Begotten from the Father before all ages..., he was incarnate from the Virgin Mary

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 1:1-18.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
He was in the beginning with God.
All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be. What came to be
through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race;
the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
A man named John was sent from God.
He came for testimony, to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him.
He was not the light, but came to testify to the light.
The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.
He was in the world, and the world came to be through him, but the world did not know him.
He came to what was his own, but his own people did not accept him.
But to those who did accept him he gave power to become children of God, to those who believe in his name,
who were born not by natural generation nor by human choice nor by a man's decision but of God.
And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father's only Son, full of grace and truth.
John testified to him and cried out, saying, "This was he of whom I said, 'The one who is coming after me ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.'"
From his fullness we have all received, grace in place of grace,
because while the law was given through Moses, grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
No one has ever seen God. The only Son, God, who is at the Father's side, has revealed him.


Commentary of the day : Saint Maximus of Turin
«Begotten from the Father before all ages..., he was incarnate from the Virgin Mary » (Creed of Constantinople)

We read, dearest brethren, that there are two births in Christ: both are the expression of a divine power that completely outstrips us. On the one hand, God generates his Son out of his own self; on the other, a virgin has conceived him by God's intervention... On the one hand, he is born to create life, and on the other to take away death. In the former, he is born of his Father; in the latter, he is brought into the world by human beings. By his generation from the Father he is at human origins; by his human birth he sets humanity free. Both of these kinds of birth are, properly speaking, inexpressible and at the same time inseparable...

In teaching that there are two births in Christ we do not intend to say that the Son of God is born twice over, but we are affirming the twofold nature in one and the same Son of God. On the one hand, what already existed is born; on the other, what did not as yet exist is brought forth. The blessed evangelist John affirms this in these words: «In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God» and again: «The Word was made flesh.»

Thus God who was with God came forth from him and the flesh of God that did not belong to God is fruit of a woman. So the Word became flesh, not in such a way that God was incorporated into man, but so that man might be gloriously raised up to God. That is why God was not born twice but by means of these two kinds of birth – namely, that of God and that of man – the only Son of the Father desired to be both God and man in a single person. «Who, then, can tell his birth?» (Is 53,8 Vg.).

She spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 2:36-40.
There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived seven years with her husband after her marriage,
and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple, but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer.
And coming forward at that very time, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.
When they had fulfilled all the prescriptions of the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth.
The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.


Commentary of the day : Saint Bernard
"She spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem"

O Root of Jesse, who stand as a sign to the peoples (Is 11: 10), «how many kings and prophets wanted to see you and did not» (Lk 10:24)? Simeon is the happiest of them all because by God's mercy he was still bearing fruit in old age. For he rejoiced to think that he would see the sign so long desired. He saw it and was glad (Lk 8:56). When he had received the kiss of peace he departed in peace, but first he proclaimed aloud that Jesus was born, a sign that would be rejected (Lk 2:25-34). And so it was. The sign of peace arose and was rejected, by those who hate peace (Ps 119:7). For what is peace to men of goodwill (Lk 2:14) is a stone to make men stumble, a rock for the wicked to fall over (l Pt 2:8). "Herod was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him" (Mt 2:3). He came to his own and his own did not receive him (Jn 1:11). Happy those shepherds keeping watch at night who were found worthy to be shown the sign of this vision (Lk 23:8)!

For even at that time he was hiding himself from the wise and prudent and revealing himself to the simple (Mt 11:25; Lk 10:21)... The angel said to the shepherds, "This is a sign for you" (Lk 2: 12), you who are humble, you who are obedient, you who are not haughty (Rom 12: 16), you who are keeping vigil and meditating on God's law day and night (Ps 1:2). "This is a sign for you," he said. What is this sign? The sign the angels promised, the sign the people asked for, the sign the prophets foretold, the Lord Jesus has now made, and he shows it to you...

This is your sign.What is it a sign of? Indulgence, grace, peace, «the peace which will have no end» (Is 9:7). It is this sign: "You will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger" (Lk 2: 12). But this baby is God himself, reconciling the world to himself in him (2 Cor 5: 19)... He is the kiss of God, the Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus (1Tm 2,5), who with the Father and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns world without end.

"Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace"

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 2:22-35.
When the days were completed for their purification according to the law of Moses, they took him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord,
just as it is written in the law of the Lord, "Every male that opens the womb shall be consecrated to the Lord,"
and to offer the sacrifice of "a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons," in accordance with the dictate in the law of the Lord.
Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, awaiting the consolation of Israel, and the holy Spirit was upon him.
It had been revealed to him by the holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Messiah of the Lord.
He came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to perform the custom of the law in regard to him,
he took him into his arms and blessed God, saying:
Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word,
for my eyes have seen your salvation,
which you prepared in sight of all the peoples,
a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel."
The child's father and mother were amazed at what was said about him;
and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, "Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted
(and you yourself a sword will pierce) so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed."


