Claire Smith

Scripture:

1 John 1:1-4
John 20:1a, 2-8

Reflection:

This is such an incredibly difficult gospel to read. Anyone who has parented a child can relate to the painful reality of the violence committed upon these children. According to the Catholic News Agency, the Greek Liturgy asserts that Herod killed 14,000 boys, the Syrians speak of 64,000, and many medieval authors speak of 144,000, according to Rev. 14:3. However, Bethlehem was a rather small town, so 144,000 is an unlikely number. But, no matter the number, these children are venerated by the Church as the first martyrs.  Instead of joy at the birth of their savior, many families lost a precious child.

Can you imagine the evil Herod fearing his own loss of power so much that he would even conceive of such an atrocity? He clearly did not know the power of the true God.  He was never going to rejoice at the birth of the Christ.  He couldn’t take a chance of being replaced by a better king.  Jesus came, even to save Herod.

And yet, the suffering of these babes, the bloodshed, is yet another reminder to us of Christ’s saving body and blood shed for us. The Holy Innocents died for Christ so that He could die for us – we could say that the innocents died instead of Christ; that was Herod’s intent, to kill all of the boys under two years of age to be certain that the Jewish King, Jesus, would be among them. 

I can imagine Christ surrounded in a warm welcome at his Resurrection by all the Holy Innocents who died instead of Him, so he could save the world then return to the loving arms of the Father.

Let us all be truly filled with joy at this time, for we know a Father who loves us so much that later he would let his own perfect and sinless son die for all of us sinful and imperfect humans.  It is his coming that we celebrate.  A promise made by God through the Prophet Isaiah 700 years before Jesus’ birth.  We have a loving God who keeps his promises – Rejoice!

Patty Masson supports the Passionists from Spring, Texas.

Feast of St. Stephen, The First Martyr

Scripture:

Acts 6:8-10; 7:54-59
Matthew 10:17-22

Reflection:

The beauty of this Christmas season is all around us. Festive lights, family gatherings, wrapped presents, and sumptuous foods work together to tell us that there is something very special about this time of year. All the while enjoying what this holiday offers us, let it should not obscure the reason for the coming of the Son of God, born of Mary in the small, out-of-the-way town of Bethlehem.

Jesus was born into a broken world, a world like our own, to bring badly needed hope, healing, and reconciliation. That discord remains all around us and shows up in the oddest of places. Why are we so frustrated with each other? Why do we have to make rude comments on social media? Why can’t we have charitable disagreements about public policies?

Today’s Feast of St. Stephen can put a damper on the nostalgic, even romanticized, stories of yesterday with heralding angels and shepherds in their fields. In today’s selection from Acts of the Apostles, religious leaders “were infuriated, and they ground their teeth” at Stephen when, filled with the Holy Spirit, he proclaimed the Word of God. “But they cried out in a loud voice, covered their ears, and rushed upon him together. They threw him out of the city and began to stone him.”

Too often we “are infuriated and grind our teeth” when the Gospel enjoins us to feed the hungry, welcome the stranger, and visit the imprisoned. Did Jesus really mean it when he said, “I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you”?

In these days that follow Christmas Day, maybe we can imagine being like the wise men following a star. These magi, coming from different places and who traditionally look quite different from one another, are pilgrims making their way to Bethlehem. There they converge on the source of our hope and peace. Coming upon a child in a manger, how do you not experience unconditional love at that moment? Let’s try to experience—and remember—that moment 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.

The Nativity of the Lord

Scripture:

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

Reflection:

Let Us Dream

I have a hunch that the Wise Men would have liked Pope Francis.

Nowhere in the Bible does it say that the Three were kings. No, they were astrologers — magi or magicians. But Matthew gives them lots of coverage, especially since Matthew was writing to the Jewish community, and the Three Wise Men were outsiders. But they had the courage to follow their star, and they became models of faith for us. Artists and musicians and writers need not romanticize the story; we learn from the stranger.

Each generation supposes it is unique in its experience. With the number of folks drifting from regular worship, the polarization in politics, and divisions in the Church, our democracy in jeopardy, and commentators writing often about our “post-truth” culture, it is easy to succumb to playing the “ain’t it awful” game when we gather with family, friends, or colleagues for the holidays. Too often we feel we are walking on eggshells, and hesitant to express our opinion about anything, lest we offend someone.

