Thursday, December 31, 2020

 Seventh Day within the Octave of the Nativity of the Lord

(I John 2:18-21; John 1:1-18)

Was the year so bad after all?  Yes, it was hard.  We have all felt disappointment, uncertainty, and the loss of loved ones.  The Corona-19 Virus has taken opportunities to see people and do things that we were counting on.  It suspended judgment on most everything.  Should we go to Mass or not?  Will there be a graduation or a football season?  People whom we have known all our lives passed on without a funeral.  Yes, we are glad that the year is officially ending and look forward to better times.

Yet before we close 2020, we should thank the Lord for some of its elements.  Nuclear families reunited to eat, play, and pray together.  We expressed gratitude to workers – attendants, deliverers, caregivers – whom we had overlooked before.  We were given time to reflect on our lives.  The world may not care to do this.  But today’s gospel tells us that the world rejected Jesus as well.  We know him to be the source of family, of work, and of the truth about ourselves.

Before we forge into the new year we should make a resolution.  We want a return to normalcy but let it be a new normal.  Let us learn from the blessings of 2020 as difficult as they were to realize.  Let us promise to give more time to our families.  Let us bless everyone who is contributing to a better world (and pray for those who do not care).  And let us follow Jesus, the light that has shown in darkness.

Wednesday, December 30, 2020

 

The Sixth Day within the Octave of the Nativity of the Lord

(I John 2:12-17; Luke 2:36-40)

A writer consults her wise, old uncle about what to do as a hurricane approaches. He tells her to seek safety and then write about her experience.  Another woman remembers her mother telling how to cope with uncertainty.  The elder said to “always proceed as if there will be enough.”  In today’s gospel a wise, old woman shares her insight about what she sees before her.

Anna, who almost lives in the Temple, represents ancient Israel.  She stands in contrast to Jews of a generation later who will call for Jesus’ death on a cross.  Anna recognizes that Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promise to Israel.  He is the one who will win Israel’s freedom.  At the same time he will lead all people to Israel to learn how to live in peace. 

As Anna had prophetic foresight, we should not lose our correct hindsight.  Jesus comes from God to save us from our folly.  He teaches us to avoid the pitfalls that imprison people in their own desires.  He gives himself in the Eucharist to enable us to act with justice.

Tuesday, December 29, 2020

The Fifth Day in the Octave of Christmas

 (I John 2:3-11; Luke 2:22-35)

One of America’s favorite movies is all about Christmas.  “It’s a Wonderful Life” ends on Christmas night, but that is almost incidental.  More importantly, the movie relates the message of this season.  It reflects what today’s gospel and first reading teach more clearly.  The Word of God has come as light in darkness, as good amid evil.  The darkness has tried to quench the light, but it is banished.

 “It’s a Wonderful Life” tells the story of George Bailey who from childhood cares about others.  Things go well for George through early adulthood.  Then the forces of darkness close in.  They leave George so completely depressed that he attempts to kill himself.  Only interference from above saves him.  George is like us at our best and our worst.  We begin with good intentions and worthy actions.  Then darkness – usually selfishness – blinds us to what is right.  We seek what seems good for us.  In the extreme we reject both God and neighbor.  Thanks be to God we are saved from excessive concern with self. 

 Today’s first reading reveals the light that saves us.  The gospel passage names him as Jesus.  If he is to dissipate the darkness of our selfishness, we must follow his two simple commands.  We are to love God above all and our neighbor as ourselves.

 

Monday, December 28, 2020

Feast of the Holy Innocents

(I John 1:5-2:2; Matthew 2:13-18)

Faced with moral evil, we ask, “How could God permit this?”  When we saw that policeman kneeling on George Floyd’s neck, we asked “How could God permit this?”  When we hear stories of the concentration camps at Auschwitz and Dachau, we ask, “How could God permit this?”  When Mohammad Atta and other terrorists caused the horror of 9-11, we asked, “How could God permit this?”  Today’s gospel suggests an answer.

The slaughter of innocent children sounds outrageous.  There is no historical record of it except this account in Matthew.  But it is like other atrocities committed by King Herod.  The tyrant murdered several members of his family, including his wife and sons.  In any case, it has been noted why God might have permitted the slaughter of the Innocents.  First though, we must recognize that God never causes people to sin.  Sin is a human project although evil spirits may be involved.  Yet God can embrace sin to bring about His intended good.  In the story of the Innocents, their death allowed Jesus to escape the wicked king’s pursuit.  He will die thirty years later so that they might know eternal life.

The story of the martyred Innocents injects into the joy of Christmas a foreboding of the sorrow of Holy Week.  It admonishes us to temper our festivity by remembering the purpose of God becoming human.  Jesus was born to set us free from sin and death.  His dying on the cross and rising from the dead give us new purpose in life and a new destiny.

Sunday, December 27, 2020

 The Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, December 27, 2020

(Genesis 15: 1-6.21: 1-3; Hebrews 11: 8.11-12.17-19; Luke 2: 22-40)

There is a lot of talk about privilege these days. Some say that the person is privileged if he has rich parents. Others count as a privilege to have attended a private school. Still others claim that white people are privileged. It is true wealth and good education are considerable benefits. However, they are not as helpful as having just parents. We see these kinds of parents in the Mass readings today.

In the first and second readings Abram and Sarah are shown as a couple committed to the Lord. Abram leaves his father when he receives the call from God. Even though Sarah has not borne him children, Abram remains faithful to her. It is true that on Sarah’s insistence Abram has relations with his slave. But when Sara realizes her mistake, the two send the slave and her son packing. Above all, Abram manifests justice when God tests him to the core of his being. He does not deny God, if it is His will, the sacrifice of his only son.

With even more coherence, Mary and Joseph act as righteous people. They go to Bethlehem where Jesus is born in obedience to imperial law. The gospel today shows them heeding God's law when they present Jesus in the temple. Later in this gospel, Jesus will call his mother and brothers "’those who listen to the Word of God and carry it out.’" This is not a rejection of Mary but the opposite. Because she always keeps God's word, Mary can be considered his mother in two senses.

It can be truly said that there is currently a need for righteous parents. The social environment distorts the values ​​necessary to please God. Listen to the "Christmas songs." They once expressed the wonder of having the Son of God with us. Now they are absorbed with craving for consumer gifts. Another distortion can be seen in the presentation of promiscuity. Out of wedlock sex is portrayed in cinemas and television as good for both teens and adults.

In this environment, parents have to reflect Jesus. He will always be "the light to the nations" as Simeon calls him in the gospel. Mothers reflect Jesus when they instruct their children about God. Children need not only to learn prayers but also to hear of God's love. Fathers reflect “the light to the nations” when they convey the correct understanding of sex to their children. Teenagers, if not younger children, have to learn that intimate relationships are reserved for marriage. They have to appreciate that sex is not for self- gratification but to express total commitment to the other forever.

We are ending a year that has been both promising and miserable. It was miserable because of all the problems the virus caused. It was promising because families spent more time together. We hope that 2021 will be better in terms of health, work, and school. But may this New Year see the continuation of families spending time together. And may their coming together transmit values ​​worthy of Jesus, the light to the nations.