HOMILY FOR SATURDAY OF THE 3RD WEEK OF ADVENT/Christ's perfect solidarity with humans
Homily for Saturday of the 3rd Week of Advent Genesis 49:2, 8-10; Matthew 1:1-17. Today begins the second part of Advent. In the First Reading, Jacob gathered his children before he died and foretold the destiny of his sons. Jacob presented Judah, his fourth son to his other brothers as their head and leader. While the blessing of Jacob, rendered as a canticle has been touted as a literary composition in defense of the political preeminence of Judah among the twelve tribes, it does not diminish the significance of these words as a prayer of a father for a son. Judah eventually became a powerful tribe and it would not be out of place that Jacob's words and blessings made this possible. From Jacob's blessings, the tribe of Judah had a mission to perform. It was to give the world the Messiah. Each one of us has a mission to perform as Christians, it is to give our brothers and sisters our Lord Jesus Christ. From Jacob's blessings, fathers and mothers should learn to bless rat...