Sunday, December 25, 2022

 The Nativity of the Lord, Midnight Mass

(Isaiah 9:1-3.5-6; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14)

The birth of Jesus in the Gospel of Saint Luke begins by mentioning the Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus. He is not the typical emperor but the one who credited with ensuring world peace. Saint Luke is suggesting a comparison between this emperor of peace and Jesus Christ, the Prince of peace. Augustus has his armies to pacify uprisings across the world. Jesus gives the Holy Spirit to calm the human heart. Instead of desiring gold, the heart that gives admission to the Spirit longs for the joy of love.

However, the world today needs a peacemaker like Caesar Augustus. Two weeks ago. Pope Francis was seen crying in public over the war in Ukraine. There millions of people suffer not only the cold of winter without electricity but also the anxiety of not having an end to the war in sight. Who can bring peace to today's world? Are they not the men and women whose hearts have been opened to sacrifice by the grace of the Spirit?

Mary also draws our attention in this portrait of the birth of Jesus. She has the courage to accompany Joseph from Nazareth to Bethlehem while she is about to give birth. It seems that she doesn't care that there is no place for her family in the inn. Instead of worrying about it, she focuses on the well-being of her son. She has prepared strips of cloth to keep him warm in loving anticipation. When he is born, she lays him in a manger. She and Joseph give him something more substantial than a crib for support. They adore him.

Today's world often lacks this kind of personal commitment. Because they look for careers, luxuries, and the independence to do what they like, many young people do not want children. Or if they want them, they plan on one or, at most, two. It is worrisome because who knows what will happen in forty or fifty years? Many of them will experience loneliness. They are also likely to be disconcerted to see their communities fall apart and be replaced by people from other cultures.

The angels and their message form one last thing to consider here. An angel announces the good news of the birth of the Savior. Then he is joined by a multitude of heavenly creatures to proclaim glory to God and "peace to men of good will." For centuries people have wondered who these men and women "of good will" are. Are they all the women and men in the world? Or can they be a special group chosen by God?

The best answer to the question is associated with what Saint Luke writes in his narrative of the baptism of Jesus. There the voice of God says from heaven: “You are my beloved Son in whom I am well-pleased.” Men and women “of good will” are those who please God like Jesus Christ. Therefore, we have reason to be at peace when we strive to do the will of God the Father.

Luke's story ends with the angels in heaven singing: “Glory to God…” How could God not have glory when his creatures on earth are seen opening their hearts to the Holy Spirit? How could He not have glory when women and men give their families priority over their own independence? And how could He not have glory when we try with all our might to please Him? However, the glory belongs to God not because of our efforts but because of his love for us. He has sent us his own Son so that we may know his love.

Saturday, December 25, 2021

 The Nativity of the Lord (Mass during the night)

(Isaiah 9:1-6; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14)

Soldiers in World War II loved the song “White Christmas” more than any other.  It reminded them of Christmases of long past.  Back then, people always think, people were friendlier; life was kinder.  A white Christmas, of course, is a snowy Christmas.  Snow symbolizes the meaning of the day.  It is literally pieces of heaven falling to the earth.  Its purity represents Christ, the sinless one, who comes to earth to redeem fallen humans.

Soldiers could hardly hear enough of “White Christmas” because they were away from home.  Fighting a war, they were not sure that they would ever see their families again.  We are likewise away from our true home even if we live where we grew up.  As sisters and brothers of Christ, our home is with the Father in heaven.  We may wonder if we will ever get there.  Some may think that heaven doesn’t exist!

Let us heed the command of the angel to the shepherds in the gospel. When they see the angel’s radiance, they fall back in fear.  The angel tells them not to be afraid.  So also, we must not be afraid to believe.  In redeeming us, Christ rose from the dead as the gospels testify.  He has gone before us to prepare the eternal Christmas when we will dine at the Father’s table.  There we will reconcile with one another in everlasting love. 

Wednesday, December 25, 2019

The Nativity of the Lord (Mass during the night)

(Isaiah 9:1-6; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14)

Latinos have a pre-Christmas tradition called “Las Posadas.”  In it half of a group takes the roles of Joseph and Mary in tonight’s gospel.  They stand as if they were outside an inn asking for a place to stay.  The other half of the group stands as if they were the innkeepers inside.  The inn being full and the innkeepers tired, they tell Mary and Joseph to go away.  Then Joseph happens to mention that his wife is “Mary, the queen of heaven.”  The innkeepers recognize that name and happily open the door to welcome the Holy Family.

Of course, this beautiful tradition does not correspond completely to the gospel proclaimed tonight.  Evidently Joseph and Mary did seek lodging at an inn, but they were turned down.  Also, the gospel’s emphasis is on the “manger,” not the inn.  This feeding trough for animals is mentioned three times in course of a rather short narration.  It needs to be asked, “Why?”

