Christmas 2005: God’s Christmas Gift

Peace and blessings to everyone! I wish you all a Merry Christmas—a joyous, holy and peace-filled Christmas.

A special “Welcome Home” to children back from school, from the Service, from your homes in distant cities. Welcome back to parents, grandparents, family and friends who have over the years moved away from Cullom but have come home for the holidays. Welcome also to first-time visitors. May you experience not just the blessings of Christ’s Nativity but also the warmth and special beauty of St. John’s Church. And please enjoy the magnificent stained glass windows along the east wall of the church that so beautifully tell the Christmas story.

Back around 1987, before I ever felt a call to be a priest—or even a Catholic or a Christian, for that matter—I lived in Middletown, New Jersey, a suburb of New York City. My family and I were in the advertising agency business and we were doing very well, so we decided to do up Christmas in a really big way. My niece, Jennifer, was about 7 at the time. I remember many shopping trips to Toys-R-Us, F.A.O. Schwartz, Kay-Bee Toys and anyplace else we could think of. We bought everything we thought this little girl would like.

Christmas eve, we played Santa and started to haul out the gifts from their hiding places. We quickly filled the space under the tree… then around the tree… then throughout the living room… then up the landing into the hallway and into the parlor… then even on the stairs. There were so many presents that you could hardly walk.

Well, the next morning, Jenn came to the top of the stairs and rubbed her eyes in awe and disbelief. With great enthusiasm, she started to tear into package after package. But I’ll tell you, a 7-year-old just doesn’t have the stamina of a true gift-a-holic. After a mere three or four hours of this—and without making even a dent in the pile of loot—the poor child was in tears. I’ll never forget her cry. “Please! No more Christmas!”

That year, I learned that the expression is absolutely true that goes: you can have too much of a good thing. Before that, I always thought that more is better.

I know that you’re probably getting a lot of neat stuff for Christmas. Maybe the living room will be a disaster after all the boxes are pulled out from under the tree and ripped open. What will you get? The latest style of Levis or Calvin Kleins? Shirts from L.L. Bean or Old Navy or Abercrombie & Fitch? Maybe underwear from Universal Gear. Or maybe you’re into Ann Taylor or Victoria’s Secret—or even Carhartt. There’s a lot of great clothes we can put on our bodies.

Some of us don’t like others to buy us clothes. Maybe we get stuff for the house or garden tools or nifty new things for the kitchen. And then there are all kinds of toys and gadgets and amazing new electronics. We buy them for one another at Christmas and for ourselves the rest of the year.

But all this stuff from our family and friends aside, what did God get us for Christmas? Oh yes. He has gifts for us, too.

For starters, he gave us the gift of life itself a long time ago. I pray that we all appreciate how very precious this gift is.

He’s also given us another great gift: the promise of salvation and eternal life with him in heaven—and Lord knows, that’s a promise we should all be grateful for every single day.

And isn’t it funny? God didn’t deliver these gifts by means of a jolly old man in a furry red suit. He didn’t buy them in the mall or online. No, he sent them with a tiny infant.

That infant only had enough days on this earth for a brief ministry, but somehow, it’s lasted for a very long time—more than 2000 years so far. He is God’s beloved Son who keeps coming back, Christmas after Christmas, and sometimes in the most unlikely places and most unlikely persons.

But why a baby? God wants us to know that salvation shouldn’t be frightening or intimidating—and that it comes with a human touch. Isn’t that amazing? Just as much as God is totally God, totally divine—he’s also completely human. As human as you or me.

We can really relate to another human being. He speaks our language. He knows how we tick, so he can understand our weaknesses and even some of the really dumb things we sometimes do. And maybe best of all, he can see past all that stuff and love us, and even like us, just the same.

Thank God, our salvation doesn’t depend on our always being good—although, of course, being good is a very good thing to be. God is willing to forgive us, forget about even our worst failings, and move forward with a clean slate. All we have to do is apologize and ask. Why, God even gave us lots of simple ways to do that—like prayer, good deeds, the mass, confession, and all the other sacraments.

The gift of salvation doesn’t come in a big box with a beautiful bow, but it’s warmer than any fleece-lined, windproof, waterproof, micro-fiber jacket. It’s better than a cuddly blanket to comfort us when we’re lonely or to share with the people we love. God especially wants that. He wants us to get along and take care of each other.

This gift doesn’t come in designer colors or different sizes, but it’s the thing that gets us out of all the messes we so easily get ourselves into. One size seems to fit all… it always works… and there are not a lot of complicated instructions. No assembly required.

