Claire Smith

Scripture:

1 John 2:18-21
John 1:1-18

Reflection:

Children, it is the final hour. -1 John 2:18a 

Those are the first words of our Scripture today.  The Church, in her wisdom, offers us this stark reminder.  Here we are, sitting on the last moments of 2021.  Tomorrow is New Year’s Day.  Aren’t we supposed to make some resolutions?  

For me, I suppose I’d begin by reflecting a bit on these 365 days – the good and the bad – the moments I’ve savored, but also those moments I really just don’t want to taste anymore.  The more I think, the more I’m reminded of all the insanity of these last months – murder, hate, disaster, and also the “Holiday Season” which is chock full of Black Friday fighting, and “I didn’t get what I want for Christmas,” and what seems like a sorrowful loathing and even anger at just anticipating family gatherings.

It really amazes and saddens me how cluttered our lives, as a society, have become with things like selfishness, consumerism, inconsiderate behavior, lack of understanding of other people, rejection, hate – the list goes on and on.  And no matter who we are, we’re all guilty of these things from time to time.  I try hard, but, friends, I can be forgetful of my calling and so often fail to live like the man God wants me to be.  There’s so much cluttering our hearts that we are just overflowing.  There’s no room for anything else.

Again, the Church, in her wisdom, reminds us also that Jesus wants to live with us… with-in us. In reading John’s words in today’s Gospel, “And the Word became flesh, and made his dwelling among us.” John 1:14 To me, it’s like a slap in the face.  “Paul, do you have room?” Is there space in the inn of my heart?  Is Jesus able to make his dwelling in me?

Thinking about that, I realize I sure have a lot of cleaning to do…  So much so, that perhaps making some resolutions would be the prudent thing.

So, then, here are my resolutions:

• • Lose Weight:  I’m going to drop the weight of hurt and hate and live the lightness of Joy.
  • Clean the House: I’m going to sweep the junk from my mind and soul and make room for love and peace.
  • Stop Smoking: I’m going to stop burning myself up and allow time to rest and pray.
  • Eat Healthier:  I’m going to feed my spirit with the healthy words of life.
  • Be A Better Person: I’m going to treat every person I meet like they are Jesus; with love and mercy.

How are you going to ready your house for God?

Dear God of new year’s, thank you for the gift of fresh beginnings.  Grant us the grace of a broom with which we can sweep away all that keeps us from recognizing and welcoming you into our hearts and lives.  And please, help us all never break our resolution to be closer to you. Amen.

Paul Puccinelli is Director of Liturgy & Music at St. Rita Parish in Sierra Madre, California, and a member of the retreat team at Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center.

Scripture:

1 John 1:5-2:2
Matthew 2:13-18

Reflection:

For the past few months, our parish has been busy resettling an Afghani family of eleven.  They are beautiful people, so happy to be in a safe place with a future that brings much hope and promise.  They have been busy transitioning into their new life in America.  There is much asked of them as they begin to learn a new language, customs and expectations. Our team of volunteers has been busy helping them to weather some of these changes. Even though they continue to be grateful for this new start in life I am sure their thoughts return time and again to those family and friends who they left behind.  Recently they were showing us news from home that included some very graphic scenes of the horrific conditions besetting their countrymen at this time.  The Herods of the world are still wreaking havoc upon innocent victims whether that be Bethlehem, Afghanistan, Syria or the many places here in our own country.  Today as we remember the Holy Innocents, we must be aware of all the innocent who suffer past and present at the hands of powerful and cruel people.

Mary, Joseph and Jesus were also a refugee family willing to make sacrifices, pull up roots and relocate to a foreign place just to give safety to their family. Three days ago we celebrated the birth of that newborn babe who was born in a lowly stable in Bethlehem.  He is that light sent from God to guide us through the darkness to new life. It is this light that brings us hope in whatever darkness that may cloud our life journey.  We are called to be people who follow that light, give thanks to our loving God, befriend the innocent and lead others to justice.

The Prince of Peace, Emmanuel, God with Us has come into the world!  Let us celebrate this good news by how we live our lives anew.  May peace reign in the hearts of all people today and in the days to come.  Amen.

Theresa Secord recently retired as a Pastoral Associate at St. Agnes Parish, Louisville, Kentucky.

Scripture:

Sirach 3:2-6, 12-14
Colossians 3:12-21
Luke 2:41-52

Reflection:

I regret the practice of discarding all things Christmas so soon after December 25, as if the journey is complete. Maybe it is because we begin celebrating the holy day six weeks or more before the feast that, by the time Christmas Day comes and goes, we’re done. Trees discarded to the curb, wreaths and stockings packed away, wrapping paper and creche stored until next year.

But for me, I cherish the days that take us from the Nativity to the Epiphany, perhaps more so in this unbelievably difficult year. These are the days that carry the most Christmas meaning precisely because the hype is over and life calms down. It’s this image of “the journey” that resonates within me. It’s a journey that can only begin with the birth of Jesus.

Certainly, Mary and Joseph making their way to Bethlehem and the journey of the wise men come to mind, but so too the journey the Holy Family will take to Egypt to seek safety. Less known—but certain nonetheless—is the journey back to the fields of the shepherds where they share their experience at the manger in Bethlehem. Some of us may recall the 1985 movie, The Fourth Wise Man, the story of another wise man whose own journey to Bethlehem is waylaid only to find Jesus, finally, in Jerusalem on the Cross.

