General Comments
The story of the virginal conception of Jesus is historical but is also deeply symbolic, and your meditation will reveal to you that this is how Jesus Christ always comes to be born into the world, in all the various ways in which this happens.
You can read it as a story of Joseph, symbolic of those whose vocation it is to welcome the one who bears God within her. You might like to stay with the long and painful journey which this vocation involves, identifying with Joseph’s fears, his hesitations and eventually his total commitment. You might prefer to concentrate on his vocation to name the child.
It is also the story of Mary; although she does not say a word right through. She is the symbol of those who bear God within them and must wait until their collaborators welcome them and so allow God’s work to be born. Do not, however, invent your own story of how Mary felt or what went through her mind; take the text exactly as you find it and you will find ample material to help you understand the work of God.
The fulfilling of prophecy is an important part of the passage and you might like to meditate on it as expressed in verses 22 and 23. It would help if you read the original passage in Isaiah; as you will see there, the prophecy is a response to the king of Judah who looked for security in alliances with the powerful nations around him. Like all of us, he did not recognise ‘how Jesus Christ come to be born’.
Scriptural Prayers
Lord, any commitment involves a long journey.
We remember when we first committed ourselves:
– we would fight against racism or sexism or injustice at the workplace;
– we decided to give up drink and work among addicts;
– we accepted public office;
– we began giving spiritual direction.
At first we felt very happy,
then one day we recognised that this was your work,
in which success could not be measured in earthly terms.
It was like when Joseph discovered that Mary, his betrothed,
was with child through the Holy Spirit,
and we too decided to extricate ourselves as discreetly as we could.
But first, as we had made up our minds to do this,
you sent an angel to us, someone who told us not to be afraid
just because we now knew that we were involved in a work of the Holy Spirit.
We thank you that when we thought about it
we found the courage to do what your angel told us to do.
Yes, this is always how Jesus comes to be born.
“There is some spouse within us that we must meet and, failing that, we fail wholeness. There is in the heart of us all some image of the Beloved which we must not merely acknowledge but know, love and embrace. Without this marriage there can be no real human life.” …Matthew Kelty, Cistercian monk
Lord, Mary is that noble part of ourselves,
bearing your Son Jesus who was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
– our generosity, the ability to sacrifice ourselves, to give all to a cause.
That part of ourselves frightens us;
we would prefer to deny it is there at all,
to remain with our mediocrity and our compromises.
Send us your angel to reassure us
that we must not be afraid to take that Mary to ourselves,
so that through us your Son Jesus may be born into the world.
“We do not have to put God into the world. He is there. But we must preserve his presence and aid our brothers and sisters to find him.” … A worker priest
Lord, as Christians we act as if we are doing the world a favour by our service.
But the world is like Mary bearing divinity in her womb,
and you want us, like Joseph, to welcome her with reverence
because of this presence within her.
We must proclaim to all that within the world we can find Emmanuel,
a name which means God-is-with-us.
Lord, people always think that the way to renew a society is by enlisting the support of the powerful.
Today we can see clearly that once again you are creating a new kind of civilisation through small communities, composed mainly of poor people,
fulfilling the word that you have often spoken through the prophets,
that no great power but a humble maiden will conceive
and give birth to a new beginning for society
and the world will know that you are with us.
Lord, we think today of women who are pregnant and are not being accepted.
Send your angel to those families,
telling them that they must not be afraid to welcome this pregnancy
because it is your gift to them.
Lord, it sometimes happens that we have a project within us,
one that you conceived through your Holy Spirit.
Others, even those who love us deeply,
cannot understand what is happening to us.
They fuss and worry, give us up and then come back to us.
Teach us to wait like Mary, knowing that when the time comes,
they will take us to their hearts and this project will come to birth.
Lord, there was a time when we were afraid to come near to Jesus,
thinking that we were not good enough.
But you sent us Joseph, who named Jesus for us,
as one who saves us from our sins.
**************************************
3. Thomas O’Loughlin,
Introduction to the Celebration
We are beginning the celebration of God coming to us, God being with us, we being brought into the presence of God. This is the great mystery of Christmas: it is the feast of Emmanuel which means ‘God is with us.’ This is our special celebration this Sunday, but each time we gather here we remember the words of Jesus: ‘When two or three are gathered here in my name, I am there among them’. So, let us spend time reminding ourselves that Jesus is among us, we are in his presence in this gathering, and recalling that we are the people who proclaim him as Emmanuel: God is with us.
2. But what does it mean to believe that ‘God is with us’? That we actually believe this – as distinct from giving it verbal recognition – we should not take for granted. Our world tends to push ‘God’ out to the frontiers of our ways of thinking and imagining life and the universe. From the way most people use the word’ god’ it is clear that they are thinking of a distant, impersonal force. For other people – those who dabble in the New Age Movement – the word’ god’ often signifies a projection of our needs for an unknown other that can be trifled with but is not seen as a person who has made himself known through revelation. There are many who call themselves Christians who think of ‘God’ as far from them, but also think that ‘it’s good to have a religious dimension’ to their lives: ‘God’ is just a code word standing for’ all noble human desires’. All these fall very far short of the living person who lives within the Good News, and which is what gives life in every generation to its message.
Then, for Christians, there are the objects, systems, and beliefs that are seen as more present, more pressing, and more ‘real’ than God: money, power, and sex are still the great headings under which we can range the various forms of idolatry where a created object is put in the place of the creator. And, on that note it is worth pointing out that there is a special form of idolatry to which clergy are prone: imagining the reality of the divine as less important than the panoply of religion – an idolatry that manifests itself when people are more sensitive to the forms and regulation of the structures than to the gentle breath of God or the demands of justice, mercy, and doing what is right.
3. To live our lives in the light of ‘God is with us’ is the vocation of each Christian, but it is also the vocation of a lifetime.
4. How can the whole topic of believing’ God is with us’ then be brought before us in a homily? One the one hand, the whole liturgy of Advent and Christmas is an attempt to bring this mystery before us; but on the other hand, one can hear the words but this is not some simple piece of information to be learned; it is something that we have to grasp with our minds, our emotions, and our wills. One way is to lead a meditation on a series of questions.
5. Do we believe we encounter the presence of God in our gathering? Jesus said: ‘For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them’ (Mt 18:20).
Do we believe we encounter the presence of God in combating hunger and human want? Jesus said: ‘for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me’ (Mt 25:35).
Do we believe we encounter the presence of God in combating poverty and injustice? Jesus said: ‘I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me’ (Mt 25:36).
Do we believe we encounter the presence of God in love, in goodness, in creativity? We believe that God is the source of our light and goodness. As Jesus said: ‘Let your light so shine before all, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven’ (Mt 5:16).
Do we believe that we can encounter the presence of God in prayer, and become aware that God is personal and hears us? Jesus said: ‘And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith’ (Mt 21:22).
6. In each case I have taken the quotation from a single gospel Matthew – to show how this concern with believing in the presence of God, God being with us, runs right through his gospel; but the same point could be illustrated from any number of places. It is a basic conviction of Christians that God is known and close and seeks to encounter us.
7. Over the next few days we will hear ‘Emmanuel’ in the liturgy in its prayers and hymns and carols. We may hear this gospel passage read several times. Each time we hear the name ‘Emmanuel’ we have to remind ourselves that we are challenged to believe that ‘God is with us.’ It is the Christian conviction about this that inspires the whole celebration of Christmas.
***********************************
John Litteton
Reflection
Joseph is someone about whom we know little. There are few references to him in the gospels apart from the stories about the birth, infancy and childhood of Jesus (see Mt 13:55 and the parallels in Mark and Luke). He is very much a secondary or background figure in the gospel story. Yet, he is a real Advent person because, in a truly humble and remarkable manner, he prepares for the arrival of the Messiah into his life and into the world.
Matthew presents Joseph as having had no part in Mary’s pregnancy. When Joseph discovered that Mary was pregnant he wondered how this could be since they had not been living together as husband and wife. Initially he was confused and he did not know what to do. However, he did not act rashly. He listened to God’s word through the angel’s message in a dream and, although it demanded much faith, he did what God asked him. He allowed his life to be influenced and directed by God’s will. Therefore, without complaining, Joseph decided to prepare for the birth of Jesus by caring about Mary during her pregnancy.
Thus two aspects of Joseph’s character are revealed to us. First, Joseph was obviously a man of deep faith. He trusted God and, discerning God’s will, took the great leap of faith into the unknown in a difficult and confusing situation. God moved him in strange ways and he was responsive to this. Secondly, Joseph was selfless. He did not alienate Mary but, instead, accepted her and remained loyal. His selflessness enabled him to act without fear of ridicule and scorn. Doing God’s will was all-important for Joseph.
We can learn from these two aspects of Joseph’s character. For example, how do we respond to God who often communicates with us in strange ways? Are we able to make the leap of faith when we are unsure about the future? Can we acknowledge and embrace those people and life situations which least suit us? Advent is about cultivating our ability to focus beyond our own concerns and respond to the needs of other people so that Christ can come into our lives through them.
Joseph, in the portrait painted of him in Matthew’s Gospel, prepared for the birth of Jesus with gentleness and faithfulness. He cherished and supported Mary and, together, they brought Christ into the world. Joseph’s discernment of God’s will empowered his confidence. We are challenged to imitate Joseph’s example as we live and work with other people.
Joseph was a man of few words but decisive and significant actions. His behaviour made a difference. Unfortunately, some of us speak many words but these words are rendered meaningless by our contradictory behaviour. This can easily occur during the days of Christmas when we gather as families and friends. Therefore, let us learn from the example of Joseph. Let us discern and accept joyfully God’s will in our lives. And let us pray to Joseph, asking him to help us to do God’s will always.
Call to Joseph
A temptation of religion is to tie things down too much. The law in Joseph’s time was strict – if a woman was pregnant the man would cancel the betrothal, and she might be stoned to death! Joseph went beyond law to love and the mystery of God’s call. Good religion is open to the mystery of life, however life challenges us and calls us.
Some of the most open-minded people I have met have been very religious, and some of the most narrow-minded people have also been religious! Like good and bad medicine, there is good and bad in religion.
True religion is open to mystery. We need a church lit with the light of God, as Joseph was. His burden was lifted when he was open to God, to take Mary home as his wife, no matter what Others might think
This is the annunciation to Joseph – the word of God from the angel to Joseph in a dream. It opened him to a huge new meaning in life. We accept this word as a central part of our lives, and the next time we meet the word, it will be made flesh.
Today’s Gospel is Matthew’s version of Jesus’ birth at Bethlehem. This is not Luke’s familiar story of a child born in a Bethlehem stable, but that of a young unmarried woman suddenly finding herself pregnant and her very hurt and confused husband wondering what to do. In Gospel times, marriage was agreed upon by the groom and the bride’s parents almost immediately after the age of puberty; but the girl continued to live with her parents after the wedding until the husband was able to support her in his home or that of his parents. During that interim period, marital intercourse was not permissible. Yet Mary is found to be with child.
Joseph, an observant but compassionate Jew, does not wish to subject Mary to the full fury of Jewish law, so he plans to divorce her “quietly.” But in images reminiscent of the First Testament “annunciations” of Isaac and Samuel, an angel appears to Joseph in a dream and reveals that this child is the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy. Because of his complete faith and trust in God’s promise, Joseph acknowledges the child and names him Jesus (“Savior”) and becomes, in the eyes of the Law, the legal father of Jesus. Thus, Jesus, through Joseph, is born a descendent of David.
