TOPIC:
MARY OUR MOTHER
MARY, MOTHER OF GOD, Homily, LUKE
2:16-21 January 1, 2023
1) STORY
One day as Jesus
was walking around heaven, he noticed some doubtful characters and wondered how they got there. He went to ask St. Peter how this happened as
Peter was instructed to let in only qualified persons. St. Peter assured Jesus that he was carrying
out his duty by standing at the gates and permitting only qualified persons to
enter. However, Peter informed Jesus
that at night his mother Mary would open the back door of heaven and permit
those less than qualified souls in. She
wanted all her children to get into their eternal home, heaven.
2) GOSPEL, LUKE 2:16-21
A) SHEPHERDS
The
gospel tells us that the shepherds did three things when Jesus was born:
i)
They went to Bethlehem in search of Jesus.
ii)
They told others what they had seen.
iii)
They glorified and praised God. They set
a good example for us.
B) MARY
The
gospel tells us that “Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her
heart.” Jesus was the center of her
life.
3) APPLICATION TO LIFE
A) We must always search for Jesus
in our busy lives. There are many
distractions which could keep us from searching for him. We must introduce others to Jesus who have
never met him or have abandoned him. We
must praise and glorify God who is the creator of our world and who sent Jesus
to save us.
B) MARY. Jesus was the center of her
life. We must make him the most
important person in our lives, the center of our lives. For some persons the center of their lives may
be food, clothing, money, or entertainment. We must reject these temptations. Jesus gives us guidance, strength, peace, joy,
and forgiveness. He becomes the center
of our lives when we communicate with him in prayer, we listen to his voice
through the word of God, and we receive his spiritual food in the Eucharist.
4) CONCLUSION
Just as Mary helps people get to their
eternal home, heaven, she helps us as we begin this new year. We follow the example of the shepherds by
telling others about Jesus and by praising and glorifying him by our words and
deeds. We keep Jesus as the center of
our lives as Mary did. She helps us to
stay near to her son, Jesus.