“It’s the journey, not the destination” is a familiar saying that urges us not miss what is happening now, not to be blind to the graces in the moment. Christmas did not end yesterday; it only just began. It’s okay to put away the Christmas decorations, but maybe we can see that as preparing ourselves for our own Christmas journey in the days and year ahead. What experiences of the birth of Jesus will I share with those I encounter along the way, on my Christmas journey that begins today?

Robert Hotz is a consultant with American City Bureau, Inc. and was the Director of The Passion of Christ: The Love That Compels Campaign for Holy Cross Province.

Scripture:

Isaiah 52:7-10
Hebrews 1:1-6
John 1:1-18

Reflection:

Please enjoy this Christmas message from our Passionist Family:

Scripture:

Malachi 3:1-4, 23-24
Luke 1:57-66

Reflection:

In today’s Gospel reading, we hear the account of the birth of John the Baptist. As is the case with Jesus, which we will hear when we celebrate Christmas, there are many remarkable things that happened with John’s birth. There is the message brought to Zechariah his father in the Temple. And when Zechariah has his doubts, he is struck mute. And John’s mother, Elizabeth, was thought to be incapable of having a child, and yet here she is, giving birth to a son. And when Zechariah confirms Elizabeth’s statement that the child would be named John, his mouth is opened, and he praises God. And so the people wonder, “What, then will this child be?” As Luke writes, “For surely the hand of the Lord was with him.”

It seems that anyone associated with Jesus has some remarkable things happen to him or her. But these extraordinary things that happen with John should not blind us to the remarkable things that God has done for us in our lives. The very fact of our having life is remarkable. The birth, life, Passion and death, and Resurrection of Jesus for our salvation is a mystery that can never be fully comprehended. But as we strive this season to enter more deeply into this mystery of God’s love for us, we may ask ourselves, “What, then, am I called to be?”

Perhaps we are called, in the words of our first reading from Malachi, to “prepare the way” of the Lord. Perhaps we, like John, are called to help “turn the hearts” of parents toward their children, and the hearts of children toward their parents, and the hearts of people toward each other.

Such a remarkable thought! But, as the angel told Mary when he informed her that Elizabeth was pregnant, “nothing will be impossible for God.”

Fr. Phil Paxton, C.P., is the local superior of the Passionist Community in Birmingham, Alabama. 

Scripture:

1 Samuel 1:24-28
Luke 1:46-56

Reflection:

The Magnificat; Mary’s declaration of her love of God in response to an angel of the Lord. 

Lord it sure would be a great help if every time You had something to tell me, You would send an angel with the message.

I’ve never been good at picking up hints. My wife will tell You I’m not even good at hearing “suggestions.” It’s usually when I get slapped upside the head with a disastrous result, from something I should have or should not have done or said, that I perceive the rock catapulted my way.

But that’s on me, Lord.  I try to hear what people are saying to me and try even harder to understand what Jan is saying.  But sometimes it seems married folks, like Jan and I, need a Rosetta Stone to decipher each other’s messages). But either lack of attention or one of the indignities of old age deny me comprehension of those communications.

It’s even harder to hear and understand what You might be trying to say to me. I think if I would stop complaining, requesting help or doing all the talking in my prayers, I might hear Your voice in the silence. It seems very timely to seek Silent Nights, and in doing so, like the shepherds who attended their flocks, we too may hear a voice leading us to You.

Merry Christmas to all my Passionist brothers and sisters. A healthy and Happy New Year to those you love.

Ray Alonzo is the father of three children, grandfather of two, and husband to Jan for 45 years. He is a USN Vietnam Veteran, and a 1969 graduate of Mother of Good Counsel Passionist Prep Seminary. Ray currently serves on the Passionist Alumni Council.

Scripture:

Songs 2:8-14 or Zephaniah 3:14-18
Luke 1:39-45

Reflection:

Our first reading comes from the Song of Songs which is an allegory of God’s love for his people. In this passage the groom represents God, and we see God inviting the beloved to come and live with God in happiness. In the alternate reading from the Prophet Zephaniah proclaims rejoice for the Lord is in your midst. God has protected them from their enemies. In the gospel text, we see Mary traveling to visit Elizabeth and her unborn son rejoicing for Mary is carrying the Lord and therefore is blessed. (Adapted from Reflections on the Daily Readings; The Irish Province of the Order of Carmelites (O. Carm.) http://www.carmelites.ie/prayer.html)

There are just a few more days till Christmas. These texts remind us that God is renewing us with affirming love. Have you ever thought that God is glad because of you and me? This fills me with Advent hope. The first two texts are about living our life in union with God and about our being restored in God’s life and love. “God sings joyfully because of you” (Zephaniah 3: 18). Can we imagine that God is singing joyfully because of us? Like Jerusalem, we too have fallen short of our best self at times. Our God yearns to be one with us. God is the Great Restorer. In these final days of Advent let us take time to be mindful and if we can’t be joyful, be grateful for God’s blessings as we prepare for Christmas. Let us pray for all those persons and families affected by the recent natural disasters in the United States and around the world. (Adapted from Sr. Macrina Wiederkehr, O.S.B., Living Faith, October, November, December 2019, Saturday, December 21, 2019)

Carl Middleton is a theologian/ethicist and a member of the Passionist Family.

Image credit: ArtbyCorby— Corby Eisbacher,Kernersville, North Carolina.