In the very first chapter of the Book of the Isaiah the prophet castigates the people of Israel with reference to a manger.  He says, “An ox knows its owner, and an ass, its master’s manger, but Israel does not know (its God).”  The gospel tonight shows the new-born Jesus being laid in a manger.  There finally Israel will recognize its God.  But there may be more here than that.  Presenting the God-man as being born outside a building, the gospel suggests that Jesus is the God not just of human beings but of all creation.  When the angels sing, “’…and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests,’” they may have in mind more than men and women but animals, plants, and lifeless beings as well.

Today we give thanks to God for coming to show us how to live in peace with all.  First and foremost, we follow his way of reconciliation with fellow human beings.  We want to love others as God has been so kind and merciful to us that He sent us His Son as our savior.  We also care for our environment.  We want to nurture it so that it may provide sustenance and wonder for many generations to come.

Tuesday, December 25, 2018

The Nativity of the Lord (Mass at Midnight)

(Isaiah 9:1-6; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14)

Historians do more than record the events of the past.  More importantly, they tell the significance of those events.  They put the events in context by relating them to other occurrences of the time.  They also give the meaning of the events to both the people of their time and the historians’ own times.  Of the four evangelists no one is more self-consciously an historian than Luke.  His historical consciousness is readily seen as he narrates the event of Jesus’ birth.

Luke begins his story by contextualizing Joseph, Mary, and Jesus in their time.  Caesar Augustus was ruling what seemed to be the whole world.  He had brought peace to the empire after almost a hundred years of civil strife. The great poet Virgil considered Augustus the epitome of the virtuous ruler.  Luke hints that Jesus will become an ever more glorious ruler.  He relates how the angels are singing in the heavens when Jesus is born.  "’Glory to God in the highest,’” they proclaim, “’and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.’"

We live in a world of continued conflict and often enough war.  The great powers – Russia, China, and the United States – show off their military might.  Civil wars in smaller nations like Yemen, Sudan, and Syria ravage populations.  Some ask: if Jesus is the great peace-maker, why does the world still experience such turmoil?  Our response will not satisfy every troubled heart, but it does fit our experience.   Jesus has brought a modicum of peace to the world.  He healed the enmity between Jews and Gentiles in antiquity, and his teachings continue to give pause to warring hearts.  He also moves us interiorly to reconcile with our enemies, our neighbors, and God.  His birth, which we celebrate with joy today, represents the beginning of eternal peace.

Friday, December 25, 2015

The Nativity of the Lord (Christmas)

(Isaiah 9:1-3.5-6; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14)

The sign revealed more than it said.  It was written with little Christmas lights and positioned in front of a corner house.  “Happy Birthday, Jesus,” was the wording.  Obviously, the homeowners wanted to counteract the secularization of Christmas.  But perhaps they missed the point of the Christian feast.

Christmas celebrates much more than the birthday of Jesus of Nazareth.  Thinking of the feast in this way domesticates Jesus.  It makes him seem like good old Uncle Bill whom we should honor with a dinner party.  But the celebration should be much greater than that.  Christmas represents the coming of the Savior.  Christians have been waiting not so much patiently as painfully for his arrival.  In the Middle East they have been victimized by Islamist brutality. In all parts they have been subjugated by pride, lust, and greed – their own as much as others’.  Now the Lord is here to defeat these powers.  More than a birthday party, the rejoicing should be as great as the jubilation felt by Jewish inmates of Nazi concentration camps as the Allied soldiers liberated them.

It is true that Jesus in today’s gospel is portrayed as the child of a poor family.  He lays in a manger with only Mary and Joseph noticing.  But then the heavens open and angels reveal his true stature.  He is “Christ and Lord.”  God has come to earth to once and for all establish His kingdom of justice and peace.

We must take care not to domesticate Jesus.  We must not treat him like just another member of the family whom we might ignore if we are tired or upset.  We must not let ourselves say to him, “Nice to see you, Jesus.  Would you excuse me?  I don’t feel very well.”

Rather we should hunger to talk with him.  We should strive to please him by everything we say, do, and think.  Now that he has arrived, we should announce a grand jubilee.  This means that we ask pardon of those that we have offended and pray for those who have hurt us.  He is here.  A new age has begun.  It is time for us to begin a new way of life.  Now and forevermore is the moment to imitate his goodness.

Wednesday, December 25, 2013

The Nativity of the Lord.  (Mass at Midnight)

(Luke 2:1-14)

"I won't grow up. I don't want to go to school."  These words of defiance were chanted by the children in Walt Disney's "Peter Pan."  But they might as well be sung by today's adults.  It is not that grown-ups think of themselves as "God's children."  How wonderful that would be!  The disgrace is that too often adults childishly think that life is mostly about enjoying oneself. They refuse to believe that one has to make sacrifices in order to experience life's fullness. This truth is indicated in the same "Peter Pan" when the children are asked to name good things so that they might be included in the adventure to "Never, never land."  At first, they respond by naming sources of passing pleasure like candy and toys.  When these do not produce the necessary bounce, they reconsider what is truly worthwhile and discover eternal gifts like joy and peace.  The angel proclaims these blessings to the shepherds in today's gospel.

