Christmas Drama: Prologue

                                  

                                    

Chartres: The Visitation

Today is the last Sunday in Advent. Christmas is just around the corner. We can sense it in today’s first reading from the prophet Micah that sets the stage, so to speak, for the drama or play to come. The setting is Bethlehem, the little town outside of Jerusalem. We all know the lovely carol, “O Little Town of Bethlehem.” Here are Micah’s words:

You, Bethlehem—Ephrathah

Too small to be among the clans of Judah,

From you shall come forth for meOne who is to be ruler in Israel… 

So, Bethlehem, the insignificant little town, will be the stage on which the drama is played.

Today’s gospel account of the Virgin Mary’s visit to her elder kinswoman, Elizabeth, does remind biblical commentators of a dramatic presentation, a sacred musical. One scholar calls the infancy account “a play consisting of two main parts…the annunciation scenes and the birth scenes.” The plural “scenes” is used because St. Luke’s account contrasts the story of the birth of John the Baptist with that of Jesus.

The first chapter of St. Luke’s gospel begins with the annunciation of John the Baptist, which by no coincidence was actually yesterday’s gospel account. It begins with the introduction of the first set of players. Elizabeth and her husband, the priest Zachary, are introduced and we are told that their marriage has not been blessed with children. After this introduction an angel appears to Zachary while he is offering sacrifice in the Temple. Zachary expresses anxiety and is told not to be afraid. The angel announces that his wife, Elizabeth, will indeed bear a son but Zachary responds with a doubtful question. “How shall I know this?” Seeing Zachary’s doubt, the angel then introduces himself as Gabriel and reprimands him. “Behold thou shalt be dumb.” From that point Zachary cannot speak and departs from the Temple sanctuary. Elizabeth does become pregnant and six months later the same angel appears to Mary, a Virgin.

The annunciation to Mary follows a similar pattern. This time the stage is Nazareth, a town of Galilee, where the players are Joseph and his fiancée, Mary. We are introduced to them and given a little background. Then, the angel appears to Mary and she too expresses anxiety. Gabriel tells her also not to fear and this time sees acceptance of God’s will and not doubt. It is true that Mary also asks a question, “How shall this happen, since I do not know man?” Gabriel explains that the Spirit of God will come upon her and tells her about Elizabeth’s pregnancy. Rather than being struck speechless, Mary responds with those famous words, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done unto me according to thy word.”

Then the angel leaves her and St. Luke tells us that the next thing Mary does is to go immediately to visit Elizabeth who is already six months pregnant. This famous meeting, which we call the Visitation, is described in today’s gospel.

What can we say about this scene, one of the most beautiful in the sacred drama? Once again St. Luke introduces the characters. Even though, like Bethlehem, they might be considered small and insignificant, the Spirit of God is upon them. Even their names are significant. Mary or Miriam means “the exalted one,” and Elizabeth means, “God swears or promises.” The greeting by Elizabeth is the basis of the “hail, Mary.”

            Blessed art thou among women,

            And Blessed is the fruit of thy womb!

Then, St. Luke brings John the Baptist onto the scene, still in his mother’s womb. Elizabeth notes that her unborn child “leapt for joy” at the approach of Mary and her Son.

It is interesting that whenever great painters portray John the Baptist, he is usually shown pointing to Jesus. Even when John is an infant he is directing the viewer’s attention to Jesus, reminding us to “Behold the Lamb of God.”

In a few days we will witness the climax of this sacred drama, the birth of our Lord. What is the moral of the story? What lesson can we learn? It is usually the second reading each Sunday that gives us such instruction. When we read the Letter to the Hebrews, we should recognize that it is not just directed to the Hebrews but to all of us. What do the following words mean?

When Christ came into the world, he said:

“Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,

but a body you prepared for me;

in holocausts and sin offerings you took no delight.

