Shalom

2 Jan Wed	Wednesday of Christmas Season Ss Basil the Great & Gregory Nazianzen, bishops & doctors
	1 Jn. 2:22-28 Ps. 97:1.2-3ab, 3cd-4 Jn. 1:19-28

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Who is this Child? In his First Letter, John boldly states: Whoever denies that He is the Son of God (literally, "whoever denies the Father and the Son") is a liar and an antichrist. More often than not, to extol the human figure of Jesus is a mechanism to deny his divine nature; and then even His human nature becomes a caricature: a political hero, a "Superstar" . . . No! Either you portray the whole Christ, or you become a liar, an antichrist.

But, what is that unconscious mechanism that makes so many people skip the divine identity of Jesus? It is pride. If Jesus is a Superstar, we admire Him; if we believe He is the Son of God, full surrender is the right response, so our hidden pride tends to draw us away from this reality. We should learn from the humility of John the Baptist: he steps back, to let Jesus come to the fore. Defining his own identity, he first insists on who he is not. And when he comes to say who he is, his personality is reduced to "a voice in the desert". From this level, it is easy to let Christ be Christ.

Lord Jesus, heal me from the virus of popularity. Make me the light of the world, so the world may see You and ignore me.

DAILY OFFERING

Eternal Father, I offer You everything I do this day; my thoughts, words, joys and sufferings. Grant that, vivified by the Holy Spirit and united to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, my life this day may be of service to You and to others. I also pray that all those preparing for marriage discover in Sacrament the source of Christ's grace for living a fithful and fruitful love. Amen.

PRAYING WITH THE CHURCH

INTENTION
That Christians may intensify their efforts to announce together Jesus Christ, the only Saviour of the world.
Elaboration

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P R A Y I N G W I T H T H E C H U R C H

INTENTION :	That Christians may intensify their efforts to announce together Jesus Christ, the only Saviour of the world.
In the Apostolic Letter At the Beginning of the New Millennium Pope John Paul II looks towards the future and exhorts the members of the Church not to be afraid to leave the coastal waters "where there is nothing to fish" and move into deep waters. If we are prepared to do this, our catch will be abundant. The Pope particularly exhorts Christ's disciples to intensify their efforts to bring greater unity in the Christian Community. The invocation "Launch out into the deep" is a binding imperative, the strength that sustains us, and a salutary rebuke for our slowness and closed-heartedness. It is on Jesus' prayer and not on our own strength that we base the hope that even within history we shall be able to reach full and visible communion with all Christians. Our trust that we may succeed in attaining the full and visible communion of all Christians, "rests on Jesus' prayer, not on our own capacity". The Lord calls us to unity and will not fail to pour forth His grace on us. But in this context also, as in all our relations with God's salvific grace, we too must do our share. God does not save us against our will; God does not save us if we do not collaborate towards our salvation.
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