OXYGEN

29 Dec – Fifth Day in the Octave of Christmas; St Thomas Becket, Bishop, Martyr

Thomas (1118-1170) was of Norman ancestry. He was educated at Merton Priory, Paris, Bologna, and Auxerre. He was a civil and canon lawyer, a soldier and officer. He was archdeacon of Canterbury, and was a Friend of King Henry II, as well as Chancellor of England. He was ordained in 1162 and was appointed archbishop of Canterbury the next day. He opposed the King’s interference in ecclesiastical matters. He was exiled several times, and was eventually murdered (and martyred) in 1170 in the Cathedral at Canterbury, England.

- Patron Saint Index

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1 John 2:3-11

We can be sure that we know God
only by keeping his commandments.
Anyone who says, ‘I know him’,
and does not keep his commandments,
is a liar,
refusing to admit the truth.
But when anyone does obey what he has said,
God’s love comes to perfection in him.
We can be sure that we are in God
only when the one who claims to be living in him
is living the same kind of life as Christ lived.
My dear people,
this is not a new commandment that I am writing to tell you,
but an old commandment
that you were given from the beginning,
the original commandment which was the message brought to you.
Yet in another way, what I am writing to you,
and what is being carried out in your lives as it was in his,
is a new commandment;
because the night is over
and the real light is already shining.
Anyone who claims to be in the light
but hates his brother
is still in the dark.
But anyone who loves his brother is living in the light
and need not be afraid of stumbling;
unlike the man who hates his brother and is in the darkness,
not knowing where he is going,
because it is too dark to see.

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Luke 2:22-35

When the day came for them to be purified as laid down by the Law of Moses, the parents of Jesus took him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord – observing what stands written in the Law of the Lord: Every first-born male must be consecrated to the Lord – and also to offer in sacrifice, in accordance with what is said in the Law of the Lord, a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons. Now in Jerusalem there was a man named Simeon. He was an upright and devout man; he looked forward to Israel’s comforting and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death until he had set eyes on the Christ of the Lord. Prompted by the Spirit he came to the Temple and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the Law required, he took him into his arms and blessed God; and he said:

‘Now, Master, you can let your servant go in peace,
just as you promised;
because my eyes have seen the salvation
which you have prepared for all the nations to see,
a light to enlighten the pagans
and the glory of your people Israel.’

As the child’s father and mother stood there wondering at the things that were being said about him, Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, ‘You see this child: he is destined for the fall and for the rising of many in Israel, destined to be a sign that is rejected – and a sword will pierce your own soul too – so that the secret thoughts of many may be laid bare.’

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Anyone who says, ‘I know him’, and does not keep his commandments, is a liar, refusing to admit the truth.

“Sunday Catholic”. As the term suggests, “Sunday Catholics” are those who go to church on Sundays, participate in Mass, and then leave the church, thinking that they have fulfilled their Christian duties. I used to be a “Sunday Catholic”. In the eyes of everyone, I was a follower of Christ. Even I believed that I was a follower of Christ. However, I made no conscious effort to follow God’s commandments, to challenge my sinfulness and weaknesses, and to know Jesus as a loving God who is truly alive.

My actual spiritual conversion began when I first decided to obey God’s commandments. That is, I started to strive to keep his commandments in my life. As I constantly strived to obey, God’s word became more alive to me. Soon, the bible was no longer a meaningless storybook. It became real, meaningful, and full of practical application in my daily life. God was no longer an abstract concept or a being who was extremely far away. He became close, I began to know Him, and I began to realize how much I was missing in my life before this.

My dear friends, until we see God face to face, there will be times in our lives on earth when we are weak or when we allow our sinfulness to separate ourselves from God. However, one day we will become perfect by God’s grace and sanctification. Until that day, we will constantly be confronted with our weaknesses and sinfulness. In these moments, we can choose to either strive to keep God’s commandments or to seek a life away from God.

Let us pray for God’s grace to always seek to keep God’s commandments and remember that our God understands our struggles; hence, He does not demand that we fulfil his commandments perfectly. Rather, He is more interested in whether we constantly strive to obey His commandments to our best ability each day. Let us therefore do our best to seek a life where we are living Catholics, living followers of Christ, and not simply “Sunday Catholics”.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Jean Cheng)
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Prayer: Lord, please give me the strength that I do not have so that I can constantly strive to obey your word.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks to God for sending His son to us to show us the way to eternal life.

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Upcoming Readings:
Tue, 30 Dec – 1 John 2:12-17; Luke 2:36-40; Sixth Day in the Octave of Christmas
Wed, 31 Dec – 1 John 2:18-21; John 1:1-18; Seventh Day in the Octave of Christmas
Thu, 01 Jan – Numbers 6:22-27; Psalm 67:2-3. 5-6. 8; Galatians 4:4-7; Luke 2:16-21; Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God
Fri, 02 Jan – 1 John 2:22-28; John 1:19-28; Weekday before Epiphany; Sts Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, bishops, doctors
Sat, 03 Jan – 1 John 2:29-3:6; John 1:29-34; Weekday before Epiphany; Holy Name of Jesus
Sun, 04 Jan – Isaiah 60:1-6, Psalm 72, Ephesians 3:2-3a. 5-6, Matthew 2:1-12, Epiphany of the the Lord