The Letter is not just talking about ancient sacrificial practices. Maybe we should consider the gifts we give and receive each Christmas as modern day sacrifices and offerings. Don’t misunderstand. Who doesn’t love the giving and receiving of gifts at Christmas? But we should realize that even the smallest most insignificant gift is priceless if it expresses our love. Maybe little Charley Brown had it right: 

                        Christmas time is here.

                        happiness and cheer,

                        fun for all that children

                        call their favorite time of year.

                        Snowflakes in the air,

                        carols everywhere,

                        olden times and ancient rhymes

                        and love and dreams to share.

                        Sleigh bells in the air,

                        beauty everywhere,

                        yuletide by the fireside

                        and joyful memories there.

                        Christmas time is here;

                        we'll be drawing near;

                        oh that we could always see

                        such spirit through the year,

                        such spirit through the year.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Reading 1. Micah 5: 1-4a

Reading II. Hebrews 10: 5-10

Gospel. Luke 1: 39-45 (Mary set out…)

Gaudete Sunday in Connecticut

                                                              

At Mass today the priest prefaced his homily with some remarks about the terrible shooting of 20 kindergarten children and six teachers in Newtown, Connecticut this past Friday. He related a story from  Rudy Giuliani during his tenure as mayor of New York City.

A few weeks before the terrible World Trade Center  tragedy of Sept. 11, 2001, the Mayor attended the wake of a young firefighter who had died of a heart attack during a fire. At the wake he discovered that the firefighter's mother had recently lost both her father and her husband. At the same time her daughter was scheduled to be married in a few weeks. Friends and relatives were urging that the wedding be postponed in light of all this suffering.

The mother, however, insisted that it go on. She explained  that life brings tragedy and joy to us all, and that she would handle the tragedy but that it would not prevent her from celebrating the joy and beauty of her daughter's wedding. The wedding went on a few weeks after 911 and the Mayor took time out from his awful duties to escort the bride down the aisle.

In his spirit I will go ahead and post this little reflection on Gaudete Sunday. 

In earlier times the third Sunday in Advent was known as "Gaudete Sunday" because the entrance prayer or "Introit" began with the Latin words, "gaudete in domino semper." Translated the phrase means "rejoice in the Lord always." Today, as it has always done, the Church injects an element of joy into the penitential season of Advent. In many churches the priest will put aside the purple vestments which signify sorrow and penance, and put on rose colored vestments, a symbol of joy. The Church is asking us to look ahead to the glory of the coming of the Savior on Christmas.

In this liturgical year the first reading for each of the Sundays in Advent is taken from a different Hebrew prophet. Two weeks ago it was Isaiah and last week it was the somewhat lesser known Baruch. Today, the reading is from the prophet Zephaniah. It is common for us to think of a prophet as someone who foretells the future but usually the Hebrew prophets just talk about their own time, especially its problems. No prophet deals with problems more than Zephaniah but in today’s reading he sings a different song.

            Shout for joy, O daughter Zion!

Sing joyfully, O Israel!

Be glad and exult with all your heart,

O daughter Jerusalem!

Despite all their problems, there is reason for this joy. “The Lord is in your midst,” he says. He repeats it again, “The Lord is in your midst.” Zephaniah was speaking to the ancient Hebrews, but his words are also meant for us. If only we could realize that the Lord is in our midst.

In today’s gospel, John the Baptist, the last of the Hebrew prophets is trying to convince the people of his time that the Lord is coming into their midst. He says,

            I am baptizing you with water,

But one mightier than I is coming.

I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals.

He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

The crowds ask John what they should do to prepare for his coming. His words could profit all of us this Advent. We could begin by sharing with those who have less than we do, especially in these economic hard times. John’s advice for preparation is not radical or impossible. He does not recommend that we give up everything; just that we share. 

Consider the two groups who approach John in today’s reading. Tax collectors and soldiers, better to say policemen, were two of the most hated groups in Israel. Both were regarded as agents of the hated Roman conquerors. The tax collectors were notorious for gouging the people, and the police were noted for bullying and extortion. John doesn’t say that their occupations are sinful or ignoble. He doesn’t tell them to give up their careers. He only tells them to act with honesty and justice.

