Tuesday of the Third Week of Advent
Lectionary: 195
Reading 1
Judges 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
Psalm 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
Luke 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."
Reflection 1
Catholic Daily Reflections
Faith or Doubt?
“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.” Luke 1:19–20
Imagine if the Archangel Gabriel appeared to you. What would that have been like? This particular Archangel stands before the incomprehensible beauty and splendor of the Most Holy Trinity and brings forth messages of the greatest importance. Gabriel is God’s most notable messenger. Take a moment to ponder what such a glorious apparition would have been like.
In the passage above, this glorious Archangel appears to Zechariah as he is fulfilling his priestly duty to burn incense before the Lord within the Holy of Holies. As Zechariah enters the sanctuary while all the people remain outside praying, he suddenly has a vision of the Archangel telling him that his wife Elizabeth will have a child, even though she is advanced in years. But even though Zechariah hears this message from Gabriel, the Archangel who stands before God, he doubts what he is being told.
Would you have believed the Archangel Gabriel if you were Zechariah? Or would you have doubted? Though there may not be a way to know the answer to that question, it’s helpful to ponder the humble truth that you very well may have doubted. It takes true humility to admit that possibility. Like Zechariah, we are all weak and sinful. We lack the perfect faith that our Blessed Mother had. And if you can humbly admit this, then you are in a great position to overcome the weakness of faith you struggle with. Zechariah suffered much for his lack of faith, but that suffering led to a renewal of faith when he named his child John in obedience to the Archangel.
Reflect, today, upon how well you listen to all that God says to you. Do you listen, believe and obey? Or do you question and doubt God’s voice. Know that God speaks to you each and every day. Admit the ways that you lack perfect faith and allow that act of humble acknowledgment to strengthen you where you need help the most.
Reflection 2
One Bread, One Body
I DID IT HIS WAY
“O my God, rescue me from the hand of the wicked.” —Psalm 71:4
The Lord rescues His people by creating new people. Samson (Jgs 13:24) and St. John the Baptizer (Lk 1:24) from today’s readings are examples of this. However, our secular Western society is a “culture of death.” It doesn’t want many new people. It is contraceptive, exploitative, and abortifacient rather than fruitful and pro-life.
The Lord rescues His people by calling them to commitment. For example, Samson and John the Baptizer committed themselves to be lifelong Nazirites (Jgs 13:5; Lk 1:15). However, our society believes in avoiding commitment.
The Lord rescues His people by giving us the gift of faith. Those who have faith in Jesus as the Son of God conquer the world (1 Jn 5:5). However, through our secular humanistic culture, we have been programmed to be skeptical and doubtful. We are more like Zechariah (Lk 1:18) than Mary (Lk 1:34ff).
God’s ways are as different from ours as the heavens are above the earth (Is 55:8-9). Therefore, we had better change our ways, or we will not let the Lord rescue us. Then we will perish. Do it His way.
Prayer: Father, in this Advent, grace me to change my ways greatly and permanently.
Promise: “In these days the Lord is acting on my behalf; He has seen fit to remove my reproach among men.” —Lk 1:25
Praise: “O Flower of Jesse’s stem, You have been raised up as a Sign for all peoples; kings stand silent in Your presence; the nations bow down in worship before You. Come, let nothing keep You from coming to our aid.”
Reflection 3
By Fr. Thomas Hoisington
“Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall name him John.”
St. Matthew and St. Luke are the only two evangelists to record any narratives about the events surrounding the birth of Jesus Christ. But St. Luke spends far more time than St. Matthew doing this. While it’s true that the first two chapters of both Matthew and Luke are dedicated to these narratives, it’s important to recall that the chapters of the Bible do not have an equal number of verses. The first two chapters of Matthew consist of forty-eight verses, while the first two chapter of Luke consist of one hundred thirty-two verses.
Each day from today—December 19th—through the morning of Christmas Eve, the Church proclaims Gospel passages from Luke. Many of these passages are actually about the conception and birth of St. John the Baptist. Yet St. Luke very artistically parallels these narratives with those about the advent and birth of Jesus Christ.
When people think of the word “annunciation” in relation to the Gospel, they likely think first—and perhaps solely—of the Annunciation made to the Blessed Virgin Mary. But in the first two chapters of Matthew and Luke, three annunciations are narrated: of the birth of Jesus to Joseph in Matthew 1, of the birth of John to his father Zechariah in Luke 1, and of the birth of Jesus to Mary in Luke 1.
Today’s Gospel Reading focuses upon the annunciation to Zechariah about John the Baptist. We should be alert here to comparisons and contrasts both between Zechariah and Mary and between John and Jesus. An obvious contrast is between the advanced age of Zechariah and the youth of Mary.
More significant, however, and more important for the Christian who hears these passages proclaimed during Advent, are the contrasting responses of Zechariah and Mary to their respective annunciations. While both of them respond by questioning how what was announced could come true, Mary goes a step further by accepting God’s will faithfully with a reply of “Fiat.”
Toward the end of today’s Gospel Reading, the angel explains how Zechariah will be punished for not accepting God’s will faithfully. Nonetheless, God’s will in not deterred by Zechariah. God’s will may be detoured, but never deterred. God’s providential will always is accomplished.
Prayers
Lord, I know I lack the depth of perfect faith that I so deeply desire to have. I know that You speak to me day and night, and I fail to listen and obey. As I humble myself before You and confess my weakness of faith, strengthen me to respond more fully each day to all that You say to me. Jesus, I trust in You.
Lord, may my life become a hymn of worship, rising up to Your glorious throne of grace, echoing forth the lovely melody of Your inner life. Take hold of me, dear Lord, and use me as Your instrument of Mercy and Grace in this world. Jesus, I trust in You.
Lord Jesus, you bring hope and restoration to your people. Restore and strengthen Christian family life today. Help me to love and serve my family. May your love rule in all my relationships and remove any barriers to peace and harmony.
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