Matthew’s point in his infancy narrative is that Jesus is the Emmanuel promised of old – Isaiah’s prophecy has finally been fulfilled in Jesus: the virgin has given birth to a son, one who is a descendent of David’s house (through Joseph). Jesus is truly Emmanuel – “God is with us.”
The “mystery” of the Incarnation is not that God could become one of us – the inexplicable part is how and why God could love humankind enough to humble himself to take on the human condition and walk with us, talk with us, die for us.
We have reason to rejoice and to hope, for in our midst dawns Emmanuel – “God with us.”
Joseph, the “just” and “upright” man, is a model of compassion, forgiveness and faith for all of us who are moms and dads, children, brothers and sisters.
God’s coming depends on “Josephs” – men and women of humility, selflessness and openness of heart and spirit – to welcome him and embrace his presence in our midst.
At the end of the play, the transformed and jubilant Scrooge throws open his bedroom window and bellows festively to the startled city street below, “Merry Christmas, everyone! Merry Christmas!” Scrooge then spies a street urchin passing by: “Hey you, boy, you there!” the joyful Scrooge shouts, “Come up here, boy, I’ve got something wonderful for you to do!” and sends the boy off to purchase the giant turkey in the poulterer’s window as a surprise for the Cratchits.
That’s when something unexpected happened one evening.
Now, in this staging, the audience did not see the urchin. No actor appeared on stage as the boy — the audience imagined the boy Scrooge was calling to. But at this particular performance, when the transformed Scrooge beckoned from the window to the unseen boy, a real six-year-old boy sitting in the audience with his family rose from his seat and walked onto the stage ready to do “something wonderful.
The boy in the audience thought Scrooge was calling him.
The actor playing Scrooge was caught off guard. There was now an unscripted child standing center stage. What to do? The audience held its breath. Then the person of faith beneath the veneer of Scrooge came to the fore. Bounding down from his window perch, Scrooge strode across the stage and cheerily embraced the waiting boy.
“Yes, indeed,” he exclaimed, his voice full of blessing. “You are the one, the very one I had in mind.” Then he gently led the boy back to his seat in the audience, returned to the stage and resumed the play. When the curtain calls were held, it was, of course, this boy, the one who had felt himself personally summoned from his seat, who received, along with old Ebenezer, the audience’s loudest and warmest applause.
In the Christmas story — whether Luke’s tale of a poor couple making their way to Bethlehem or Matthew’s story of a husband feeling betrayed by his fiancée’s unexpected pregnancy — we see the Spirit of God at work, transforming heartache and misery into birth and blessing. That same Spirit calls us to be about the work of bringing Emmanuel to birth in our own houses and stables, to our own Bethlehems and Nazareths, to our own counting houses and London towns. Christmas calls from us “something wonderful”: the grace of God that enables us to experience the same transformation as the selfish old Scrooge undergoes in the Dickens’ story. May this Advent season be the beginning of our faithful response to God’s call to bring the wonder, hope and peace of his Son’s birth into every season and place.
***
From Fr. Jude Botelho:
The time is the 8th Century BC and king Ahaz is worried whether the kingdom of Judah will be destroyed by his two powerful neighbours. King Ahaz waits for the attack of his neighbours with fear and helplessness and looks around for allies and help. He decides to go to Assyria, a superpower and ask for help to destroy his powerful neighbours. Isaiah is advisor to king Ahaz and is strongly against what the king is doing. He argues that the dynasty of David will not be preserved through playing power politics but only through trusting in God. The prophet gives the king a sign ‘the maiden is with child and will give birth to a son whom she will call Emmanuel, a name which means ‘God is with us’ This sign is given to the king to assure him that God is with Israel But Ahaz refuses to believe in the sign and trust in God.
Sign Of Christianity
The words of Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage, written in the third century are as timely today as when he wrote them. He said: “If I could ascend some high mountain and look over this wide world, you know very well what I would see. Robbers on the high roads, pirates on the sea… selfishness and cruelty, misery and despair under all roofs. It is a bad world, an incredibly bad world, but in the midst of it I have found a quiet and holy people who have learned a great secret. They are despised and persecuted but they care not. They are masters of their souls. They have overcome the world. These people are the Christians and I am one of them.
- Anthony Castle in ‘Quotes and Anecdotes’
The second reading from Paul’s letter to the Romans emphasizes two important aspects of Jesus that we should think about during this season: Jesus’ humanity and Jesus’ divinity. In Jesus’ humanity he descended from David and was the Jesus of Nazareth, human and subject to weaknesses and to death. But Jesus was also uniquely Son of God, the source of all holiness and life for the entire human race, who was able to communicate the gift of the spirit of God through his resurrection from the dead. We are called to belong to Jesus, and are through him the beloved of God called to be holy like him.
Attitude Changes Things!
One day a lady who lived in town looked out of her window and saw a big truck pull up to her house, Out jumped five rascals and started unloading electric guitars and loudspeakers and drums…. They took them to the neighbours house. The woman was furious. Now her night’s rest and her ears and her life would be ruined by all the noise that would come from the house. Her husband came home from work and she began to scream at him, “We’ve got to move away from here or else we’ll go deaf and mad with that string band next door. But he calmed her down a bit and said, “Honey, why are you angry? Don’t you realize who those musicians are? They are the famous Sanguma String band that plays overseas to large crowds…. Woman, we should be glad they are here; we’ll be getting all this famous music for free.” His wife’s frown turned to a smile. She ran to the telephone and began to call her friends to come over sometime and take advantage of the Sanguma Band….. How attitude changes everything! Our attitude to Jesus too can change everything!
- ‘Quote’ in ‘1000 Stories You Can Use’
In today’s reading of Matthew’s Gospel, unlike King Ahaz, who did not trust God’s sign given to him, Joseph puts his trust in the rather upsetting sign of Mary’s mysteriously conceived child. Thanks to Joseph, of the family of David, Jesus will belong to the royal line. And, because of his faith, it is Joseph who gives the child a rightful name: Jesus, which means –God saves! Perhaps there are those who fear the approach of Christmas for whatever reason, they can take heart and hope from the story of the first Christmas. There was plenty of fear present there too! In fact all the main characters in it were afraid at one time or another. Joseph was afraid when he found that Mary was expecting a child even though they hadn’t been living together. But the angel appeared to him to reveal to him who the child was. Joseph did not fully understand, but being a just man, trusted God and so overcame his fear and did what was right. All of us are touched by fear at one time or another but we must not let our fears cripple us. Like Joseph we must seek to do the just and loving thing so that we move from fear to faith. Trust is the thing that enables us to move from fear to faith. The Christ child who comes to us at Christmas challenges us to enter into an intimate trusting relationship with God, trusting that we will receive love, and always more love. Though his humble and trusting action Joseph cooperated with God’s plan and provided a space for Jesus in his family and in the world. By trusting and cooperating with God in our own humble way we too can create a space for him to enter into our lives and into the present world.
The story of the virginal conception of Jesus is historical but is also deeply symbolic, and your meditation will reveal to you that this is how Jesus Christ always comes to be born into the world, in all the various ways in which this happens.
You can read it as a story of Joseph, symbolic of those whose vocation it is to welcome the one who bears God within her. You might like to stay with the long and painful journey which this vocation involves, identifying with Joseph’s fears, his hesitations and eventually his total commitment. You might prefer to concentrate on his vocation to name the child.It is also the story of Mary; although she does not say a word right through. She is the symbol of those who bear God within them and must wait until their collaborators welcome them and so allow God’s work to be born. Do not, however, invent your own story of how Mary felt or what went through her mind; take the text exactly as you find it and you will find ample material to help you understand the work of God.The fulfilling of prophecy is an important part of the passage and you might like to meditate on it as expressed in verses 22 and 23. It would help if you read the original passage in Isaiah; as you will see there, the prophecy is a response to the king of Judah who looked for security in alliances with the powerful nations around him. Like all of us, he did not recognise ‘how Jesus Christ come to be born’.
Scriptural Prayers
Lord, any commitment involves a long journey.
We remember when we first committed ourselves:
– we would fight against racism or sexism or injustice at the workplace;
– we decided to give up drink and work among addicts;
– we accepted public office;
– we began giving spiritual direction.
At first we felt very happy,
then one day we recognised that this was your work,
in which success could not be measured in earthly terms.
It was like when Joseph discovered that Mary, his betrothed,
was with child through the Holy Spirit,
and we too decided to extricate ourselves as discreetly as we could.But first, as we had made up our minds to do this,
you sent an angel to us, someone who told us not to be afraid
just because we now knew that we were involved in a work of the Holy Spirit.
We thank you that when we thought about it
we found the courage to do what your angel told us to do.
Yes, this is always how Jesus comes to be born.
“There is some spouse within us that we must meet and, failing that, we fail wholeness. There is in the heart of us all some image of the Beloved which we must not merely acknowledge but know, love and embrace. Without this marriage there can be no real human life.” …Matthew Kelty, Cistercian monk
Lord, Mary is that noble part of ourselves,
bearing your Son Jesus who was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
– our generosity, the ability to sacrifice ourselves, to give all to a cause.
That part of ourselves frightens us;
we would prefer to deny it is there at all,
to remain with our mediocrity and our compromises.
Send us your angel to reassure us
that we must not be afraid to take that Mary to ourselves,
so that through us your Son Jesus may be born into the world.
“We do not have to put God into the world. He is there. But we must preserve his presence and aid our brothers and sisters to find him.” … A worker priest
Lord, as Christians we act as if we are doing the world a favour by our service.
But the world is like Mary bearing divinity in her womb,
and you want us, like Joseph, to welcome her with reverence
because of this presence within her.
We must proclaim to all that within the world we can find Emmanuel,
a name which means God-is-with-us.Lord, people always think that the way to renew a society is by enlisting the support of the powerful.
Today we can see clearly that once again you are creating a new kind of civilisation through small communities, composed mainly of poor people,
fulfilling the word that you have often spoken through the prophets,
that no great power but a humble maiden will conceive
and give birth to a new beginning for society
and the world will know that you are with us.
Lord, we think today of women who are pregnant and are not being accepted.
Send your angel to those families,
telling them that they must not be afraid to welcome this pregnancy
because it is your gift to them.
Lord, it sometimes happens that we have a project within us,
one that you conceived through your Holy Spirit.
Others, even those who love us deeply,
cannot understand what is happening to us.
They fuss and worry, give us up and then come back to us.
Teach us to wait like Mary, knowing that when the time comes,
they will take us to their hearts and this project will come to birth.
Lord, there was a time when we were afraid to come near to Jesus,
thinking that we were not good enough.
But you sent us Joseph, who named Jesus for us,
as one who saves us from our sins.
**************************************
3. Thomas O’Loughlin,
Introduction to the Celebration
We are beginning the celebration of God coming to us, God being with us, we being brought into the presence of God. This is the great mystery of Christmas: it is the feast of Emmanuel which means ‘God is with us.’ This is our special celebration this Sunday, but each time we gather here we remember the words of Jesus: ‘When two or three are gathered here in my name, I am there among them’. So, let us spend time reminding ourselves that Jesus is among us, we are in his presence in this gathering, and recalling that we are the people who proclaim him as Emmanuel: God is with us.
