December 23 - Luke 1: 57-66

To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudy⁠⁠⁠⁠For complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pLuke 1: 57-66 - 'His name is John.'Got a Bible question? Send an email to [email protected], and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!

To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudy⁠⁠⁠⁠For complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pLuke 1: 46-56 - 'The almighty has done great things for me.'Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraphs:- 2619 (in 'The Prayer of the Virgin Mary') - That is why the Canticle of Mary, The Magnificat (Latin) or Megalynei (byzantine) is the song both of the Mother of God and of the Church; the song of the Daughter of Zion and of the new People of God; the song of thanksgiving for the fullness of graces poured out in the economy of salvation and the song of the "poor" whose hope is met by the fulfillment of the promises made to our ancestors, "to Abraham and to his posterity for ever."- 2097 (in 'Adoration') - To adore God is to acknowledge, in respect and absolute submission, the "nothingness of the creature" who would not exist but for God. To adore God is to praise and exalt him and to humble oneself, as Mary did in the Magnificat, confessing with gratitude that he has done great things and holy is his name (abbreviated).- 148 (in 'Mary - Blessed is she who believed') - The Virgin Mary most perfectly embodies the obedience of faith. By faith Mary welcomes the tidings and promise brought by the angel Gabriel, believing that "with God nothing will be impossible" and so giving her assent: "Behold I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be [done] to me according to your word." Elizabeth greeted her: "Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her from the Lord." It is for this faith that all generations have called Mary blessed.- 971 (in 'Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary') - "All generations will call me blessed": "The Church's devotion to the Blessed Virgin is intrinsic to Christian worship." The Church rightly honors "the Blessed Virgin with special devotion (abbreviated).- 273 (in 'The Mystery of God's apparent powerlessness') - Only faith can embrace the mysterious ways of God's almighty power. This faith glories in its weaknesses in order to draw to itself Christ's power. The Virgin Mary is the supreme model of this faith, for she believed that "nothing will be impossible with God", and was able to magnify the Lord: "For he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name." (abbreviated).- 2599 (in 'Jesus prays') - The Son of God who became Son of the Virgin learned to pray according to his human heart. He learns the formulas of prayer from his mother, who kept in her heart and meditated upon all the "great things" done by the Almighty (abbreviated)- 422 (in 'The Good News: God has sent his son') - But when the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.' This is 'the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God': God has visited his people. He has fulfilled the promise he made to Abraham and his descendants. He acted far beyond all expectation - he has sent his own 'beloved Son'.- 2807 (in 'Hallowed be thy name') - The term "to hallow" is to be understood here not primarily in its causative sense (only God hallows, makes holy), but above all in an evaluative sense: to recognize as holy, to treat in a holy way. and so, in adoration, this invocation is sometimes understood as praise and thanksgiving (abbreviated).- 2465 (in 'Living in the Truth') - The Old Testament attests that God is the source of all truth. His Word is truth. His Law is truth. His "faithfulness endures to all generations." (abbreviated)Got a Bible question? Send an email to [email protected], and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!

To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudy⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠For complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pMatthew 1: 18-24 - 'How Jesus Christ came to be born.'Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraphs:- 497 (in 'Mary's Virginity') - The gospel accounts understand the virginal conception of Jesus as a divine work that surpasses all human understanding and possibility: “That which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit,” said the angel to Joseph about Mary his fiancée. The Church sees here the fulfillment of the divine promise given through the prophet Isaiah: “Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son.”- 333 (in 'Christ with all his angels') - They protect Jesus in his infancy, serve him in the desert, strengthen him in his agony in the garden, when he could have been saved by them from the hands of his enemies as Israel had been (abbreviated)- 437 (in 'Christ') - God called Joseph to “take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit,” so that Jesus, “who is called Christ,” should be born of Joseph’s spouse into the messianic lineage of David (abbreviated)- 486 (in 'Who was Conceived by the Holy Spirit') - The Father’s only Son, conceived as man in the womb of the Virgin Mary, is “Christ,” that is to say, anointed by the Holy Spirit, from the beginning of his human existence, though the manifestation of this fact takes place only progressively: to the shepherds, to the magi, to John the Baptist, to the disciples (abbreviated)- 430 (in 'Jesus') - Jesus means in Hebrew: “God saves" (abbreviated)- 452 (in 'The Only Son of God') - The name Jesus means “God saves.” The child born of the Virgin Mary is called Jesus, “for he will save his people from their sins” (Mt 1:21): “there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).- 1507 (in 'Heal the Sick') - The risen Lord renews this mission (“In my name . . . they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.” and confirms it through the signs that the Church performs by invoking his name. These signs demonstrate in a special way that Jesus is truly “God who saves.”- 1846 (in 'Mercy and Sin') - The Gospel is the revelation in Jesus Christ of God’s mercy to sinners. The angel announced to Joseph: “You shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins" (abbreviated)- 2666 (in 'Prayer to Jesus') - But the one name that contains everything is the one that the Son of God received in his incarnation: Jesus. The divine name may not be spoken by human lips, but by assuming our humanity. The Word of God hands it over to us and we can invoke it: “Jesus,” “YHWH saves" (abbreviated)- 2812 (in 'Hallowed be Thy Name') - Finally, in Jesus the name of the Holy God is revealed and given to us, in the flesh, as Savior, revealed by what he is, by his word, and by his sacrifice (abbreviated)- 744 (in 'The Spirit & the Church in the Last Days') - In the fullness of time the Holy Spirit completes in Mary all the preparations for Christ’s coming among the People of God. By the action of the Holy Spirit in her, the Father gives the world Emmanuel, “Godwith-us” (Mt 1:23).Got a Bible question? Send an email to [email protected], and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!

