Avoiding Babylon
Avoiding Babylon was started during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. During these difficult and dark days, when most of us were isolated from family, friends, our parishes, and even the Sacraments themselves, this channel was started as a statement of standing against the tyrannical mandates that many of us were living under. Since those early days, this channel has morphed into an amazing community of friends…no…more than friends…Christian brothers and sisters…who have grown in joy and charity.
As we see it, our job here at Avoiding Babylon is to remind ourselves and those who enjoy the channel that being Catholic is a joyful and exciting experience. We seek true Catholic fraternity and eutrapelia with other Catholics who, like us, are doing their best to live out their vocation with the help of God’s Grace. Above all, we try to bring humor and joy to the craziness of this fallen world, for as Hillaire Belloc has famously said:
“Wherever the Catholic sun doth shine,
There’s always laughter and good red wine.
At least I’ve always found it so.
Benedicamus Domino!”
Avoiding Babylon
Meditations for Advent 2024 - Day 14 - The Humble Astonishment of Elizabeth
Discover the awe-inspiring humility and profound faith of Elizabeth as we explore a momentous encounter from the Gospel of Luke. With insights from the sermons of Bishop Jacques Bossuet, we promise to reveal how Elizabeth's astonishment at Mary's visit can deepen our own understanding of recognizing God's presence in our lives. Through the lens of Elizabeth's response, filled with the Holy Spirit, you'll gain a fresh perspective on the virtues of humility and faith, paralleling the experiences of St. Peter and the centurion. Join us in reflecting on the extraordinary grace bestowed upon Elizabeth and John the Baptist, and learn how embracing faith leads us to the blessed fulfillment of God's promises, just as Mary experienced.
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SANTE, sante, amare, morti DEI FRAGAS NOS In taste, fair, love and love. Good morning everyone, and welcome to the end of the second week of Advent, day 14. Day 14, so we are definitely past the halfway point and today's meditation will be on the humble astonishment of Elizabeth. I'm only reading through one meditation today, since it's the weekend here and if you're new to the series, these are meditations that I've been taking from the sermons and homilies of Bishop Jacques Bosway. He is a famous French homilist from the 17th century and, yeah, they've been collected into a book called Meditations for Advent from Sophia Institute Press. I did Lenten meditations from Meditations for Lent taken from his homilies as well, so they are very great and I throw up these readings on YouTube, twitter, slash X, all the different audio podcast apps, as well as SpiritusTVcom, so you can find them just about everywhere, as well as Locals, our Locals page.
Speaker 1:If you're not subscribed to our Locals, we do some exclusive content on there, oftentimes on our live shows. The second half of the show will be on Locals. It allows us a little bit more freedom in what we say and what we say things about, and it's probably the best way to support us as well. It's $5 a month to get access to all that exclusive content. We also put up all of our usual content on there too. That way, if you just want to avoid YouTube altogether or something like that, you can do so on Locals, but that's just avoidingbabylonlocalscom.
Speaker 1:So, anyways, without further ado, I'm going to throw up an image on screen. You don't have anything to look at. You just listen, meditate and we'll go from there. Uh, and we do start with the prayer. So let me pull that up real quick. Okay, here we go, in the name of the father and of the son and of the Holy ghost, amen. Okay, here we go.
Speaker 1:You have said by your holy and divine mouth this is eternal life, that they know thee, the only true God and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. Believing in these words, and with the help of thy grace, I wish to be attentive to the task of knowing God and knowing you. So do I draw as near to you as I can, with a lively faith, to know God in you and by you, and to know him in a manner worthy of God, that is, in a manner that leads me to love and obey him, in accord with the words of your beloved disciple, he who says I know him but disobeys his commandments, as a liar as well as your very own. He who has my commandments and keeps them. He it is who loves me. To know you well, o my God and dear Savior, I wish always, with the help of that grace, to contemplate you in all that befalls you and in all of your mysteries, and, at the same time, to know your Father, who gave you to us and the Holy Ghost that you both have sent to us. So do I wish to love you with true faith, a faith working through love. Amen. Meditation number 23.
Speaker 1:The Humble Astonishment of Elizabeth At Mary's voice and her words of greeting. The babe leaped in her womb and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost and she exclaimed with a loud cry. This loud cry expressed at once both surprise and joy. Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb. Luke 1, 41-42. The one whom you carry is the one in whom all nations shall be blessed. He has begun by pouring out his benediction upon you. And why is this? Granted me? That the mother of my Lord should come to me.
Speaker 1:Luke 1.43. Souls who are astonished to meet God because His presence was unlooked for first attempt to draw back as being unworthy of the grace. Depart from me, lord, said St Peter, for I am a sinful man. Likewise the centurion Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. Matthew 8.8. In a similar sentiment. But milder Elizabeth, even though confirmed in virtue, is surprised to see herself approached by the Lord in so admirable a manner. Why is this? Granted me that the mother of my Lord and the one who carries him in her womb should come to me. She senses that it is the Lord who comes himself, but that he comes and he acts by his holy mother. For behold, she said, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leaped for joy.
Speaker 1:Luke 1.44. He senses the presence of the Master and begins to fulfill the office of the precursor, not yet by his voice, but by this sudden leap. Even his voice was not absent. It, as much as he had secretly inspired his mother's, jesus came to him through his mother and John recognized him through his own. In this dispensation of graces by Jesus Christ to St Elizabeth and her son at the visitation of the Holy Virgin, the advantage is entirely on the side of the child. Accordingly, one of the Holy Fathers said on the side of the child. Accordingly, one of the Holy Fathers said Elizabeth was the first to hear the voice, but John was the first to be sensible of the grace. Elizabeth continues. St Ambrose had been the first to perceive Mary's arrival, but John the first to be sensible of the arrival of Jesus. Elizabeth, recovering from her astonishment, proceeds further in her praise of the Holy Virgin.
Speaker 1:Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord Luke 1, 45. You have conceived as a virgin and you will give birth as a virgin. Your son will succeed to the throne of David and his reign will have no end. Let us then believe, and we too will be blessed like Mary. Let us believe, like her, in the reign of Jesus and in the promises of God. Let us say with faith Thy kingdom come. Let us cry out with all the people Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Blessed is the kingdom of our father, david, mark 11, 9-10. Blessedness is attached to faith. You are blessed to have believed. Blessed are you, simon, for flesh and blood has not revealed to you this faith that you have pronounced, but my Father, who is in heaven. Whence this blessedness of faith?
Speaker 1:Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her Luke 1.45. You have believed, you will see. You were faithful to the promises. You will receive the reward. You have sought God in faith. You will find Him in joy. Let us, then, place all of our happiness in faith. Let us not be insensible to this beatitude. It is Jesus Christ himself who offers it to us, and the glory of God and his will are found in our blessedness. The one who is blessed is at the same time excellent. One is blessed to believe. There is nothing either more excellent or better than faith which, founded upon the divine promise, abandons itself to the will of God and thinks only of how to please Him.
Speaker 1:And there is our meditation for today and tomorrow. We kind of continue along the same theme. The title of tomorrow's meditation is my Soul Magnifies the Lord. So we are still kind of in the visitation there, and then we'll go from there, I guess. So tomorrow is the third Sunday of Advent, and the third Sunday of Advent is Gaudete Sunday, so a little bit lighter, a little bit more than the rest of Advent. Um, still still. Uh, you know, advent is a season of penance, but, god that day, sunday's a little bit less so. Um so, anyways, thank you for joining me. I hope you all have a great day and I'll see you once again tomorrow. For God that day, sunday.