This last year has been an especially bad one for the rich and famous in our society. How could so many politicians, entertainers, athletes, and other celebrities who had worked so hard to get to the top of their respective professions mess up so miserably? Could it be that the success they sought was not that fulfilling? Could it be that the possessions they acquired did not make them really happy or joyful? Maybe they just thought that their success was due to their efforts alone, and that they failed to see the God in their midst.

We shouldn’t gloat when we hear their stories. Just because we fly under the media radar doesn’t mean that we can’t be self-satisfied. Most of us have homes that would be palaces to most of the world’s people. We have cars for each member of our family, not to mention TVs, cell phones, and computers. Still, it never seems to be enough.

Here we are only two weeks before Christmas. What are we looking for this season? What do we want for ourselves and our loved ones this Christmas? Why are we going out to the malls and the shopping centers? Aren't we all trying to find happiness? Aren't we all trying to cast away fear and darkness and bring some joy and light into our lives? Look at the way we light up our houses, look at the music we hear coming over the radio.

I've just read an article by a man who is a well known lecturer, TV personality, and author. He has a beautiful wife and son and is extremely successful. Yet he wrote, "I am almost 60. Time flies and it scares me. I don't want to die. I like being in good health. I don't want to be sick and have wires and tubes and scalpels in me. I like having enough money. I don't want to be old and poor. I sat in my car...shivering in fear. And then it struck me. I spend too darned much of my life in fear. I always have. You can't imagine how much of my life I have thrown away by being a slave to fear."

In today's second reading from St. Paul's letter to the Philippians he echoes the words of the prophet Zephaniah and urges his friends to “rejoice in the Lord always.” We should realize that “the Lord is near,” and that fear and anxiety are not the answer.

Have no anxiety at all, but in everything,

By prayer and petition, with thanksgiving,

Make your requests known to God.

No one is saying that we should give up our jobs and our homes but if we can only recognize that all we have comes form the Lord,

            Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding

Will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. 

Reading 1. Zephaniah 3: 14-18a

Reading II. Philippians 4: 4-7

Gospel. Luke 3:10-18 (one mightier than I).

The Immaculate Conception

Immaculate Conception Window
Assumption Parish
Fairfield CT*

On December 8, 1854, Pope Pius IX promulgated the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Pope did not declare this doctrine out of the blue. It was promulgated only after years of study on his own part and on the part of learned scholars; centuries of debate among some of the greatest theologians in the Church; and almost a millennium of popular devotion to Mary on the part of the Church faithful.

Although immediately accepted by the faithful, the doctrine was a source of controversy in the time of Pius IX and today remains an obstacle to ecumenical efforts. Before we can discuss the doctrine and its meaning we have to clear up a basic misconception. The Immaculate Conception does not refer to either the conception of Jesus in Mary's womb or the subsequent birth and delivery of Jesus. In other words, it should not be confused with the virgin birth. Nor does it refer to Mary's own birth. She herself was begotten like any other child. Simply, the doctrine affirms the preservation or freedom of Mary from original sin from the first moment of her conception.

To understand the meaning of the doctrine we have to examine the concept of original sin even though in our time the notion of sin, especially original sin, has fallen into disfavor. Today the only sin our culture seems to recognize is smoking. Concurrently, the very notion of evil has fallen into disfavor. Until the September 11, 2001 tragedy the only people we were likely to recognize as evil were Nazis or people who behaved like Nazis. For our purposes then let us use the word imperfect rather than sin or evil. Instead of calling ourselves sinful or evil, let's just think of ourselves as imperfect.

To say that we have not been preserved from original sin means that all of us are merely imperfect--something few of us would deny. Where did this notion come from? Theologians and philosophers throughout history have tried to deal with humankind's imperfection. Some have called it the problem of evil. You can pick up a newspaper on any given day and never fail to be shocked by the evil in the world. War, terrorism, murder, rape, sexual abuse, theft of all kinds, lying and deceit on every level of society, all confront us daily. Where does it come from? Who or what is responsible for the world's imperfection or evil?