And perhaps best of all, the gift of salvation is freely offered to everybody—rich or poor, white or black, smart or slow, saint or sinner…

Yes, we should definitely enjoy all the blessings of Christmas—the family, the friends, the gifts given and received, the wonderful food and treats, the music and decorations, the joyful atmosphere… but it’s good to focus on what this festival day is really about. We should especially remember that we don’t need to devour one another and we don’t need to stuff our stockings so full that there’s not enough to go around.

Instead, let’s all do our best to spread the word that the greatest gifts of Christmas are free for the asking. Just ask and receive. No payments, no interest, no bills next month.

Dearest friends, may our newborn King truly bless you and fill you with his peace, his joy and his love on Christmas and always.

Christmas Laughter

+ THE FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT
Today’s Readings: 2 Sam. 7: 1–16; Ps. 89; Rom. 16: 25–27; Lk. 1: 26–38


Christmas is now just a week away! We’ve got snow outside. The lights and decorations uptown… on homes… in stores… are twinkling and festive. People all over are wishing each other a “Merry Christmas!” And now I want to make sure that you get into the Christmas spirit. Laugh and be merry!

Don’t be afraid to laugh — even at stupid things, unimportant little things. Real laughter — the kind that makes you double over and slap your thigh… the kind that brings tears to your eyes… the laughter that goes along with the very funniest jokes… this is the kind of laughter that’s an important part of being human. My dog, Maggie, is very clever, but she doesn’t laugh. Only people laugh. And the kind of laughter I’m talking about is childish and child-like — definitely not reserved or dignified or even necessarily polite.

Did you ever wonder if God laughs and enjoys himself? Does a parent laugh at the antics of his small children? You better believe it! Art Linkletter made a living out of it! So did Bill Cosby.

I know that God laughs. His laughter is care-free, confident, unrestrained — no holding back. The Lord has got to laugh over the lunacy of the world, because he knows the joyful truth. Oh yes, God definitely laughs.

I think Mary must have laughed when the Archangel got done with her. Can you imagine hearing such news? I don’t care how holy you are — to find out that God has chosen you to be the Mother of the Messiah is beyond comprehension. It’s funny. In fact, it’s a riot.

I think she must have laughed the same laughter that Abraham’s wife, Sarah, laughed on hearing that she was supposedly pregnant and expecting a bambino in her 90s.

But just remember: Who had the last laugh? — Yep, God himself… because he actually made it happen! Just the way he can actually make all good things happen to us, his precious children.

Let’s just recap what we learn from Mary today.

After Gabriel asked her if she’d be willing to be the Mother of the Christ, she answered with a prayer: “May it be done to me according to your word.”

That’s all it took to set everything else in motion.

The Holy Spirit came upon Mary… she became pregnant by the miracle of the same Spirit… she became the Mother of God… she was in danger of being divorced by her husband, Joseph… she was in danger of being stoned or strangled to death as punishment for adultery… she had her baby in a stable… she would suffer so many sorrows and even witness her Son’s execution by crucifixion… she was taken to heaven to be queen of heaven and earth.

And along the way, despite the sorrows, she had lots of happiness, too, and I have no doubt that she had many joyful laughs.

Stop for a minute and think of your own reaction when things don’t go as planned. It could be something relatively minor like getting a flat tire or getting stuck in heavy traffic or not getting the check in the mail on the day you expected it. Or it could be something major like losing a loved one or being diagnosed with a serious disease. How do you deal with that?

When Mary found herself pregnant and not quite married, she could have wept and shouted and begged God for pity. Instead, she glorified God. Joseph could have cast her aside and avoided a scandal — and everyone in his community would have backed him up — but instead, he listened to God’s voice. The scorn took care of itself but in his life, the blessings just blossomed and multiplied.

Before Christmas rolls around in just a few days, we should take a lesson from the Blessed Mother — and Joseph, too.

First and foremost, we should pray like Mary did: “May it be done to me according to your word.”

If we pray sincerely and with absolute trust in God’s great love for us, we have absolutely nothing to worry about — and here’s what will happen.

We’ll come to repent of our sins and forgive those who have sinned against us. We’ll meet Christ in a deep and personal way this Christmas. Our lives will change. We’ll tell people about Jesus and his love. And yes, we will probably be persecuted, too, since that’s often a part of the price of really loving Jesus! But we’ll also be awed by Christ’s amazing love and surprised by his works. In fact, we’ll willingly become servants — even slaves — of Christ.

And maybe best of all, we’ll laugh and be joyous and truly merry.