Commentary of the day : Saint Ignatius of Antioch
"Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace"

Now I begin to be a disciple. May nothing of things visible or invisible seek to impede me that I may attain to Jesus Christ... Even if the most cruel tortures afflict me, may they only aid me in attaining to Jesus Christ. The furthest bounds of the universe, and the kingdoms of this world shall profit me nothing. It is better for me to die for the sake of Jesus Christ than to reign over the boundaries of the earth. Him I seek Who died for us. Him I desire, Who rose [for our sakes].

My travail-pains are upon me... Suffer me to receive pure light. When I reach there then shall I be a man indeed. Suffer me to be an imitator of the passion of my God... My Love has been crucified, and there is not within me any fire of earthly desire, but only water that lives and speaks in me, and says from within me, 'Come hither to the Father.' I have no pleasure in the food of corruption nor in the pleasures of this material life. I desire God's bread, which is the flesh of Christ, Who is of the seed of David, and for drink I desire His blood, which is love incorruptible.

Where is the newborn king of the Jews?

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 2:13-18.
When they had departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you. Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him."
Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed for Egypt.
He stayed there until the death of Herod, that what the Lord had said through the prophet might be fulfilled, "Out of Egypt I called my son."
When Herod realized that he had been deceived by the magi, he became furious. He ordered the massacre of all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had ascertained from the magi.
Then was fulfilled what had been said through Jeremiah the prophet:
A voice was heard in Ramah, sobbing and loud lamentation; Rachel weeping for her children, and she would not be consoled, since they were no more.


Commentary of the day : Eusebius the Gallican
"Where is the newborn king of the Jews?" (Mt 2,2)

Herod, the traitor king, having been deceived by the magi, sent his henchmen to Bethlehem and the surrounding countryside to kill the children of two years old and under... But you have gained nothing by it, you cruel and arrogant barbarian! You can make martyrs but you cannot find Christ. This unhappy tyrant thought that the Lord our Savior's coming would topple him from his royal throne. But it was not so. Christ did not come to take over another's glory but to make a gift to us of his own. He did not come to take hold of an earthly kingdom but to bestow the Kingdom of heaven. He did not come to steal honors but to endure injuries and abuse. He did not come to prepare his sacred head for a jewelled diadem but for a crown of thorns. He did not come to take his seat gloriously above sceptres but to be mocked and crucified.

At the Lord's birth «Herod was troubled and all Jerusalem with him» (Mt 2,3). What is there to wonder at if impiousness is disturbed by the birth of goodness? Here is an armed man afraid of him who is laid in a manger; a proud king trembles before the lowly one; he who is clothed in purple fears the baby wrapped in swaddling clothes... He pretended he wanted to worship him whom he sought to have killed (Mt 2,8). But Truth is not afraid of the traps of the liar... Treachery cannot discover Christ, since not by cruelty but by faith is God to be sought, who lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.

The disciple who had« fully assured understanding of the knowledge of the mystery of God

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 20:2-8.
So she ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, "They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don't know where they put him."
So Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb.
They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and arrived at the tomb first;
he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in.
When Simon Peter arrived after him, he went into the tomb and saw the burial cloths there,
and the cloth that had covered his head, not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place.
Then the other disciple also went in, the one who had arrived at the tomb first, and he saw and believed.


Commentary of the day : Rupert of Deutz
The disciple who had« fully assured understanding of the knowledge of the mystery of God » (Col 2,3)

In proportion to that grace that caused Jesus to love him and allowed him to lean on Jesus' breast at the Last Supper (Jn 13,23), John abundantly received understanding and wisdom [gifts of the Spirit] (Is 11,2) – understanding to grasp the Scriptures; wisdom to compose his own books with wonderful skill. In actual fact he did not receive this gift from the exact moment he leaned on the Lord's breast, even if he could afterwards draw from that heart «in which lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge» (Col 2,3). When it says that, on entering the tomb, «he saw and he believed», it recognises that «they did not yet know the Scripture» and that «Jesus had to rise from the dead» (Jn 20,9). Like the other apostles, John received his full measure at Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came and when grace was given to each one «according to the measure of Christ's gift» (Eph 4,7)...

Our Lord Jesus loved this disciple more that all the others... and opened the secrets of heaven to him... to make of him the author of that deep mystery of which no one can speak by himself: the mystery of the Word of God, the Word made flesh. However, even if he loved him, yet it was not to him that Jesus said: «You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church» (Mt 16,18)... While loving all his disciples and especially Peter with a love in spirit and soul, our Lord loved John with a heart's love... According to the order of apostolate, Simon Peter was given the first place and «the keys of the kingdom of heaven» (Mt 16,19). But John obtained a different inheritance: the spirit of understanding, «a treasure of joy and gladness « (Sir 15,6).

