Listening To The Least

Listening to the Least

New Year Reflection

Scripture:

Numbers 6:22-27,

Galatians 4:4-7,

Luke 2:16-21.

Let us listen to the Word of God for today taken from the Gospel of Saint Luke (Luke 2:16-21):

“The shepherds went in haste to Bethlehem and found Mary and Joseph, ?

and the infant lying in the manger.?

When they saw this, ?

they made known the message ?

that had been told them about this child.?

All who heard it were amazed ?

by what had been told them by the shepherds.?

And Mary kept all these things, ?

reflecting on them in her heart.?

Then the shepherds returned, ?

glorifying and praising God ?for all they had heard and seen,

?just as it had been told to them.  ?

When eight days were completed for his circumcision, ?

he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel ?

before he was conceived in the womb.”

Reflection

Dear sisters and brothers,

The gospel of today, presents Mary, Joseph, the Infant and the Shepherds.

These are the least ones in the eye of society.

Nevertheless, these are the people, who teach us how to live a joyful and peaceful life without much material comfort.

Let us listen to them one by one.

1. Mary

First and foremost, Mary is a model of new life in Christ.

It was not easy for the society or the community to accept that she had conceived without knowing the husband.

Even though, in the Gospels, it is not written how Mary was treated, when her community people came to know that she was pregnant before getting married, I am sure that she might have gone through humiliation in her life.

Even Joseph wanted to leave her quietly.

What did she do?

“Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart” (Luke 2:19).

Again, we read: “His mother treasured all these things in her heart” (Luke 2:51).

Mary was a woman, who valued the Word of God.

Mary was a woman, who treasured the Word of God.

Mary was a woman, who made time to meditate on the Word of God.

May was a woman, who made time to ponder on the Word of God.

It is true that the holiness of Mary is attributed to the grace of God.

It does not make us forget that she needed to make an effort in order to cooperate with the grace of God.

She pondered on the Word of God in order to discern what God was saying to her at every stage in her life as the handmaid of God.

Mary found the Word of God, as the divine revelation, in the angels’ words to the shepherds.

And Mary found the Word of God, as the divine protection, in her own experiences as she encountered her son in the temple.

Mary, a young virgin, was least in the eyes of her community.

In spite of her least presence, she listened to the Word of God, the divine revelation and protection, as she listened to the archangel Gabriel and then she finally said that she is the handmaid of God.

Similarly, God speaks to us today through divine revelation, through the Word of God, by reading, listening, teaching and preaching.

Also, through our personal experiences, we experience the Divine Protection in our lives.

If we make time to reflect on the Word of God in our lives as Mary did, we can be a worthy servant in the Kingdom of God in the coming year.

2. Joseph

Joseph was a simple carpenter.

Joseph was a just man.

Joseph was a righteous man.

The Gospels do not say that Joseph was a rich man or a wealthy man.

God found Joseph as worthy servant, the least one.

Joseph too reflected on the Word of God.

Joseph pondered on the Word of God.

Joseph discerned the decision of his life with the help of the Word of God.

Joseph cared about Mary and the Infant.

He was a support for Mary during her delivery time.

He went to Egypt with Mary and the Infant.

He did not think about anything for a second.

He just believed in God’s grace.

He just trusted in God’s protection.

He went to a new country.

He went to a new culture.

He went to a new language.

He went to a new place without even knowing anyone.

He went to a new place without even knowing how he was going to manage his life and his family.

It was not a clear-cut route.

There was no blue print to direct the plan of his life.

He was actually in the dark room not knowing what was waiting for him.

The Word of God was like the lighthouse for Joseph.

Why the lighthouse?

Yes, because it reminded him of God’s love.