Martin Jumbam

Catholic Meditation - Third Sunday of Ordinary Time – Year C

By Martin Jumbam

The Universal Church celebrates Sunday, January 27, 2013, as the third Sunday of Ordinary Time – Year C. In the entrance antiphon we pray: “Sing a new song to the Lord! Sing to the Lord, all the earth. Truth and beauty surround him, he lives in holiness and glory. Amen.”

The authority of the word of God is very much at the center of our readings this day. In the first reading (Nehemiah 8: 2-6. 8-10), the priest Ezra, a scribe well versed in the law of Moses, travels from exile in Babylon to teach God’s law to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, who have been very discouraged because of the hardships they encounter after their return from exile. Their initial enthusiasm has been dampened by the harsh realities they meet on the ground and Ezra assembles them and reads to them the law of the Lord, reassuring them that God is not indifferent to their hardships. With that, the people joyfully renew their covenant with God, who will not punish them on account of their numerous transgressions. 

Catholic Meditation - Second Sunday of Ordinary Time – Year C

By Martin Jumbam

The Universal Church celebrates January 13, 2013 as the Second Sunday of Ordinary Time – Year C.  The sacrament of marriage is very much at the center of this day’s Eucharist. In the first reading from the prophecy of Isaiah (62: 1-5), the prophet Isaiah tells us that the Messiah will restore the relationship between God and his people that has all the love of a perfect marriage. God will make his people holy and will rejoice in them as the bridegroom rejoices in his bride. In the second reading from Saint Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians (12: 4-11), Saint Paul speaks to his converts of Corinth about the variety of gifts with which God has endowed them. These various gifts are to be used for the common good of all, and for building the Christian community, which is the Church of which Christ is the head. In the Gospel from Saint John (2: 1-11), the evangelist tells us about the first miracle Christ performs after his baptism: he changes water into wine, at the request of his mother, Mary, to save a young couple from embarrassment. With his presence at the wedding feast of Cana, Jesus sanctifies the sacrament of marriage as a union of one man and one woman, which is a sign of his own relationship with the Church.  

In the course of this Eucharist, let us pray for the grace to receive Jesus into our own homes and into our hearts. May he fill them with love so we can readily receive all who come to us this day, especially the stranger and the needy.

 

The Baptism of our Lord

By Martin Jumbam

The feast of the Baptism of our Lord concludes the Christmas cycle and is at the same time the first of the Ordinary Sundays of the year. It begins a series of Sundays that speak of the early ministry of Jesus Christ. In today’s Gospel from Saint Luke, Jesus, who had no sins, still received baptism as a way God consecrates him for his mission on earth.  God then shows his pleasure with his Son by sending down the Holy Spirit on him in the form of a dove.  It is the same Holy Spirit that will accompany Jesus throughout his earthly ministry and strengthen his apostles at Pentecost.  In the first reading, from the prophecy of Isaiah, the servant of Yahweh is declared the chosen one on whom God’s pleasure rests. Fortified by God’s Spirit, the servant will bring salvation to the nations and, like the Messiah, son of David, the servant will bring true peace and justice to all men and women of good will. In the second reading, from Acts of the Apostles, Saint Peter describes Jesus’ baptism as God anointing Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Throughout Acts of the Apostles, Saint Luke highlights the capital role the Holy Spirit plays in directing Christ’s mission right from the beginning of his public ministry. Let us pray in the course of this Eucharist for the grace to renew our own baptismal vows so we can follow Christ more closely as he begins his public ministry on earth. Let us now listen to the first reading.

Catholic Meditation : The Epiphany

By Martin Jumbam

The feast of the Epiphany commemorates the call of the nations to salvation. It is the manifestation of Jesus as Messiah of Israel, Son of God and Saviour of the world. It celebrates the first two occasions on which Jesus’ divinity is manifested to the world: the visit of the three kings from the East, the Magi, and Jesus’ baptism by John the Baptist in the Jordan River. The Epiphany is one of the oldest Christian feasts, celebrated since the end of the second century, before the Christmas holiday was established.

In the entrance antiphon of this day’s Mass we pray: “The Lord and ruler is coming; kingship is his, and government and power. Amen.”  Today’s readings express the grandeur of this feast. In the first reading, the prophet Isaiah shouts: “Arise, Jerusalem, shine out, for your light has come, the glory of the Lord is rising on you.” In the second reading, Saint Paul praises the majesty of God’s plan, which has revealed that pagans too now share in the same inheritance as Jews. In the Gospel, Matthew tells us the well-known story of the Magi, the three Wise men, who came from the East, bringing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh to the new born king, Christ the Lord. 

Catholic Meditation: January 1, Feast of Mary, Mother of God.

By Martin Jumbam

Today is January 1, the first day of the year. Since 1967, the Holy See has designated January 1 as the “World Day of Peace.” On this 46^th edition, the Universal Church shares man’s deep yearning for peace, which seems more elusive now than ever before.  The Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI has asked that we celebrate this day under the theme “Blessed are the peacemakers.” It is therefore appropriate that this day be dedicated to the woman of peace, Our Lady, the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God.

This feast, closely connected to the feast of Christmas, is the most important and oldest of the major feasts of Mary. It is based on the source of her privileges: that is, her motherhood. Jesus Christ, God’s Son “born of woman” (Gal 4:4) came to deliver us from sin and make us children of God. Jesus is also the Son of Mary who, as the Fathers of Vatican II Council say is “truly the Mother of God and of the Redeemer … not merely passively engaged by God, but freely cooperating in the work of our salvation through faith and obedience.” The Holy Spirit prompts Elizabeth to acclaim Mary as the “mother of my Lord” (Lk 1:43).

The Entrance Antiphon of this day’s Mass says of Mary: “Hail, holy Mother! The child to whom you gave birth is the King of heaven and earth for ever. Amen.”  In the first reading from the Book of Numbers, we hear the Lord blessing the Israelites. This blessing, in the form of a prayer, was frequently used by priests when they blessed the people. In the second reading, from Saint Paul’s Letter to the Galatians, we hear the Apostle of the Gentiles affirming Mary as the Mother of God. “When the fullness of time had come, God sent His Son, born of woman.”  In the Gospel of Saint Luke, we share the words of the shepherds as they say to one another: “Let us go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us."