"Those who sought the child's life"

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 2:13-15.19-23.
When they had departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you. Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him."
Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed for Egypt.
He stayed there until the death of Herod, that what the Lord had said through the prophet might be fulfilled, "Out of Egypt I called my son."
When Herod had died, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt
and said, "Rise, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the child's life are dead."
He rose, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel.
But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go back there. And because he had been warned in a dream, he departed for the region of Galilee.
He went and dwelt in a town called Nazareth, so that what had been spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, "He shall be called a Nazorean."


Commentary of the day : Saint Alphonsus Liguori
"Those who sought the child's life"

An angel appeared in a dream to Joseph and warned him that Herod was seeking the Child Jesus' life: «Get up,» he said, «take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt». Jesus had hardly been born before he was being persecuted to the death... Joseph obeyed the angel's voice without delay and warned his holy wife. He took such poor tools as he could carry so that he might have the wherewithal to carry on his work in Egypt and have something with which to maintain his little family. Mary, for her part, gathered together in a bundle the necessary linen for her divine son; then, going to the cradle where he was lying, she went down on her knees, kissed the feet of her beloved child and, weeping tears of tenderness, said to him: «Oh my son and my God, you have come into the world to save humankind yet you have scarcely been born and they seek to kill you!» Then she took him in her arms and, as they wept, the holy couple shut the door and set out through the night...

Beloved Jesus, you are the king of heaven and now I see you in the likeness of a child, wandering in exile. Tell me: who are you looking for? I am moved with compassion when I see your poverty and humiliation. But what distresses me even more deeply is the complete ingratitude with which I see you being treated by the very ones you came to save. You weep, and I weep too for being one of those who have despised and persecuted you. Yet know that I would now prefer your grace to all the kingdoms of the world.

Forgive me all the harm I have caused you. On the journey of this life to eternity let me carry you in my heart following Mary's example, who bore you in her arms during the flight to Egypt. Beloved Redeemer, I have often cast you out of my soul but now I trust you have repossessed it. I beseech you, bind it closely to yourself with the sweet bonds of your love.

He has looked on the lowliness of his handmaid

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 1:46-56.
And Mary said: "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my savior.
For he has looked upon his handmaid's lowliness; behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed.
The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name.
His mercy is from age to age to those who fear him.
He has shown might with his arm, dispersed the arrogant of mind and heart.
He has thrown down the rulers from their thrones but lifted up the lowly.
The hungry he has filled with good things; the rich he has sent away empty.
He has helped Israel his servant, remembering his mercy,
according to his promise to our fathers, to Abraham and to his descendants forever."
Mary remained with her about three months and then returned to her home.


Commentary of the day : Ludolph of Saxony
« He has looked on the lowliness of his handmaid» (Lk 1,48)

Our Lord's conception was prefigured by the burning bush that burned but was not consumed (Ex 3,2) just as Mary conceived her divine son but did not lose her virginity. The same Lord who dwelt within the burning bush, dwelt also in Mary's womb. And just as he came down into that bush to deliver the Jews by leading them out of Egypt, so he came down into Mary to redeem us by drawing us out of hell.

God's choice of Mary among all women to clothe himself in flesh was prefigured by Gideon's fleece (Jg 6,36f.). For just as the fleece alone was covered with dew from heaven while all the ground round about remained dry, so too Mary alone was filled with that divine dew of which no other creature in all the world had been found worthy... The Virgin Mary is the fleece of which Jesus Christ fashioned a garment for himself. Gideon's fleece received the dew from heaven without being damaged and Mary conceived the Man-God without alteration to her virginity...

O Jesus, Son of the living God who, by the will of the heavenly Father and with the Holy Spirit's cooperation, came forth from your Father's side as the secret river from the Paradise of delights; you who, visiting the recesses of our valleys and seeing the humility of your servant, came down into the womb of the virgin where, by an ineffable conception, you put on your mortal flesh. I beseech you, O merciful Jesus, through the merits of this Virgin, your mother, to cover me, your unworthy servant, with your grace that I may burn with desire for you, may conceive you in my heart through this love, and by the aid of this same grace may produce the health giving fruits of good works. Amen.

"You shall name him Emmanuel, which means "God is with us."

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 1:18-24.
Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with child through the holy Spirit.
Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly.
Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her.
She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:
Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means "God is with us."
When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home.


Commentary of the day : Saint Bede the Venerable
"You shall name him Emmanuel, which means "God is with us."

