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Today in the podcast, To Jesus through Mary. As we continue our celebration of the Christmas season, Father Peter

Armenio, a priest of Opus Day, reflects on Mary, the mother of God. He contemplates how the wise

men and shepherds had to go through Mary to encounter Jesus Christ, and how Mary is also our

shortcut to him.

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, amen.

My Lord and my God, I firmly believe that you are here, that you see me, that you hear me.

I adore you with profound reverence.

I ask your pardon for my sins,

and the grace to make this time of prayer fruitful.

My immaculate Mother St. Joseph, my father, and Lord,

my guardian angel, and deceitful.

Our act of faith in Jesus' true presence takes on a special meaning during this last day of the

octave of Christmas and the first day of the new year that we begin with celebrating the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God.

And the focus of our prayer could be this idea of Saint Jose Maria that was strongly reinforced by Blessed Alvro.

Mary has a shortcut to adoration, a shortcut to Jesus.

And the presence of the Eucharist squares very well with every feast, but especially the celebration of Christmas.

In fact, the Holy Spirit doesn't usually explicitly command. He likes us to prayerfully figure out the lessons he is

teaching us, the messages he's delivering to us. And the word Bethlehem, we're aware of that,

is a Hebrew word meaning house of bread.

And Christmas, and the celebration of the octave, and the celebration of today's feast with today's gospel, invites us to Eucharistic adoration.

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