Day 273 · Chronological

Scripture

Luke 1:57–80 · John 1:1–14

St. Luke was a native of Antioch, the capital of Syria. He was by profession a physician; and some ancient writers say, that he was very skillful in painting. He was converted by St. Paul and became his disciple and companion in his travels, and fellow-labourer in the ministry of the Gospel. He wrote in Greek, about twenty-four years after our Lord’s Ascension.

Luke 1

The conception of John the Baptist, and of Christ. The visitation and canticle of the Blessed Virgin. The birth of the Baptist and the canticle of Zachary.

57 Now Elizabeth’s full time of being delivered was come: and she brought forth a son.

And her neighbors and kinsfolks heard that the Lord had shewed his great mercy towards her: and they congratulated with her.

And it came to pass that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child: and they called him by his father’s name Zachary.

And his mother answering, said: Not so. But he shall be called John.

And they said to her: There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name.

And they made signs to his father, how he would have him called.

And demanding a writing table, he wrote, saying: John is his name. And they all wondered.

And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed: and he spoke, blessing God.

And fear came upon all their neighbours: and all these things were noised abroad over all the hill country of Judea.

And all they that had heard them laid them up in their heart, saying: What an one, think ye, shall this child be? For the hand of the Lord was with him.

And Zachary his father was filled with the Holy Ghost. And he prophesied, saying:

Blessed be the Lord God of Israel: because he hath visited and wrought the redemption of his people.

And hath raised up an horn of salvation to us, in the house of David his servant.

As he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets, who are from the beginning.

Salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all that hate us.

To perform mercy to our fathers and to remember his holy testament.

The oath, which he swore to Abraham our father, that he would grant to us.

That being delivered from the hand of our enemies, we may serve him without fear:

In holiness and justice before him, all our days.

And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt, go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways:

To give knowledge of salvation to his people, unto the remission of their sins.

Through the bowels of the mercy of our God, in which the Orient from on high hath visited us:

To enlighten them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death: to direct our feet into the way of peace.

And the child grew and was strengthened in spirit: and was in the deserts until the day of his manifestation to Israel.

Book Introduction

St. John the Apostle and Evangelist was the son of Zebedee and Salome, brother to James the Greater. He was called the Beloved disciple of Christ and stood by at his Crucifixion. He wrote the Gospel after the other Evangelists, about sixty-three years after our Lord’s Ascension. Many things that they had omitted were supplied by him. The original was written in Greek; and by the Greeks he is titled: The Divine. St. Jerome relates that, when he was earnestly requested by the brethren to write the Gospel, he answered he would do it, if by ordering a common fast, they would all put up their prayers together to the Almighty God; which being ended replenished with the clearest and fullest revelation coming from Heaven, he burst forth into that preface: IN THE BEGINNING WAS THE WORD.

John 1

The divinity and incarnation of Christ. John bears witness of him. He begins to call his disciples.

1 In the beginning was the Word: and the Word was with God: and the Word was God.

The same was in the beginning with God.

All things were made by him: and without him was made nothing that was made.

In him was life: and the life was the light of men.

And the light shineth in darkness: and the darkness did not comprehend it.

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.

This man came for a witness, to give testimony of the light, that all men might believe through him.

He was not the light, but was to give testimony of the light.

That was the true light, which enlighteneth every man that cometh into this world.

He was in the world: and the world was made by him: and the world knew him not.

He came unto his own: and his own received him not.

But as many as received him, he gave them power to be made the sons of God, to them that believe in his name.

Who are born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us (and we saw his glory, the glory as it were of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth.

Catechism

Catechism of the Council of Trent, Part 3, Chapter 7, Section 11

Various Forms Of Theft

They are guilty of theft who buy stolen goods, or retain the property of others, whether found, seized, or pilfered. If you have found, and not restored, says St. Augustine, you have stolen. If the true owner cannot, however, be discovered, whatever is found should go to the poor. If the finder refuse to make restitution, he gives evident proof that, were it in his power, he would make no scruple of stealing all that he could lay his hands on.

Those who, in buying or selling, have recourse to fraud and lying, involve themselves in the same guilt. The Lord will avenge their trickery. Those who sell bad and adulterated goods as real and genuine, or who defraud the purchasers by weight, measure, number, or rule, are guilty of a species of theft still more criminal and unjust. It is written in Deuteronomy: Thou shalt not have divers weights in thy bag. Do not any unjust thing, says Leviticus, in judgment, in rule, in weight or in measure. Let the balance be just, and the weights equal, the bushel just, and the sextary equal. And elsewhere it is written: Divers weights are an abomination before the Lord; a deceitful balance is not good.

It is, also, a downright theft, when labourers and artisans exact full wages from those to whom they have not given just and due labor. Again, dishonest servants and agents are no better than thieves, nay they are more detestable than other thieves; against these everything may be locked, while against a pilfering servant nothing in a house can be secure by bolt or lock.

They, also, who obtain money under pretence of poverty, or by deceitful words, may be said to steal, and their guilt is aggravated since they add falsehood to theft.

Persons charged with offices of public or private trust, who altogether neglect, or but indifferently perform their duties, while they enjoy the salary and emoluments of such offices, are also to be reckoned in the number of thieves.

To enumerate the various other modes of theft, invented by the ingenuity of avarice, which is versed in all the arts of making money, would be a tedious and, as already said, a most difficult task.