«Behold,» says the prophet Isaiah, «a virgin will conceive and bear a son, and he will be called Emmanuel, a name which means God-with-us.» (7,14) The name 'God-with-us,' given to our Savior by the prophet, signifies that two natures are united in his one person. Before time began he was God, born of the Father, but in the fullness of time he became Emmanuel, God-with-us, in the womb of his mother, because when «the Word was made flesh and lived among us» (Jn 1,14) he deigned to unite our frail human nature to his own person. Without ceasing to be what he had always been, he began in a wonderful fashion to be what we are, assuming our nature in such a way that he did not lose his own...

And so, Scripture says: «Mary gave birth to her firstborn son... and she named him Jesus.» (Lc 2,7.21). Jesus, then, is the name of the Virgin's son. According to the angel's explanation, it means one who is to save his people from their sins. In doing so he will also deliver them from any defilement of mind and body they have incurred on account of their sins.

But the title "Christ" implies a priestly or royal dignity. In the Old Testament it was given to both priests and kings on account of the anointing with chrism or holy oil which they received. They prefigured the true king and high priest who, on coming into this world, «was anointed with the oil of gladness above all his peers» (Ps 45[44], 8). From this anointing or chrismation he received the name of Christ, and those who share in the anointing which he himself bestows, that is the grace of the Spirit, are called Christians. May Jesus Christ fulfill his saving task by saving us from our sins; may he discharge his priestly office by reconciling us to God the Father, and may he exercise his royal power by admitting us to his Father's kingdom,

"Mary the mother of Jesus was betrothed to Joseph"

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 1:18-25.
Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with child through the holy Spirit.
Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly.
Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her.
She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:
Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means "God is with us."
When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home.
He had no relations with her until she bore a son, and he named him Jesus.


Commentary of the day : Saint Peter Chrysologus
"Mary the mother of Jesus was betrothed to Joseph"


His mother, Mary, was betrothed.» It should have been enough to say: Mary was betrothed. What can a betrothed mother mean? If she is a mother then she isn't betrothed; if she is betrothed then she isn't yet a mother! «His mother, Mary, was betrothed»: betrothed by virginity, mother by fecundity. This was a mother without experience of a man but who yet experienced motherhood. How could she not be a mother before she had conceived who, after giving birth, remains both virgin and mother? When was she not a mother, she who is about to conceive him who set in motion the time that gives things their beginning?...

Why was the mystery of heavenly innocence given to a betrothed girl and not to a virgin who was still free? Why did a fiancé's jealousy put his betrothed in peril? Why should such great virtue appear to be sin or salvation to be eternal danger?... What mystery exercises us in all this, my brethren? There is not a stroke, a letter, a syllable, a word, a name, a person in all the Gospel that is empty of divine significance. A betrothed girl was chosen that the Church, Christ's betrothed, might also be signified according to the word of the prophet Hosea: «I will betroth you to me in right and justice, in love and mercy; I will betroth you in fidelity» (2,21-22). That is why John said: «The one who has the bride is the Bridegroom» (Jn 3,29). And Saint Paul: «I betrothed you to one Spouse to present you as a chaste virgin to Christ» (2Cor 11,2). O Church, true spouse, who through the virginal birth [of baptism] conceives a new childhood from Christ!

"What did you go out to the desert to see?"

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 7:24-30.
When the messengers of John had left, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John. "What did you go out to the desert to see--a reed swayed by the wind?
Then what did you go out to see? Someone dressed in fine garments? Those who dress luxuriously and live sumptuously are found in royal palaces.
Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet.
This is the one about whom scripture says: 'Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, he will prepare your way before you.'
I tell you, among those born of women, no one is greater than John; yet the least in the kingdom of God is greater than he."
(All the people who listened, including the tax collectors, and who were baptized with the baptism of John, acknowledged the righteousness of God;
but the Pharisees and scholars of the law, who were not baptized by him, rejected the plan of God for themselves.)


Commentary of the day : Venerable Charles de Foucauld
"What did you go out to the desert to see?"

One has to pass through the desert, spending time there, if one is to receive the grace of God. It is there that we empty ourselves, getting rid of everything that is not God, and completely emptying this little house of our souls to leave all the room to God alone. The Hebrews travelled through the desert, Moses lived there before he received his mission, Saint Paul and Saint John Chrysostom were also made ready in the desert... It is a time of grace, a period during which all souls who want to bear fruit necessarily have to pass. They need this silence, recollection and forgetfulness of all created things in the midst of which God establishes his reign and forms a spirit of interiority within them: life in intimacy with God, conversation of the soul with God in faith, hope and love. Later on the soul will produce fruit in precisely the measure to which this interior man has been formed within it (Eph 3,16)...

