Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Ngày 29 tháng 12 /ngày thứ 5 trong bát nhật Giáng Sinh/

Suy Niệm Tin Mừng  Ngày 29 tháng 12 /ngày thứ 5 trong bát nhật Giáng Sinh/
 Nếu chúng ta tưởng tượng đến hình ảnh của bài phúc âm hôm nay, chúng ta có thể sẽ thấy khu đền thờ đầy những người qua lại giống như một khu chợ  hơn là đền thờ. Khi Đức Maria, ông Giuse mang Chúa Giêsu đến  đền thờ này, chắc chắn họ sẽ bị lạc trong những đám đông này. Một cặp vợ chồng rất đơn sơ, bình thường với một đứa trẻ thơ, họ thực sự không có gì đáng để ý. Có nhiều thầy thượng tế và người Pha-ri-sêu hiện diện và đứng giữa đám đông, họ có thể vai xánh vai với ông Giuse, nhưng không một ai trong số các giáo sĩ này của dân của Chúa đã có thể nghĩ rằng đứa trẻ này lại là "ánh sáng để soi chiếu những người ngoại giáo và cũng là vinh quang của dân Chúa,  Israel ". Thất là kỳ lạ cho dù mọi người Do Thái đang háo hức khao khát và chờ đợi Đấng Mếtsaia sẽ đến với họ,  nhưng không ai biết , kể cả các nhà lãnh đạo tôn giáo, đều nhận Ngài. Không ai, ngoại trừ ông già, Simeon, và góa già Anna.
Thiên Chúa đã nói với Simeon rằng ông sẽ được sống cho đến khi mắt ông nhìn thấy Đấng Mết-sai-a. Vì ông là một người đạo đức biết kính sợ Chúa,  và Chúa Thánh Thần đã đến với ông, Như Tin Mừng Luca đã nói. Chắc chắn là Thánh Thần Chúa đã gợi cho ông Simeon nhìn thấy được thực tại của trần thế này là thấy Thiên Chúa đang làm việc trong con người. Và ông Simeon đã thấy nơi Chúa Jêsus trong việc Ngài đã hoàn thành các lời hứa của các đấng thiên sai. Ông còn thấy được nhiều hơn thế nữa; Ông đã công nhận rằng công việc của Chúa Jêsus không là chỉ đếb thế gian để cứu rỗi dân Do Thái mà thôi, nhưng Ngài còn đến để cứu rỗi toàn thể nhân loại.
Chúng ta hãy cầu xin Chúa Thánh Linh dạy cho chúng ta cách biết nhìn vào kinh nghiệm của chính bản thân chúng ta hàng ngày và tìm ra công việc mả Thiên Chúa muốn chúng ta thực hiện trong kế hoạch cứu rỗi của nhân loại cũa Ngài..
 
REFLECTION December 29, 2017
If we try to imagine the picture of today’s gospel, we may see the temple area teemed with people. It was something like a marketplace. Jesus, Mary and Joseph came into the Temple area and immediately were lost in the milling crowds. An ordinary poor couple with a very young baby: there was really nothing worth noticing.
There were priests and Pharisees among the crowd, rubbing shoulders with the little family, yet not a single one of these religious elite of God's own people had any idea this child was "a light to enlighten the pagans and the glory of [God's] people Israel." It seems very strange that though every Jew was eagerly waiting and yearning for the Messiah to come, no one, not even the religious leaders, recognized him. No one, that is, other than the old man, Simeon, and the old widow, Anna. God had told Simeon that he would live until his eyes beheld the Messiah.  He was a devout and pious man and the Holy Spirit was on him, Luke says. Undoubtedly the Spirit inspired Simeon to look at the earthly reality and see God at work in it. Simeon saw in Jesus the fulfillment of the messianic promises. He saw much more besides; he recognized that Jesus' task embraced the salvation not only of the Jewish people, but of the whole human race.
Let us ask the Spirit to teach us how to look into our daily experiences and find the task God intends us to fulfill in his plan for the salvation of all humankind.
 