Homily notes
1. The name ‘Immanuel’ or ‘Emmanuel’ (the spelling differences are related to Hebrew and Greek forms respectively) is only found on two occasions in the books the first Christians looked upon as ‘The Scriptures’: in Is 7:14 and 8:8 where it is a name that can be applied to Ahaz’s son and to the whole people and which is interpreted in Is 8:10 as ‘God is with us.’ Matthew, in using it at the beginning of his gospel (and he is the only evangelist who uses the term or quotes Is 7:14), and explicitly explaining its meaning, is forming a frame to his entire gospel whose final words are: ‘I am with you always, to the close of the age.’ So we can see his gospel within the boundaries set by 1:23 and 28:20 – it is the story of the presence of God with his people. Now this perspective on the Christ-event is a theme at the very heart of Advent/ Christmas. From this perspective, to accept the gospel is to believe that God is with us.2. But what does it mean to believe that ‘God is with us’? That we actually believe this – as distinct from giving it verbal recognition – we should not take for granted. Our world tends to push ‘God’ out to the frontiers of our ways of thinking and imagining life and the universe. From the way most people use the word’ god’ it is clear that they are thinking of a distant, impersonal force. For other people – those who dabble in the New Age Movement – the word’ god’ often signifies a projection of our needs for an unknown other that can be trifled with but is not seen as a person who has made himself known through revelation. There are many who call themselves Christians who think of ‘God’ as far from them, but also think that ‘it’s good to have a religious dimension’ to their lives: ‘God’ is just a code word standing for’ all noble human desires’. All these fall very far short of the living person who lives within the Good News, and which is what gives life in every generation to its message.Then, for Christians, there are the objects, systems, and beliefs that are seen as more present, more pressing, and more ‘real’ than God: money, power, and sex are still the great headings under which we can range the various forms of idolatry where a created object is put in the place of the creator. And, on that note it is worth pointing out that there is a special form of idolatry to which clergy are prone: imagining the reality of the divine as less important than the panoply of religion – an idolatry that manifests itself when people are more sensitive to the forms and regulation of the structures than to the gentle breath of God or the demands of justice, mercy, and doing what is right.
3. To live our lives in the light of ‘God is with us’ is the vocation of each Christian, but it is also the vocation of a lifetime.
4. How can the whole topic of believing’ God is with us’ then be brought before us in a homily? One the one hand, the whole liturgy of Advent and Christmas is an attempt to bring this mystery before us; but on the other hand, one can hear the words but this is not some simple piece of information to be learned; it is something that we have to grasp with our minds, our emotions, and our wills. One way is to lead a meditation on a series of questions.
5. Do we believe we encounter the presence of God in our gathering? Jesus said: ‘For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them’ (Mt 18:20).
Do we believe we encounter the presence of God in combating hunger and human want? Jesus said: ‘for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me’ (Mt 25:35).
Do we believe we encounter the presence of God in combating poverty and injustice? Jesus said: ‘I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me’ (Mt 25:36).Do we believe we encounter the presence of God in love, in goodness, in creativity? We believe that God is the source of our light and goodness. As Jesus said: ‘Let your light so shine before all, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven’ (Mt 5:16).
Do we believe that we can encounter the presence of God in prayer, and become aware that God is personal and hears us? Jesus said: ‘And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith’ (Mt 21:22).
6. In each case I have taken the quotation from a single gospel Matthew – to show how this concern with believing in the presence of God, God being with us, runs right through his gospel; but the same point could be illustrated from any number of places. It is a basic conviction of Christians that God is known and close and seeks to encounter us.
7. Over the next few days we will hear ‘Emmanuel’ in the liturgy in its prayers and hymns and carols. We may hear this gospel passage read several times. Each time we hear the name ‘Emmanuel’ we have to remind ourselves that we are challenged to believe that ‘God is with us.’ It is the Christian conviction about this that inspires the whole celebration of Christmas.
***********************************
John Litteton
Reflection
Joseph is someone about whom we know little. There are few references to him in the gospels apart from the stories about the birth, infancy and childhood of Jesus (see Mt 13:55 and the parallels in Mark and Luke). He is very much a secondary or background figure in the gospel story. Yet, he is a real Advent person because, in a truly humble and remarkable manner, he prepares for the arrival of the Messiah into his life and into the world.
Matthew presents Joseph as having had no part in Mary’s pregnancy. When Joseph discovered that Mary was pregnant he wondered how this could be since they had not been living together as husband and wife. Initially he was confused and he did not know what to do. However, he did not act rashly. He listened to God’s word through the angel’s message in a dream and, although it demanded much faith, he did what God asked him. He allowed his life to be influenced and directed by God’s will. Therefore, without complaining, Joseph decided to prepare for the birth of Jesus by caring about Mary during her pregnancy.
Thus two aspects of Joseph’s character are revealed to us. First, Joseph was obviously a man of deep faith. He trusted God and, discerning God’s will, took the great leap of faith into the unknown in a difficult and confusing situation. God moved him in strange ways and he was responsive to this. Secondly, Joseph was selfless. He did not alienate Mary but, instead, accepted her and remained loyal. His selflessness enabled him to act without fear of ridicule and scorn. Doing God’s will was all-important for Joseph.
We can learn from these two aspects of Joseph’s character. For example, how do we respond to God who often communicates with us in strange ways? Are we able to make the leap of faith when we are unsure about the future? Can we acknowledge and embrace those people and life situations which least suit us? Advent is about cultivating our ability to focus beyond our own concerns and respond to the needs of other people so that Christ can come into our lives through them.
Joseph, in the portrait painted of him in Matthew’s Gospel, prepared for the birth of Jesus with gentleness and faithfulness. He cherished and supported Mary and, together, they brought Christ into the world. Joseph’s discernment of God’s will empowered his confidence. We are challenged to imitate Joseph’s example as we live and work with other people.Joseph was a man of few words but decisive and significant actions. His behaviour made a difference. Unfortunately, some of us speak many words but these words are rendered meaningless by our contradictory behaviour. This can easily occur during the days of Christmas when we gather as families and friends. Therefore, let us learn from the example of Joseph. Let us discern and accept joyfully God’s will in our lives. And let us pray to Joseph, asking him to help us to do God’s will always.
For meditation
When Joseph woke up
he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do.(Mt 1:24)
he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do.(Mt 1:24)
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Donal Neary SJCall to Joseph
In religious terms we would call Joseph a faithful type of guy, observant in religious thought and practice. The visit from the angel tests his faithfulness to God and to Mary. He doesn’t let them down. He was called to be the carer of Jesus and Mary and to find a new openness to the mystery of God.
A temptation of religion is to tie things down too much. The law in Joseph’s time was strict – if a woman was pregnant the man would cancel the betrothal, and she might be stoned to death! Joseph went beyond law to love and the mystery of God’s call. Good religion is open to the mystery of life, however life challenges us and calls us.Some of the most open-minded people I have met have been very religious, and some of the most narrow-minded people have also been religious! Like good and bad medicine, there is good and bad in religion.
True religion is open to mystery. We need a church lit with the light of God, as Joseph was. His burden was lifted when he was open to God, to take Mary home as his wife, no matter what Others might think
This is the annunciation to Joseph – the word of God from the angel to Joseph in a dream. It opened him to a huge new meaning in life. We accept this word as a central part of our lives, and the next time we meet the word, it will be made flesh.
Picture your houseand all who live in it.
Imagine the light of Christ in each room and on all.
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From The Connections:
THE WORD:
The last week of Advent shifts our focus from the promise of the Messiah to the fulfillment of that promise in the events surrounding Jesus' birth.Today’s Gospel is Matthew’s version of Jesus’ birth at Bethlehem. This is not Luke’s familiar story of a child born in a Bethlehem stable, but that of a young unmarried woman suddenly finding herself pregnant and her very hurt and confused husband wondering what to do. In Gospel times, marriage was agreed upon by the groom and the bride’s parents almost immediately after the age of puberty; but the girl continued to live with her parents after the wedding until the husband was able to support her in his home or that of his parents. During that interim period, marital intercourse was not permissible. Yet Mary is found to be with child.
Joseph, an observant but compassionate Jew, does not wish to subject Mary to the full fury of Jewish law, so he plans to divorce her “quietly.” But in images reminiscent of the First Testament “annunciations” of Isaac and Samuel, an angel appears to Joseph in a dream and reveals that this child is the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy. Because of his complete faith and trust in God’s promise, Joseph acknowledges the child and names him Jesus (“Savior”) and becomes, in the eyes of the Law, the legal father of Jesus. Thus, Jesus, through Joseph, is born a descendent of David.
Matthew’s point in his infancy narrative is that Jesus is the Emmanuel promised of old – Isaiah’s prophecy has finally been fulfilled in Jesus: the virgin has given birth to a son, one who is a descendent of David’s house (through Joseph). Jesus is truly Emmanuel – “God is with us.”
HOMILY POINTS:
In Christ, the Spirit of God who inspired the prophets to preach, who enabled the nation of Israel to enter into the covenant with Yahweh, intervenes and sanctifies all of human history.The “mystery” of the Incarnation is not that God could become one of us – the inexplicable part is how and why God could love humankind enough to humble himself to take on the human condition and walk with us, talk with us, die for us.
We have reason to rejoice and to hope, for in our midst dawns Emmanuel – “God with us.”
Joseph, the “just” and “upright” man, is a model of compassion, forgiveness and faith for all of us who are moms and dads, children, brothers and sisters.
God’s coming depends on “Josephs” – men and women of humility, selflessness and openness of heart and spirit – to welcome him and embrace his presence in our midst.
In the spirit of old Mr. Scrooge
One Christmas a church staged Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. The role of Ebenezer Scrooge was played by a parishioner who was a gentleman of un-Scrooge-like generosity. But he managed his part with gusto, growling his way through the opening scenes, ringing out every “Bah! Humbug!” with miserly ill will. He shivered with fright and dreadful self-recognition as he encountered each of the three Christmas ghosts.At the end of the play, the transformed and jubilant Scrooge throws open his bedroom window and bellows festively to the startled city street below, “Merry Christmas, everyone! Merry Christmas!” Scrooge then spies a street urchin passing by: “Hey you, boy, you there!” the joyful Scrooge shouts, “Come up here, boy, I’ve got something wonderful for you to do!” and sends the boy off to purchase the giant turkey in the poulterer’s window as a surprise for the Cratchits.
That’s when something unexpected happened one evening.
Now, in this staging, the audience did not see the urchin. No actor appeared on stage as the boy — the audience imagined the boy Scrooge was calling to. But at this particular performance, when the transformed Scrooge beckoned from the window to the unseen boy, a real six-year-old boy sitting in the audience with his family rose from his seat and walked onto the stage ready to do “something wonderful.
The boy in the audience thought Scrooge was calling him.
The actor playing Scrooge was caught off guard. There was now an unscripted child standing center stage. What to do? The audience held its breath. Then the person of faith beneath the veneer of Scrooge came to the fore. Bounding down from his window perch, Scrooge strode across the stage and cheerily embraced the waiting boy.
