3 meditations on Scripture for Dec. 25, Dec. 26, and Dec. 27 (Sunday) Holy Family

A blessed New Year to all of you. Here are three meditations on the recent
liturgical readings of Dec. 25, Dec.26 (St. Stephen), and Holy Family, Dec.
27. Please, note that I will have surgery for a right hip replacement on
Jan. 13th and may have to miss a good number of these writings. Fr. Bert
Those of you that know the Marianist Prayer called the 3 O'Clock Prayer may
pray that for a successful outcome of the surgery. I will be operated on at
3 P.M. on Jan. 13 by Dr. Michael Welker who has done such surgery for
several Marianist fellow brothers.

Christmas Day, 2009: Focus on the final Gospel reading John 1:1-18:

"And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and we have seen
his glory, the glory of the Father's only Son, full of grace and
truth." (John 1:14). This is the most profound Scriptural reference to the
Incarnation (the birth of Jesus in human flesh). The word flesh is very
earthy and brings home the reality of the birth of Christ in historical
time. This is the greatest story ever told for those who accept it and
believe that it is possible for God to love the world that God sent his
only Son, the Word of God to us through the humble maiden named Mary of
Nazareth.

Since there are four Masses connected with this celebration of Christmas
(including the Christmas Eve Mass or vigil) the last Mass which has the
prologue of John gives us the profound mystical and theological reflection
upon the Incarnation. It is a divinely inspired text that contains the
whole mystery of the Christ, the Word of God, the Son of Mary. The vigil
Mass has as its Gospel the genealogy of Matthew (1:1-25). Thus we have two
inspired readings that encase the mystery of the Son of God becoming Son of
Mary ("Son of Man") for the salvation of all. Both inspired narratives
share this mystery of Jesus pitching his tent among us as Emmanuel, that
is, God with us. We need both perspectives to experience the meaning of
Christmas. Christmas is thus a very human event and a magificent and
magnanimous divine event.

Matthew explicitly mentions the mother of Jesus in verse sixteen, while
John does this implicitly in John 1:14 and in John 1:13 in some very
ancient Latin manuscripts coming from as early as St. Irenaeus. He is the
early bishop of Lyon in France who said "The glory of God is the human
person becoming fully alive."

By taking some time during the days of Christmas we could reread the
passages for the four liturgical celebrations of the eve and Christmas Day
and enter into the spirit of the Church's liturgical prayer and worship of
the God become one with us in Jesus Christ. The other references from Luke
help us to join the lowly shepherds and the noble wisemen who find the
child Jesus with his mother. There with child and mother we are able to
"ponder over the mystery of the birth of Jesus in our hearts."

This thought from a Franciscan priest is very helpful for our pondering and
seeing the reality of this birth:
"The Japanese rarely convert to Christianity. the number of Christians in
the entire country is minuscule, less than one percent. However, when they
do convert, it is not because they are attracted to a new way of life or
something akin to a self-help program. They convert because they are
utterly amazed that "God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten
Son." Every indigenous religion with which they are familiar--Shintoism,
Buddhism, Taoism---are religious philosophies. They can all provide a more
or less satisfying Way and Truth. But only in Jesus can they find Life. For
those of us who were born into Christianity, the Japanese convert is a
reminder that we may be missing what Christianity is about, because we take
for granted: The Word was made flesh." ( Stephen C. Doyle, O.F.M., "A
Retreat with Mark", St. Anthony Press.) Amen.

Dec. 26: Feast of St. Stephen, First Martyr ( 32-35 A.D.). Scripture:
Lectionary # 696: Acts 6:8-10; 7:54-59.
Psalm 31:3-4.6.7-8.17.21. Matthew 10: 17-22.

Jesus words in today's Gospel are a perfect prediction and promise that
help us to understand why St. Stephen is a very devoted person and a
martyr. The Holy Spirit gives him the gift of inspired speech which leads
to his being stoned to death by those who could not stand hearing his
revelatory message from the Holy Scriptures that were so familiar to them.
He lived them out in the Spirit while they studied them and tried to
control their meaning.

Stephen is the first of the seven deacons who are named by the apostles to
help distribute food and provisions to the widows of the Hellenists both
Jew and Gentile and especially from the synagogue to which Stephen belonged
that of the Roman Freedman (that of the Jews from Cyrene, Alexandria,
Cilicia, and Asia)--those who spoke Greek and used the Greek translation of
their Scriptures (the Septuagint vesion). Stephen's conversion to Christ
and his devoted service as a deacon made him a leader and many listened to
him. He preached about Jesus as the fulfillment of salvation history which
he outlines from Abraham through the patriarchs down to David and his
successors. He probably was a radical prophet in the eyes of some of the
members of his group and synagogue and this earmarked him for conflict,
controversy, and eventual martyrdom.

Stephen was thoroughly under the influence of the Holy Spirt and
interpreted the Scriptures from the Spiri who guided him. His sermon was
one of the lengthiest in the Scriptures except for Jesus' Sermon on the
Mount. We are amazed to find his entire life in the seventy lines that Luke
writes sequentially about him from chapter 6:8 of the Acts to chapter 8:3
of the Acts of the Apostles. Seventy lines give us the story of Stephen and
these are what we call a prmary source for us. His last words are powerful
in forgiveness and trust in the Lord. "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And
falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Lord, do not
lay this sin against them." And with these words he fell asleep." Amen.

Sunday, Holy Family. Scripture: Lectionary # 17. Sirach 3:2-6.12-14. Psalm
128:1-5. Colossians 3:12-21. Luke 2:41-52.

We celebrate this joyful feast of the Holy Family while being mindful of
all who are parents or have been parents and are now with God. Cycle C of
the liturgy gives us the final account of Jesus childhood coming to an end
in the beautiful yet puzzling passage of the conclusion of Luke's Infancy
Narrative. It is the story of Jesus being separated from his parents on
the feast of the Passover and his remaining in the Temple area for three
days as they search for him with great sorrow. Jesus stuns them when they
find him and he says, "Why did you search for me?" His short answer is too
direct and mysterious. They did not grasp what he said to them. The story
ends with his going down to Nazareth with them and living out his youth
while growing into manhood with them.

Do we search for Jesus as intensely as they did? Are we led to ponder over
our searching and our not grasping what he is all about? Do we search for
him in our sorrows, our joys, and our dull times? Do we eventually find
him in all of these after searching as Joseph and Mary did? Or do we give
up the search and remain within our own boundaries while never risking to
take up the search again and again till we find him? It took Mary and
Joseph three days to find him. We probably need more time than that; maybe
even years before we really find the Lord Jesus.

Jesus returned with them to Nazareth where he grew into maturity both in
the sight of his neighbors and in the sight of God. He listened to his
mother and father and learned from them while progressing in wisdom and age
(his humanity) and grace (his divinity) before God and before our own eyes
as we read this Gospel.
One of the simplest and finest meditations on this mystery of the Finding
of the Child Jesus by the Holy Family is that of the highly intelligent and
holy Pope Paul VI: "How I would like to return to my childhood and attend
the simple yet profound school that is at Nazareth! How wonderful to be
close to Mary, learning again the lesson of the true meaning of life,
learning again God's truths. But here we are only on pilgrimage. Time
presses and I must set aside my desire to stay and carry on my education in
the Gospel, for that education is never finished. But I cannot leave
without recalling, briefly and in passing, some thoughts I take with me
from Nazareth." (Selection from Paul VI address of Jan. 5, 1964).