HONORING MARY

Of her was born Jesus who is called the Messiah. ? Matthew 1:16

When Cory Aquino called for the resignation of President Gloria Arroyo during the political crisis last year, Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez censured her. He said Cory should fix the love affairs of her youngest daughter, Kris, rather than the affairs of state. Immediately, politicians crossed party lines to slam Gonzalez for his egregious comment.
      In a strongly matriarchal country like ours, people do not take slandering someone else?s mother lightly. That?s why it?s sad that many non-Catholic Christians in the Philippines speak ill of Mary. And we Catholics should come to the defense of Mary when others speak ill of her.
      Some non-Catholics accuse us of idolatry. They say she is not the Mother of God but the Mother of Jesus. (Hello? Isn?t that the same?) They say she is only human like us.
      I beg to disagree. First, we don?t worship Mary but revere and honor her as the Mother of Christ. And yes, while she is a human, no one can change the fact that God personally chose her to bring His Son into the world. If only for that, she deserves a place of respect and honor in our hearts. She is indeed ?blessed among women.? Today, let?s honor our Mother who celebrates her birthday. Rissa S.

REFLECTION:
What gift can I give Mary on her birthday?

Dear Mother Mary, thank you for your maternal care and protection. Thank you for interceding for me to Jesus, your Son.

G O S P E L

Matthew 1:1-16.18-23

Matthew?s genealogy of Jesus traces Joseph?s line back to Abraham via David and many other generations. In doing this, he situates Jesus clearly within the House of David, the house in which the Messiah was expected. Our roots are important to us as they give us an idea of our origins. This can help us understand why we are the people we are as we can learn about the events that formed the characters of our ancestors and thus contributed to the pool of genes from which we were born. Just as sin can be passed from generation to generation, so can good character traits as well. Let us pray that we will have more of the latter than the former.

1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. 2 Abraham became the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. 3 Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar. Perez became the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, 4 Ram the father of Amminadab. Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, 5 Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab. Boaz became the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth. Obed became the father of Jesse,  6 Jesse the father of David the king. David became the father of Solomon, whose  mother had been the wife of Uriah. 7 Solomon became the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asaph. 8 Asaph became the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, Joram the father of Uzziah. 9 Uzziah became the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah. 10 Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amos, Amos the father of Josiah. 11 Josiah became the father of   Jechoniah and his brothers at the time of the Babylonian exile. 12 After the Babylonian exile, Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, 13 Zerubbabel the father of Abiud. Abiud became the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor, 14 Azor the father of Zadok. Zadok became the father of Achim, Achim the father of Eliud, 15 Eliud the father of Eleazar. Eleazar became the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob, 16 Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Of her was born Jesus who is called the Messiah. 18 Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was  found with child through the Holy Spirit. 19 Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. 20 Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ?Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. 21 She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.? 22 All this  took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 ?Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,? which means ?God is with us.?

my reflections
think: Our roots are important to us as they give us an idea of our origins.

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God?s special verse/thought for me today________________

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T O D A Y ? S BLESSING LIST

Thank You Lord for: ____________________________________

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READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR Daniel 7-9