives lip service (does not act upon them) who is like the person who builds their house upon sand. That person collapses and is completely ruined.
There is a strong link back to the passage we have from Isaiah; “Trust in the Lord forever!
For the Lord is an eternal Rock.” Referring to the foundation of faith, an image Jesus uses many times.
Homily:
It was just a week ago at the celebration of the Feast of St. Andrew the Apostle that we talked about how the river of Saints, many of them lesser known have had a tremendous impact on the Church. Today we celebrate the Feast of yet another great name in the Church, St. Ambrose.
It was St. Ambrose whose great gift for oration unified the faithful under his charge in the face of the Arian heresy that denied the Trinity. It was St. Ambrose who, while wealthy at a time when wealth and property were acceptable for clergy, gave away all he owned to the poor and the Church. It was St. Ambrose who first converted and then baptized Augustine of Hyppo (St. Augustine). His great intellect and oratory skill earned him the title of Doctor of the Church while his humility and hunger for justice earned him sainthood. He is our example as we make our Advent journey.
It has been suggested that we view this Advent season as a time of preparation for the arrival of the Lord and that we use, as an analogy, the preparation we would make for a new baby in our lives. Today we need to hear God’s word and realize that, while our interior must be made ready through prayer and the foundations of faith made strong through the grace that flows from the sacraments, the exterior, what people see, must also be made ready.
The Lord tells us today; “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.” This means that the deep and abiding faith we develop through our prayer and participation in the sacraments must be translated in to actions. That what we promise as we in prayer; “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us” actually needs to be done. We cannot in one breath praise God for his mercy and in the next say; “This one is lazy and no mercy should be shown to him.”
No, for those of us who are using this season to prepare for the coming of the Nativity of the Lord, we must pay special attention to our actions. They must reflect the gift God gives us and the home for the Holy Spirit that dwells within us.
Pax
No comments:
Post a Comment