Over the next week, I urge you to really look for opportunities to be happy and laugh. Pray that you can love Jesus as Mary does — with a light and trusting heart. And pray that you won’t throw out the laughter and joy when it comes time to throw out the Christmas tree.

O come, most wonderful Savior. Touch us with your blessing and your most magnificent joy... at Christmas and always. Amen!

December 4, 2005: Relaxing Your Jaw

+ THE SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT
Today’s Readings: Isa. 40: 1–5 and 9–11; Ps. 85; 2 Pet. 3: 8–14; Mk. 1: 1–8


At the end of the main news section of the Pantagraph, there’s a little feature called “Grab Bag.” Maybe you’ve seen it. It’s a short column with several one- or two-line snippets of oddball facts on all kinds of different subjects.

Not too long ago, the column had an item that caught my eye. It read: “Those who claim to know all about stress say that you can’t be keyed up if you relax your jaw.”

I didn’t know that — but it seems to make sense.

As a priest, I often get to deal with people with stressed-out jaws. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you the heavy burdens and problems our good people are carrying around. There are health issues, money issues, relationship issues, problems with children, problems with parents, legal issues… and I think one of the biggest categories is simply psychological problems — people who are depressed or emotionally raw, whatever the reason. Life is hard. It’s very stressful.

And if you could walk in a priest’s shoes for a few days and listen to the stories — your stories — it would break your heart.

So, some newspaper feature editor points out that you can’t be stressed if your jaw is relaxed. I wondered if there might be a spiritual counterpart to that little factoid.

I started to turn it over in my mind: you can’t be at peace if you are: worried sick about something… jealous of what other people have got that you don’t… angry and looking for payback… scared… trapped in sin or addiction… caught up in an abusive situation… All of these things set our “spiritual jaw” very tight and tense.

How do you go about fixing that problem?

In the gospel today, the opening lines from St. Mark, we meet John the Baptist out at the River Jordan. Look at him! Dressed in some itchy garment woven out of camel’s hair, cinched up with a leather belt. John isn’t a fashion plate by our standards or by the standards of his own time.

And his food! No pizza delivery for him. He fed on locusts and wild honey.

These details about his clothing and food are interesting because they show that John didn’t really care very much about how he looked or what he ate. His focus was on his mission.

He’s kind of like an absent-minded professor who goes around with mismatched outfits and eyeglasses with duct tape wrapped around the bridge, because that stuff doesn’t matter to him. He’s interested only in his work. Everything else seems to take care of itself.

Can you picture yourself living like that at all? Well, you should!

When I moved to the state of Maine in the mid-1970’s, I came from Washington, D.C. I was a lawyer who wore fancy shoes and elegant wool suits. I remember visiting the home of some friends who had dogs — fuzzy dogs — fuzzy dogs with long, white hair — fuzzy dogs with long, white hair that shed. Every time I sat down I would be forever picking off hairs and brushing myself off. Finally, Joan — who later became my godmother — said to me, “You know, Jeffrey, you’re going to have to choose between your fancy suits and just enjoying your life.” I happily dumped the Brooks Brothers clothing. I liked playing with the dogs better. You might say that my jaw started to relax. And look at me today! I dress in black and live next door with Maggie — a big fuzzy dog with long black and white fur that sheds like crazy. So please forgive me if you see hairs on me!

We are blessed in the Church to be in the midst of the sacred season of Advent. It’s easy to get jammed up with the pressures of Christmas — shopping that has to be done, papers or exams that have to be written, deadlines at work that have to be met, bonuses that may or may not come, spouses who may or may not be sober, a loved one who may or may not live through the holidays, bills that are coming due but we may or may not have the money to pay…

Wow. Some spiritual time.

What would John the Baptist do? He’d preach repentance and baptize.

Focused.

Do you want peace? Then you have to focus, too.

Advent, our wise Church promises us, is a time of joyful expectation and hopefulness. Jesus, the long-awaited Messiah is coming into the world to usher in a kingdom of profound peace. The wolf and the lamb will lie down together.

How do you tap into that peace — right now? Focus.

Trust in Jesus and His promises. Believe him when he says that he is watching over you and won’t let you fall into the pit. Give him your troubles and let him worry about them. You stay focused. Pray. How much should you pray? A lot more than you’re doing now. There’s a whole spiritual arsenal out there that can help you to relax your jaw if you’re willing to step out in faith.

Perhaps — just perhaps — this is a voice of one crying out in the desert.

Would you have been one of the ones who stopped to be baptized by John… or would you have kept on walking?

Dear children in the Lord, you’ve got to make the same decision today. Amen.