December 19, 2020
Saturday of the Third
Week of Advent
Lectionary: 195
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
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
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.”
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WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN FAITH AND TRUSTING GOD?
Our life on earth is a spiritual journey. When we fail to respond to the challenges of trust that God gives us, it's usually because we cannot see the whole path. We worry about what might go wrong. We analyze it logically and come up with reasons why it couldn't possibly be the Lord's will. Or we let previous hardships trigger emotional reactions that warn us to go no farther. And this is why this Saturday's first reading and Gospel can be very helpful.
They tell us the stories of two holy families who had the same experience of receiving an unexpected child. Both stories are similar to what happened to a third family, the Holy Family.
In each case, an angel announced the good news to the would-be parents. In each case, sons were given to women who had never been pregnant before. In each case, the Spirit of the Lord descended upon the boys and anointed them for special ministries.
Because of the barrenness of Samson's and John's mothers, the parents had to make the decision to trust God and believe in the promised miracle. Mary and Joseph had to trust God for the same reason. Let's take a closer look at how each of them trusted.
Samson's parents simply accepted what the angel said and proceeded from there. Verse 8 is very telling: Manoah, the dad, upon hearing from his wife what the angel had said, immediately turned to God and prayed, "Teach us how to raise this boy who will be born."
Not only did he trust the good news without hesitation, but he moved quickly into seeking and trusting in the guidance that God could provide.
Zechariah, who is the husband of Mary's cousin Elizabeth, receives a visit from the archangel Gabriel, the same angel who had spoken to Mary. Unlike Mary, however, Zechariah doesn't believe the messenger. And he suffers the consequences of his disbelief. Despite being a priest and knowing well the story of Samson's birth, he wanted proof that what the angel said was true. He asked, "How am I to know this?" For his lack of trust, he was made mute until the child was born.
Mary asked a similar question of the angel, but with complete trust. She said, "How can this be, since I am still a virgin?" She did not demand proof. She was not asking to "know this." She simply accepted the angel's words that she would become pregnant.
For her, it was only a question of how it would - not how it could - happen, which was a healthy curiosity, containing no doubts.
It's okay to ask "how?" when God gives us surprising news or when he calls us to a vocation or a task that doesn't make sense to us. Each one of us has a special mission - in the workplace, in the parish, at home, in the community.
Ask the Holy Spirit how God wants you to proceed in making a difference for his kingdom in these places. Let's not demand proof that God is really calling us to have a mission.
Faith is a gift from the Holy Spirit. Trust, however, is a choice. Choose to trust Jesus in whatever mission he's assigned to you in the mission field where you already find yourself encountering other people, and your faith will increase.
Then, pray for an understanding of how to do what he's asking.
Trust is not based on feeling certain or secure. It's based on believing that God is God and therefore can do everything he plans to accomplish - yes, even through you!
Today's Prayer
Grant, we pray, almighty God, that we, who
are weighed down from of old by slavery beneath the yoke of sin, may be set
free by the newness of the long-awaited Nativity of your Only Begotten Son. Who
live and reigns with God the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God,
for ever and ever. Amen.
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God Bless You.....
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