Scriptual Commentary

Epiphany – How God Has Chosen to be Present

| Fr. William Smith

The Magi Journeying (Les rois mages en voyage),
James Tissot, 1886-1894 (Brooklyn Museum)

Fr. Smith’s Commentary on the Second Reading
Epiphany of the Lord
Letter to the Ephesians 3:2–6
January 8, 2023

The readings for the feast of the Epiphany are the same every year. This reasoning is obvious for the Gospel of the Magi, but the other readings are perceptively chosen as well. The Letter to the Ephesians speaks of how the light of Jesus can be with us today as much as when he was in the manger in Bethlehem. We will repeat the commentary from last year but with a different conclusion. The word of God is alive and can illuminate every time and place.

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Homilies

Homily – Mary, Mother of God (Fr. Smith)

| Fr. William Smith

Because we first heard Christmas stories as children, we can think of them as nursery tales; simple and unsophisticated remnants of our youth. Those which are found in the scriptures, however, are embedded in the Gospels and are mature, profound, and part of a sophisticated presentation. None more so than Luke.

Luke is a very thoughtful writer, and we must read him carefully and often to truly understand him. Only then will the interconnections be revealed and become real. Luke wrote both his Gospel and the “Acts of the Apostles”, and we must take them as a whole. After many readings the importance of the parable of the Sower becomes clear. Remember the story: a farmer planted his crop by casting seeds onto his field. Some fell on a path and were trampled, some on rocky ground or among thorns where they could not grow but others on good ground where they produced fruit a hundred-fold.

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Events, Videos

Community Mass – Mary, Mother of God

| St. Charles Borromeo

On Sunday, January 1, 2023, join us in person or online to honor Mary, the Mother of God, and welcome the New Year.

Our current Sunday Mass times are:

Today’s readings will be from Cycle A.

Entrance: Mary, First among Believers – 893

Readings/Responsorial Psalm – 1007

Offertory: Away in a Manger – 448

Communion: Hail Mary: Gentle Woman – 889

Closing: Joy to the World – 437

The Gather 3rd Edition Hymnal/Missals are available for use in the church – pick one up as you enter and return it after Mass. Instructions on how to use the hymnal missal are available here: https://www.stcharlesbklyn.org/hymnal-missal/ .

Today’s readings are also available to read online at the USCCB website https://bible.usccb.org .

Scriptual Commentary

Mary, Mother of God – Embracing the Freedom Given by Her Son

| Fr. William Smith

Virgin and Child mosaic, 9th century, Hagia Sophia
(About this Image)

And Mary kept all these things,
reflecting on them in her heart.
(Luke 2:19)

Fr. Smith’s Commentary on the Second Reading
Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God
Galatians 4:4–7
January 1, 2023

Today, we celebrate the feast of Mary, the Mother of God with the second reading from Paul’s letter to the Galatians. It includes the phrase “born of a woman” but this is not the primary reason for choosing this passage. As we will discover that this entire chapter from Galatians is best understood with Mary, even more than Paul, as our model.

We will need provide only a brief background. Galatia is not a city but an area in Asia Minor (near Ankura in modern Turkey). Paul had lived there and was treated quite well. He taught the people and thought they were well prepared when he left. He discovered however afterwards that other missionaries, perhaps claiming to have been sent by the apostles in Jerusalem, had come to Galatia and told the people that Paul’s teaching was incomplete because he did not require circumcision and other signs of being fully Jewish. Paul feels betrayed and hurt for himself but more concerned for the salvation of his flock and in this letter blasts his opponents personally and demolishes their arguments intellectually.

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Homilies

Homily – Christmas (Fr. Smith)

| Fr. William Smith

Christmas is a time for tradition. Many of these traditions, both for family and church, were interrupted during the COVID pandemic, and although we are not yet fully recovered some will be brought back this year with proper care and diligence. For the Parish, the most wonderful return has been our Christmas Pageant with the children in the religious education program. If you did not see it, please check this link. I hope that many of us will have been able to visit family and enjoy other Christmas activities from trimming the tree to decorating the cake.

The liturgy, however, never takes a vacation and always allows us a special participation in the celebration of the Nativity. The music, the creche and the stories allow us every year to reflect on what it means that God became man. It has been said that tradition is the living faith of the dead and it certainly a pattern that is handed down to us. (See Footnote 1 below.) These customs should not be changed too radically. That would prevent us from making our Christian history our personal one as well. Every year we should approach these symbols and stories and sing these songs with a deeper understanding of the mysteries they proclaim. Year after year this allows us to see if we have grown in our faith and understanding.

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