“Yes, indeed,” he exclaimed, his voice full of blessing. “You are the one, the very one I had in mind.” Then he gently led the boy back to his seat in the audience, returned to the stage and resumed the play. When the curtain calls were held, it was, of course, this boy, the one who had felt himself personally summoned from his seat, who received, along with old Ebenezer, the audience’s loudest and warmest applause.
[Thomas Long.]
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From Fr. Jude Botelho:
The time is the 8th Century BC and king Ahaz is worried whether the kingdom of Judah will be destroyed by his two powerful neighbours. King Ahaz waits for the attack of his neighbours with fear and helplessness and looks around for allies and help. He decides to go to Assyria, a superpower and ask for help to destroy his powerful neighbours. Isaiah is advisor to king Ahaz and is strongly against what the king is doing. He argues that the dynasty of David will not be preserved through playing power politics but only through trusting in God. The prophet gives the king a sign ‘the maiden is with child and will give birth to a son whom she will call Emmanuel, a name which means ‘God is with us’ This sign is given to the king to assure him that God is with Israel But Ahaz refuses to believe in the sign and trust in God.
Sign Of Christianity
The words of Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage, written in the third century are as timely today as when he wrote them. He said: “If I could ascend some high mountain and look over this wide world, you know very well what I would see. Robbers on the high roads, pirates on the sea… selfishness and cruelty, misery and despair under all roofs. It is a bad world, an incredibly bad world, but in the midst of it I have found a quiet and holy people who have learned a great secret. They are despised and persecuted but they care not. They are masters of their souls. They have overcome the world. These people are the Christians and I am one of them.
- Anthony Castle in ‘Quotes and Anecdotes’
Attitude Changes Things!
One day a lady who lived in town looked out of her window and saw a big truck pull up to her house, Out jumped five rascals and started unloading electric guitars and loudspeakers and drums…. They took them to the neighbours house. The woman was furious. Now her night’s rest and her ears and her life would be ruined by all the noise that would come from the house. Her husband came home from work and she began to scream at him, “We’ve got to move away from here or else we’ll go deaf and mad with that string band next door. But he calmed her down a bit and said, “Honey, why are you angry? Don’t you realize who those musicians are? They are the famous Sanguma String band that plays overseas to large crowds…. Woman, we should be glad they are here; we’ll be getting all this famous music for free.” His wife’s frown turned to a smile. She ran to the telephone and began to call her friends to come over sometime and take advantage of the Sanguma Band….. How attitude changes everything! Our attitude to Jesus too can change everything!
- ‘Quote’ in ‘1000 Stories You Can Use’
In today’s reading of Matthew’s Gospel, unlike King Ahaz, who did not trust God’s sign given to him, Joseph puts his trust in the rather upsetting sign of Mary’s mysteriously conceived child. Thanks to Joseph, of the family of David, Jesus will belong to the royal line. And, because of his faith, it is Joseph who gives the child a rightful name: Jesus, which means –God saves! Perhaps there are those who fear the approach of Christmas for whatever reason, they can take heart and hope from the story of the first Christmas. There was plenty of fear present there too! In fact all the main characters in it were afraid at one time or another. Joseph was afraid when he found that Mary was expecting a child even though they hadn’t been living together. But the angel appeared to him to reveal to him who the child was. Joseph did not fully understand, but being a just man, trusted God and so overcame his fear and did what was right. All of us are touched by fear at one time or another but we must not let our fears cripple us. Like Joseph we must seek to do the just and loving thing so that we move from fear to faith. Trust is the thing that enables us to move from fear to faith. The Christ child who comes to us at Christmas challenges us to enter into an intimate trusting relationship with God, trusting that we will receive love, and always more love. Though his humble and trusting action Joseph cooperated with God’s plan and provided a space for Jesus in his family and in the world. By trusting and cooperating with God in our own humble way we too can create a space for him to enter into our lives and into the present world.
Heroic Duty
The country doctor Brunoy had just said goodbye to his colleagues who had confirmed that Jean, the doctor’s only son, would die in a few hours of diphtheria. The anti toxin injections had been too late. As he now sat with his wife by the boy’s bedside awaiting the child’s death the doorbell rang. The doctor shouted to his secretary, “I don’t want to see anyone.” But the visitor would not go away. It was the farmer Rivaz who had walked 10 kilometres from Roseland. His son was sick. “I’ll come tomorrow” the doctor told him. “But if you don’t come now, he won’t make it through the night,” the farmer insisted. Then began a discussion…. “You can cure my son.” “But mine’s lost, he’s beyond all cure.” “But mine isn’t.” “Well, I’ll come tomorrow morning.” “Then it will be too late.” “Let me close the eyes of my dying child.” “But if you cannot help him any longer….” “As long as my son is alive, I’ll remain with him.” “All right, then both the children will die.” The doctor then asked for the symptom’s of the boy’s sickness and they were the same as his son’s had been. But it was still not too late to save him. So the doctor decided to go with the farmer.
- Ludolf Ulrich in ‘1000 Stories You Can Use’
The country doctor Brunoy had just said goodbye to his colleagues who had confirmed that Jean, the doctor’s only son, would die in a few hours of diphtheria. The anti toxin injections had been too late. As he now sat with his wife by the boy’s bedside awaiting the child’s death the doorbell rang. The doctor shouted to his secretary, “I don’t want to see anyone.” But the visitor would not go away. It was the farmer Rivaz who had walked 10 kilometres from Roseland. His son was sick. “I’ll come tomorrow” the doctor told him. “But if you don’t come now, he won’t make it through the night,” the farmer insisted. Then began a discussion…. “You can cure my son.” “But mine’s lost, he’s beyond all cure.” “But mine isn’t.” “Well, I’ll come tomorrow morning.” “Then it will be too late.” “Let me close the eyes of my dying child.” “But if you cannot help him any longer….” “As long as my son is alive, I’ll remain with him.” “All right, then both the children will die.” The doctor then asked for the symptom’s of the boy’s sickness and they were the same as his son’s had been. But it was still not too late to save him. So the doctor decided to go with the farmer.
- Ludolf Ulrich in ‘1000 Stories You Can Use’
"When Matthew tells of the annunciation to Joseph, he is not concerned with the latter’s psychological reactions. He is simply trying to answer the question: “Who is the Messiah?” For Matthew, ‘Jesus, who will save the people from their sins’ is the ultimate heir of Israel, and it is Joseph who gives Jesus a place in the genealogy of David. Joseph was informed from the outset about the expected birth (and what more likely person than Mary?) He thought it was his duty to efface himself before the mystery, in which he seems to have no role. But God intervened and made clear to him that although the child in Mary’s womb was of ‘the Holy Spirit’, he Joseph, would have to guarantee its legal status and recognize it as his own. By means of Joseph, the house of David was to accept ‘God-is-with-us’ in this son, and so welcome the whole programme of salvation from the incarnation to the ascension. Even today we describe the birth of a child as a ‘happy event’. But what words can describe the birth of this child, –this event in which Joseph played a humble but indispensable part? We are dealing here not just with the story of another human family, but also with the very story of salvation itself –the story of Emmanuel – ‘God-is-with-us’.
- Glenstal Sunday Missal
- Glenstal Sunday Missal
With Eyes Wide Shut
In his book Beyond East and West John Wu has a fascinating passage. It reads as follows: “My wife and I had never seen each other before marriage. Both of us….. were brought up in the old Chinese way. It was our parents who engaged us to each other, when we were barely six years of age. In my early teens I came to know where her house was. I had an intense desire to have a glimpse of her. In coming back from school, I sometimes took a roundabout way so as to pass by the door of her house….. but I never had the good fortune to see her.” Wu goes on to say that he realizes the old Chinese marriage sounds incredible to Western readers. Some of his Western friends could hardly believe it at first. Wu says he was surprised his friends found the system so incredible. He asked them whether they chose their parents, brothers and sisters. Then he said, “And don’t you love them just the same?” John Wu’s passage from his book helps us to appreciate better the relationship between Joseph and Mary before Jesus’ birth.
- Mark Link in ‘Sunday Homilies’
In his book Beyond East and West John Wu has a fascinating passage. It reads as follows: “My wife and I had never seen each other before marriage. Both of us….. were brought up in the old Chinese way. It was our parents who engaged us to each other, when we were barely six years of age. In my early teens I came to know where her house was. I had an intense desire to have a glimpse of her. In coming back from school, I sometimes took a roundabout way so as to pass by the door of her house….. but I never had the good fortune to see her.” Wu goes on to say that he realizes the old Chinese marriage sounds incredible to Western readers. Some of his Western friends could hardly believe it at first. Wu says he was surprised his friends found the system so incredible. He asked them whether they chose their parents, brothers and sisters. Then he said, “And don’t you love them just the same?” John Wu’s passage from his book helps us to appreciate better the relationship between Joseph and Mary before Jesus’ birth.
- Mark Link in ‘Sunday Homilies’
A Wondrous Happening
Sometimes fact is more mysterious than fiction! The "Denver Post" printed an article December 23, 1981 about a stranger-than-fact event that occurred in Colorado. Stan Sieczkowski heard in church about a Denver family facing a rather bleak Christmas holiday. Medical bills robbed them of any extras; they would not even have a tree. So Stan and his son Jay determined to get them that tree. They headed up into the Colorado Rockies in the family pickup. However, the truck skidded off the icy road and hit a boulder that shattered the windshield. Jay was showered by glass slivers and suffered from shock and crash trauma. Stan was uninjured, though somewhat shaken. Cars sped past that day -- maybe 200 of them. Only two stopped. A gentle, dark-haired woman took the boy into her car to comfort him while her husband and another man helped Stan move his truck off the road. Then they drove father and son to Stan's home and quietly left without identifying themselves. Later that month, Stan's pastor asked if he might deliver a food basket to the unfortunate family for which he had earlier tried to cut a tree. Stan found the house, but he could hardly find his speech when the door opened. Standing there before him was the same couple who had helped him on the mountain road! Call it an amazing coincidence...or call it divine providence. Some mysteries are better left unanalyzed. But it is nice to remember that, when we give our hearts away in a spirit of generosity, we can still brush up against wonder, joy and love.
- Steve Goodier
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1. G. K. Chesterton,
Immanuel is God-with-us in the cancer clinic and in the Alzheimer's ward at the local nursing home. Immanuel is God-with-us when the pink slip comes and when the beloved child sneers, "I hate you!" Immanuel is God-with-us when you pack the Christmas decorations away and, with an aching heart, you realize afresh that your one son never did call over the holidays. Not once. Immanuel is God-with-us when your dear wife or mother stares at you with an Alzheimer's glaze and absently asks, "What was your name again?"
Ever and always Jesus stares straight into you with his two good eyes and he does so not only when you can smile back but most certainly also when your own eyes are full of tears. In fact, Jesus is Immanuel, "God with you" even in those times when you are so angry with God that you refuse to meet his eyes. But even when you feel like you can't look at him, he never looks away from you. He can't. His name says it all.
