Just a word before we go...Second Sunday of Ordinary Time...January 14, 2024

According to the calendars, both secular and liturgical, it seems that the Christmas Season has passed.  The crèche has been put away, the poinsettias are history and carols no longer fill the airways (or the internet!).  Except, except, today’s readings, while not explicitly of Christmas, nonetheless evoke, at least in my head, the Noel Regney and Gloria Shayne carol made famous by Bing Crosby, “Do you Hear what I Hear?” The carol asks such questions as do you see, do you hear, do you know, in relation to the birth of the Christ Child. That birth, one of the two greatest moments of grace in human history, occurred in the ordinary circumstances of life, as many moments of grace do.

Samuel hears the voice of God in a whisper, while sleeping in the temple. Not understanding at first, Eli eventually recognizes what is happening and counsels the boy to answer, “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.” Such a moment of grace!

Paul tells us that we are temples of the Holy Spirit...as such, we have the capacity to “tune into” the leadings of the Spirit, opening ourselves to moments of grace.

And in our Gospel, John the Baptist proclaims Jesus as the “Lamb of God.” The disciples with him listen to Jesus, this new preacher on the scene, and in a moment of grace, recognize and begin to follow him.

We all experience moments of grace, whether we recognize them as such or not. Some might be “I could have had a V-8!” moment, but most seem to occur quietly, within the unfolding circumstances of our lives. 

So, as we move forward in what the Church calls “Ordinary Time,” let’s take some time to be quiet and listen for that small, still voice, the whisper that might be revealed in a moment of prayer, or an insight from a conversation or a situation in our lives.  Such moments of grace can open our eyes, our ears, our minds, and our hearts, that we might better see, hear and know the message God has for each of us.  And when we recognize that voice, let us pray for the strength to respond, “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.”