Roman Catholic The Word Among Us Daily Mass Reading & Daily Meditation for Tuesday, 2 December 2014

Roman Catholic The Word Among Us Daily Mass Reading & Daily Meditation for Tuesday, 2 December 2014
Meditation - Isaiah 11: A Green Shoot from Jesse’s Stump
1-5 A green Shoot will sprout from Jesse’s stump,
    from his roots a budding Branch.
The life-giving Spirit of God will hover over him,
    the Spirit that brings wisdom and understanding,
The Spirit that gives direction and builds strength,
    the Spirit that instills knowledge and Fear-of-God.
Fear-of-God
    will be all his joy and delight.
He won’t judge by appearances,
    won’t decide on the basis of hearsay.
He’ll judge the needy by what is right,
    render decisions on earth’s poor with justice.
His words will bring everyone to awed attention.
    A mere breath from his lips will topple the wicked.
Each morning he’ll pull on sturdy work clothes and boots,
    and build righteousness and faithfulness in the land.
A Living Knowledge of God
6-9 The wolf will romp with the lamb,
    the leopard sleep with the kid.
Calf and lion will eat from the same trough,
    and a little child will tend them.
Cow and bear will graze the same pasture,
    their calves and cubs grow up together,
    and the lion eat straw like the ox.
The nursing child will crawl over rattlesnake dens,
    the toddler stick his hand down the hole of a serpent.
Neither animal nor human will hurt or kill
    on my holy mountain.
The whole earth will be brimming with knowing God-Alive,
    a living knowledge of God ocean-deep, ocean-wide.
10 On that day, Jesse’s Root will be raised high, posted as a rallying banner for the peoples. The nations will all come to him. His headquarters will be glorious.
1st Week of Advent
He shall judge the poor with justice. (Isaiah 11:4)
Maybe there should be a “scary prayers” section in devotional books. It would include Jesus’ words to the Father, “Not my will but yours” (Luke 22:42) and the prayer of St. Ignatius: “Take, O Lord, and receive all my memory …” There would be fill-in-the-blank prayers like “Lord, teach me patience [or your virtue of choice].” And there would be the Advent refrain: “Come, Lord Jesus!”
Did you raise an eyebrow at that last suggestion? Should this prayer make you quake? Yes, because it asks for the whole Jesus, not just the baby but the Lord who comes to establish justice. You can’t stay at the Christmas crèche in peaceful, private contemplation of God’s love. You also have to respond to that love (here’s the scary part) by taking up God’s call for justice and peace.
“Social justice” is what the prophets and psalmists meant when they paired the Hebrew words for “judgment” and “justice” (Isaiah 11:4; Psalm 72:2). It’s almost like a mathematical formula: judgment plus justice equals social justice. This consistent, systematic care for people in need is what the Messiah-King was going to bring about.
As Christians we believe that this King has come! So Advent is a good time to examine how much we share Jesus’ concern for the poor and weak. It’s also a good time to deepen our understanding of the Church’s teachings on social justice. For a good starting point, see sections 1928–1938 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
Look at your relationships: in your family, at work, in your religious order, in your classroom and neighborhood, and whatever groups you belong to. Are you treating everyone with honor, especially those who tend to get overlooked? Consider your broader role as a citizen with a vote. Do you stay informed and work toward a society that improves the situation of people who are homeless, frail, in the womb, or otherwise vulnerable? It may be uncomfortable, inconvenient, and even scary to stand up for these neglected ones. Although it may cost us something, it also brings great blessings. For when we care for them, we are also caring for Jesus in disguise.
“Come, Lord Jesus! Give me the wisdom and courage to build your kingdom and work for your justice.” Amen!
Psalms 72: A Solomon Psalm
1-8 Give the gift of wise rule to the king, O God,
    the gift of just rule to the crown prince.
May he judge your people rightly,
    be honorable to your meek and lowly.
Let the mountains give exuberant witness;
    shape the hills with the contours of right living.
Please stand up for the poor,
    help the children of the needy,
    come down hard on the cruel tyrants.
Outlast the sun, outlive the moon—
    age after age after age.
Be rainfall on cut grass,
    earth-refreshing rain showers.
Let righteousness burst into blossom
    and peace abound until the moon fades to nothing.
Rule from sea to sea,
    from the River to the Rim.
19-14 Foes will fall on their knees before God,
    his enemies lick the dust.
Kings remote and legendary will pay homage,
    kings rich and resplendent will turn over their wealth.
All kings will fall down and worship,
    and godless nations sign up to serve him,
Because he rescues the poor at the first sign of need,
    the destitute who have run out of luck.
He opens a place in his heart for the down-and-out,
    he restores the wretched of the earth.
He frees them from tyranny and torture—
    when they bleed, he bleeds;
    when they die, he dies.
15-17 And live! Oh, let him live!
    Deck him out in Sheba gold.
Offer prayers unceasing to him,
    bless him from morning to night.
Fields of golden grain in the land,
    cresting the mountains in wild exuberance,
Cornucopias of praise, praises
    springing from the city like grass from the earth.
May he never be forgotten,
    his fame shine on like sunshine.
May all godless people enter his circle of blessing
    and bless the One who blessed them.
Luke 10:21 At that, Jesus rejoiced, exuberant in the Holy Spirit. “I thank you, Father, Master of heaven and earth, that you hid these things from the know-it-alls and showed them to these innocent newcomers. Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way.
22 “I’ve been given it all by my Father! Only the Father knows who the Son is and only the Son knows who the Father is. The Son can introduce the Father to anyone he wants to.”
23-24 He then turned in a private aside to his disciples. “Fortunate the eyes that see what you’re seeing! There are plenty of prophets and kings who would have given their right arm to see what you are seeing but never got so much as a glimpse, to hear what you are hearing but never got so much as a whisper.”
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