Scott Hoezee, Comments and Observations
7. Obedience and Compassion
Sometimes fact is more mysterious than fiction! The "Denver Post" printed an article December 23, 1981 about a stranger-than-fact event that occurred in Colorado. Stan Sieczkowski heard in church about a Denver family facing a rather bleak Christmas holiday. Medical bills robbed them of any extras; they would not even have a tree. So Stan and his son Jay determined to get them that tree. They headed up into the Colorado Rockies in the family pickup. However, the truck skidded off the icy road and hit a boulder that shattered the windshield. Jay was showered by glass slivers and suffered from shock and crash trauma. Stan was uninjured, though somewhat shaken. Cars sped past that day -- maybe 200 of them. Only two stopped. A gentle, dark-haired woman took the boy into her car to comfort him while her husband and another man helped Stan move his truck off the road. Then they drove father and son to Stan's home and quietly left without identifying themselves. Later that month, Stan's pastor asked if he might deliver a food basket to the unfortunate family for which he had earlier tried to cut a tree. Stan found the house, but he could hardly find his speech when the door opened. Standing there before him was the same couple who had helped him on the mountain road! Call it an amazing coincidence...or call it divine providence. Some mysteries are better left unanalyzed. But it is nice to remember that, when we give our hearts away in a spirit of generosity, we can still brush up against wonder, joy and love.
- Steve Goodier
****
1. G. K. Chesterton,
the noted British poet and theologian, was a brilliant man who could think deep thoughts and express them well. However, he was also extremely absent-minded and over the years he became rather notorious for getting lost. He would just absolutely forget where he was supposed to be and what he was supposed to be doing. On one such occasion, he sent a telegram to his wife which carried these words: "Honey, seems I'm lost again. Presently, I am at Market Harborough. Where ought I to be?" As only a spouse could say it, she telegraphed back a one-word reply "HOME!"
This is precisely what this classic passage in the first chapter of Matthew does for us... it brings us home...
-- Home to the real meaning of Christmas
-- Home to the most magnificent truth in the entire Bible
-- Home to our Lord's greatest promise
-- Home to the reason we celebrate Christmas
-- Home to the most magnificent truth in the entire Bible
-- Home to our Lord's greatest promise
-- Home to the reason we celebrate Christmas
Namely this: "GOD IS WITH US!" When we accept Christ into our lives, nothing, not even death, can separate us from God and His love. It is what Christmas is about. God is with us. The great people of faith have always claimed that promise. Just think of it:
-- Moses caught between the Pharaoh and the deep Red Sea in a seemingly hopeless situation believed that God was with him and he went forward and trusted God to open a way and He did!
-- Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego went into the fiery furnace into a seemingly hopeless situation and they trusted God to be with them and He was!
-- Little David stood before Goliath. What chance could a small boy with a slingshot have against this giant of a warrior? But David believed that God was with him and it made all the difference!
Now, it's interesting to note that when the writer of Matthew's gospel wanted to capture the meaning of Christmas, the meaning of the Christ event, the meaning of Jesus in a single word, he did a very wise thing. He reached back into the Old Testament, pulled out an old word, dusted it off, and used it to convey the message. The word was Emmanuel...
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2. When you turn sixteen
what's the most important thing in the world? Any 16-year-olds here? Anyone want to take on that question?
That's right. Getting your driver's license. In most states, if you are under the age of eighteen, you now need to take "Driver's Ed" before you can qualify for a driver's license. That means students have already had to learn all the "rules of the road," those traffic signs and signals that foretell and forewarn about what lies ahead on the highway.
Reading the signs -- those written on walls and windows, and those written upon the winds of a changing world -- is a hard-earned skill to some and a gift to others. One of the 12 tribes of Israel, the Tribe of Issachar, was known as the tribe that "knows the signs and knows what to do" (1 Chronicles 12:32). Jesus also instructed his disciples to learn how to "read the signs." Or in his words, "You know how to read the signs of the sky. I want you to learn how to read the signs of the times" (Luke 12:56).
There have always been some people who just seem to "know" what is coming next for our future...
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3. His Name Says It All
Matthew doesn't want Joseph or any of us to get stuck in the dream. Matthew wants to bring us back down to earth, back to our waking reality, by invoking the name of Immanuel. Because if the Jesus, whose name was given to Joseph in a dream, is to do us any good, he'd better meet us and be with us in all those times when dreams end and when the crushing weight of a miserable world comes crashing down around our shoulders again. If he is only Jesus, the one who saves us from our sins, it would still be too easy to turn him into the one who also saves us out of the real world. But if he is Immanuel, then we realize we don't have to go anywhere to meet him other than the hurly-burly reality of our Monday mornings and our Thursday afternoons. We don't have to go find him in some other realm because he has already found us in exactly this realm and this world.
Immanuel is God-with-us in the cancer clinic and in the Alzheimer's ward at the local nursing home. Immanuel is God-with-us when the pink slip comes and when the beloved child sneers, "I hate you!" Immanuel is God-with-us when you pack the Christmas decorations away and, with an aching heart, you realize afresh that your one son never did call over the holidays. Not once. Immanuel is God-with-us when your dear wife or mother stares at you with an Alzheimer's glaze and absently asks, "What was your name again?"
Ever and always Jesus stares straight into you with his two good eyes and he does so not only when you can smile back but most certainly also when your own eyes are full of tears. In fact, Jesus is Immanuel, "God with you" even in those times when you are so angry with God that you refuse to meet his eyes. But even when you feel like you can't look at him, he never looks away from you. He can't. His name says it all.
Scott Hoezee, Comments and Observations
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4. God Does Not Desert Us
I find it strange that God has never deserted me. I don't understand that kind of grace frankly. I do not deserve his eternal presence, nor do you. Yet, God has forever identified with the human dilemma. There may not be a soul in the world who truly understands your feelings. God understands. All in your life may fall away. God will never fall away.
In Tom Brokaw's book The Greatest Generation, a story is told of Mary Wilson, presently of Dallas, Texas. You would never know by looking at this modest woman that she was the recipient of the Silver Star and she bore the nickname "The Angel of Anzio." You will recall that when the Allies got bogged down in the boot of Italy during World War II, they attempted a daring breakout by launching an amphibious landing on the Anzio Beach. Unfortunately, the Allies got pinned down at the landing site and came dangerously close to being driven back into the ocean. It looked like another Dunkirk was in the making.
Mary Wilson was the head of the fifty-one army nurses who went ashore at Anzio. Things got so bad that bullets zipped through her tent as she assisted the surgeon in surgery. When the situation continued to deteriorate arrangements were made to get all of the nurses out. But Mary Wilson would have none of it. She refused to leave at the gravest hour. As she related her story years later, she said: "How could I possibly leave them. I was a part of them."
Our God is a good God. He does not desert us in our hour of need. He hears the cries of Israel. He hears the cries of the church. He hears the cries of His children. Christmas is about God's eternal identification with the human dilemma.
Staff, www.Sermons.com
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5. A Tough Question
When I meet with a couple in preparation for their baby's baptism, I always ask this question: Have you prepared a will and have you specified in it who would rear your child if you were removed from the picture? Young parents don't like to even think about such a possibility, but life's uncertainties make it necessary. It's a tough question. Whom do you trust enough to rear your precious child? God had to answer that question when he decided to send his son Jesus to planet earth. God had to select a mother and a stepfather for his son.
Bill Bouknight, Collected Sermons, www.Sermons.com
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6. Mary, Let's Go To The Barn
I love this story: A grade school class was putting on a Christmas play which included the story of Mary and Joseph coming to the inn. In that class was one little boy who wanted very much to be Joseph. But when the parts were handed out, his biggest rival was given that part, and he was assigned to be the inn keeper instead. He was really bitter about this.
So during all the rehearsals he kept plotting in his mind what he might do the night of performance to get even with his rival who was Joseph. Finally, the night of the performance, Mary and Joseph came walking across the stage. They knocked on the door of the inn, and the inn-keeper opened the door and asked them gruffly what they wanted.
Joseph answered, "We'd like to have a room for the night." Suddenly the inn-keeper threw the door open wide and said, "Great, come on in and I'll give you the best room in the house."
For a few seconds poor little Joseph didn't know what to do, and a long silence ensued. Finally though, thinking quickly on his feet, Joseph looked in past the inn-keeper, first to the left and then to the right and said, "No wife of mine is going to stay in a dump like this. Come on, Mary, let's go to the barn." And once again the play was back on course.
It is obvious that Joseph cared deeply for Mary. He would not have risked his own reputation and protected hers if he did not. But his love was deeper and grounded on more than love for his bride to be. For you see he understood that obedience to God, even in the most dire of circumstances creates a life of substance and character.
Brett Blair, www.Sermons.com. Adapted from a Story by John Simmons.
_____________________7. Obedience and Compassion
There is a lot of talk today about what makes Christmas. Newspaper and television advertisements coax people into believing that they can have a real Christmas by going to a festive shopping center, eating at trendy restaurants, or watching glittering "Christmas programs" on television. Others believe that Christmas is made by the fastidious keeping of time-honored family rituals, such as, sentimental ornaments on just the right tree, eating food from a menu which has been handed down from generation to generation, or by visiting the same relatives at precisely the same time on Christmas Day. Some believe that Christmas is made by purchasing a uniquely special gift for every relative, friend, and acquaintance. To be sure, all of these contribute to our cultural understanding of Christmas.
But the answer to "What makes a real Christmas?" must be found in human history. That is what Joseph did. And, in a very real sense, it was the theology of Joseph which made possible the first Christmas. If Joseph had not cooperated with God's action in human history, the birth of Jesus would have been quite different.
The witness of Joseph calls us to cooperate with God's work in today's world. It calls us to respond to God's action among us.
Joseph, not having all of the evidence and knowledge of the future, decided to do more than law and custom required. He elected to do more than was expected of him. He let justice and compassion guide his decision about his pregnant betrothed. He was pulled, not by the strength of custom, but by the law of love.
Joseph Pennel Jr., From Anticipation to Transfiguration, CSS Publishing Company, p. 34.
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8. Emmanuel (God with Us)
The Stunning Impact of Christmas: An old pioneer traveled westward across the great plains until he came to an abrupt halt at the edge of the Grand Canyon. He gawked at the sight before him: a vast chasm one mile down, eighteen miles across, and more than a hundred miles long! He gasped, "Something musta happened here!" A visitor to our world at Christmas time, seeing the lights, the decorations, the trees, the parades, the festivities, and the religious services, would also probably say, "Something must have happened here!" Indeed, something did happen. God came to our world on the first Christmas.
James S. Hewett, Illustrations Unlimited, Tyndale, p. 86.
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9. Problems and Obedience
Sooner or later, every one of us comes up against the rough side of life, and we have to face big problems. Dr. J. A. Hadfield, noted British psychologist, commented on this when he said, "When people run up against life and find it too much for them, one swears, one gets a headache, one gets drunk, and one prays" (J. A. Hadfield, Psychology and Morals [Robert Hadfield Co., 1935], p. 55).
When life gets hard, what do you do? Do you give up? Do you swear? Do you lash out in hostility? Do you try to find someone to blame? Do you give in to bitterness? Do you run away? Do you hide behind some illness? Do you drug yourself? Or, do you pray? Do you consider the problem prayerfully and then listen for God? That's what Joseph did, and it worked.
What a great lesson to learn from Joseph: the art of listening! Maybe this is why Jesus went often into the wilderness alone to do some praying and listening. Perhaps he learned from father Joseph how to listen for God's will. Joseph was big enough to listen. What a wonderful quality!
