The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to contemplate the gifts we have received and what action we can take to celebrate and share our blessings with others.
In the Reading from the First Book of Samuel, Hannah Presents Samuel to the Lord.
[1:24] Ephah: see note on Is 5:10. (1 Samuel, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB, n.d.)
The response from 1 Samuel proclaims Hannah’s appeal to God.
* [2:1–10] Hannah appeals to a God who maintains order by keeping human affairs in balance, reversing the fortunes of the arrogant, who, like Peninnah, boast of their good fortune (vv. 1, 3, 9) at the expense of those like Hannah who receive less from the Lord. Hannah’s admission places her among the faithful who trust that God will execute justice on their behalf. The reference “his king ... his anointed” (v. 10) recalls the final sentence of the Book of Judges and introduces the kingship theme that dominates the Books of Samuel. (1 Samuel, CHAPTER 2 | USCCB, n.d.)
The Gospel of Luke presents The Canticle of Mary.
* [1:46–55] Although Mary is praised for being the mother of the Lord and because of her belief, she reacts as the servant in a psalm of praise, the Magnificat. Because there is no specific connection of the canticle to the context of Mary’s pregnancy and her visit to Elizabeth, the Magnificat (with the possible exception of v. 48) may have been a Jewish Christian hymn that Luke found appropriate at this point in his story. Even if not composed by Luke, it fits in well with themes found elsewhere in Luke: joy and exultation in the Lord; the lowly being singled out for God’s favor; the reversal of human fortunes; the fulfillment of Old Testament promises. The loose connection between the hymn and the context is further seen in the fact that a few Old Latin manuscripts identify the speaker of the hymn as Elizabeth, even though the overwhelming textual evidence makes Mary the speaker. (Luke, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB, n.d.)
Steve Scholer comments that there can be only one Annunciation, but that does not mean that God does not talk to us each and every day. Again, maybe not as dramatic as the angel Gabriel appearing to Mary, but the voice is there, urging, consoling, and inspiring us. The problem is, we are often too busy to take the time to listen to what God has planned for us. For God truly sees great things in each of us.
So, as we near the end of this wonderful season of Advent, let each of us try to slow down our all-too-hectic lives. And, with purpose, let us create more time to spend with God in prayer and meditation so we can hear God’s voice and all the wonderful things he has planned for us. Let us hear again and again of God’s endless love for us and then demonstrate that love by the lives we live in service to God and others.
Maybe, just maybe, by doing less we can become more. More Christ-like in how we live our lives in thanksgiving for the wonderful gifts we have received. (Scholer, n.d.)
Don Schwager quotes “Mary preaches the new kingdom,” by Ephrem the Syrian (306-373 AD).
"[Mary] revealed to Elizabeth what the angel spoke to her in secret, and that he called her blessed because she believed in the realization of the prophecy and the teaching that she heard (Luke 146-55). Then Mary gently brought forth the fruit of what she heard from the angel and Elizabeth: 'My soul bless the Lord.' Elizabeth had said, 'Blessed is she who has believed,' and Mary replied, 'From henceforth all generations will call me blessed.' It was then that Mary began to preach the new kingdom. 'She returned home after three months,' so that the Lord whom she was carrying would not begin service before his servant. She returned to her husband to clarify the matter, for if she had become pregnant through human fruit, it would have been appropriate for her to flee from her husband." (excerpt from COMMENTARY ON TATIAN'S DIATESSARON 1.28) (Schwager, n.d.)
The Word Among Us Meditation on 1 Samuel 1:24-28 comments that when it comes to our adult children, we may have expectations that they follow a certain path for their lives. So maybe we can acknowledge that God might have a different plan for them.
You can take a similar approach to other aspects of your life. For example, you might acknowledge that your money, like everything else in this world, belongs to God, so you can decide to listen for his guidance on where and how to spend it. Or you can look at the way you spend your free time. Especially during this season, you could offer more time to loved ones or someone you know who is lonely.
None of us will give to God exactly the same gift that others will. But like Hannah, each of us can offer him a gift that comes from the heart.
“Here I am, Father! I offer back to you every good gift you have given me!” (Meditation on 1 Samuel 1:24-28, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler comments were not available at publication time.
Fr. Mike Schmitz reminds us that God created us out of love, for love. Fr. Mike also points out where the Catholic Church draws her doctrine on the difference between mortal and venial sin, as well as what St. Paul means when he teaches that there is only "one mediator" between God and man. Today's readings are 1 John 4-5, 1 Timothy 1-3, and Proverbs 30: 24-28.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, cites the twentieth-century English mystic Caryll Houselander who said, “Christ is everywhere; in Him every kind of life has a meaning and has an influence on every other kind of life.” [1]
In our time, however, this deep mode of seeing must be approached as something of a reclamation project. After the Western and Eastern Churches separated in the Great Schism of 1054, we in the West gradually lost this profound understanding of how God has been liberating and loving all that is. Instead, we gradually limited the Divine Presence to the single body of Jesus, when perhaps it is as ubiquitous as light itself—and uncircumscribable by human boundaries.
If my own experience is any indication, discovering Christ as the transcendent within of every “thing” in the universe can transform the way we perceive and the way we live in our everyday world. It can offer us the deep and universal meaning that Western civilization seems to lack and long for today. It has the potential to reground Christianity as a natural religion and not one based on a special revelation, available only to a few lucky enlightened people.
As G. K. Chesterton expressed, our religion is not the church we belong to, but the cosmos we live inside of. [2] Once we know that the entire physical world around us, all creation, is both the hiding place and the revelation place for God, this world becomes home, safe, enchanted, offering grace to any who look deeply. I call that kind of deep and calm seeing “contemplation.” (Rohr, n.d.)
We seek the Wisdom of the Spirit to reveal how our soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord as we journey through our time in the physical world.
References
Luke, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved December 22, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/1?
Meditation on 1 Samuel 1:24-28. (n.d.). Retrieved December 22, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/12/22/1449475/
1 Samuel, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved December 22, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/1samuel/1?24
1 Samuel, CHAPTER 2 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved December 22, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/1samuel/2?1
Rohr, R. (n.d.). Daily Meditations — Center for Action and Contemplation. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved December 22, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/christ-in-every-thing/
Scholer, S. (n.d.). Daily Reflection. Creighton Online Ministries: Home. Retrieved December 22, 2025, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/daily-reflections/daily-reflection-december-22-2025
Schwager, D. (n.d.). Joyful Expectation of the Messiah. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved December 22, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/
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