The Sunday Sermon Archive

Dear Friends in Christ,

Saint Joachim is the grandfather of Jesus Christ. He was the husband of Saint Anne and the father of the Blessed Virgin Mary. His name is not in the Gospels but comes to us through tradition.

Today's Gospel reveals Jesus' Human genealogy, helping us see His relatable human side, inspiring awe at His divine mystery and love for us.

The two natures of Jesus have always been points of misunderstanding and obstinate heresies. The heresies attacking the early Church are still with us to this day, even if the same names do not refer to them. These often occur because we attempt to use our limited human intelligence to try and comprehend the infinite, mysterious, and incomprehensible. Some heresies deny the Divinity of Jesus Christ — presenting Him as a holy man but not as God. Some heresies suggest that Jesus Christ was a man who became God through His good works. Some heresies suggest that Jesus is God, but that He is not truly human.

Our Holy Mother, the Church, presents to us the feast of Saint Joachim to remind us that Jesus Christ is truly human with human parents and human grandparents. The genealogy that we read in today's Gospel reading shows us the royal and priestly inheritance of Jesus Christ. It also reveals to us the fulfillment of the prophecies in the Person of Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ is human because He has this human genealogy. In His human nature, He offers Himself in Sacrifice to atone for the sins of all of humanity. Through Adam we are all condemned under sin. Through the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the price of our sins has been paid (redemption). Salvation requires our acceptance of Jesus Christ and the faithful fulfillment on our part of all that He has taught us and directed us to do. Jesus Christ has redeemed us without our cooperation, but He cannot save us without our cooperation. Salvation depends upon our faithfulness in keeping the commands of Jesus. Jesus' humanity is essential for the merits of His Sacrifice to be applied to humanity. If Jesus were not human, His sacrifice could not be applied to or benefit humanity.

Jesus Christ is God because He is the only begotten Son of the Father. He needs to have this nature of God so that His Sacrifice is of infinite value. Sin is an offense against God and, as such, is irreparable because God is infinitely offended and we are finite even in the best that we can do. We required an infinite Sacrifice to obtain the forgiveness of our infinite offenses. Jesus is God, and therefore His actions carry the weight and worth of an infinite God. His Sacrifice is of infinite value and is therefore infinitely satisfactory for all the sins of humanity.

We honor Saint Joachim primarily because of his vital role in God's plan to bring us Jesus Christ through his connection to the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is through his biological lineage that human life flowed from him to Mary, and from her to Jesus, highlighting his importance in salvation history.

Mary is blessed to be the Mother of God. In this position she has become the mother of all who accept and embrace her Son — Jesus Christ. All who truly love Jesus Christ cannot help but love His mother. We cannot help but praise and honor her who consented to be the instrument to bring Jesus to us. As Jesus is our brother, so Mary is our mother. In a similar line of reasoning, we honor and love Saint Joachim. He was an instrument of God's grace to give to the world the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God; and through her, Our God, Our Lord, and Redeemer — Jesus Christ — true God and true Man.

It is said that imitation is the sincerest form of praise. Jesus would have us love Him so much that we daily deny ourselves, take up our crosses and follow Him. Mary is held out before us as a more approachable model because she is fully human, unlike her Divine Son. However, she is elevated far above us in her Immaculate Conception. In Saint Joachim, we find a human being more like ourselves whom we may imitate and follow. He was open to the Holy Will of God and allowed God to direct his life, and this brought him the greatest of blessings (to be the grandfather of Jesus Christ).

May we obtain the intercession of Saint Joachim today and every day hereafter for the rest of our lives to be open and cooperative with the Holy Will of God. As Jesus came to him in a biological or familial way, may He come to us in a profoundly spiritual way.

May the Immaculate Heart of Mary inspire, guide, and protect us.

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