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Today, 4th of December, we celebrate
Saint John Damascene
First Reading: Ezekiel 2:8—3:4
The Lord God said to me:
As for you, son of man, obey me when I speak to you:
be not rebellious like this house of rebellion,
but open your mouth and eat what I shall give you
It was then I saw a hand stretched out to me,
in which was a written scroll which he unrolled before me.
It was covered with writing front and back,
and written on it was:
Lamentation and wailing and woe!
He said to me: Son of man, eat what is before you;
eat this scroll, then go, speak to the house of Israel.
So I opened my mouth and he gave me the scroll to eat.
Son of man, he then said to me,
feed your belly and fill your stomach
with this scroll I am giving you.
I ate it, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth.
He said: Son of man, go now to the house of Israel,
and speak my words to them.
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 119:14, 24, 72, 103, 111, 131
R./ How sweet to my taste is your promise!
In the way of your decrees I rejoice,
as much as in all riches.
R./ How sweet to my taste is your promise!
Yes, your decrees are my delight;
they are my counselors.
R./ How sweet to my taste is your promise!
The law of your mouth is to me more precious
than thousands of gold and silver pieces.
R./ How sweet to my taste is your promise!
How sweet to my palate are your promises,
sweeter than honey to my mouth!
R./ How sweet to my taste is your promise!
Your decrees are my inheritance forever;
the joy of my heart they are.
R./ How sweet to my taste is your promise!
I gasp with open mouth,
in my yearning for your commands.
R./ How sweet to my taste is your promise!
Gospel Reading: Matthew 18:1-5, 10, 12-14
The disciples approached Jesus and said,
"Who is the greatest in
the Kingdom of heaven?"
He called a child over,
placed it in their midst, and said,
"Amen, I say to you, unless you turn
and become like children,
you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven.
Whoever becomes humble like this child
is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.
And whoever receives one child such
as this in my name receives me.
"See that you do not despise one
of these little ones,
for I say to you that their angels in heaven
always look upon the face
of my heavenly Father.
What is your opinion?
If a man has a hundred sheep
and one of them goes astray,
will he not leave the ninety-nine in the hills
and go in search of the stray?
And if he finds it, amen, I say to you,
he rejoices more over it
than over the ninety-nine that did not stray.
In just the same way, it is not the will
of your heavenly Father
that one of these little ones be lost."
We live in a society that’s constantly going on and on about children’s rights in declarations, agreements, protection laws, and legal stuff… But it seems like we don’t react when we see that, in reality, these super-protected and pampered kids, along with other helpless and vulnerable kids, are having their innocence trampled on, and in the most heartbreaking cases, they’re being abused and messed up. Of course, the first responsibility to protect and care for them lies with their parents. But it’s everyone’s duty. It’s a moral obligation built into being human, it’s a social instinct that makes grown-ups feed and take care of their young.
Jesus tells us to be like little kids. In different writings, Chesterton highlights two childhood traits we should get back to become like children: wonder and trust. Little kids are amazed by anything and everything, just because it “is,” and they’re surprised by every way that “being” shows up or by the natural laws of our world: a person, a boy, a girl, a grandma, a guy walking down the street, a baby, a flower, a bug, a rock, the moon, a shadow, gravity, light, a dream… Plus, a baby is trusting: they have no choice but to depend on their parents or adults, and they grow up with that basic trust, expecting mom, dad, or any grown-up to solve their problems and fix everything.
Becoming like little kids means keeping that sense of wonder and awe for everything that exists… recognizing the Creator of it all. To quote Chesterton: “The wisest philosophers have never attained the gravity which dwells in the eyes of a baby of three months old. It is the gravity of astonishment at the universe.” It also means realizing that we can’t do anything but trust in God, who brought us into this world. We depend on Him for everything.
In the end, it’s about trusting without limits in the Good Shepherd who doesn’t want to lose any of his sheep.
Greatest in the Kingdom
Introduction
Ezekiel is told to eat the scroll with the prophecies he has to make to the people of God. That means, he has to be filled with its message. It contains bitter utterances, because he has to make the people face the truth of their infidelities, but at the same time it tastes sweet to the prophet because he takes up his mission without protest, for he is doing what he has to do.
For Jesus, a child counts, as God loves what is little. They are the greatest in the kingdom of God, on account of their simple wisdom, their lack of pretension, their spontaneity and their humility. Sinners too are among the little ones, in another sense: low before God – what have they given him? Yet none of them should be lost. In us to the child should survive in the good sense. Are we not placing obstacles in the way of the kingdom on account of our sophistication and pretenses?
Opening Prayer
Great and holy God,
you stoop down to us,
fallible and limited people,
and your preference goes
to children and the humble.
Give us the heart of a child,
unpretentious and receptive, trusting and believing,
that we may become wise with your wisdom
and grow up to the full human size
of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Intercessions
– For those who are the greatest in the Church, that they may serve with great dedication and without looking down on them, the weakest, the poorest, those wounded in life, we pray:
– For all of us, that like Jesus, by loving them and praying for them, we may place in our midst children, the poor, the humble and all who serve, we pray:
– For those working in social welfare institutions, that they may provide shelter and much love for orphans and rejected and abandoned children, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
God, our Father,
your Son Jesus voluntarily gave up
all divine honors and privileges
to become one of us and to die our death.
He gives himself to us here
in the form of a humble piece of bread.
Give us the attitude of Jesus,
self-effacing and respectful
before you and one another
and available to all calls and all needs.
We ask you this through Christ our Lord.
Prayer after Communion
No one as great as you, Lord our God,
has made himself as small as you;
no one as distant as you
has made himself so near to us in our weakness
as you in your Son Jesus Christ.
Make us see your Son
here in this Eucharist and in everyday life.
Make us self-effacing and respectful
before you and before one another
in trust, hope and joy,
like Christ Jesus our Lord.
Blessing
Jesus tells us to change and to become like little children. This is not an invitation to become childish, but to learn from children to become spontaneous and trusting toward God and one another, admiring and grateful and expecting all that is good, with the blessing of almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