But Pope Francis often invites us to imagine, to dream. Maybe this Christmas we can see with new eyes. The Synod on Synodality helps us ponder that provocative passage from Isaiah 54:2: “Enlarge the space for your tent.”  The Magi found the Christ because they were willing to go deeper, to listen, to follow their dream.

The mystery of Christmas isn’t only about a baby in a manger. What happened long ago happens here and now. God is crashing into our lives, ever new. Emmanuel, God-with-us. If only we could imagine.

Fr. Jack Conley, CP, is the local superior of St. Vincent Strambi Community in Chicago, Illinois.

Fourth Sunday of Advent
Christmas Eve

Scripture:

2 Samuel 7:1-5, 8b-12, 14a, 16
Romans 16:25-27
Luke 1:26-38

Reflection:

Wernher von Braun played a prominent role in all aspects of rocketry and space exploration.  He was a key scientist in getting us to the moon.   He was once asked do you believe in God? He said: “Yes I certainly believe in God, but I will tell you He is a lot bigger than we thought!”

The space explorers confirm our age-old faith in the All-Powerful God, the Pantocrator of the Bible.  Telescopes have shown us billions of Galaxies.   Our galaxy, the Milky Way, takes our sun and our planets at a speed of around 448,000 mph 230 million years to get around it one time!  How unimaginably huge and powerful is our God Who created all this with a word!

Christmas celebrates the miracle of miracles of this great God’s embracing humanity by becoming human without losing His Divinity!   This wonderful mighty God now has a human face and a kind human heart that we can approach without fear. 

Pope Francis beautifully said: “This is the gift we find at Christmas.  We discover to our amazement that the Lord is absolute gratuity, absolute tender love!  His glory does not overwhelm us: His presence does not terrify us.  He is born in utter poverty to win our hearts by the wealth of His love!”  Jesus loved to remind us that He is not only God’s Son but also the “Son of Man”.  He said this 81 times in the Gospels!

Pope Benedict XV1 of blessed memory shares his reflection on Christmas:  “God is so great so that He can become so small.  God is so powerful that He can make Himself so vulnerable and come to us as a defenseless child so that we can love Him. God is so good that he can give up his divine splendor, and come down in a stable so that we might find Him, so that his goodness may touch us, and give itself to us and continue to work through us.”

Mary carried this tiny precious Divine and Human Being with “a love beyond all telling”!   Oh that we could receive this gift of all gifts, Jesus, like His mother! “He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”  John 1:11f

Christmas is the wonderful beginning of a new friendship with Jesus.  It is our yes to His invitation: Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Mt 11:29

Fr. Bob Weiss, C.P. preaches Parish Missions and is a member of the Passionist Community in Louisville, Kentucky.

Scripture:

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

Reflection:

In our Gospel reading, as we near the holy day of Christmas, we hear about the birth of John the Baptist. Just as it is with the birth of Jesus, the birth of John the Baptist was associated with remarkable events: The appearance of the angel Gabriel to Zechariah, who was made mute after having doubts that he and Elizabeth could have a child; the fact that Elizabeth had conceived in her old age, even though she was considered barren; the fact that when John was to be named, when Zechariah affirmed Elizabeth’s statement that he was to be named John, at that moment he was able to speak and gave praises to God. All these things told the people who knew Zechariah and Elizabeth that something special was planned for this baby: “What, then, will this child be?”

What spoke to me was the commotion around naming the baby John. The other people who were at the circumcision were ready to name him Zechariah after his father, but Elizabeth told them that he would be named John. They pointed out to her that there was no relative with that name. That’s when they asked Zechariah about it, and since he couldn’t speak, he wrote on a tablet, “John is his name.”

The name “John” was a break from the past, and this might have been an indication of what John would be called to do. John was a continuation of all the prophets who foretold that the Messiah would come. But at the same time, he was the one who was preparing the people for the Messiah’s actual coming.

Like John, we have been called by name. Like John, we are called to point people towards Jesus. There might not have been extraordinary events surrounding our birth, but what Luke wrote about John is true for us: “For surely the hand of the Lord was with him.” Surely the hand of the Lord is with us. May we accept our call and herald the reality of God’s love in Jesus Christ, on the holy day of Christmas and throughout our lives.

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