Today, 26th of December, we celebrate
Saint Stephen
1 Cor 9:16-19, 22b-27
Brothers and sisters:
If I preach the Gospel, this is no reason for me to boast,
for an obligation has been imposed on me,
and woe to me if I do not preach it!
If I do so willingly, I have a recompense,
but if unwillingly, then I have been entrusted with a stewardship.
What then is my recompense?
That, when I preach, I offer the Gospel free of charge
so as not to make full use of my right in the Gospel.
Although I am free in regard to all,
I have made myself a slave to all
so as to win over as many as possible.
I have become all things to all, to save at least some.
All this I do for the sake of the Gospel,
so that I too may have a share in it.
Do you not know that the runners in the stadium all run in the race,
but only one wins the prize?
Run so as to win.
Every athlete exercises discipline in every way.
They do it to win a perishable crown,
but we an imperishable one.
Thus I do not run aimlessly;
I do not fight as if I were shadowboxing.
No, I drive my body and train it,
for fear that, after having preached to others,
I myself should be disqualified.
Ps 84:3, 4, 5-6, 12
R. How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God!
My soul yearns and pines
for the courts of the LORD.
My heart and my flesh
cry out for the living God.
R. How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God!
Even the sparrow finds a home,
and the swallow a nest
in which she puts her young—
Your altars, O LORD of hosts,
my king and my God!
R. How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God!
Blessed they who dwell in your house!
continually they praise you.
Blessed the men whose strength you are!
their hearts are set upon the pilgrimage.
R. How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God!
For a sun and a shield is the LORD God;
grace and glory he bestows;
The LORD withholds no good thing
from those who walk in sincerity.
R. How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, mighty God!
Lk 6:39-42
Jesus told his disciples a parable:
“Can a blind person guide a blind person?
Will not both fall into a pit?
No disciple is superior to the teacher;
but when fully trained,
every disciple will be like his teacher.
Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye,
but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own?
How can you say to your brother,
‘Brother, let me remove that splinter in your eye,’
when you do not even notice the wooden beam in your own eye?
You hypocrite! Remove the wooden beam from your eye first;
then you will see clearly
to remove the splinter in your brother’s eye.”
Dear friend,
Preaching, proclaiming the Gospel, talking about your experience of faith, about what you’ve lived… this is the task that every Christian must carry out and that St. Paul, in his outpouring today, tells his beloved community of Corinth: «For when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, since I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!»
Precisely today we celebrate a saint, St. John Chrysostom, whose name «Chrysostom» means something like «golden-mouthed,» because he was a great preacher and that’s why he is the patron saint of preachers, besides having been a supportive pastor, protector of the poor, women, and families of Constantinople in the 4th century.
Throughout the history of the Church, there has been no shortage of men and women full of zeal and faith to proclaim the Gospel. Perhaps we believers today lack a bit of this drive, or encouragement to talk about Jesus and our faith. I get the feeling that we are a bit asleep and need to put aside the prejudices that prevent us from making religion and spirituality a topic that can be discussed in our conversations with others.
«Can a blind person guide another blind person?» Jesus tells us today. How well the guide dogs work, leading the blind through our cities, helping them get on the bus, cross at a traffic light…; some of these blind people I know tell me that they could do almost nothing of what they do without these faithful and unconditional companions.
We need guides in faith, to be guided. We need to guide others in faith. We are not alone. We all have to learn and we all have something to teach. Let’s interact with each other.
Your brother in faith,
Juan Lozano, cmf.The gospel of today has everything to do with seeing: blind people cannot show the way to others, wounded eyes distort what they see in others and cannot see their own defects. We should have a bit of “sympathetic” blindness to the faults of others. And let us look first into our own hearts; this is perhaps the way to love others a bit more.
Lord our God, you are just and holy,
and yet you are patient and tolerant with us.
We are but slow-learning students
of our one Teacher, Jesus Christ.
He saw people’s faults,
but he had come not to condemn
but to forgive and save.
Give us clear eyes to look
into our own hearts and consciences,
but dim them with the shades of love
when we see the faults of those around us.
We ask you this through Christ our Lord.
The athletic image
Maintaining our enthusiasm for the message
The importance of self-discipline
– That Jesus may show the road to follow to the honest seekers of truth and goodness, that false leaders may not mislead them, we pray:
– That Jesus may show the road to follow to those who easily condemn and are reluctant to forgive and accept people, we pray:
– That Jesus may show us the road to follow, that we may learn to see the evil that is in us and no longer condemn others for the evils we too are inclined to commit, we pray:
Lord our God,
your Son Jesus Christ let his light shine
in our darkness;
he opened the eyes of the blind.
Give us your Son here in this Eucharist,
that he may open our eyes
to your forgiving love and to your goodness
present in people around us.
Grant this in the name of Jesus the Lord.
God our Father,
you let all of us here share,
with our faults and irritating habits,
in the meal of brotherhood and unity
of Jesus Christ your Son.
Help us to accept one another also in everyday life
and to cover each other’s shortcomings
with the mantle of love.
May we overcome evil with good
and bring your peace on this earth,
by the power of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Eyes that do not look for the evil in others are like the eyes of God. He is not a policeman out to catch us when we do wrong. He forgives, he heals. May almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
