Fourth Sunday after Pentecost 2024 Mark 4,26-34 Rev. Neli Miranda Jesus began his ministry in Galilee by proclaiming the good news of God, " The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent and believe in the good news" (1,15). Jesus did not explain what the Kingdom of God was, but surely his audience knew what he was announcing. For many centuries the people of Israel had suffered domination and oppression at the hands of their own kings and foreign kingdoms. So, the people’s longing for the establishment of the Kingdom of God on earth arose amid suffering, under perverse human kingdoms. One can only imagine the people’s joyous rejoicing when Jesus made his announcement of the good news. . . the Kingdom of God was among them!! Today’s gospel presents us with two parables that speak of the Kingdom of God. Parables, a traditional method of teaching in Jesus’ time, are not explanations but a way to provoke the listeners’ thinking, so that they
First Sunday of
Christmas 2023
John 1,1-18
Rev. Neli Miranda
Jesus lying in a
manger in the company of Mary and Joseph, the singing angels, the joyous
shepherds, the shining star in heaven, the visit of the magi, the gifts… How we
enjoy and marvel at these Christmas scenes!! However, for the first Sunday
after Christmas, John does not bring us these scenes, but a great confession of
faith born among the early Christians. This speaks to us about God’s most human
moment, which in theological terms is known as the Incarnation (Incarnation is
derived from the Latin word carnis, flesh in English which literally
means enfleshment). So, in a beautiful fusion of theology and poetry,
John says that God took human form, “incarnated” in human flesh and lived among
us, “The
Word [God] became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen
his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father,
full of grace and truth” (1,14).
Through this
confession of faith, John brings us today to the heart of the Christmas celebration, that
is, the celebration that God dwells among us in Jesus. Thus, God does not ask
humans to ascend to heaven to access glory, but rather, God descends to live
among humans, so humans can experience the divine glory. What a wonderful
mystery! The confession of faith of the Johns’ community tells us how they
experienced the glory of God in Jesus, whom they understood as the Son of God,
full of grace and truth, and how the divine incarnation transformed their
lives.
The testimony of this early Christian
community depicts a Christmas scene much more profound than the traditional
scenes that, many times, mediated by commerce, take us away from the true
meaning of Christmas. The incarnation scene, God dwelling among humans, speaks
to us of the God who, loving the world so much, takes human form in Jesus and
comes to live among humans!
Sometimes, the true meaning of Christmas is
so obscured by gifts, food, ornaments, and other earthly details that we forget
to exalt this truly very special moment. Today, John reminds us just how
wonderful and joyous this moment is by telling us of the loving God who dwells among us, who dwells in you! Have you seen God’s glory this Christmas season?
As 2023 comes to a close, may we be
grateful for the divine manifestation among us and for all the gifts and
challenges that made us grow during this past year. Let us give thanks for all
those through whom we have seen the glory of God in 2023. And, as we stand today on the threshold of the
new year, may we cross it with the joy and confidence that we are going to see
God’s glory among us in 2024; and may we continue proclaiming that Jesus brings
us Light and Life and that, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (1, 5). Amen.
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Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost 2023 Mattew 22,1-14 Rev. Neli Miranda Today, Jesus continues in Jerusalem confronting the Jewish authorities publicly denouncing their corrupt practices. However, instead of repenting, they resist God and reject Jesus. They have tried to arrest Jesus when he concluded addressing them about the parable of the wicked tenants, but “ they feared the crowds, because they regarded him as a prophet. ” (21,46). Again, with God’s authority and the people’s recognition, Jesus continues with his denunciation and tells the people a third parable, known as “The parable of the wedding banquet”. Jesus begins this parable by saying , “ The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son…” (22, 2). Here, Jesus changes his usual introduction to his parables from “ The kingdom of heaven is like…” to “ The kingdom of heaven may be compared to …” In the text, the king sends his slaves twice to call the invited guests to t
Christ the King, 2023 Matthew 25,31-40 Rev. Neli Miranda Today we celebrate the last Sunday after Pentecost and with this celebration, we are closing a cycle in which we have lived our Christian spirituality for a year. Our spiritual pilgrimage started last year in Advent Season when we prepared ourselves to receive God’s visitation in a newborn, baby Jesus born on Christmas Day. That day, we joyfully joined the choir of angels to praise God for Jesus’ birth, saying “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased” (Luke 2,14). Then, we joined the shepherds who hurriedly went to Bethlehem where we found a singular, divine, human scene: Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. What an extraordinary scene, the glory of God lying in a manger! Later, on Epiphany Day, together with the magi who came from the East, we knelt down, paid homage to baby Jesus, and offered him our gifts. What a day when the Epiphany coming
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