Joseph Was Big Enough to Obey
Even when it was hard to do, Joseph listened and heard God's command. Then he had the courage to act, to obey, to do God's will...
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10. Andrew Greeley
Background:
The Christmas stories in the Gospels of St. Matthew and St. Luke are not meant to be literal history, like, let us say, detailed descriptions of the Battle of Gettysburg. Rather they are theological stories designed to tell us that with the birth of Jesus a new phase of the history of humankind had begun. The stories may not be true in all their details but they are True in the sense that they disclose to us a sudden, dramatic, and total transformation in the human condition.
As John Shea says in his book Starlight, we discover at Christmas, not only the light that is God and the light that Jesus came to bring to the world, but the light that is and has always been in us because we are creatures who share in the light of God, beings in whom the spark of God's light and love has always shone. Christmas reveals to us that like Mary and Joseph we too can be the light of the world and that indeed our own frail and often dim lights are not completely discontinuous from the light of Jesus, from the starlight that shone at Bethlehem.
Story:
Once upon a time there was a little girl named Jeanne Marie who was afraid of the dark. She wouldn’t go to sleep at night unless all the lights in her room were on. You couldn’t never tell, she argued, who’d sneak into her room at night if it were dark. She absolutely refused to go into her closet because, like the boy in comics several years ago, she thought monsters might lurk in the closet especially at night. She claimed that she could hear the monsters talking about what they were going to do to her. Although she like snow, she hated winter because it was dark so much of the time. She didn’t like to go off to the country for vacation because there were no street lights and the dark was very scary indeed. The monsters who had hidden in her closet now wandered the streets of the summer village and lurked in the woods. She was frightened when she went to the movies because the theatres were too dark. Her mother said to her once aren’t you old enough now not to be afraid of the dark.
She said, no, the older she got the more reasons she should think of for being afraid of the dark. She came home from school one day with the story of the midnight sun in Sweden in the summer. Lets live there, she said. But in the winter the sun hardly ever shines there, her mommy said. Well, where does it go. To the South Pole. Well, lets live there. It’s too cold. I don’t care, so long as it’s not dark.
Then one day her mommy and daddy took her to midnight Mass in the church. It was totally dark inside. Jeanne Marie was terrified. Then the priest flicked the switch and the church was filled with light. Oh, said Jeanne Marie, it’s so pretty.
Light always comes on, doesn’t it mommy?
...If you wait long enough
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Stories from Father Tony Kadavil's Collection:
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Stories from Father Tony Kadavil's Collection:
1. Emmanuel – God with us: Over 100 years ago
Father Damien deVeuster, (St. Damien of Molokai) a Belgian priest, began
working with lepers on Molokai, a small Hawaiian island. Father Damien found a
source of fresh water in the mountains and developed a system to bring it down
to the colony. He built the first sanitation system and clinic. He and the
lepers constructed a chapel for worship. Each Sunday Father Damien would begin
his sermon with these words: “You lepers know that God loves you.” This went on
for years. Finally, one Sunday Father Damien began his sermon this way: “We
lepers know that God loves us.” Father Damien had contracted leprosy.
Yet he went on loving and serving until his death in 1898. Even as Father
Damien cast his lot in with the lepers, Jesus, Emmanuel, invested Himself
totally in us sinners. “He was bruised and wounded for our sins. He was lashed,
and we were healed.” “All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had
spoken by the prophet: ‘Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his
name shall be called Emmanuel’” (Mt 1: 22-23). (Dr. William R.
Bouknight).
2: “You don’t know what love can do!”
There is a story about a small boy who went to a pet shop. “Mister,” he said to
the owner, “I want to buy that puppy.” The owner’s eyes followed the boy’s
finger to a little crippled puppy all by himself. “Son,” replied, “that pup is
worthless. We’re going to have him put to sleep in the next few days.” But the boy
protested, “I’ve saved my money just to buy that one puppy. I have been looking
at him in the window every day. He’s the only one I want.” Once again, the
owner explained the problem—the dog was crippled—the dog was worthless—the dog
would be put to sleep. The small boy then reached down with two little hands
and pulled up his trousers. The man observed two little legs enclosed in
braces. “Mister,” he said, “You don’t know what love can do!” Jesus, Emmanuel
has worn our braces and died for our sins. Now with grateful hearts let us
enthrone him as Savior and Lord.
3: “A baby is God’s opinion that the world
should go on.” Carl Sandburg (1878-1967), the noted American
historian, novelist, and poet, once said, “A baby is God’s opinion that the
world should go on.” When Isaiah offered Ahaz the sign which he had refused to
request, the prophet’s message bore some similarity to the words of Sandburg. A
baby would be born, he prophesied, and that child’s existence would underscore,
yet again, God’s fidelity to his promises. Judah could be sure that its world
would indeed go on.
4: You’ll know tonight.” It was a few days
before Christmas. A woman woke up one morning and told her husband, “I just
dreamed that you gave me a pearl necklace for Christmas. What do you think this
dream means?” “Oh,” her husband replied, “you’ll know the day after tomorrow.”
The next morning, she turned to her husband again and said she had the same
dream and received the same reply. On the third morning, the woman woke up and
smiled at her husband, “I just dreamed again that you gave me a pearl necklace
for Christmas. What do you think this dream means?” And he smiled back, “You’ll
know tonight.” That evening, the man came home with a small package and
presented it to his wife. She was delighted. She opened it gently. And when she
did, she found—a book! And the book’s title was The Meaning of Dreams. Today’s
Gospel tells us how Joseph had a dream and how he reacted to it. (Rev Samuel
Candler).
5. Jesuit Joke: A Jesuit, a Dominican and a
Franciscan were walking along an old road, debating the greatness of their
orders. Suddenly, a vision of the Holy Family appeared in front of them, with
Jesus in a manger and Mary and Joseph praying over him. The Franciscan fell on
his face, overcome with awe at the sight of God born in such poverty. The
Dominican fell to his knees, adoring the beautiful reflection of the Trinity
and the Holy Family. The Jesuit walked up to Joseph, put his arm around his
shoulder, and said, “So, where ya thinking of sending the kid for school?
24 Additional anecdotes
1) Beauty and the Beast: Today’s
Gospel message is a bit like the story of Beauty and the Beast, the
animated film nominated for the Oscar Award in 1991. In that film,
Beauty stepped into the ugly world of the Beast, not because he was loveable,
not because he deserved her, but because she loved her father. But the
world of the beast did not change right away, even though Beauty was
there. The servants, who shared the curse of the Beast, warned him that
Beauty might be the one they had been waiting for, but the Beast continued to
rage and scream and roar, finally sending Beauty away. On her way home,
she was attacked by the wolves, and Beast saved her. As Beauty returned
and nursed the wounded Beast back to health, they began to bicker and blame
each other, until in one beautiful moment, Beauty stepped into the heart of the
ugly beast. From that moment on, the Beast began to change slowly. He
started to laugh and play. And then, finally, Beast realized that he
loved Beauty, and in an amazing act of love, he released her to find her
father. Beauty and her father returned to the ugly world of the Beast to
warn him of the danger of the townspeople’s attack, but they were too
late. In the fighting, Beast had been stabbed, and as he lay dying,
Beauty confessed her love for him. And the spell was broken. Beast was
changed by the love of Beauty. Because Beauty stepped into the ugly world
of the Beast, Beast was changed, little by little, until one day he was
transformed into a wonderful handsome prince. In Jesus, God stepped
into our ugly, beastly world as Joshua (Savior), and Emmanuel (sign
of God’s permanent presence with us), to change it, to bring to it – to us –
the beauty of the love of God’s kingdom. But change comes slowly. Yes,
just look at our world. There are so many ugly people, so many beastly
things happening. But, there are some people who are changing and some who have
been changed by the beauty of God’s love, and both begin loving others. Today’s
Gospel describes the changes that occurred in St. Joseph and in the Holy
Family.
2) Grandfather or great-grandfather? In
Christian art, Joseph is often portrayed more like Jesus’ grandfather or
great-grandfather than like a parent. In a 17th-century painting by
Guido Reni, Joseph, with gray hair and beard, lovingly holds the infant, who
plays with his beard. One beautiful exception is El Greco’s “Joseph,” which
portrays him as a vigorous young man with Jesus clinging to his legs, here a
figure of trust and protection. The historical Joseph, a carpenter or
stoneworker, was most likely young and vigorous, excited about a future with a
woman he so loved that he would not invoke a harsh law against supposed
adultery, but still followed the law and so would have put her away “quietly” —
except for the angel from God. Yet out of his shattered hopes would come forth
One whom he would name Jesus-| the Emmanuel, “God with us.” Matthew’s Joseph,
in today’s Gospel, provides a model of complementarity for parents today as
they engage in that most Divine of tasks—bringing forth new life and guiding
their sons and daughters along the way of Christ. (Fr. John R. Donahue, S.J.)
3) Emmanuel to ward off Phobias: More than 300
fears, or phobias, are listed in medical dictionaries. There is the fear of
darkness and the fear of light. There is the fear of high places and low
places. The fear of closed places we call claustrophobia. Some
people suffer from pyrophobia which is the fear of fire, and
some from neophobia, which is the fear of what is new. Toxicophobia is
the fear of being poisoned, and gamaphobia is the fear of
marriage. Pantophobia is the fear of everything; and the
person who is not afraid of anything may be suffering from phobophobia,
which is the fear of being afraid! But one of the most devastating
of the fears is “futurphobia,” the fear of the future. It is
difficult to go anywhere if you are afraid to take the next step. But if you
are walking in Faith, trusting your Lord, you don’t have to be afraid. He says,
“Go … and I am with you.” Here is one of our Lord’s wonderful promises. It is
important that we read it correctly. He doesn’t say, “Go … and I will go with
you.” Rather, he says, “Go … and I am with you.” He is not just a tag-along; He
is already out there ahead of us in the very next step we are going to take;
and He is there no matter how dark it is.
4) “Audio spotlight” technology in the first century:
Last year busy Christmas shoppers in the SoHo district of New York were
suddenly hearing voices. The woman’s voice they heard seemed to whisper
directly in their ear, asking, “Who’s there? Who’s there?” Spooked shoppers
then heard the voice claim, “It’s not in your imagination.” The voice, in fact,
WAS real, but there wasn’t any disembodied being lurking on Prince Street.
Instead those who heard the voice were simply “receiving” an ad for a new
A&E television program called Paranormal State. The ad used
“audio spotlight” technology developed by the Holosonic Company. Usually used
to give audio slideshows in quiet environments like libraries and museums, this
technology “beamed” an audio message from a nearby rooftop towards the street.
When the beam intercepted an individual, that person received what seemed to be
his or her own personal whisper-in-the-ear message. Anyone remember the
one-second dancing hot dogs that used to flash across movie screens to suggest
subliminally to patrons that they should leave their seats and buy a hot dog?
The same thing was done with popcorn. Today’s Gospel describes how St. Joseph
received such a message from God in a dream some 2000 years ago, removing his
suspicion about Mary’s miraculous pregnancy.