To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudy⁠⁠⁠⁠For complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pLuke 1: 26-38 - 'I am the handmaid of the Lord.'Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraphs:- 64 (in 'God forms his people Israel')- 148 (in 'Blessed is she who believed')- 269 (in 'He does whatever he pleases')- 273 (in 'The Mystery of God's apparent powerlessness')- 276 (in 'The Almighty')- 332 (in 'Christ with all his angels')- 430 (in 'Jesus')- 437 (in 'Christ')- 484 (in 'Who was Conceived by the Holy Spirit')- 486 (in 'Who was Conceived by the Holy Spirit')- 488 (in 'Mary's Predestination')- 490-491 (in 'The Immaculate Conception')- 494 (in 'Let it be done to me according to your word')- 497 (in 'Mary's Virginity')- 505 (Mary's virginal motherhood in God's plan)- 510 (in 'Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary')- 559 (in 'Jesus' Messianic Entrance into Jerusalem')- 697 (in 'Symbols of the Holy Spirit')- 706 (in 'The Spirit of the Promise')- 709 (in 'The Kingdom in the Exile')- 723 (in 'Rejoice, you who are full of Grace')- 2571 (in 'God's Promise & the Prayer of Faith')- 2617 (in 'The Prayer of the Virgin Mary')- 2677 (in 'Communion with the Holy Mother of God')- 2812 (in 'Hallowed be thy name')- 2827 (in 'Thy Will be Done on earth as it is in Heaven')- 2856 (in 'The Final Doxology')Got a Bible question? Send an email to [email protected], and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!

To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudy⁠⁠⁠⁠For complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pLuke 1: 5-25 - 'Your wife Elizabeth will bear a son.'Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraphs:- 332 (in 'Christ with all his angels') - Angels have been present since creation and throughout the history of salvation, announcing this salvation from afar or near and serving the accomplishment of the divine plan: they closed the earthly paradise; protected Lot; saved Hagar and her child; stayed Abraham’s hand; communicated the law by their ministry; led the People of God; announced births and callings; and assisted the prophets, just to cite a few examples. Finally, the angel Gabriel announced the birth of the Precursor and that of Jesus himself.- 717-718 (in 'John, precursor, prophet and baptist') - “There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.” John was “filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb” by Christ himself, whom the Virgin Mary had just conceived by the Holy Spirit (abbreviated). John is “Elijah [who] must come.” The fire of the Spirit dwells in him and makes him the forerunner of the coming Lord. In John, the precursor, the Holy Spirit completes the work of “[making] ready a people prepared for the Lord.”- 523 (in 'Preparations') - Going before Jesus “in the spirit and power of Elijah,” John bears witness to Christ in his preaching, by his Baptism of conversion, and through his martyrdom (abbreviated)- 696 (in 'Symbols of the Holy Spirit') - This event was a “figure” of the fire of the Holy Spirit, who transforms what he touches. John the Baptist, who goes “before [the Lord] in the spirit and power of Elijah,” proclaims Christ as the one who “will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire" (abbreviated)- 716 (in 'Expectation of the Messiah & his Spirit') - It is this quality of heart, purified and enlightened by the Spirit, which is expressed in the Psalms. In these poor, the Spirit is making ready “a people prepared for the Lord" (abbreviated)- 2684 (in 'the Cloud of Witnesses') - In the communion of saints, many and varied spiritualities have been developed throughout the history of the churches. The personal charism of some witnesses to God’s love for men has been handed on, like “the spirit” of Elijah to Elisha and John the Baptist, so that their followers may have a share in this spirit (abbreviated).- 1070 (in 'What does the word liturgy mean?') - In the New Testament the word “liturgy” refers not only to the celebration of divine worship but also to the proclamation of the Gospel and to active charity (abbreviated).Got a Bible question? Send an email to [email protected], and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!