We can only give what we have and it is in solitude, in that life alone with God alone, that profound recollection of the soul who forgets all else to live alone in union with God, that God gives himself wholly to the one who is thus given wholly to him. Give yourselves wholly to him alone... and he will give himself wholly to you... Look at Saint Paul, Saint Benedict, Saint Patrick, Saint Gregory the Great and so many others – what long periods of recollection and silence they spent! Go higher: look at Saint John the Baptist, look at our Lord. Our Lord had no need of it but he wanted to set us an example.

"Blessed is the one who takes no offense at me

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 7:18-23.
At that time, John summoned two of his disciples
and sent them to the Lord to ask, "Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?"
When the men came to him, they said, "John the Baptist has sent us to you to ask, 'Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?'"
At that time he cured many of their diseases, sufferings, and evil spirits; he also granted sight to many who were blind.
And he said to them in reply, "Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the good news proclaimed to them.
And blessed is the one who takes no offense at me."


Commentary of the day : Saint Hilary
"Blessed is the one who takes no offense at me."

When he sent his disciples to Jesus, John was concerned about their ignorance, not his own. For he himself had announced that one would be coming for the forgiveness of sins. But that they might know he had not preached anything else, he sent his disciples to witness his works so that they might give authority to his proclamation and no other Christ might be expected than he to whom his works bore testimony.

And as the Lord revealed himself wholly through his miraculous deeds, giving sight to the blind, enabling the lame to walk, healing lepers, giving hearing to the death, speech to the dumb, life to the dead, teaching the poor, he said: «Happy are those who are not scandalized on my account». Now had there already been on Christ's part any action that might have caused scandal to John? By no means. For he remained effectively within his own sphere of teaching and action. But we need to look at the implications and specific character of what the Lord says: that the Good News is welcomed by those who are poor. It concerns those who are to lose their lives, take up their cross and follow him (Lk 14,27), who will become lowly of heart and for whom the Kingdom of heaven has been prepared (Mt 11,29; 25,34). And because all these forms of suffering would meet in the Lord and his cross would be a scandal to many, he declared happy those whose faith would not undergo temptation on account of his cross, death and burial.

John testified to the truth...; he was a burning and shining lamp

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 21:28-32.
What is your opinion? A man had two sons. He came to the first and said, 'Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.'
He said in reply, 'I will not,' but afterwards he changed his mind and went.
The man came to the other son and gave the same order. He said in reply, 'Yes, sir,' but did not go.
Which of the two did his father's will?" They answered, "The first." Jesus said to them, "Amen, I say to you, tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you.
When John came to you in the way of righteousness, you did not believe him; but tax collectors and prostitutes did. Yet even when you saw that, you did not later change your minds and believe him.


Commentary of the day : Blessed Guerric of Igny
« John testified to the truth...; he was a burning and shining lamp» (Jn 5,33.35)

To me certainly the birth of the world's Lamp brings fresh joy, for it enabled me to recognize the true Light shining in the darkness but not mastered by the darkness... We can wonder at your holiness, O John, most holy among the saints, but we cannot imitate it. It is altogether necessary that, as you hasten to prepare for the Lord a perfect people out of publicans and sinners, you should speak to them more accommodatingly than you live and define the measure of perfection not in accordance with your own rule of life but in accordance with the possibilities of the common run of men.

"Bring forth worthy fruits of repentance, "he says. Our boast, brethren, is that we speak more perfectly than we live; whereas John, though living on a higher level than men can even understand, speaks to them in accordance with what they can take in. "Bring forth worthy fruits of repentance," he says. "l speak to you humanely because of the weakness of your nature. If there is no room in you as yet for the plenitude of all good things, at least be truly sorry for all your evils. If you are unable as yet to bring forth the fruits of perfect justice, let this be your perfection for the moment, to bring forth worthy fruits of repentance.»

It is I who need to be baptized by you!

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 21:23-27.
When he had come into the temple area, the chief priests and the elders of the people approached him as he was teaching and said, "By what authority are you doing these things? And who gave you this authority?"
Jesus said to them in reply, "I shall ask you one question, and if you answer it for me, then I shall tell you by what authority I do these things.
Where was John's baptism from? Was it of heavenly or of human origin?" They discussed this among themselves and said, "If we say 'Of heavenly origin,' he will say to us, 'Then why did you not believe him?'
But if we say, 'Of human origin,' we fear the crowd, for they all regard John as a prophet."
So they said to Jesus in reply, "We do not know." He himself said to them, "Neither shall I tell you by what authority I do these things.