5) The forgotten Saint: A pastor tells the story
of a worried mother who phoned the Church office on the afternoon before the
annual Christmas program to say that her small son, who was to play the role of
Joseph in the Christmas Pageant, had a cold and had gone to bed on doctor’s
orders. “It’s too late now to get another Joseph,” the director of the play
said. “We’ll just have to write him out of the script.” And they did! Joseph
just disappeared! And only a few of those who watched that night actually
realized that Joseph was missing. Joseph is often forgotten. But today’s Gospel
is centered on Joseph.
6) Humans in solar system in 2600 AD: God did
something as fantastic for that age, some 2000 years ago, as some of the
proposals for the future by contemporary scientists suggest! Edward Regis, Jr.,
in an article, “Mother Sun,” seems to be fantasizing when he looks ahead to
conditions in this solar system in A.D. 2600. He believes, with some other
scientists like Crisweli, that the human race will inhabit most of the planets
and asteroids of the system in 600 years: “But there’s a catch. Although there
are hundreds of billions of people spread out from one end of the solar system
to the other, planetary materials are nearing exhaustion.” Edward Regis
believes that human beings can take the sun apart through the use of particle
accelerators, thereby providing a virtually inexhaustible source of energy and
materials to support human life in this universe. Two thousand years ago, the
announcement of a “Virgin Birth” must have been just as incredible to those
people as Edward Regis’ or Crisweli’s Plan for “Mother Sun” is to us. But
through God-given Faith, as described in today’s Gospel, Joseph was able to
accept the promised miracle and act accordingly.
7) “Honey, seems I’m lost again.”. G. K. Chesterton,
who died at the age of 62 in 1936, was a prolific British writer and
theologian. He was a brilliant man who debated the greatest minds of his day
and his writings influenced people like C.S. Lewis to convert to Christianity.
Though he was a deep thinker and could express himself well, including writing
articles for the Encyclopedia Britannica, he was extremely absent-minded and
over the years he became rather notorious for getting lost. He would
absolutely forget where he was supposed to be and what he was supposed to be
doing. On one such occasion, he sent a telegram to his wife which carried these
words: “Honey, seems I’m lost again. Presently, I am at Market
Harborough. Where ought I to be?” As only a spouse could say it,
she telegraphed back a one-word reply “HOME!” This is precisely what this
classic passage in the first chapter of Matthew does for us… it brings us home…
— Home to the real meaning of Christmas — Home to the most magnificent truth in
the entire Bible — Home to our Lord’s greatest promise — Home to the reason we
celebrate Christmas, namely this: “GOD IS WITH US!” When we accept Christ into
our lives, nothing, not even death, can separate us from God and His love. It
is what Christmas is about. God is with us. (Fr. Kayala)’
8) “Dog Theology” vs. “Cat Theology:” You may
have heard of “Dog Theology” vs. “Cat Theology.” Here is Dog’s Theology: “You
feed me. You pet me. You shelter me. You love me. You must be God!” Cat’s
Theology: “You feed me. You pet me. You shelter me. You love me. I must be
God.” A Far Side cartoon once depicted a scientist announcing
a breakthrough in understanding cat language: “They say only two things:
‘Where’s my dinner?’ and ‘Everything here is mine.’” Here is a cat story
illustrating the need of our co-operation to get saved by God. At the very same
time the Santa Ana winds returned to southern California, swamping flood waters
inundated western state of Washington and submerged Interstate 5 for five days.
Camera crews captured a lot of dramatic rescue stories. While filming the
flooded farmlands a TV camera crew spied a lone refugee—a large grey cat
perched on top of an old metal out-building. The flood waters had completely
surrounded this cold and shivering cat. For whatever reason, the TV crew
paddled and waddled forward to rescue the kitty. The cat took one look at this
splashing gang of strangers with blazing lights and blaring bullhorns and saw
his doom. As they tried in vain to corral and catch the cat, one camera
recorded the kitty’s “escape” to higher ground. First, the cat leapt an amazing
distance to the next ragged metal building. Then, still in a panic, the cat
proceeded to climb the sheer, smooth, aluminum siding straight up for at least
twelve feet—until he reached the roof peak and was “safely” away from all those
who had thought they would “rescue” him. Now in total darkness and utterly
defeated, the camera crew left. A check of the same site the next day found the
flood waters had receded, and the superman cat had disappeared. 2000 years ago,
on that first Christmas God launched a rescue mission to save mankind from the
bondage of sin by sending His Son Jesus as our Savior. But being “saved”
depends upon our trusting God the Savior because we cannot save ourselves. And
that is the theme of today’s Gospel.
9) “God is with us.” Phyllis Martin, a
schoolteacher in Columbus, Ohio, tells of the day when the storm clouds and
strong gusts of wind came up suddenly over the Alpine Elementary School. The
school public address system blared tornado warnings. It was too dangerous to
send the children home. Instead, they were taken to the basement where the
children lined the walls and huddled together in fear. She said the teachers
were worried, too. To help ease the tension, the principal suggested a
sing-along. But the voices were weak and unenthusiastic. One child after
another began to cry. The children could not be consoled and were close to
panic. Then one of the teachers, whose faith seemed equal to any emergency,
whispered to the child closest to her, “Kathy, I know you are scared. I am too,
but aren’t we forgetting something? There is a power greater than any storm.
God will protect us. Just say to yourself, ‘God is with us,’ then pass the
words on to the child next to you and tell her to pass it on.” Suddenly that
dark and cold basement became a sacred place as each child in turn whispered
around the room those powerful words, “God is with us,” “God is with us,” God
is with us.” A sense of peace and courage and confidence settled over the
group. Phyllis Martin said, “I could hear the wind outside still blowing with
such strength that it literally shook the building, but it did not seem to
matter now… Inside the fears subsided and tears faded away… When the all-clear
signal came sometime later, students and staff returned to the classrooms
without the usual jostling and talking. Through the years I have remembered
those calming words. When we are frightened, we can claim that great Christmas
promise: “God is with us”
10) “God is with us as never before”: There was a
family which was going through a painful, heart-breaking grief-experience.
Their teenage daughter had died after a long bout with leukemia. Their pastor
went to their home and they sat down together around the kitchen table, sipped
coffee, and reminisced about their daughter, Courtney. They poured our hearts
out. They cried together as they remembered painful moments. They laughed and
remembered Courtney’s incredible sense of humor through it all… and some of the
funny things she had said and done over her last few years. They prayed when
they recalled her amazing Faith, her tender love and her brave spirit. Finally,
when their pastor stood to leave, Courtney’s mom took his hands in hers, she
looked him straight in the eye and she said, “Now pastor, don’t worry about us.
We’re going to be all right. This is the toughest thing we have ever been
through… no question about that… but God is with us as never before, and He
will hold us up… and He will see us through. He has given us strength every day
throughout this ordeal.
11) “God is with us”: The great writer Max
Lucado tells about his neighbor who was trying to teach his six-year-old son
how to shoot a basketball. They were out in the backyard. The father shot a
couple of times, saying, “Do it just like that, son; it’s real easy.” The
little boy tried very hard but he couldn’t get the ball ten feet into the air.
The little fellow got more and more frustrated. Finally, after hearing his
father talk about how easy it was for the tenth time, the boy said, “It’s easy
for you up there. You don’t know how hard it is from down here.” You and I can
never say that about God. When Jesus became man and lived among us, he walked
where we walk, he suffered what we suffer, he was tempted as we are tempted. He
was Emmanuel which means “God is with us.”
12) “I hate Christmas”: I remember a lady in a
previous parish in which I served who told me how much she hated the Christmas
season. With her children grown and her husband dead, she felt as
if there were really nothing for her; Christmas, after all, is for children, at
least according to the merchants. Each year the woman became more
depressed than she had the previous December. Using her reasoning that
Christmas was for children, I asked her to be responsible for the Adopt-A-Family
Project. She met the families, discovered what they needed, and
organized the parish community for action and for giving. The month of
December became different for her. Christmas was not just for children, but for
her. She had discovered God’s presence by giving, and both the giving and
that presence continued throughout the year. On her way to becoming an
embittered woman, she had been transformed as God’s presence was made real to
her. Today’s Gospel tells us how God became Emmanuel, “God
with us” to transform us.
13) What is your Christmas gift for Jesus? When
Jesus called that Christmas week I wasn’t at my best;/ And the house was much
too cluttered to entertain a guest./ He seemed to notice everything, the card
still unaddressed,/ The gifts piled high awaiting wraps, the baking and the
rest./ He eyes fell on the evergreen and the presents ‘beneath the tree./’It’s
my birthday that you celebrate—what are you giving me?’‘/ What am I giving
Him?’ I thought; ashamed, no words I found. / So many costly things I’d bought,
He looked at me and frowned. /I prayed He’d let the question pass, but when he
did persist, / I blurted out the truth at last, ‘You were not on my list.’”
(Louise Teisberg )
14) Being just in dealing with others: The
ancient Greeks defined justice as “giving to another what is his due.” Having
given a definition for justice, they failed to render the same to their great
philosopher, Socrates. Socrates felt he had been given a Divine call to right
the wrong, enlighten the ignorant and lead people from untruth to truth. He
engaged with people in conversation on all kinds of topics -war, marriage,
morality, religion etc. He was always kind and gentle in his disposition but
delighted in exposing the quacks and the humbugs of his time. He practiced the
virtues he preached. He was falsely charged with atheism and the corruption of
youth by the Athenian people; the judge ordered that he should be put to death
by the drinking hemlock, a poison. Since his death, history has reversed the
judgment, has declared Socrates innocent, and has condemned the Athenian people
and the judge as guilty of giving an unfair and wrong judgment against
Socrates.—Time and again, we have seen in history that people have been wrongly
condemned and put to death. How are we to act justly? When we are called upon
to judge, how should we render judgment? In today’s Gospel, Joseph gives us an
example of how we can wisely pass judgment on others. Joseph ‘being a just man’
breaks the law by showing compassion. In showing compassion to Mary, he acted
as God does in His dealings with His people.
(John Rose in John’s Sunday Homilies; quoted by Fr. Botelho)
15) St. Joseph, the model of Faith: A retreat master was addressing a group of fathers. He proposed St. Joseph as a perfect model for them as the head of their families. At that, one retreatant said: “Joseph’s situation was totally different from mine. He was a saint, his wife was sinless, and his Child was the Son of God. I’m no saint, my wife is not sinless, and my child isn’t the Son of God.” Without batting an eyelid, the quick-witted Retreat master responded: “Was your wife pregnant before marriage and you didn’t know by whom? Did you son leave home for three days and you didn’t know where he was? Were you ever awakened in the middle of the night and urged to flee from the imminent threat of your innocent child’s assassination?” St. Joseph was pre-eminently a man of Faith who never doubted the reassuring promise of the Heavenly messenger: “Don’t be afraid, Joseph, to take Mary to be your wife. For it is by the Holy Spirit that she has conceived.” Joseph believed God’s word and acted on it and fulfilled the mission God had given him. We too, with His ever-present help, can do the same. (Mark Link; quoted by Fr. Botelho).
