00:28Welcome to
00:29Welcome back to our online Bible school. Brothers and sisters, in this lesson we will look at the births.
00:37of John and Jesus, two children who will be a joy to everyone, but above all these children will be the
00:45Salvation for all humanity. Birth and manifestation of John. Before the gift that God bestows
00:54The people who rejoice with Elizabeth and Zechariah are like them, because all divine grace is...
01:02a cause of joy for all who hear it or experience it, even more so when faced with human incapacity
01:10Divine compassion and mercy act in favor of the little ones and those who suffer.
01:18Circumcision inserts the male into the salvific history of the Jewish people; through it, man
01:27He becomes a man of God in full right and enjoys the privileges that come with being an ally
01:36and friend of God. During the circumcision, it was customary to give the child a name, and as
01:44It was customary to name a child after their father or paternal grandfather. Let Zechariah and Elizabeth say that
01:53The fact that his son's name is Juan is an indication that we are witnessing a momentous event.
02:02God,
02:02because the name John means, God has been favorable or has shown us his favor.
02:10Brothers and sisters, it is in this moment of complete joy that God's promise has become a reality,
02:18that Zechariah can speak again and his first words prompted by the Holy Spirit are a
02:26hymn of praise to divine greatness and mercy, just as he had done with Mary before
02:35The Jewish priest, father of the Baptist. Again, this canticle is not a piece that we can attribute
02:43We cannot attribute it entirely to Luke, nor can we attribute it entirely to Zechariah. This hymn is called
02:53Benedictus, due to the influence of the Vulgate on the church throughout the centuries prior to
03:02Vatican II. Apparently, Luke has combined two short Judeo-Christian hymns in which
03:10It recognizes the salvation that God has given us through Jesus. And on the other hand, it highlights the role
03:19John the Baptist plays the role of Jesus' precursor. We will see how this is consistent with the
03:28Luke's theology dictates that all the songs should center on Jesus. And just as happened with
03:37Mary's song, the one proclaimed by Zechariah, is a reminder of God's actions throughout
03:46the history of salvation. The way in which the verbs are presented suggests that God always
03:55He acts in favor of his people, and his actions are salvific in nature. At the conclusion of his proclamation, Zechariah does
04:04the mention of a fundamental theme for Lucas, the peace that implies total harmony with the world, with the
04:13neighbor, with oneself, and with God. And finally, brothers, Luke takes the Baptist out of the scene and shows him to us
04:22It shows itself maturing and growing in different deserts, which shows us that its life is
04:31Marked by an intimate and total encounter with God. Birth and manifestation of Jesus. We must
04:41Let us remember, brothers and sisters, before entering this section, something we have already learned. God has spoken to the
04:49men in a human way. This means that God uses human language to reveal realities.
04:57divine. One of the categories of written human language is literary genre, which has its own way
05:06specific to communicating a reality or to revealing the truth. If I read a poem, I don't expect to find a
05:15historical truth, but I do hope to find a message that communicates something to me, that reveals something to me, and, in the case
05:24From the Bible, that it may reveal something to me about God, about His plan, or about His saving will. Father Raymond
05:34Edward Brown
05:35He states that a story inspired by God is not necessarily historical, which means, brothers,
05:43that God has other means of communicating his truth, besides historical or historiographical truth.
05:52At the beginning of chapter 2, Luke wants to continue with the theology characteristic of the narratives of the
05:58Annunciation. Now it shows us the historical details surrounding the birth of Jesus and the
06:06divine details with which God surrounds these events. Luke places Jesus in time
06:14of Herod and the Emperor Caesar Augustus. Although the census he mentions was in the time of Quirinius or Sirinus
06:22As governor of Syria, this would not have affected Galilee, already governed by Antipas, but it would have affected Judea.
06:32which had ceased to have Archelaus as its monarch and had begun the type of government called
06:40Roman prefecture or procurator. The author's intention is to move Joseph and Mary from their residence in
06:50Nazareth to Bethlehem, the place where the traditions of Matthew and Luke locate the birth of Jesus. Without
06:59Let us overlook the fact that Luke sees in it the realization or fulfillment of a divine promise.
07:08While Matthew doesn't need to make such a change, because he already presents Mary and Joseph living in
07:15Bethlehem, Luke needs to move Jesus' parents from Nazareth to Bethlehem and for this he uses the
07:24reason for the registration and the departure of Mary and her husband to Joseph's homeland. This census did not
07:33It would not have been mandatory for Maria, neither because of her pregnancy nor because of her status as a woman.
07:42He did not pay taxes to Rome, something that is also inexplicable about Joseph if he lived under Herod's rule.
07:50Antipas. To present Jesus as the one who receives, welcomes, and is nourished for all humanity,
07:59Luke tells us that Mary and Joseph found no lodging in Bethlehem and had to take refuge.
08:06in a manger, a place where animals were sheltered and fed. The mention of the
08:14Diapers make you think of the care and pampering that was given to a child and are not a sign
08:22of poverty
08:22or humility. Luke returns to the theme of David when he mentions the shepherds to whom the gospel is announced.
08:32that a savior has been born, while the Roman Empire considers Augustus its savior and the architect
08:42of peace. Luke tells us that the true and only savior of all men is Jesus and his
08:50Peace will be
08:52proclaimed by the angels when they sing their hymn of glory, when it is affirmed that glory belongs to God
09:00and peace for mankind. In this section, Luke presents Mary meditating for the first time.
09:09deeply into all the wondrous events in which God has manifested himself.
