Tag: Soteriology

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Sermon Notes – January 12, 2025 – “Behold the Lamb of God”

“Behold the Lamb of God”

 Father Peter Fitzgibbons

 January 11- 12, 2025

Gospel:   Luke 3:15-16, 21-22

Do you remember the Greek I taught you last week about the Epiphany and what it means?   In English, the Epiphany means manifestation, and today there is another one.  Our good Lord is manifested and made visible by God the Father.  God revealed to us the nature of the Trinity . . . the triune nature of God.  The Spirit came upon us in the form of a Dove.  By the way, the word “Spirit” is capitalized in Scripture.  The Holy Spirit revealed the triune nature of God.   We could have realized a lot of things on our own by backward reasoning, but the Trinity of God had to be revealed. 

God also revealed things that are reflected in the “ologies” including Theology, Sacramentology, Soteriology, and Christology.  God said, “This is My beloved Son” which is studied in Christology.  Soteriology is the study of redemption and that of His suffering, death, and resurrection.  Sacramentology, the study of Sacramental Life, began with our Lord’s Baptism and gave us the means for our walk to Paradise.   Soteriology is the study of the Sacrificial Lamb.  He came down to be sacrificed for our redemption.  Remember in Scripture the command our Lord gave the Apostles?  “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19).  Contrary to our Protestant brethren and some enlightened Catholics, Baptism was not age restricted.   The house of Cornelius was baptized, including many children.  In those days, the child mortality rate was huge, and if you didn’t have a lot of children, there would be nobody to care for you in your old age.  So, Baptism is the first Sacrament.   

In other accounts of the Baptism of our Lord, what did Saint John say?  In the past, we said this during Mass after the Minor Elevation.  In Latin, which was the language of the Empire and is still the official language of the Church, Saint John said, “Ecce Agnus Dei” which means “Behold the Lamb of God.”  And with that, the question that was first asked in Genesis is finally answered:  Where is the Lamb of Sacrifice Who takes away our sins?   Saint John answered that question 5,000 years after it was asked: “Ecce Agnus Dei” – “Behold the Lamb of God.”  He picked Jesus out of a crowd.  Behold the Lamb of God. 

It was not the people’s lamb and not the Jew’s lamb, but the Lamb of God who came to be sacrificed.   Lambs are gentle and docile, just as Jesus was.  He was docile to God the Father by obeying His Word.   Our Lord did the will of the Father.  He came down and achieved our redemption by His death and resurrection.  He took on a human nature to fulfill the debt that man could not repay because of the abomination of the first sin.  It was such a great offense that only God could repair it.  Our first parents walked with God and talked with God. They had full knowledge of Who God is, and they still disobeyed Him by eating the apple.  “I’m going to do what I want and eat the apple.”  That was such an offense that only God could correct it. 

God sent the Sacrificial Lamb to redeem us.  That is what we are doing here today.  We see the Lamb of God in the Most Blessed Sacrament.  As Saint John said, and as you can also say, “I see the Lamb of God.”  Ecce agnus dei – Behold the Lamb of God.  He’s right there in the Tabernacle.  We have God.  It is the fulfillment of His love for us.  You see His Sacrifice in the Mass.  It is not a re-sacrifice of Christ; He will not have to die again.  It is a view of what is always before the Father in Heaven pleading on our behalf and will be until the end of time.  “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.”  It is the Sacrificial Lamb Who is on the Altar.  As Scripture has it, He is the scapegoat for our sins.  The Lamb of God is among the lambs He created.  What a wonderful thing. 

How will you apply this message to your life? _________________________________________


You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to AnnunciationCatholicAlbemarle.com, clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” and then “Sermon Notes.”  On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.”  Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.”  Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at OLA.Catholic.Church.  Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”

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Sermon Notes – January 5, 2025 – “A Tour of the Nativity”

“A Tour of the Nativity”

Father Peter Fitzgibbons

January 4 – 5, 2025

Gospel:  Matthew 2:1-12

As you can see, and as promised, the Wisemen made it.  They always do.  The creche will be up for another week.  Do you know why?  The Christmas season doesn’t end until next week, which is the Baptism of our Lord.  I’m kind of a traditionalist, so we are keeping it up until then.  Saint Francis is credited for creating the first nativity scene in the 13th Century.  The nativity or creche is a portrait of the Church and a small book on Catholic theology, so I’m always amused when non-Catholics have one.   You display Catholic icons, and you’re not Catholic?  Really? 