The gospel story impresses us most for indicating that Jesus is born as a person so poor that he has no roof over his head.  We'll come back to that significant scene in a moment, but first let's fast forward to the message of the angel.  He says that he comes to announce "good news of great joy...for all the people."  What is this "good news of great joy"? And how will it affect "all the people"?  We know right away that the news is more than a giant sale at Walmart which only those with money can take advantage of.  Likewise we understand that it is something much better than pleasant weather for the holidays which is nice, of course, but hardly a source of great joy.  No, the news the angel bears is of something that touches deeper and lasts longer than material comforts provide. The "good news of great joy" is that a savior has been born.  "A savior from what?" we need to ask.  The answer is exactly what is seen in "Peter Pan. Jesus saves us from childish pursuits that become sins when we carry them out to high degree as adults.  He saves us from the ceaseless seeking of pleasure, power, and playthings which diverts us from fulfilling God's will.  In turn he points us to what will give eternal satisfaction - caring relationships that spring from a heart grateful to God.

Back in Bethlehem Jesus' state of lying in an animal trough and wrapped in bandages (why glorify the scene with words like "manger" and "swaddling clothes"?) because there is no room for him in the inn points toward what will happen to him in saving us from sin.  As his mother is not allowed access to the warmth of the inn when he is born, he will be abandoned by his disciples when he dies.  And as he is bandaged in birth, he will be beaten, flogged, and crucified before he dies.  In truth he will suffer more than anyone in history because he is completely free of guilt.  But it is this terrible death to which he will give himself freely that overcomes the sins of selfishness that have held us in chains.  The sacrifice on the cross not only exemplifies how we are to give of ourselves for others; it also causes its doer's love to fill our hearts.

The love we have been given is first and foremost for Jesus.  How can we withhold our utmost affection from the one who has done us the greatest good?  But it surely extends as well to the poor whom Jesus associated with that first Christmas night.  Often they show themselves as Jesus' surest friends trusting in him above all else and willing to make sacrifices for him in ways that most of us cannot even imagine.  Yes, today is principally about love - the love God has bestowed upon the world in sending us Jesus and the love we share with one another.  Christmas is also about joy and peace.  We feel joy to be delivered from the ceaseless seeking of playthings.  And we know peace from having formed right relationships with all.

Friday, December 25, 2009

The Nativity of the Lord

(Isaiah 9:1-6; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14)

Costa Rica is a tourist hot spot. Now would be a good time to visit. The rains have ended, and fresh breezes sweep across the country. Beach water is always warm, and now there is a decent chance of seeing a night-time show of volcano-streaming lava. A distinct attraction of December, which you will not find in tourist guides, is the kiosks found in many commercial areas. The vendors sell locally made crèches with a variety of animals that go well beyond the traditional ox, ass, camel, and sheep. You will find ducks and geese, dogs and others. Animals take prominent place in our imagination of the first Christmas although not one is mentioned in the gospel other than the sheep which the shepherds tend in the fields.

We might ask ourselves then what put these animals in our heads. The answer goes beyond the idea of all creation worshipping its Lord. What conjures the presence of animals at that first Christmas is the insistence of the gospel writer that Jesus was laid in a manger, the farm animals’ feeding trough. The evangelist Luke is certainly sparse with details about Jesus’ birth. He does not give the hour or the weather. Nor does he say that the place of birth was a barn, a stable, or a cave. But he tells us three times within ten verses that Jesus was laid in a manger to remind us of something the prophet Isaiah writes at the beginning of his book.

Appalled by crying orphans and exploited workers, the prophet says, “An ox knows its owner, and an ass, its master’s manger, but Israel does not know (the Lord).” Isaiah, of course, lived twenty-seven centuries ago, seven hundred years before Jesus was born. Times then, like times now, were both good and bad. There was wealth, but it was unevenly enjoyed. There were armies, but Israel was being menaced by a powerful enemy to the northeast. The people brought offerings to the temple, but God was not impressed because of the lack of righteous living at home. By showing Jesus in a manger at which the shepherds of Israel arrive, Luke suggests that finally the situation has changed. The people now recognize their God just as the ox knows its owner and the ass, its master’s manger.

We also might ask ourselves if things now have reverted to the conditions of the prophet Isaiah’s time. Let’s not try to speak for the whole world or even for the United States. After all, neither claims to be the People of God. But as a church, do we take care of the poor, give God His due, and live righteously? Certainly not one hundred percent, but most of us try to live our faith. Catholics maintain soup kitchens and food pantries. One Catholic organization connects children in the third world to families in American parishes in a quasi-adoption relationship. This year in our diocese, as happens in many others, seven thousand Catholics are taking part in faith-sharing groups in order to know God better.