It is safe to say that in the Judeo-Christian tradition the origins of evil were to be found in each of us. As Shakespeare said, the fault lies in us, not in our stars. In this tradition it is clearly understood that there is something wrong with our nature. Although created in a state of perfection or good (another word for perfect is good), mankind has fallen into a state of imperfection.

In the story of Adam and Eve we find an attempt to explain the problem of evil. God is good; God is perfect; and His creation had to be good. It had to be perfect. Yet, when the biblical authors composed the Book of Genesis they lived in a world as full of evil and imperfection as ours. And so we have the story of the temptation and fall of our first parents to explain how we have all inherited a fundamental flaw, a kind of genetic defect. It had to come from our first parents because it is observable in all of us.

Long before Sigmund Freud wrote of the "ego" and the "id" and the psychic warfare that goes on in all of us, biblical authors like St. Paul and St. James alluded to this "psychomachia" and called it the source of all evil. What are the effects of this psychic or spiritual warfare? Basically, we have a divided nature--we lack integrity in the true sense of the word. We have knowledge of both good and evil. We can admire Mother Teresa but at the same time know that we are capable of understanding and committing the worst crimes that we read of in the newspapers. There but for the grace of God go we!

What is the cure for our imperfection? How can we attain perfection? As the song says, "We've got to be taught.” We've got to be taught not to hate and fear but to love and trust. Our first teachers are our mothers and fathers; then our extended families; then our customs and traditions, chief of which is our religion with its guidelines or warnings

which we often mistake for rules and regulations; and then our governments and their laws that are supposed to keep us at peace with one another. This is why these institutions are so important and why when they become corrupted or perverted there is literally "hell to pay." Jesus always called himself teacher and promised that if we would follow Him, peace would be with us.

A few hundred years ago this Judeo-Christian tradition of original sin came under serious attack during the period known as the "Enlightenment" that immediately preceded the French Revolution. Philosophers during that period came to believe that human nature was perfect, that man had begun as a kind of "noble savage" who had become corrupted by human social institutions.

For the intellectuals and the revolutionaries who followed the teachings of the Enlightenment the source of evil was not in man but in institutions like motherhood, fatherhood, the family, religion, government, and the rule of law. In particular, they singled out the Catholic Church with its sacramental system, especially the Sacrifice of the Mass. They sought to destroy these institutions and build a new perfect society which they believed would be based on reason rather than on custom, superstition, and ignorance. Despite over two hundred years of horror and bloodshed these "enlightened" ideas live on today, and those institutions that are the sole protector and defender of mankind are still under attack by those who cannot accept the idea of original sin.

Ironically, those who do not believe in original sin unwittingly believe that they and the rest of mankind must have been conceived immaculate. The only person that they will not allow to have been immaculately conceived is Mary. On the other hand, for those who do believe in original sin and accept its corollary, the need to attain perfection or redemption, Mary is the Immaculate Conception.

If we view Mary in this way then her role takes on new meaning. The Church has always regarded her as the new Eve free from the knowledge of evil. We believe that through God's grace she was created without that fatal division in her being. She had integrity and she knew inner peace not war. This is why the angel at the Annunciation called her full of grace. This is why her assent at the Annunciation was so meaningful. She who through her nature could know no pain or suffering was asked to experience all the pain and suffering that a mother could know. At the Presentation Simeon said to her that this day "your soul a sword shall pierce." Since we've also forgotten the meaning of the word "soul" today, modern translations say that her "whole being" would be severed. Imagine a person created without flaw or imperfection living among us.