The creche is the Church and is one of the first of many manifestations of Christ in the Gospel.  Inside the creche, you see Christology – the study of Christ; Ecclesiology – the study of Who the Church is; Soteriology – the study of redemption; Hagiography – the study of the saints; and Eucharistic theology, the study of doctrine regarding the Eucharist.  There are a lot of ‘ologies’ present in the creche and, in the interest of time, I’ll make just a few points about each.

In Ecclesiology, you learn that the Church and its people are always gathered around Jesus just as we are now – He’s right there in the Tabernacle.   In the creche, you find who makes up the Church.  Who makes up the Body of Christ?  That’s an interesting question.  In the creche, we see the very holy – the Blessed Mother and Saint Joseph were both born without original sin.   You also see the very learned and the very ignorant.  Do you know why they are there?  The ignorant – the shepherds – know that they don’t know anything.  They were not the sharpest knives in the drawer, but they knew enough to be obedient.  They responded to the voice of an angel, and they saw the Savior.  The Wisemen are educated and know they don’t know everything, which is the goal of education.   They took the shoe leather express across the desert, which would not have been fun.  What do the Blessed Mother, Saint Joseph, the Wisemen, and the shepherds have in common?  Obedience.  If you read the Gospels, obedience did not always come easy.  The Wisemen walked across the desert or rode on camels, neither of which would be pleasant.  And yes, I have ridden on a camel.  I haven’t eaten one, but I’ve heard they taste like chicken.  But if you walk across the desert during the day, it’s not pleasant, and it’s not much better at night.  During the day, the temperature is about 70 degrees, but at night it drops to about 30 degrees.   The Wisemen were out there in the desert, and they were freezing.  Their trip across the desert was both brutal and dangerous.   But they were obedient, and they won the prize for obedience . . . to see the Savior and be in His presence.   We will, too, if we are obedient and achieve Heaven.   

In the creche, the Savior is lying in a manger, which reflects Soteriology.  In 33 years, the wood of the manger would become the wood of the Cross.  So, His suffering, death, and resurrection are already forecasted in the nativity. 

Christology is also reflected because of the gifts the Wisemen brought:  gold because He is a king and frankincense because He is God.   A lot of non-Catholics say, “Using incense is terrible.”  Why?  It’s used in Scripture.  Christ didn’t throw it out, did He?   The Blessed Mother didn’t say, “Get this crap out of here,” did she?  In fact, incense is used in the presence of God.  Read Revelation 8:3-5.  Incense is the prayers of God’s people rising.  If you want to be biblical, use incense.  The Wisemen also brought myrrh which forecasted Christ’s sacrifice.  Myrrh is a burial spice similar to formaldehyde or embalming fluid.  I’m sure the Blessed Mother wasn’t exactly thrilled about that gift.  The first two gifts were pretty cool, but that last one, not so much.  There is no sense in Scripture that she knew her Son would die.  But that is why He came.  In 33 years, the reason He came would be fulfilled . . . to suffer in death and to be resurrected so that we would have the means to eternal life.   

Finally, Eucharistic theology is reflected in the creche because Christ laid in a manger where the animals ate, and He became for us the Bread of Life.  His flesh would become the food of life for all of us.  Christ said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink His blood, you have no life in you” (John 6:53).   For the non-Catholics, He is saying that His flesh is real food, and His blood is real drink. 

The Epiphany is a wonderful meditation about the truths of our faith.   I always liked the sheep and wished I could be like them.  Know why?  They realized they had no brains, but they had great humility, and they were there.  They kept our Savior warm.