(John Rose in John’s Sunday Homilies; quoted by Fr. Botelho)
15) St. Joseph, the model of Faith: A retreat master was addressing a group of fathers. He proposed St. Joseph as a perfect model for them as the head of their families. At that, one retreatant said: “Joseph’s situation was totally different from mine. He was a saint, his wife was sinless, and his Child was the Son of God. I’m no saint, my wife is not sinless, and my child isn’t the Son of God.” Without batting an eyelid, the quick-witted Retreat master responded: “Was your wife pregnant before marriage and you didn’t know by whom? Did you son leave home for three days and you didn’t know where he was? Were you ever awakened in the middle of the night and urged to flee from the imminent threat of your innocent child’s assassination?” St. Joseph was pre-eminently a man of Faith who never doubted the reassuring promise of the Heavenly messenger: “Don’t be afraid, Joseph, to take Mary to be your wife. For it is by the Holy Spirit that she has conceived.” Joseph believed God’s word and acted on it and fulfilled the mission God had given him. We too, with His ever-present help, can do the same. (Mark Link; quoted by Fr. Botelho).
16) The impossible becomes possible with God: It
is reported that when Fred Astaire, the famous tap dancer, presented his very
first performance before the director of MGM way back in 1933, the response
was: “Can’t act! Slightly bald! Can dance a little!” Undeterred, he went on to
become one of the finest, most graceful and impressive dancers the world has
ever known. Beethoven handled the violin awkwardly and preferred to play his
own compositions instead of improving his technique. His teacher called him
hopeless as a composer. The rest, as we know, is history: Beethoven went on to
distinguish himself as a brilliant violinist and an eminent composer. Albert
Einstein did not speak until he was four years old and didn’t read until he was
seven. His teacher described him as “mentally slow, unsociable and adrift
forever in his foolish dreams.” Further, he was expelled and refused admission
into the Zurich Polytechnic School. Unaffected by this harsh and unfair
assessment he went on to become one the world’s greatest geniuses. — Fred
Astaire, Beethoven and Albert Einstein each admirably demonstrated what we have
heard in the three readings today, viz. what is impossible to man is possible
to God, and the God of wisdom, power and love is with us and in us always, even
to the end of time. The essential message of Christmas is: “The Lord Himself
will give you a sign. It is this: ‘The maiden is with child and soon will
give birth to a son whom she will call Emmanuel, a name which means
‘God-is-with-us.’” If God is for us and with us, who can be against us?
(James Valladares in Your Words, O Lord, Are Spirit, and They Are Life;
quoted by Fr. Botelho).
17) The Excitement of Arrival: In 1915, Sir
Ernest Henry Shackleton led an expedition to Antarctica which nearly ended in
tragedy. His ship was caught in ice and eventually was crushed. The crew had to
flee, taking with them what provisions they could carry. They drifted 150 miles
on an ice floe to Elephant Island, where there was an old supply hut. From
there Shackleton and a few of his men sailed 800 miles in a small boat on wild
seas to South Georgia Island. After a near tragic landing (the rudder broke
apart just as they reached a rocky shore) they made a nearly impossible
crossing of a rugged mountain range to a whaling village on the opposite shore.
Meanwhile, the men he left behind at Elephant Island had exhausted their
supplies and had nearly given up hope that the ‘boss’ – that’s what they called
Shackleton -would make it back to save them. But he did, and one can only
imagine the excitement of those beleaguered men the day they sighted
Shackleton’s rescue ship making its way through the stormy Antarctic Ocean to
Elephant Island. The ‘Boss’ had arrived, just as he said he would. -Are we
faithfully living in expectation of the Lord’s coming? Do we believe He will
come, as He said, He would? (Pulpit Resources; quoted by Fr. Botelho).
18) Preparing for the task ahead: Queen Victoria
of England, ruled over the vast British Empire for many years. When she was
eight years old, her teacher slipped a little piece of paper into a book, that
the princess was studying. The teacher had written: “Someday you will be the
Queen of England.” Little Victoria looked at those words for a long time and
mulled over them. Then she said, “I am nearer to the throne than I think. I
will try to get truly ready and will be good.” She took to heart the words of
the teacher and began to prepare herself for the great task ahead of her. Her
constant efforts enabled her to fulfill her duties and she became one of the
greatest monarchs of the British Empire. (Elias Dias in Divine Stories
for Families; quoted by Fr. Botelho).
19) Are you awake? Are you aware of God? A man
came to the Buddha and asked him, “Tell me Buddha, are you a god?” “No, I am
not god.” “Are you an angel?” “No, I am not.” “Are you a prophet?” “No, not a
prophet neither.” “What are you then?” Whereupon the Buddha answered……. “I am
awake.” -Most of us are not awake. We are always in slumber. We are not
aware of our own thoughts, feelings and actions. We function most of the time,
like automatons. The enlightened are those aware and awake. During Advent let
us be awake and get prepared for the rebirth of Jesus in our lives. (Dr.
Francis Xavier in The World’s Best Inspiring Stories; quoted by Fr. Botelho).
20) Giving him the best: The story is told
of a mother waiting for her young son to come home from boarding school for his
Christmas holidays. In her eager anticipation, on the evening before his
arrival, she had baked his favourite cake and kept it in the larder. That night
her aged father, who was staying with them, got up feeling hungry, he stumbled
down to the kitchen and was rummaging for some food. He espied the cake and
could not resist taking a slice. The next morning when the mother saw the
‘damage’ done, she scolded the old man, who very sheepishly was trying to
excuse himself, saying he only took a ‘tiny slice’. She said: “It doesn’t
matter to you does it? But it matters to me, very much indeed.” In her joyful
expectation she had poured out her love, only a matter of flour, and milk and
eggs, it would seem, but it mattered very much indeed. –The Church places Mary
as the model for waiting and preparing for the coming of the Lord. What exactly
did Mary do? By her Faith, and obedience to God she prepared a body for him,
through her self-gift. (Denis P. in All Times and Seasons Belong to Him! Quoted
by Fr. Botelho).
21) Are you the one? Yes, Jesus was “the
One who was to come.” But where can people find him today? Once, a group of
salesmen attended a sales convention. They had assured their families that they
would be home in time for dinner. But the meeting ran overtime, so they had to
run for the train. Tickets in hand, they dashed along the platform. One of them
knocked over a table supporting a basket of apples. But neither he nor any of
his companions stopped to help the young boy who staffed the apple stand. All
reached the train and boarded it with a sigh of relief. But then one of them
felt a twinge of compassion for the boy whose apple stand had been overturned.
He immediately decided to do something about it. Saying good-bye to his
companions, he returned to the scene of the accident. He was glad he had done
so. He discovered that the boy was blind. The salesman began to gather up
the apples. As he did so he noticed that some of them were bruised. He took out
his wallet and handing the boy some money he said, ‘Here, take this for the
damage we did. I hope we didn’t spoil your day.’ As he started to walk away,
the bewildered boy called after him, ‘Are you Jesus?’ Are you Jesus?” In
a sense, he was. Because he acted like Jesus. So where is Jesus to be found
today? In his disciples. Blessed are we if we do not lose Faith in Jesus. And
twice blessed are we if, like Jesus, we are able to show forth our Faith in
deeds of love and mercy. People will encounter Jesus in us. (Flor McCarthy in
Sunday and Holy Day Liturgies; quoted by Fr. Botelho).
22) Janus the Roman god with two faces: Janus,
one of the Roman gods, had two faces, which signified his ability to see both
past and future, at once. His image was posted in the doorway of Roman houses,
from which position it was thought he could protect the comings and goings of
the inhabitants. Wherever Rome was at war, the doors of Janus’ temple were left
open; in times of peace, they were closed. During his reign as emperor,
Augustus (31 B.C. – AD 14) ordered the doors to Janus’ temple to be closed
three times as evidence of the Pax Romana (Roman Peace), which
he established and enforced and which lasted for two centuries. Before his
death at age 75, Augustus had so organized Rome’s provinces and made its
extensive system of roads so safe that commercial enterprise flourished and
extended even into India and China.
When he wrote to the Christians at Rome, Paul’s letter was
safely carried from Corinth to Rome, and like the other early Christian
missionaries, his many journeys for the sake of the Gospel were made less
difficult because roadways were maintained and guarded by Roman soldiers. But
when Paul extended his traditional greetings of grace and peace (vs.
7) to the Roman Church, it was not the Pax Romana but
the Pax Christi to which be referred. Christ’s peace, which is
so much in the forefront during the seasons of Advent and Christmas, is
Christ’s gift to all of us of Himself, Incarnate, crucified and risen. His
peace is not enforced but offered to all who
will appropriate his gift in Faith. (Patricia Datchuck Sánchez).
23) Doing it my way or His way! There is a story
about King Henry III of Bavaria, who lived in the eleventh century. Apparently,
he became tired of his earthly duties and responsibilities and felt the call to
a simpler more spiritual life. He made an application to Prior Richard to enter
his monastery as a contemplative, finally free from worldly distractions to
foster his spiritual life. Prior Richard responded, “Your majesty do you
understand that one of the vows here is that of obedience? That will be
hard for you since you have been a king and are used to giving not receiving
orders.” “I understand,” Henry said, “For the rest of my life I will be
obedient to you, as Christ leads you.” “Then I will tell you what to do.” Prior
Richard responded. “Go back to your throne and serve faithfully and generously
in the place where God has put you.” In today’s Gospel we find Joseph following
God’s way in a family crisis.(Corbin Eddy in ‘Who Knows the Shape of
God?’ Quoted by Fr. Botelho).
24)Jesus’ face on the laminated birch-wood door of the
hospital’s recovery room
King Ahaz, spoken of in today’s first reading, was, in one
sense, commendable when he refused to ask God for a sign: “I will not tempt the
Lord.” It is impertinent of us to demand that the Almighty keep showing us His
divine credentials. He uses miracles with great economy. Believers are
sometimes too ready to consider this or that striking occurrence as a sign
given us by God. One such occurrence was described in April 1983, by the
Associated Press. That month, a visitor to the Walker County Medical Center in
Jasper, Alabama, noticed what looked like Jesus’ face on the laminated
birch-wood door of the hospital’s recovery room. There were two “eyes” that
appeared tear-filled, set in what looked somewhat like a Christ-face. News of
this phenomenon spread quickly, and during the following week at least 10,000 people
came to see it. Viewers had difference reactions. Some laughed nervously. Some
wept. Some prayed. One man took it as a promise that his ailing son would
recover; and the son did get well. On the other hand, certain of the hospital
employees referred to it as “the hoax.” Of course, the newspapers seized upon
the event, soliciting the opinions of local pundits. Ministers of the vicinity
asked to be given the door, if the Medical Center, obviously embarrassed by the
crowds of visitors, should remove it. A Benedictine monk of a nearby monastery
said that while Divine signs are always possible, the Catholic Church is
cautious about declaring unusual happenings miraculous. Photographs published
in the daily press suggested that the “face” was merely a natural pattern in
the laminated wood. At all events, the furor soon died down. Six months later
the press apparently considered the “apparition” no longer newsworthy. One
suspects that at Jasper Faith had yielded to credulity. This is always a
perilous thing, since credulity, once disappointed, can contribute to a loss of
true Faith. Ahaz’ real fault in refusing to ask a sign from God was that on
that occasion God wanted to give a sign. What Ahaz refused to ask, God gave
anyhow, to the King and all mankind: “The virgin shall be with child and bear a
son, and she shall name Him Emmanuel.” Father Robert F. McNamara (L/19)