      In the Gospels the Apostles represent us with all of our faults and failings. Some were silly, some were vain, some doubted and disbelieved, and even St. Peter denied the Lord three times. They were what we are. When the Church proclaimed the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception, however, it was saying that Mary is what we once were and could be again through the grace of her Son, Jesus. ###

**Image by Melissa DeStefano.

Advent Adventure

                                                                    

A few years ago three films based on J.R.R. Tolkien's epic story, "The Lord of the Rings," enjoyed enormous critical and popular success. Issued in three successive years around Christmas time, they were a box office smash. The third in the series, entitled, "The Return of the King," won the Academy award for "Best Picture." Most of us know by now that both the three volume book and the films tell the story of a great journey or adventure undertaken by a group of men, elves, dwarves, and the now famous hobbits.

The adventure begins however in a smaller book of Tolkien's called "The Hobbit." In that book this particular hobbit is woken out of a quiet peaceful afternoon nap by a violent knocking on his door. To his amazement he is told that he must rouse himself out of his comfort and complacency and embark on a dangerous adventure whose end is far from certain. In the course of the adventure he will find that there is more to life than he ever dreamed, and that there is more to himself than he ever dreamed.

Isn't it odd that the word "advent" is contained in the word, "adventure"? Advent is not just a time of preparation for Christmas, it is a time for all of us to consider how far we have progressed on the great adventure of life. Let's consider the first reading for the first Sunday of Advent in the C cycle. It is from  the Prophet Jeremiah:

            The days are coming, says the Lord,

            When I will fulfill the promise

            I made to the house of Israel and Judah.

The prophet is speaking about a new age when everything will be different. .

This is the reason why Advent, the season which marks the beginning of the Church year, has traditionally begun with readings reminding us of the end of the world. In today's gospel from St. Luke, Jesus refers to the calamities that will occur at the passing of the old world. Nevertheless, he tells us not to fear but to stand erect and raise our heads for our redemption is at hand. Our Lord's advice whether it be the end of the whole world or just the end of our own little world is the same. "Be  vigilant at all times." When the time comes, we should be ready to face it. In particular, we should

            Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy,

            From corousing and drunkenness

            And the anxieties of daily life...

Advent has always been regarded as a season of preparation. Why is it that we prepare for everything in life but often fail to prepare for the most important thing in life? What football team would go into the weekend's big game without practicing all week? What will they practice? Why, the very same formations and plays that they expect to use when they are put to the test. During the week they will also be in the weight room preparing their bodies for the blows to come. On game day they will put on their protective gear or armor. Only a fool would go into such combat improperly equipped.

In business it's much the same thing. Salesmen practice their presentations before facing their customers. They learn how to anticipate and overcome every objection. In politics look how even the presidential candidates go through rigorous prepping and role play before debating their opponents.

How should we prepare for life's great adventure? Let's see if we can come up with a list of things to do this Advent season they will help us on our way. First, let's take St. Paul's advice.

            Increase and abound in love,

            For one another and for all…,

            So as to strengthen your hearts, 

            To be blameless in holiness….

We can all think of ways to "throw off the works of darkness," but St. Paul also urges us to "put on the armor of light." There is no better way to do so this season than by increasing our attendance at Mass. Certainly, in this season when we should all be looking forward to the coming of Christ, he comes to us in each and every Mass. Besides  Sunday Mass we will celebrate the great feast of the Immaculate Conception on December 8, a true Holy Day of Opportunity.

Finally, I can think of no better way to counter the stress and anxiety of this mad shopping season than to attend daily Mass during Advent. We will find a half hour of peace and tranquillity every day and encounter some of the most beautiful readings in the Missal. We will get an opportunity to reconcile ourselves with God and our neighbor when we recite the Kyrie

 Eleison, the Confiteor, the Our Father and the Agnus Dei. We can offer the kiss of peace to our friends and family. We can offer thanks to God for all the good things that have been given us, and then we can approach the altar to receive the true gift of Christmas, the gift of God's only Son. ### 

Reading 1. Jeremiah 33: 14-16

Reading II. 1 Thessalonians 3: 12—4:2

Gospel. Luke 21: 25-28, 34-36 (Be vigilant).