FROM THE ABUNDANCE OF THE HEART THE MOUTH SPEAKS

Ninth Day of the Misa De Gallo

2 Sm. 7: 1- 5, 8b – 12, 14a, 16 / Ps. 89 / Lk. 1: 67 – 79

From the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks! That is why when the emcee announced the wrong winner of the recently concluded Miss Universe, one can opine that inside his heart, his bet was Ms. Colombia rather than Ms. Philippines. Indeed, from the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks!

Such is the case of our Gospel narrative today. When Zechariah sang his praise to the Lord, one can imagine how powerful those words were knowing the fact that he has been mute for the past nine months. If we examine the “lyrics” of Zechariah’s song which is popularly called the Benedictus, we realize that he was speaking well about God because of two things. First, he praised God for giving Israel the promised Savior. “He has raised up for us a mighty Savior, born of the house of his servant David.”  Second, he praised God for giving him John, his son, whose mission was to prepare the coming of the Lord. “You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way, to give his people knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins.” What was kept hidden inside the heart of Zechariah finally came out from his mouth. Indeed, from the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.

As Christians, we are blessed because we have been beneficiaries of the salvific act of the Messiah at the cross. Through his death, we gain life to the fullest. Through his suffering, we gain strength to move on with life amidst its difficulties. Thus, we are also called to become like Zechariah. We too must proclaim our own Benedictus, our praise to God. However, words are not enough. Just as the Word became Flesh, our words must be incarnated. Our praise to God must be seen in our actions.

My dear friends, a few hours from now, we shall welcome into our lives, Jesus, the Prince of Peace. Like Zechariah who said “good words” in our Gospel today, let us also say “good words” today by cleansing ourselves from our sins. And the best disposal venue for the “bad words,” our sins, is the sacrament of Reconciliation. At Confession, we throw away our sins through our mouths. And through our hearing, we receive once again the grace of God in our lives. Only when we set free ourselves from maledictions, from our sins, can we truly sing our Benedictus.

I know after this Mass, you will already start preparing for your noche Buena. You will already be busy for your Christmas parties. Many of you will probably join the Christmas rush in malls and endure the long lines in counters. However, my dear friends, I hope you will also take time to prepare yourself spiritually by freeing yourselves from maledictions in the sacrament of Confession so that tonight before the manger, together with the angels, you will sing your Benedictus. Amen.

Photo taken from steadfastlutherans.org