"MARY , MOTHER OF GOD"
First Reading : Numbers 6: 22-27
Second Reading: Galatians 4: 4-7
Gospel Reading : Luke 2: 16-21
* First reading is from the book of Numbers . In this passage the Lord God tells Moses to instruct the priests to Bless the people of Israel in His name. The chosen people are to be blessed by the words, " It is the Lord's blessing that will make this coming year good and fruitful". With Mary , Mother of God, we too seek the blessings of the Lord God.
* Second reading is from the letter of St. Paul to Galatians. In this passage, Paul tells the Christians in Galatia and us that by giving us His own Son, through Mary, God enabled the whole human race to become His sons and daughters in whose hearts the Spirit of God cries, 'Abba, Father'.
Mary with Child Jesus in the Manger
Today's Gospel reading is from St. Luke. This passage describes the meeting of Shepherds with Child Jesus and Mother Mary in the manger. The eagerness of the simple shepherds to pay homage to the divine Child and Mary's reflective and contemplative mood are graphically depicted.
By celebrating the first day of the New Year , as the Feast of Mother Mary - Mother of God, we are celebrating the feast of all the mothers. It is fitting that Mother Mary is the model for all mothers. God showered Mary with numerous blessings, so we too invoke God's blessings on all mothers today. Blessed Mother was a simple, illiterate peasant woman , yet Harvard historian Harry Adams calls her the "most powerful religious symbol for centuries.
"May the Blessed Mother Bless you in the coming Year 2017"
"Mary is given to us as a mother to accompany us on our tiring pilgrimage through life"- Pope Paul VI
" As mariners are guided by the shinning of a star, so Christians are guided to heaven by Mary" - St. Thomas Aquinas.
First Reading : Numbers 6: 22-27
Second Reading: Galatians 4: 4-7
Gospel Reading : Luke 2: 16-21
* First reading is from the book of Numbers . In this passage the Lord God tells Moses to instruct the priests to Bless the people of Israel in His name. The chosen people are to be blessed by the words, " It is the Lord's blessing that will make this coming year good and fruitful". With Mary , Mother of God, we too seek the blessings of the Lord God.
* Second reading is from the letter of St. Paul to Galatians. In this passage, Paul tells the Christians in Galatia and us that by giving us His own Son, through Mary, God enabled the whole human race to become His sons and daughters in whose hearts the Spirit of God cries, 'Abba, Father'.
Mary with Child Jesus in the Manger
Today's Gospel reading is from St. Luke. This passage describes the meeting of Shepherds with Child Jesus and Mother Mary in the manger. The eagerness of the simple shepherds to pay homage to the divine Child and Mary's reflective and contemplative mood are graphically depicted.
By celebrating the first day of the New Year , as the Feast of Mother Mary - Mother of God, we are celebrating the feast of all the mothers. It is fitting that Mother Mary is the model for all mothers. God showered Mary with numerous blessings, so we too invoke God's blessings on all mothers today. Blessed Mother was a simple, illiterate peasant woman , yet Harvard historian Harry Adams calls her the "most powerful religious symbol for centuries.
"May the Blessed Mother Bless you in the coming Year 2017"
"Mary is given to us as a mother to accompany us on our tiring pilgrimage through life"- Pope Paul VI
" As mariners are guided by the shinning of a star, so Christians are guided to heaven by Mary" - St. Thomas Aquinas.
