Martin Jumbam

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

Martin Jumbam

Mother Church celebrates January 1, the first day of the year, as the Feast of Mary, Mother of God. Since 1967, the Holy See designated this day as the “World Day of Peace.” On this day, the entire Universal Church shares man’s deep yearning for peace, which seems more elusive than ever. 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, in their document Lumen Gentium, 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).

Catholic Meditation - Christmas Day Mass - Year B

Martin Jumbam

Mother Church celebrates Thursday, December 25, 2014, as Christmas, the birthday of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. In the Entrance Antiphon we pray: “A child is born for us, a son given to us; dominion is laid on his shoulders, and he shall be called Wonderful Counselor. Amen.” On this day, God has acted on his promise of old and given us a Saviour. In the first reading, the prophet Isaiah sings a hymn of praise to God who has brought salvation to the city of Jerusalem. The messenger is seen running along the mountain ridges to the Holy City with the news of the return of the exiles. The watchman takes it up and proclaims it to the ruined Zion.  In the Second Reading, the sacred writer of the Letter to the Hebrews recalls how throughout the Old Testament, God revealed his plan of redemption to the forerunners and ancestors of the Christian faith. But now, God has revealed and achieved all he promised through his Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. In the Gospel, we hear the Prologue of Saint John, which is the traditional Gospel of Christmas Day. In it, Saint John tells us that the Word shares the Father’s divine being and his creative activity. Through him comes the communication and revelation of true and eternal life.  Let us pray for the grace to receive Emmanuel, God-with-us, as he comes into our world and into our lives this day.

Catholic Meditation: Fourth Sunday of Advent – Year B.

 Martin Jumbam 

Sunday, December 21, 2014, is the Fourth Sunday of Advent in the liturgical year B.  It is the last Sunday of Advent. The entrance antiphon of this day’s Mass says: “Let the clouds rain down the Just One, and the earth bring forth a Saviour. Amen.” The general mood of the liturgy is already pointing to Christmas. The Church picks one of the greatest Old Testament passages from Second Samuel as the first reading of this day. The sacred author is inspired by the divine promise that the dynasty of David would continue forever, especially as the prophecies are already announcing that the Messiah would be of David’s stock. In the second reading from Romans, Saint Paul says that God commanded the Good News of Christ to be preached not just that men might hear about him, but so that they would accept Christ’s saving work by personal commitment and submission. The Gospel of Saint Luke shows that the most important as well as the most hidden of all the figures who prepare for Christ is Mary, our Lady. Through her obedience and submission to the will of the Father, the Messiah the prophets had been announcing for centuries is coming into the world.  In the course of this Eucharist, let us pray for the grace to follow Mary’s example of obedience to God’s call on us to take his word of salvation to our society.

Catholic Meditation: Third Sunday of Advent – Year B

Martin Jumbam

The Universal Church celebrates Sunday, December 14, 2014, as the third Sunday of Advent in the liturgical year B.  Last Sunday, I mentioned that during the Advent period, the Church proposes the figure of John the Baptist for our meditation. The Gospel of Saint John of this Sunday is devoted to the mission of John the Baptist, as he prepares us to welcome our Messiah, Jesus Christ. The greatest of all prophets, Isaiah, tells us, in the first reading, that he has been sent to preach good tidings to the poor and to free prisoners from captivity. Saint Paul tells his converts of Thessalonika, in the second reading, that they should love one another, live a life of joy, prayer and thanksgiving as they await the second coming of their Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Let us pray for the grace of repentance and forgiveness so that when our Lord returns, he will find us worthy to receive him in our hearts, minds and souls.

Catholic Meditation – Second Sunday of Advent – Year B

Martin Jumbam

The Universal Church celebrates December 07, 2014, as the Second Sunday of Advent in the liturgical year B.  In the entrance antiphon we pray: “For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he spoke of: The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Amen.”  As we mentioned last Sunday, the first Sunday of Advent, a new liturgical year, Year B, has begun. We may need to be reminded that the season of Advent is a four-week period before Christmas during which the Church concentrates her attention on our Lord’s coming, a central theme in the Church’s worship. Advent (from the Latin adventus, meaning “coming”) looks back to the first coming of Christ, when he was born that first Christmas in Bethlehem over two thousand years ago, and it looks forward to his second coming at the end of time, when we will meet Him and His Father face-to-face in the glory of the heavenly kingdom.