Commentary of the day : Saint Augustine
« Jesus came to John to be baptized by him... John said to him: ' It is I who need to be baptized by you!'» (Mt 3,13-14)

«Many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it» (Mt 13,17). Indeed, those holy ones, filled with the Spirit of God that they might foretell Christ's coming, ardently longed to rejoice in his presence on earth if that were possible. That was the reason why God held back from taking Simeon from this world: he wanted him to behold the one by whom the world was made under the form of a newborn infant (Lk 2,25f.)... Simeon did see him then, but beneath appearance of a child. John, on the other hand, saw him when he was already teaching and selecting his disciples. Where? Beside the river Jordan...

Here is where we see a symbol and foreshadowing of baptism in Jesus Christ: in the baptism of preparation that opened up the way for him according to these words of John: «Prepare the way of the Lord; make straight his paths» (Mt 3,3). The Lord himself desired to be baptised by his servant to teach those who receive baptism in their Lord what grace it is they are receiving. Thus it was here that he began his rule, as though to fulfil this prophecy: «He will rule from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth» (Ps 72[71],8). Beside the river where this lordship of Christ began, John saw the Savior. He saw him, recognised him, and bore witness to him. John humbled himself before the divine greatness that his humility might be worthy of being raised up by that same greatness. He declared himself to be the friend of the Bridegroom (Jn 3,29). What sort of friend? Is this a friend who walks shoulder to shoulder with his companion? How far from his thought! At what sort of distance did he view himself? «I am not worthy,» he said, «to loosen the strap of his sandals» (Mk 1,7).

The least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 11:2-11.
When John heard in prison of the works of the Messiah, he sent his disciples to him
with this question, "Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?"
Jesus said to them in reply, "Go and tell John what you hear and see:
the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them.
And blessed is the one who takes no offense at me."
As they were going off, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John, "What did you go out to the desert to see? A reed swayed by the wind?
Then what did you go out to see? Someone dressed in fine clothing? Those who wear fine clothing are in royal palaces.
Then why did you go out? To see a prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet.
This is the one about whom it is written: 'Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you; he will prepare your way before you.'
Amen, I say to you, among those born of women there has been none greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.


Commentary of the day : A sermon attributed to Saint Hippolytus of Rome
"Among those born of women there has been none greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he"

Let us honor the compassion of a God who has come to save, not to judge, the world. John, the Lord's forerunner, who had previously been unaware of this mystery, as soon as he learned that Jesus was truly the Lord, cried out to those who came to be baptised: «Brood of vipers (Mt 3,6), why look to me so insistently? I am not the Christ; I am a servant, not the Master, a mere subject, not the king. I am a sheep, not the shepherd, a man not a God. When I came into the world I cured my mother's barrenness but her virginity was not made fruitful by me. I was drawn from below, I did not come down from on high. I bound my father's tongue (Lk 1,20), I did not exercise divine grace... I am lowly and small but after me comes he who was before me (Jn 1,30). He comes afterwards in time but beforehand he was in the inaccessible and inexpressible light of the divinity. 'He who is stronger than I is coming and I am not worthy to take off his sandals: he will baptise you in Spirit and fire' (Mt 3,11). I am beneath him but he is free. I am subject to sin but he destroys sin. I am a teacher of the Law but he brings with him the light of grace. I preach as a slave but he legislates as a master. The earth is my bed, the heavens are his. I baptise with the baptism of repentance but he give us the grace of adoption. 'He will baptise you in Spirit and in fire.' Why do you honor me? I am not the Christ.»

Being converted by God's repeated call

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 11:16-19.
To what shall I compare this generation? It is like children who sit in marketplaces and call to one another,
'We played the flute for you, but you did not dance, we sang a dirge but you did not mourn.'
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they said, 'He is possessed by a demon.'
The Son of Man came eating and drinking and they said, 'Look, he is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.' But wisdom is vindicated by her works."


Commentary of the day : Blessed John Henry Newman
Being converted by God's repeated call

O my Lord Jesus, whose love for me has been so great as to bring Thee down from heaven to save me, teach me, dear Lord, my sin—teach me its heinousness—teach me truly to repent of it—and pardon it in Thy great mercy! I beg Thee, O my dear Saviour, to recover me! Thy grace alone can do it. I cannot save myself. I cannot recover my lost ground. I cannot turn to Thee, I cannot please Thee, or save my soul without Thee. I shall go from bad to worse, I shall fall from Thee entirely, I shall quite harden myself against my neglect of duty, if I rely on my own strength. I shall make myself my centre instead of making Thee. I shall worship some idol of my own framing instead of Thee, the only true God and my Maker, unless Thou hinder it by Thy grace. O my dear Lord, hear me! I have lived long enough in this undecided, wavering, unsatisfactory state. I wish to be Thy good servant. I wish to sin no more. Be gracious to me, and enable me to be what I know I ought to be.

