Martin Jumbam

Catholic Meditation - Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time - Year C.

 

Martin Jumbam

Mother Church celebrates Sunday, January 31, 2016 as the Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time – Year C. In the entrance antiphon we pray: “Save us, Lord our God, and gather us together from the nations, that we may proclaim your holy name and glory in your praise. Amen.” The first reading (Jeremiah 1:4-5. 17-19) talks about the call of the prophet Jeremiah. In each important prophetic book of the Old Testament, an account is always given of the call of the prophet. Here Jeremiah is chosen from his mother’s womb and given his mission. He is to singlehandedly oppose the rulers of Judah, who have set themselves on a course of national and religious ruin. Very much against his will, Jeremiah prophesies the destruction of the temple of Jerusalem, which was for the Jewish people the inviolable seat of God’s presence among them. He was in this sense the forerunner of Christ, who also warned his people of the imminent destruction of the temple, a warning that came true less than a century after his death.

Catholic Meditation - Third Sunday of Ordinary Time - Year c

Martin Jumbam

The Universal Church celebrates Sunday, January 24, 2016, 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

 

Martin Jumbam

The Universal Church celebrates Sunday, January 17, 2016, as the Second Sunday of Ordinary Time – Year C. In the entrance antiphon we pray: “May all the earth give you worship and praise, and break into song to your name, O God, Most High. Amen.” The sacrament of matrimony is very much at the center of this day’s Eucharist.

Catholic Meditation - The Baptism of our Lord - Year C

 

Martin Jumbam

The Universal Church celebrates Sunday, January 10, 2016, as the Baptism of our Lord. This feast concludes the Christmas cycle and is at the same time the First Sunday of the year. The liturgy of this Mass already points to Lent and Easter, when our baptism is so often before our eyes. This Sunday begins a series of Sundays that speak of the early ministry of Jesus Christ. Jesus, who had no sins, still received baptism as a way of consecrating him for his mission on earth.  Saint Luke, in the Gospel, tells us that God shows his pleasure with his Son by sending down the Holy Spirit on him in the form of a dove.  It is a moment when the Three Persons of the Trinity – God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit – meet as the Father declares his delight in his Son. The Father bestows his Spirit on his Son to accompany him throughout his earthly ministry; in turn his Son will send the same Holy Spirit to strengthen his Apostles at Pentecost and send them preaching his word to the four corners of the world.