To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudy⁠⁠⁠⁠For complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pMatthew 1: 18-24 - 'How Jesus Christ came to be born.'Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraphs:- 497 (in 'Mary's Virginity') - The gospel accounts understand the virginal conception of Jesus as a divine work that surpasses all human understanding and possibility: “That which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit,” said the angel to Joseph about Mary his fiancée. The Church sees here the fulfillment of the divine promise given through the prophet Isaiah: “Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son.”- 333 (in 'Christ with all his angels') - They protect Jesus in his infancy, serve him in the desert, strengthen him in his agony in the garden, when he could have been saved by them from the hands of his enemies as Israel had been (abbreviated)- 437 (in 'Christ') - God called Joseph to “take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit,” so that Jesus, “who is called Christ,” should be born of Joseph’s spouse into the messianic lineage of David (abbreviated)- 486 (in 'Who was Conceived by the Holy Spirit') - The Father’s only Son, conceived as man in the womb of the Virgin Mary, is “Christ,” that is to say, anointed by the Holy Spirit, from the beginning of his human existence, though the manifestation of this fact takes place only progressively: to the shepherds, to the magi, to John the Baptist, to the disciples (abbreviated)- 430 (in 'Jesus') - Jesus means in Hebrew: “God saves" (abbreviated)- 452 (in 'The Only Son of God') - The name Jesus means “God saves.” The child born of the Virgin Mary is called Jesus, “for he will save his people from their sins” (Mt 1:21): “there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).- 1507 (in 'Heal the Sick') - The risen Lord renews this mission (“In my name . . . they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.” and confirms it through the signs that the Church performs by invoking his name. These signs demonstrate in a special way that Jesus is truly “God who saves.”- 1846 (in 'Mercy and Sin') - The Gospel is the revelation in Jesus Christ of God’s mercy to sinners. The angel announced to Joseph: “You shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins" (abbreviated)- 2666 (in 'Prayer to Jesus') - But the one name that contains everything is the one that the Son of God received in his incarnation: Jesus. The divine name may not be spoken by human lips, but by assuming our humanity. The Word of God hands it over to us and we can invoke it: “Jesus,” “YHWH saves" (abbreviated)- 2812 (in 'Hallowed be Thy Name') - Finally, in Jesus the name of the Holy God is revealed and given to us, in the flesh, as Savior, revealed by what he is, by his word, and by his sacrifice (abbreviated)- 744 (in 'The Spirit & the Church in the Last Days') - In the fullness of time the Holy Spirit completes in Mary all the preparations for Christ’s coming among the People of God. By the action of the Holy Spirit in her, the Father gives the world Emmanuel, “Godwith-us” (Mt 1:23).Got a Bible question? Send an email to [email protected], and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!

To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudy⁠⁠⁠⁠For complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pMatthew 1: 1-17 - 'The ancestry of Jesus Christ, the son of David.'Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraphs:- 437 (in 'Christ') - God called Joseph to “take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit,” so that Jesus, “who is called Christ,” should be born of Joseph’s spouse into the messianic lineage of David (abbreviated).Got a Bible question? Send an email to [email protected], and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!

To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudy⁠⁠⁠⁠For complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pMatthew 21: 28-32 - 'Tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you.'Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraphs:- 546 (in 'The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God') - Jesus' invitation to enter his kingdom comes in the form of parables, a characteristic feature of his teaching. Through his parables he invites people to the feast of the kingdom, but he also asks for a radical choice: to gain the kingdom, one must give everything. Words are not enough, deeds are required (abbreviated).- 535 (in 'The Baptism of Jesus') - Jesus' public life begins with his baptism by John in the Jordan. John preaches "a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins". A crowd of sinners - tax collectors and soldiers, Pharisees and Sadducees, and prostitutes - come to be baptized by him (abbreviated).Got a Bible question? Send an email to [email protected], and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!

To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudy⁠⁠⁠⁠For complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pMatthew 21: 23-27 - 'I will not tell you my authority for acting like this.'Got a Bible question? Send an email to [email protected], and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!

To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudy⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠For complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pMatthew 11: 2-11 - 'A greater than John the Baptist has never been seen; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he is.'Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraphs:- 549 (in 'The Signs of the Kingdom of God') - By freeing some individuals from the earthly evils of hunger, injustice, illness, and death, Jesus performed messianic signs (abbreviated)- 2443 (in 'Love for the Poor') - It is by what they have done for the poor that Jesus Christ will recognize his chosen ones. When “the poor have the good news preached to them,” it is the sign of Christ’s presence (abbreviated)- 548 (in 'The signs of the Kingdom of God') - So miracles strengthen faith in the One who does his Father’s works; they bear witness that he is the Son of God. But his miracles can also be occasions for “offense”; they are not intended to satisfy people’s curiosity or desire for magic (abbreviated)Got a Bible question? Send an email to [email protected], and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!