One Minute Reflection – 23 December – “The Month of the Divine Infancy and the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary” –1 Corinthians 4:1-5 – Luke 3:1-6– Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/
“And all flesh shall see the salvation of God. ” – Luke 3:6
REFLECTION – “What we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we looked upon and touched with our hands concerning the Word of Life, we proclaim now to you” (1 Jn 1:1-3) … The Incarnate Word was made known to the Apostles in two ways – first of all, they recognised Him by sight, as receiving knowledge of the Word from the Word Himself; secondly, by hearing, this time by receiving knowledge of the Word from the witness of St John the Baptist.
Concerning the Word, John the Baptist first affirms that: “We have seen His glory”… For Saint John Chrysostom these words are connected with that which precedes in John’s Gospel: “The Word became Flesh.” What the Evangelist means is – the Incarnation has bestowed on us the blessing, not merely of becoming children of God but, of seeing His glory. For indeed, weak and feeble eyes cannot, of themselves, look at the Light of the Sun but when it shines through a cloud, or some other opaque body, then they can do so. Before the Incarnation of the Word, human minds were incapable, of themselves, of beholding the Light “which enlightens everyone.” But so that they might not be deprived of the joy of seeing Him, the Light Himself, the Word of God, desired to be clothed with Flesh, so we might be able to see Him.
Thus, people “turned toward the desert and lo! the glory of the Lord appeared in a Cloud” (Ex 16:10), namely the Word of God in Flesh … And Saint Augustine comments, so that we might be able to see God, the Word cured men’s eyes, by making a healing eye-ointment of His Flesh … That is why, immediately after saying: “The Word became Flesh”the Evangelist adds: “And we saw His glory” as if to say, no sooner had the ointment been applied, than our eyes were cured … This is the glory which Moses desired to see but of which he saw only a shadow and a symbol. The Apostles, on the other hand, saw His Majesty itself!” – St Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) Dominican, Doctor of the Church (Commentary on St John’s Gospel 1:178).
PRAYER – O God, Who, by the message of an Angel, willed to take flesh in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary, grant that we, Thy suppliants, who believe her to be truly the Mother of God, may be helped by her intercession with Thee. Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).
AnaStpaul 