December 29 2022 The 5^th day in the Octave of Christmas
Fifth Day in the Octave of Christmas, December 29
The child’s father and mother were amazed at what was said about him; and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted (and you yourself a sword will pierce) so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”  Luke 2:33–35
When something truly supernatural takes place, the human mind that grasps that supernatural event is filled with wonder and awe. For Mother Mary and Saint Joseph, their minds were continually filled with a holy amazement at what they were witnessing.
First there was the Annunciation to our Blessed Mother. Then the angel appeared to Joseph in a dream. Then the miraculous birth took place. Shepherds came to adore their child and revealed that a multitude of angels had appeared to them. Shortly after this, the Magi from the East showed up to do homage to their child. And today we are given the story of Simeon in the Temple. He spoke of the supernatural revelation he had received about this Child. Time after time, the miracle of what was taking place was placed before Mother Mary and Saint Joseph, and each time they responded with wonder and awe.
Though we are not blessed to encounter this supernatural event of the Incarnation in the same way that Mary and Joseph did, we are nonetheless able to share in their “amazement” and their “wonder and awe” by prayerfully pondering this supernatural event. The mystery of Christmas, which is a manifestation of God becoming man, is an event that transcends all time and space. It’s a spiritual reality of supernatural origin and is therefore an event that our minds of faith have full access to. Just like Mother Mary and Saint Joseph, we must hear the angel at the Annunciation, the angel in Joseph’s dream, we must witness the shepherds and Magi and, today, we must rejoice with Simeon as he gazed upon the newborn Messiah, the Savior of the World.
Reflect, today, upon how fully you have allowed your mind to engage the incredible mystery that we celebrate this holy season. Have you taken time to prayerfully read the story once again? Are you able to sense the joy and fulfillment experienced by Simeon and Anna? Have you spent time considering the minds and hearts of Mother Mary and Saint Joseph as they experienced that first Christmas? Let this deep supernatural mystery of our faith touch you this Christmas season in such a way that you, too, are “amazed” at what we celebrate.
Lord, I thank you for the gift of Your Incarnation. With Simeon, I rejoice and offer You praise and thanksgiving. Please renew within me a true sense of wonder and awe as I gaze with amazement at what You have done for me and for the whole world. May I never tire of pondering this supernatural gift of Your life. Jesus, I trust in You.
 
December 29 2022 The 5^th day in the Octave of Christmas
Introductory Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, I long to abide in your presence. You refresh my soul and fill me with your light, although I don’t turn to you often enough or exercise enough faith when I do remember you. But here I am now, Lord, ready to spend a few precious moments with you in the room of my heart. I want to pick up more readily on the inspirations of your Spirit. I want to be a docile instrument in your hands to serve you and your Church.
Petition: Lord, teach me to be open to your Spirit.
1. Simeon, a Man of the Spirit: Luke tells us three times in this short passage that Simeon was a man who was attentive to the Holy Spirit. The “Holy Spirit was upon him” since “it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Messiah of the Lord.” Simeon was in conversation with the Spirit and learned to listen to his holy inspirations. Just as in Christ’s life we see him many times moved by the Spirit—for example, to come to be baptized by John and subsequently to be “driven by the Spirit” into the desert—so in Simeon’s life, he is not only inspired but also powerfully moved by the Spirit. We should take a moment in our meditation to admire this man who lent himself totally to the movements of the Spirit.
2. Mary, Overshadowed by the Spirit: There is no one who demonstrates docility to the Spirit more than Mary Immaculate. She didn’t put up any obstacles to the work of the Holy Spirit; as the Spirit expresses to us through the Gospel writer, “the Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you” (Luke 1:35). As John Paul II describes it, Mary “responded with faithful obedience to every request of God, to every motion of the Holy Spirit.” As she stands here at the presentation of her firstborn son, she now hears words spoken to her through the Spirit’s instrument: “Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted (and you yourself a sword will pierce) so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed." Once more, Mary acquiesces to the Holy Spirit and accepts the foretold suffering far in advance.
3. Amazed by the Spirit: All of us have heard incredible stories of moments in which the Holy Spirit intervened or directed a situation. Maybe we have experienced this in our own lives. Is there any reason why we shouldn’t? Are there any obstacles that the Holy Spirit would find in our lives? He should be the soul’s gentle guest. But how do we foster this friendship with the Holy Spirit? We have to bring silence into our hearts to distinguish his voice from the noise of so many worldly voices trying to drown out his word, and it also means we have to be docile and obedient once we have heard it.
Conversation with Christ: Lord Jesus, there are so many lessons to be learned from your presentation in the Temple. I have taken one of them: the presence of your Holy Spirit so evident in this Gospel passage. In the Christmas season, we celebrate your being among us as a tiny child. Yet, your whole life will show us how to be docile to the Holy Spirit. You have sent him so that we might not be alone. May he always accompany me in life, and may he always remind me of the many things you did and said, as you lead me to the Father’s house.
Resolution: I will spend the day attentive to the Holy Spirit and make this a particular point for my examination of conscience.
 