How will you apply this message to your life? _________________________________________

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to AnnunciationCatholicAlbemarle.com, clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” and then “Sermon Notes.”  On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.”  Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.”  Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at OLA.Catholic.Church.  Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”

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Sermon Notes – January 7, 2024 – We Have Lots of “ologies”

We Have Lots of “ologies”

Father Peter Fitzgibbons

January 6 – 7, 2023

Gospel: Matthew 4:12-17, 23-25

Next week the Christmas season ends. At some point in the near future, the nativity will disappear. I do not have an exact date yet. That is echelons above my pay grade. But as you heard in the Gospel, the nativity scene is not quite accurate because the Magi (Wise Men from the East) came to the “house” to see Jesus. The stable is not a house. So, when Saint Francis created the idea of a nativity, he compressed the house into a stable. In the nativity you see Scripture. You see the promises God made to His people and fulfilled (Genesis). He sent us a Savior.

The crèche is a marvelous lesson on Theology. We have all these “ologies.” There is Soteriology which is the study of redemption. Jesus came as the Redeemer. There is also Christology which is the study of who Christ is. True God and true Man. He is the Son of God and the Son of Man. The Wise Men brought Him frankincense because that was a gift given only to God. They brought gold because He is a king. Lastly, they brought myrrh because of the reason He came. He came to die. How many of you ladies who have had a baby shower received embalming fluid as a gift? Thanks a lot! You want your children to live, but He came to die. The manger He was laid in became the wood of the Cross 33 years later. Our good Lord was laid upon straw in the manger which was food for the oxen. Our Lord became our bread for life. Without that bread of life, we would have no life within us. He came to die for us and to open the gates of Heaven so that we could live with Him forever.

Another “ology” is Ecclesiology which is the study of the Church. The nativity is a picture of the Church. What is a common characteristic of everyone in the nativity? They were humble. The Wise Men knew that they didn’t know everything, and the shepherds knew they knew nothing. Mary and Joseph were holy, and they always said “yes” to Jesus. With all these people gathered around Jesus, you have a picture of the Church. That is who you still find in the Church. Regardless of their degrees, titles, and letters after their names, if they are truly educated, they are here. Like the shepherds, some people have been educated by the School of Hard Knocks. The Church is Christ’s body. Remember what Christ said to Paul in Acts, “Paul why are you persecuting Me?” (Acts 9:4). He didn’t say “organization.” He said “Me.” We are His body and have been throughout time. You always see Mary, Joseph, the Wise Men, and the shepherds gathered around Jesus. They represent not just the Jews but all people throughout time. The nativity represents a whole course on Theology. It is not something that we trot out once a year for a few weeks and then put back in the closet. The nativity is a wondrous thing on which to meditate.

The diocese is very diverse. We have hyphenated Catholics, and there are many offices for them. That is theologically foreign and absolutely blasphemous. “Father, are you Irish-Catholic?” No, I’m Catholic. We do not have a different Savior. There is one Savior for everyone. If you took a mirror and looked out at the congregation, you would see what I see. We are all one in Christ. Paul said, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28). We are all one in Christ. We each have different jobs in the Body of Christ that’s for sure. But there are no hyphenated Catholics.

Hagiography is the study of saints. Which saint was the first to hold God incarnate? Think back on your labor and delivery classes. It was Saint Joseph. My question is why we aren’t having venerations for the first human being who held God in his hands and who was the first to look down at God instead of up. I hope you will meditate on that tonight.

Father’s Reflections: A couple of months ago, I had to get the flu vaccine. I’m not a big believer in vaccines, but I’m living proof that vaccines work. When I was in the Army at Fort Bragg, I was forced to get a series of shots because I was deployable. One of those shots was for Typhoid. It definitely worked because that night I was in the hospital with Typhoid. Perfect! I went to the doctor, and he said, “You’re sick.” No kidding! I bet you went to medical school.

How will you apply this message to your life?_________________________________________

You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to AnnunciationCatholicAlbemarle.com and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” then “Sermon Notes.” On a cell phone: click on “Blog” and then “Menu.” Scroll to the bottom and click on “Categories.” Sermon Notes are also available on the Church’s Facebook page at ola.Catholic.Church. Click on “Groups” and then “Sermon Notes.”