"From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffers violence"

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 11:11-15.
Amen, I say to you, among those born of women there has been none greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent are taking it by force.
All the prophets and the law prophesied up to the time of John.
And if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah, the one who is to come.
Whoever has ears ought to hear.


Commentary of the day : Blessed Guerric of Igny
"From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffers violence"

Someone wrestled with Jacob until morning perseveringly... and Jacob said to him: «I will not let you go unless you bless me» (Gn 32,25.27)... So to you, my brethren, we say, you whose set purpose is to win heaven by force, you who have come together to wrestle with the angel who guards the way to the tree of life, to you we say: it is wholly necessary that you should wrestle perseveringly and without remission, not only until the thigh... is deprived of its vigor but also until the body is mortified. But your toil will be able to achieve this only by the touch of God's strength and through his bounty...

Do you not seem to yourself to be wrestling with an angel, or rather with God himself, when day by day he resists your impatient prayers?... You cry to him and he does not listen to you; you wish to approach him and he repels you. You make a decision and the opposite happens; and so, in every way, he sets himself against you with unrelenting hand. O Mercy, you conceal yourself and pretend to be unrelenting! With what loving-kindness you fight against those for whom you fight. For although you «hide these things in your heart», I know that you «love those who love you» and that «the abundance of your sweetness which you hide away for those who fear you is immense» (Jb 10,13; Pr 8,17; Ps 31[30],20).

Do not despair then, persevere, happy soul that has begun to wrestle with God; he loves to suffer violence from you, he desires to be overcome by you. For when he is angry and stretches forth his hand to strike, he seeks, as he himself confesses, a man like Moses to resist him... For if his anger is implacable and his sentence unbending, Jeremiah, who had attempted to resist, will weep and say: "You were the stronger and did prevail" (20,7).

"Hail, favored one!"

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 1:26-38.
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, favored one! 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.


Commentary of the day : Saint Epiphanius of Salamis
"Hail, favored one!"

How can I speak? What praises could I possibly make of the holy and glorious Virgin? She surpasses all other beings except for God himself. She is by nature more beautiful than the cherubim and seraphim and the whole angelic host. No language, whether of heaven or earth or even of the angels, is enough to praise her. Blessed Virgin, spotless dove, heavenly bride..., temple and throne of the Godhead! Christ, the sun that shines resplendently in heaven and on earth, belongs to you. You are the luminous cloud that brought Christ down to earth, he who is the bright streak of lightening who shines across the world.

Rejoice, full of grace, gate of heaven! It was of you the author of the Songs of Songs speaks... when he cries aloud: «A garden enclosed is my sister, my bride; an enclosed garden, a fountain sealed» (4,12)... Holy Mother of God, spotless ewe: you gave birth to Christ the Lamb, the Word made flesh in you... How amazing a wonder in the heavens: a woman clothed with the sun (Rv 12,1), carrying the light in her arms!... How amazing a wonder in the heavens: the Lord of angels become the Virgin's child. Angels judged Eve; now they fill Mary with glory since it was she raised Eve from her fall and brought Adam, expelled from Paradise, into heaven.

Vast is the grace given to this holy Virgin. Hence Gabriel first addresses her with this greeting: «Hail, full of grace», resplendent as the heaven. «Hail, full of grace», Virgin adorned with countless virtues... «Hail, full of grace», you quench our thirst at the sweetness of the everlasting stream. Hail, holy and immaculate Mother, you conceived the Christ who existed before you. Hail, royal purple, you clothed the king of heaven and earth. Hail, O sealed book, you enabled the world to read the Word, the Father's Son.

"Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths."

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 3:1-12.
In those days John the Baptist appeared, preaching in the desert of Judea
(and) saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!"
It was of him that the prophet Isaiah had spoken when he said: "A voice of one crying out in the desert, 'Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.'"
John wore clothing made of camel's hair and had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey.
At that time Jerusalem, all Judea, and the whole region around the Jordan were going out to him
and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins.
When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?
Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance.
And do not presume to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' For I tell you, God can raise up children to Abraham from these stones.
Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees. Therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.
I am baptizing you with water, for repentance, but the one who is coming after me is mightier than I. I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the holy Spirit and fire.
His winnowing fan is in his hand. He will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire."


Commentary of the day : Origen
"Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths."

John the Baptist said: «Every valley shall be filled» (Lk 3,5) but it was not John who filled every valley, it was our Lord and Savior... «And the winding roads shall be made straight.» Every one of us was going astray..., and it was Christ's coming, fulfilled within our very souls, that straightened all that was crooked... Nothing was so resistant as you were. Consider your former unruly desires, your fits of anger and other evil tendencies, as to whether they have disappeared. You will realize that nothing was so resistant as you were or, in an even more expressive phrase, that nothing was so brought low. Your behavior was low, your words and deeds were low.

