THURSDAY, DEC 28
Matthew 2: 13 -18
When the magi had departed, behold,
the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said,
“Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt,
and stay there until I tell you.
Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him.”
Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night
and departed for Egypt.
He stayed there until the death of Herod,
that what the Lord had said through the prophet might be fulfilled,
Out of Egypt I called my son.When Herod realized that he had been deceived by the magi,
he became furious.
He ordered the massacre of all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity
two years old and under,
in accordance with the time he had ascertained from the magi.
Then was fulfilled what had been said through Jeremiah the prophet:A voice was heard in Ramah,
sobbing and loud lamentation;
Rachel weeping for her children,
and she would not be consoled,
since they were no more.
Grace: I ask for the grace to know Jesus in a deeper way that I may abundantly love and follow him.
This is a Gospel of tragedy, to be sure, but first it is a Gospel of calling. Joseph was awakened by an angel through a dream and told to go on a journey. How many times are we woken up, spiritually, to go on a journey which is part of, or leading up to, our life in Christ. St. Ignatius was called through a cannonball, after all.
You can feel Joseph’s conflict in this passage despite his silence. We are also conflicted when we are called outside of our comfort zone. Perhaps that’s why Scripture doesn’t tell us what Joseph felt. It allows us to pour our own feelings into this Gospel, every time we are called.
Like Joseph, we are often tired too, and in need of comfort, consolation, and rest. God lets us rant, even rage about our callings, but in response he simply prods us along or patiently waits for us to catch up to his will. We resist, we question, we try to reshape the calling to fit our own plans, sometimes we even ignore it. Doubt kicks in before discernment takes over. It’s never a good time.
Is that you, Lord?
I’m not ready, Lord.
This was not part of my plan, Lord.
Why me, Lord?
You are Joseph, we are all Joseph. On our last legs, not sure where the energy will come from to take the first step, much less each one thereafter. It’s sometimes dark on our journey, on our path, with only our faith to light the way. But Joseph and Ignatius desired to obey and please God. As do we all.
When we say Yes, it all falls into place. When we surrender our will to God’s, we can act in confidence. In the surrender, Ignatius saw there was freedom. We are frightened and unsure, we can’t see the destination, we don’t fully understand the reason for it, or the import it will have on our life – but we rise and depart. We trust. We place our lives in his hands. Instead of “Why me?” we can say, “Lead me, Lord.”
For Reflection and Prayer:
How is God calling you today? And how do you respond?
What feelings does this elicit in you?
Tell God about them with a confident and grateful heart.
For closing your time of prayer you may wish to spend some time reflecting on this image.
by John Singer Sargent
Circa 1877 – 1879
The Contributor:
Laura is a wife, mother, and “Honey” to her grandchildren. She practices health care law. At Our Lady of Grace parish, she is involved in Pastoral Council and many parish organizations. She is completing the Spiritual Director Formation Program at St. Peter Upon The Water. Laura completed the Spiritual Exercises in Daily Life in 2015.
“Praying the Spiritual Exercises plunged my faith life into a deeply intimate relationship with Jesus Christ, my transformed heart now desires to share the light of Christ with others.”
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Excerpts from the Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States of America, second typical edition © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC. Used with permission. All rights reserved. No portion of this text may be reproduced by any means without permission in writing from the copyright owner.