December 29 2021 The 5^th day in the Octave of Christmas
Opening Prayer: Lord, I present myself to you in prayer this morning as the Holy Family presented themselves to you in the temple. Bless me, speak to me, anoint me, and send me on my way with your blessing.
Encountering Christ:
1.      Obedience to the Law: Greater royalty never lived! Yet, the Holy Family considered themselves subject to the law of their day, not above it. According to the law, every firstborn male belonged to God and needed to be redeemed for a price. Mary and Joseph not only followed the prescription of the law, but they did so humbly, bringing for their offering what the poor could afford: two turtle doves. They asked for no exception, even though the law didn’t apply to them. What a lesson can be drawn from their breathtaking docility! Should we doubt that acts of obedience such as these please our Father? Jesus told St. Faustina, “My daughter, know that you give me greater glory by a single act of obedience than by long prayers and mortifications” (Diary 894). 
2.      Simeon Was Waiting: The Scriptures tell us Simon was “righteous and devout, awaiting the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.” He lived in the Spirit and allowed himself to be led by the Spirit. Inspired by the Spirit, Simon was waiting for no less than the arrival of the Savior of the world—and his expectations were met. He came to the temple in the Spirit precisely as Mary and Joseph arrived with Jesus. Simon embodied a soul who seeks first the Kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33) and received all else from God’s hand. To be so connected to the vine (John 15:5) requires obedience to God’s will, purity of intention, and great love. As we journey through the Christmas season, what keeps us from living in the Spirit like Simeon?
3.      A Sword?: Mary and Joseph were “amazed” at what was said about Jesus, but Mary was then told that a sword would one day pierce her heart. Even though God can give us consolation when we meditate on his Incarnation and our subsequent redemption, we cannot avoid trials, pains, and sufferings while we’re here on this earth. We relish consolations with hearts full of gratitude and rely on Jesus, the light of the nations and the glory of Israel, to bless us so that even our suffering is made sweet because of its redemptive power.
Conversing with Christ: Lord, I want to be a vessel of the Holy Spirit, so connected to you that “in you I live and move and have my being” (Acts 17:28). Grant me the grace to love you this way. I want to rejoice in your consolation and offer you every suffering.
Resolution: Lord, today by your grace I will conform my will to the will of others, as appropriate, confident that my obedience will please you.
 
The 5^th day in the Octave of Christmas Today’s Gospel tells the story of the presentation of Jesus in the Temple. The Temple was, in practically a literal sense, the dwelling place of the Lord. In the Temple, divinity and humanity embraced, and the human race was brought back online with God.
But the sins of the nation had, according to the prophet Ezekiel, caused the glory of the Lord to depart from the Temple. Therefore, one of the deepest aspirations of Israel’s people was to reestablish the Temple as the place of right praise so that the glory of the Lord might return. When Joseph and Mary bring the infant Jesus into the Temple, therefore, we are meant to appreciate that the prophecy of Ezekiel is being fulfilled. The glory of Yahweh is returning to his favorite dwelling. And this is precisely what Simeon sees.
The old seer is a symbol of ancient Israel, watching and waiting for the coming of the Messiah. Simeon knew all of the old prophecies; he embodied the expectation of the nation; and the Holy Spirit had given him the revelation that he would not die until he had laid eyes on his Savior.