But my Lord Jesus came: he smoothed down your roughness, he changed all that muddle into roads that joined up, to create a way without obstacles within you, well articulated and swept clean so that God our Father could walk in you and Christ the Lord could make his home in you and say: «My Father and I will come to him and make our dwelling within him» (Jn 14,23).

"The kingdom of heaven is at hand"

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 9:35-38.10:1.5-8.
Jesus went around to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and curing every disease and illness.
At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them because they were troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd.
Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest."
Then he summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out and to cure every disease and every illness.
Jesus sent out these twelve after instructing them thus, "Do not go into pagan territory or enter a Samaritan town.
Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
As you go, make this proclamation: 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.'
Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, drive out demons. Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give.


Commentary of the day : Saint Cyprian
"The kingdom of heaven is at hand"

«Thy kingdom come» (Mt 6,10). We seek also that God's kingdom be manifested to us, just as we ask that his name be sanctified in us. For when does God not reign, or when does that begin in him that both always was and does not cease to be? We petition that our kingdom come which was promised us by God, which was acquired by Christ's blood and passion, so that we who formerly served in the world may afterwards reign with Christ as Lord, as he himself promises and says: «Come, blessed of my Father, take possession of the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world» (Mt 25,34).

Indeed, most beloved brethren, even Christ himself can be the kingdom of God whom we daily desire to come, whose coming we wish to be quickly presented to us. For since he himself is «the resurrection» (Jn 11,25), because in him we rise again, so too the kingdom of God can be understood as himself, because in him we are to reign.

Human blindness

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 9:27-31.
And as Jesus passed on from there, two blind men followed (him), crying out, "Son of David, have pity on us!"
When he entered the house, the blind men approached him and Jesus said to them, "Do you believe that I can do this?" "Yes, Lord," they said to him.
Then he touched their eyes and said, "Let it be done for you according to your faith."
And their eyes were opened. Jesus warned them sternly, "See that no one knows about this."
But they went out and spread word of him through all that land.


Commentary of the day : Saint Symeon the New Theologian
Human blindness

[Christ speaks:]
When I created Adam, I allowed him to see me
and thus be established in the dignity of the angels...
With his bodily eyes he beheld my whole creation
but with those of the mind
he looked on the face of me, his Creator.
He contemplated my glory
and spoke with me constantly.
But when, in defiance of my command,
he tasted of the tree,
then he became blind
and fell into the darkness of death...

But I took pity on him and came down from on high.
I who am completely invisible
Shared the visibility of his flesh,
And having received from the flesh a beginning, having become man,
I was seen by all.
So why did I readily take on all this?
Because this was the real reason
For which I had created Adam: to see me.
When he had been blinded
And, following him, all his descendants as well,
I could not bear that I myself should remain
In divine glory and abandon those...
I had created with my own hands.
But I became in everything like all men,
Bodily with those who are body,
And freely joined myself to them.
Now you see what my wish to be seen by men is like...
So how can you say I am hiding from you,
Not letting myself be seen?
In truth I shine out, but you, you fail to look at me.

Building a house

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 7:21.24-27.
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.
Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.
The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock.
And everyone who listens to these words of mine but does not act on them will be like a fool who built his house on sand.
The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. And it collapsed and was completely ruined."


Commentary of the day : Saint Augustine
Building a house

The psalmist says: «The Lord is great and worthy of praise» (96[95],4). Who is this 'Lord' if not Jesus Christ, great and worthy of praise? You surely know he appeared as man; you know, too, that he was conceived in the womb of a woman; that he was born of that womb, nourished, cradled in her arms, circumcised, that an offering was made for him (Lk 2,24) and that he grew up. You also know that he was struck, covered with spittle, crowned with thorns, crucified, and that he died, pierced by a lance. You know well that he suffered all those things. Yes, «he is great and worthy of praise». Guard yourselves from despising his littleness; understand his greatness. He became small because you were small: understand how great he is and you will become great along with him. This is how houses are built, how the solid walls of a building are raised. The stones brought to construct the building increase: you, too, increase, understanding how great Christ is and how he who appeared to be small is great, very great indeed...

What can poor, human language say in praise of him who is so great? In saying «very» great it is trying to express what it feels and believes..., but it is as if it were saying: «Try to grasp in thought what I am unable to express in words, and yet you must know that whatever you may have grasped is only a fragment.» For how can any language translate something that surpasses all thought? «Great is the Lord and worthy of all praise!» May he be praised, then; may he be preached; may his glory be proclaimed and his dwelling place erected