Yet we grumble. In one parish the people are upset with the pastor because their names acknowledging contributions for a new organ were posted too high on a wall for others to notice. Many of us seem unable to leave a conversation until we have added a critical remark. And some of us are even prone to curse the elderly driver moving cautiously in front of us. Jesus has come again to prune away these faults. He does it today just by showing himself to us as a baby whose image we might kiss and whisper words of affection to. These intimacies pledge our adherence to the demanding road of holiness he sets for us as an adult.

Put all the animals you find in Costa Rican kiosks at the Nativity scene. Add others – wolves, lions, and cobras -- to create another chapter of the same prophet Isaiah. When Immanuel – God-with-us – has come, “...the wolf shall be a guest of the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid.” He’s here now to accompany us beyond the critical remarks of enemies. He’s here now to enable us to assist crying orphans and exploited workers. He’s here now so that we might know God better.

Christmas Homily

I trust that this atypically long reflection will not bother anyone. More importantly, I hope that everyone enjoys a truly blessed Christmas. Thank you for the attention to my thoughts and for any good works they may inspire. May you come to know Christ better as his coming, love him more sincerely, and live with him in peace forever.

The Nativity of the Lord. Mass at Midnight.

(Isaiah 9:1-6; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14)

Fifty years ago there was a controversy about what the angels said that wondrous night when Christ was born. According to what Catholics called “the Protestant Bible,” the angels proclaimed, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men.” Meanwhile, the so-called Catholic translation had the angels saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of goodwill.” Our present translation is politic in not using the word “men” at all, which is certainly found in the Greek original. But if we insert the more proper term “humans,” we would have the angels saying, “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those humans(,) on whom God favor rests.” Who “those humans” are depends on the way we read the text. If we pause after saying “humans”– as if we were inserting a comma – then “those humans” would be equivalent to “all humans.” But if we speed on to the relative clause, then “those humans” are the only ones upon whom “God’s favor rests” – presumably Jesus’ disciples or, we Christians.

Just for tonight let us consider the first alternative – that the angels are extending peace to all people on this mystic night. This interpretation makes good sense since the angel first proclaimed “...good news of great joy that will be for all people.” In what ways then does the coming of Jesus bring peace to all people, whether Christian or not? This is the question we want to address.

First, we can say that the coming of Jesus brings peace because Jesus advocated non-violent resolution of conflict. He never proposed war as a solution to problems. It is true that he drove money-changers from the Temple, but only the Gospel of John shows him with a whip in hand, and not even there does it say that he struck anyone, much less killed for his purpose. More typical of Jesus is his admonition, “Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take the sword will perish by the sword.” Remembering Jesus, German and English foot-soldiers locked in combat across the trenches during World War I called a truce on Christmas night, 1914. They suspended the war to sing Christmas carols and exchange small gifts in honor of the Prince of Peace.

Second, the coming of Jesus brings peace by his example of attending to the needy. Jesus gave as a mark of his authenticity his preaching to the poor and his healing of the lame, the blind, and the deaf. There will never be peace as long as people lack basic necessities. Those with means must not sit back comfortably saying how they acquired their wealth honestly. Rather, they have to address the needs of those who live on the margins of decency and those whose lives are being snuffed in gestation. In a magazine article a woman describes how she bought a green coat with red trimming at a department store close-out. Happy to find a “Christmas coat,” she went home excitedly without trying it on. When she finally did, she found it way too small. Then she had the inspiration of giving the coat to a street person she had encountered. But, she had to ask herself, was the person’s need or her own vanity behind the gift? When society realizes that the poor need more attention than paper-platefuls of food at Thanksgiving and presents at Christmas, it is on the way to social justice and peaceful living.

Finally, Jesus’ coming brings about peace as he appeals for repentance. Even non-believers should acknowledge the need to examine what they are doing and to make the necessary adjustments to conform to what they believe to be true and good. Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol exemplifies this kind of corrective. Ebenezer Scrooge comes to realize that dreadful Christmas night that his penny-pinching is not bringing him happiness but misery. Graciously he changes his ways.

Before concluding, we should indicate why Jesus’ birth is especially good news for those who implicitly follow his ways. The world would be a much better place if all peoples limit their use of force, meet the needs of the poor, and correct their errors. But this does not exhaust the gospel’s message. Jesus further exhorts us to pursue his path of self-sacrificing love. Tonight we recall how he left behind his divinity to take human form. The manger in which he lies, made of wood, reminds us of the wood of his cross. He invites and, more critically, empowers us to let go of our own comforts and self-satisfaction. As results we become the inheritors of a new earth -- the kingdom of heaven.