Our Lady of Sorrows
    info@oladyofsorrows.org
    956-686-0251
    • Home
    • News
      • Weekly Bulletin
    • Homilies
      • Msgr. Gustavo Barrera
      • Dcn. Ray Thomas
      • Dcn. Johnny Gonzalez
      • Dcn. Crawford Higgins
    • About Us
      • Office Directory
      • Worship & Liturgy Schedule
      • Our Pastor
      • Photo Gallery
    • Sacraments
      • Baptism
      • Matrimony
      • CCD
      • RCIA
    • Donate
    • Capital Campaign
    • Ministries
      • Adoration
      • Altar & Rosary Society
      • Altar Servers
      • Asamblea de Oracion de Matrimonios (AOM)
      • Catholic Daughters of the Americas
      • Homebound Ministry
      • JCDA
      • Choir
      • Knights of Columbus
      • Legion of Mary
      • Readers of the Word (Lectors)
      • Serra Club
      • Star of Hope
    • Faith & Spirituality Groups
      • Bereavement Support
      • Centering Prayer Group
    • Become a Parishioner
    • Funeral Information
    • Quinceañera Information
    • OLS YouTube Channel
    • School
    • Diocese of Brownsville
    • Contact Us

    3 Advent, Cycle B

    12/24/2017

     
    John 1:6-8, 19-28
    ​
    A popular TV game show back in the 50s and 60s was “What’s My Line”.  A person would sign in—the audience would know the identity, but not the panel.  If the person was famous the panel would ware a blindfold.  By questioning the guest the panel would try to figure out the identity of the guest. 
     
    Imagine John the Baptist as a guest celebrity on “What’s My Line”.  A blindfold would have been necessary because the camel’s hair, the leather belt and grasshoppers in his teeth would have given him away.  The studio was air-conditioned, so the pungent smell would have been disguised or at least redirected.  John Charles Daly would have introduced the mystery guest, which only the audience could see as he signed in.  Then the questions would have started by Dorothy Kilgallen:  “Do you work indoors?”  “No”, John would have answered.  Arleen Francis might have asked, “Have we read about you somewhere?”  John could have said, “Yes, if you’ve read the Bible.”  Bennett Cerz would have ventured a guess, “Are you the Prophet?” He answered, “No”  “How about Elijah?”  “no” Back to Dorothy Kilgallen who asked, “What do you do have to say for yourself?”  “I am the voice of one crying out in the desert, make straight the way of the Lord”.  Then all the panel would have said, “John the Baptist”.  Of course he was the voice of one, no one else would have dared to challenge the establishment.  That’s why the priests and the Levites were sent to ask John what he was doing because the Synagogues were empty.  The local clergy was loosing business since John was preaching repentance, forgiveness, preparation for the Messiah.  While they were preaching the same old, same old.  John was passionate about his message.  He knew how to make people aware of their strength and the need to repent of the wrong they had done.  What really caught their attention was that he was not afraid of the authorities.  He spoke the truth, regardless of public opinion. 
     
    Everybody’s afraid of public opinion.  Will people still like me?  What are people going to think?  Remember that opinions are like belly buttons, everybody’s got one.  John didn’t take a survey to see if folks were happy with his message or not.  “Was the water hot or too cold?  Did I get you too wet?”  John wanted to cause an internal change.  He had little if any regard for the external or what folks thought about him, because his mission was to point to Jesus, he had no other purpose. 
     
    Think how different our world would be if each of us was like John the Baptist—with our one an only purpose to point to Jesus.  That’s why our Mother Church puts this Gospel right before Christmas, because so many have lost the sense of purpose.  Lots of folks don’t know who they are.  Depression is at an all time high, especially around this season.  If we can’t have what we want; if the people we were expecting aren’t coming; because a loved one just died—the reasons can be many and some are serious.  However, nothing justifies loosing the focus—loosing ourselves.  The madness can be distracting.  Who are we?  Why do we do what we do?  Just like John, our vocation is to point to Jesus Christ.  Just so happens that His birthday is coming up.  Yet, in essence, He needs to be our focus every day of the year, not just on Christmas.  Jesus gives us our identity—our reason for living.  So if we are asked, “Who are you?”  “From where do you come?”  We come from Christ, we belong to Christ.  We want to look like Him, act like Him, be like Him.  We can deal with any obstacle when we have the armor of Christ. 
     
    That’s all that John was trying to get the people to realize.  He is the light and we are nothing without Him.    

    Comments are closed.
      Picture
      Msgr. Gustavo Barrera,
      ​celebrated his first Holy Mass as pastor on September 15, 2007, the feast day of Our Lady of Sorrows. With his enthusiasm and spiritual guidance, OLS continues to serve our Catholic family in a way that challenges us to grow as an evangelizing community.

      Archives

      May 2023
      April 2023
      March 2023
      February 2023
      January 2023
      December 2022
      November 2022
      October 2022
      September 2022
      August 2022
      July 2022
      June 2022
      May 2022
      April 2022
      March 2022
      February 2022
      January 2022
      November 2020
      October 2020
      September 2020
      August 2020
      July 2020
      June 2020
      May 2020
      April 2020
      March 2020
      February 2020
      January 2020
      December 2019
      November 2019
      October 2019
      September 2019
      July 2019
      June 2019
      May 2019
      April 2019
      March 2019
      February 2019
      January 2019
      December 2018
      November 2018
      October 2018
      September 2018
      August 2018
      July 2018
      June 2018
      May 2018
      April 2018
      March 2018
      February 2018
      January 2018
      December 2017
      November 2017
      October 2017
      September 2017
      August 2017
      June 2017
      May 2017
      April 2017
      March 2017
      February 2017
      January 2017
      December 2016
      November 2016
      October 2016
      September 2016
      August 2016
      July 2016
      June 2016
      May 2016
      April 2016
      March 2016
      February 2016
      January 2016
      December 2015
      November 2015
      October 2015
      September 2015
      August 2015
      July 2015
      June 2015
      May 2015
      April 2015
      March 2015

      Msgr. Gustavo Barrera, Pastor.

      Categories

      All

      RSS Feed

    About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Office Directory
    • Stewardship
    • Pastor
    • Our History
    Sacraments
    • Baptism
    • First Reconciliation
    • First Communion
    • Confirmation
    • Marriage
    • Anointing of the Sick
    Parish Life
    1. Become a Parishioner
    2. Bulletin & Newsletters
    3. Planning Center Log-in​
    Worship and Liturgy
    • Daily Readings
    • Liturgy of Hours
    • Mass & Reconciliation
    • Eucharistic Adoration
    Faith Formation
    • CCD
    • RCIA​
    Links & Resources
    • CDOB
    • USCCB
    • Vatican: Holy See
    • American Catholic
    More
    • Homilies
    • Online Giving
    • OLS School
    • OLS on YouTube
    Our Lady of Sorrows Parish
    1108 W Hackberry Ave.
    McAllen, Texas 78501-4370
    Telephone
    : (956) 686-0251
    Picture
    Picture

    Website Development by The Parish Solutions Company
    Our Lady of Sorrow Image Copyright Cromo NB permission to use by CNB Basevi.
    Back to top