HOMILY FOR MONDAY 3RD WEEK IN ADVENT SEASON, YEAR B
THEME OF THE HOMILY: How Jesus Christ came to be born.
BY: Fr Deotacious Chikontwe SMA.
READINGS OF THE DAY
Jeremiah 23:5-8
Psalm 71:1-2,12-13,18-19
Matthew 1:18-24
LITURGICAL COLOUR
VIOLET
INTRODUCTION
Good morning my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the 18th December of the Advent season Year B.
FROM OUR FIRST READING
In our first reading today, we heard how the Lord reassured His people that He would send unto them His salvation, through the Heir of the House of David, successor of David, the great King who had once ruled over the whole people of Israel. This was hope and joy given to the people who by that time had been facing lots of struggles, humiliations and hardships. The kingdom of Israel as it was during the glorious days of David and Solomon was no more, and the northern part of the kingdom, also known as Israel had been destroyed and conquered by the Assyrians, and many of them uprooted from their homeland to be exiled to far-off lands.
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FROM OUR GOSPEL READING
Today’s gospel we hear about St. Joseph. In the New Testament and in the story of Christmas, St. Joseph plays a minor role. Nothing is recorded about what he said after the angel of God asked him to not to be afraid of taking Mary as his wife after he found out that Mary was pregnant. He disappeared from the gospel scene before Jesus is baptized and is never heard again. As a good Jew, the law obliged him to report Mary to the authorities who would hand down judgment for Mary to be stoned to death. Instead of reporting Mary to the authorities, he decided to leave Mary secretly because he did not want her to be put to shame. This is the reason why St. Matthew calls St. Joseph a righteous man. This is the new meaning of being righteous, that is, to be sensitive to the needs of our neighbor, to let our heart bleed for our neighbor and to love our neighbor.
CONCLUSION
Dear friends in Christ, in this remaining one week of Advent season, we are invited to reflect on our own sensitivity to the needs of others and our obedience to the will of the Father. We must learn from St. Joseph to become men and women for others and obedient children of God. And so righteous person is the one who makes these words of Jesus as his/her guiding principle: “Whatever you do to the least of your brothers/sisters, you do it also to me.” Jesus has identified himself with our neighbor, let us always remember.
The Lord be with You!
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