[media presentation below] GospelThink Saturday, December 30 LUKE 2:36-40 Anna is a good example. Prayerthoughts a. Anna was a true “Church person.” Have I done my best to help out in my parish? b. Anna was an elderly person. How do I treat the elderly people in my immediate acquaintance? c. Anna gave thanks. Do I spend a significant amount of time thanking God? d. Anna spoke about the child. Are the words that I speak throughout the day truly Christian words? (This is the “task” of this meditation.) e. Luke says simply of Jesus’ early life that he grew and became strong. How well do I treat the children that I come into contact with? f. My prayerthoughts…   Today, I will spend 10-15 minutes in a Church (or by myself) and study each major moment yesterday to determine whether I was “Christian” in my conversation. Some Thoughts on the Liturgy  THE THINGS OF THIS WORLD  + We continue the reading from the first letter of John in the first reading today           – saying that the community should not love the world                     – they do not say—stay away from the world                      – they merely say: do not love the world           – important distinction:                      – even in those days, the early Christians had to deal with the world in whatever way                                – they no doubt enjoyed some of it, and that is perfectly okay                                – but they were given the directive not to love it                                          – that is, not to give themselves so completely to the things that they enjoyed that they allowed it to dominate their lives           – applying that to ourselves, the same thing can be said:                      – we have to deal with the things of the world                                – even enjoy them somewhat—as we do with movies, TV, electronic gadgetry, etc.                                          – but we are directed not to love them                                                    – that is, not to allow them to dominate our behavior and what we do  + Unfortunately, you and I know that that tends to happen, given the “stuff” that we have in this world           – perhaps somewhat of a guide to keep that from happening can be learned from Anna in the Gospel                      – Luke describes four things that she did in particular, all of which can be talked about and applied in twenty-first century language                                – 1 — Anna was constantly in the Temple, worshiping God                                          – we can’t be constantly in the Church as such, but we can strive to have the Lord’s presence in our lives in a constant way                                2 – Anna fasted and prayed                                          – that is, she did things that reminded her of what God wanted her to do                                3 – Anna gave thanks to God                                          – giving thanks is one of the highest forms of praise                                                    – it is the way that we have of saying to God that we recognize what God has done for us, no matter what has happened in our own lives                                4 – finally, Anna spoke about the child                                          – that is, she allowed the child to be the dominant factor, and nothing else                                          – we don’t speak about the child every minute of every day                                                    – but we can live in such a way that Jesus can speak through us  + You and I are asked not to love the things of this world           – good advice as we continue to celebrate the birth of our Savior. MEDIA PRESENTATION Song: “Last Night” — Morgan Wallen OUR LAST NIGHT? The Gospel MATTHEW 5:37 Jesus said: “Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the evil one.”

Gospelthink: Your speech should be honest at all times.

“Last night, we let the liquor talk; I can’t remember everything we said but we said it all” (a little later he sings, “we said too much”). “You told me that you wish I was somebody you never met, but somethin’s tellin’ me this ain’t over yet. No way it was our last night.  I see your tail lights in the dust; you call your momma, I call your bluff. My friends say let her go, but no way it was our last night.”

Morgan Wallen’s song “Last Night” is about a man in the relationship being convinced that even though the lady in that relationship said it was over, the man didn’t think so. The lady said it was over, in fact saying that she wishes that she never would have met him. But as he studies the situation, he says that he feels that she doesn’t mean it. He may be completely wrong, and there will be no hope that the relationship will continue, or he may be thinking that he is able to correct his speech. It is clear that that which caused the problems were the words that they spoke: they said “too much” is the way he phrases it in the song. Whatever he decides, he will have to address the words that he spoke. Honesty in speech has long been a guide to good living. According to the Scriptures, Jesus gave the guide for all Christians, telling them to be totally honest in their speech, saying “yes” only if you mean it, and likewise with “no.” Most of us learned to speak early on in our lives, and we learned that people will listen to us. We can mislead them by direct lies, or we can mislead them by empty words, that is, words that are spoken but never really meant. The power to speak is a tremendous gift that most of us have and we never even think of it. We need to be more aware of what we speak and whether we really mean what we say.

PRAYER Good and gracious God, you have given to us the power to speak words. We know that we should be honest in what we say, and we beg for the grace to always say exactly what we mean, and be guided by your love.  Be with us, we pray.

+++++ GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT Theme: If a person hurts another with words, he/she must be sincere in wanting to make up for it. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: 1. What does the song “Last Night” teach young people? 2. If a friend has told you that he/she wishes that they had never met you, and you wish to get back together, what is the first thing you should do? 3. If there is a general rule that should be used to govern your speech, what should it be? 4. Do you feel that in a close relationship, the couple can say “too much”? 5. In general, do you feel that most people are honest in their speech? 6. Why is lack of communication the number one cause of marriage breakdown?