OXYGEN

21 Nov – Memorial of The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Today we commemorate the presentation of the Blessed Virgin as a child in the Temple where, according to tradition, she was educated. The feast originated in the Orient probably about the seventh century, and is found in the constitution of Manuel Comnenus (1166) as a recognized festival. It was introduced into the Western Church in the 14th century, abolished by Pope Pius V, but reestablished by Sixtus V in 1585. Its observance by the Society of the Sacred Heart of Jesus as the day of their origin led to the devotion of Mater Admirabilis (Mother Most Admirable).

- Patron Saint Index
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Zechariah 2:14-17

Sing, rejoice,
daughter of Zion;
for I am coming
to dwell in the middle of you
- it is the Lord who speaks.
Many nations will join the Lord,
on that day;
they will become his people.
But he will remain among you,
and you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you.
But the Lord will hold Judah
as his portion in the Holy Land,
and again make Jerusalem his very own.
Let all mankind be silent before the Lord!
For he is awakening and is coming from his holy dwelling.
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Matthew 12:46-50

Jesus was speaking to the crowds when his mother and his brothers appeared; they were standing outside and were anxious to have a word with him. But to the man who told him this Jesus replied, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” And stretching out his hand towards his disciples he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven, he is my brother and sister and mother.”
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Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?

One of the hardest teachings of Christ is that Christ came to make us into adopted sons and daughters of God. It is something that we read in our daily readings from time to time, and something that we do not really think about much, but is actually something that is at the heart of our Christian faith.

It all started for me when I read a book titled “Creative Conflict” by Michael Amaladoss, SJ, who wrote this book to help people ask themselves how their theology reflections can be relevant to life. I got into some confusion with a chapter titled “Human and Divine”, because it says that in Christ, we are divine. I wrote a post on my blog about it and good Catholics criticized me for it until I retracted it. Even so, I continue to reflect on it.

Part of the difficulty for me in understanding and applying this lay in finding the meaning of the term ‘divinity’. I searched the Catechism of the Catholic Church for it, and I searched the online Catholic encyclopedia for it, but I could not find any definition for this term. All I knew is that divinity is a characteristic of God.

Upon further reflection, I came to realize what divinity is, and it has to do with today’s gospel reading. Divinity is to submit our will to the will of the Father, in union with Christ, and letting the Holy Spirit dwell in our hearts. This is divinity, and this is what Jesus is. This is what we are also called to be as sons and daughters of the Father.

Through our baptism, the seed of divinity has already been planted in us, but we are not yet divine. It is a process of transformation as we struggle with our human limitations and imperfections. As we grow more and more perfect in love in union, we become more and more like Christ who lived a life of complete submission to the Father and allowed the Holy Spirit to dwell in Him.

Let us take some time today to ponder on what it means to be divine like Christ, and how we can practically live out our theology in our lives.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Daniel Tay)
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Prayer: Dear Lord, grant us the intellectual grace to accept this difficult teaching, and the spiritual grace to live it out in our lives, growing in perfection day by day as we unite ourselves with Christ.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks to the Lord for planting the seed of divinity in us.

Upcoming Readings:
Sat 22 Nov – Revelation 11:4-14; Luke 20:27-40; Memorial for St. Cecilia, virgin, martyr
Sun 23 Nov – Ezekiel 14:11-12. 15-17; 1 Corinthians 15:20-26. 28; Matthew 25:31-46; Solemnity of Christ The King