Christmas Year A: The difference Christmas makes

Homily for the Nativity Year A 2016

Christmas Night Mass Readings– Is. 9:1-6, Tit. 2:11-14, Lk. 2:1-14.

Introduction

In my seven years of living in New Orleans, one of the things I have learnt is that Louisiana has two main religions: Christianity and Football.  Where else do you find a football team called “The Saints”?  That is why today, I would like to use that deep and profound connection that people here have with football, to reflect on the meaning of Christmas for us Catholics.

Scripture and Theology

Where do we start, but with tailgating, that uniquely American tradition, where people essentially bring their kitchen to the stadium!  Several hours before the football game, in some cases even a whole day before, people cook and eat, drink and have themselves a wonderful party, as they wait for the game to start.

Christmas also has a tail-gating of sorts.  Christians eagerly wait for Christmas by celebrating the season of Advent.  But unlike sports tail-gating, Advent is a sober, restrained, even penitential kind of waiting.  During Advent, Catholics prepare themselves for Christmas by going to Mass and listening to the prophecies about the coming of the Messiah, the preparations done by John the Baptist and the passages about how Jesus came to be born.  Many Catholics also use the season of Advent to do a semi-annual examination of their souls, checking the health of their relationship with God and neighbour, and going to confession.

Then comes the great moment, the event that gives meaning to the waiting; for tailgaters that moment is the kick-off of the big game; for Christians it is the kick-off of Christmas Eve and all the traditional Christmas festivities and traditions.

In the same way that the football game is a battle between our team and the opponents, the Falcons, Christmas too is kind of a battle in the long war between God's side and the other side.  In fact God sent his Son into the world that he might finally conquer the evil one.  That is what Isaiah prophesied in today’s first reading, when he promised the exiled people of Israel: "The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shone."  This light would come with the birth of Jesus Christ, whom Isaiah called "Wonder-Counselor, God-Hero, Father-Forever, Prince of Peace" and whose reign would be "vast and forever peaceful."  And so much like in football where someone must win the game, even if it means going to extra time, Christmas too is not just about the birth of some cute little baby; it is about his coming to do battle and to win a victory for God.

If sportscasters announce the winner of the football game, the news of the Christmas victory was announced by the angel, who said to the shepherds:  “Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people."  And what is this good news of great joy?   It is this: "For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Christ and Lord." 

There are probably two recent dates that will forever be etched in our memory here in the New Orleans area.  The first is August 29, 2005, when hurricane Katrina devastated this area.  The second is February 7, 2010, when the New Orleans Saints won the Superbowl, after a 42-year drought.  The second event brought hope and in some way eased and erased the despair of the first one.

Similarly, the birth of Jesus Christ was a victory that erased the previous history of human sin and disobedience.  That is why the angel calls it good news of great joy.  That is why  St. Paul also sees in the birth of Jesus, "The grace of God [that] has appeared, saving all and training us to reject godless ways and worldly desires and to live temperately, justly, and devoutly in this age, . . .” Jesus comes at Christmas to show us God's love and mercy, first by teaching us a new way of relating to God, and then more importantly, by cancelling our debt of sin with God by offering himself as a ransom for us.  That is why Christmas is good news of great joy, a Superbowl victory a million times over.

Christian Life

What now?  What do we do when our team has won the game?  I suppose we continue celebrating, doing some kind of post-game tailgating, if we are still sober that is.  That too, my friends, is what we must do after Christmas.

The secular Christmas celebrations began on Thanksgiving Day and end today,

·        The stores and malls will take down the Christmas decorations tomorrow and already replace them with Valentine Day Hearts.

·        The radio stations will stop playing Christmas carols at midnight.

·        The neighbours will put the tree in the trash bin first thing Monday morning.

But the Christian Christmas only begins today and will go on for the traditional Twelve Days of Christmas and some.  That is why unlike the secular world, we keep our Christmas symbols for a while to continue celebrating the birth of Jesus.

Even better we also tailgate with prayer and with liturgical feasts that shed more light on the birth of our Saviour.

·        Between Christmas and New Year's Day, we celebrate the feast of the Holy Family of Mary and Joseph, where Jesus grew into a man.

·        Then on the eighth day after Christmas, on New Year's Day, we celebrate the Solemnity of Mary as Mother of God, and dedicate the new year to her.

·        On or about January 6^th, we celebrate Epiphany, the visit of the Wise men to see the baby Jesus.

·        And finally we end the glorious season of Christmas with the Baptism of the Lord Sunday, that ushers Jesus into his public life.

This good news of great joy is too precious to be enjoyed just for one day.  We need at least a week or two of Christmas tailgating to do justice to its meaning.

Conclusion

And yet, even this Christmas tailgating, whether at home or in Church, is not the most important aspect of Christmas.  This Christmas must leave a lasting impact on our spiritual lives, just like the Superbowl did for New Orleans.  After the victory parades and parties, the lasting effect of the championship was to be seen in the publicity for our city and in the commitment of the fans to their team.  People used to be give me free tickets to watch the game; but after the Superbowl, those freebies, dried up – people were now more committed to their team.

How is Christmas going to affect your life, my life?  Let me offer two suggestions:

1.    Perhaps after the turmoil of the past year some of us are filled with a sense of despair and uncertainty over the future.  To us the angel says: "Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.”  We are all invited to find the ultimate source of our hope in the “savior [who] has been born for you who is Christ and Lord,"  and not elsewhere.  As the host of angels sang for the shepherds, peace on earth is to be found only on those on whom God's favor rests.  It is to God that we must turn and in whom we hope.

2.    A second effect of Christmas should take the form of renewed commitment to the poor and lowly, those that most resemble the poor baby Jesus born in the cowshed.  Perhaps you have been watching the old classic Christmas movies: A Charlie Brown Christmas, It is a Wonderful Life, Miracle on 34^th Street.  These movies have staying power only because they depict Christmas, not as some big party, but as an event that inspires some action for family and friends, for employees and the stranger.

May our Christmas celebrations not just leave us with a hangover and a few extra pounds; may Christmas leave us with a firm commitment to our team, God's team, and to our fellow fans, our brothers and sisters.  Merry Christmas!

Homily Advent 4th: When the Lord asks, he asks for everything

Homily for 4^th Sunday of Advent Year A 2016-2017

Isaiah 7:10-14; Romans 1:1-7; Matthew 1:18-25

Introduction

A few years ago, some friends adopted a baby and thus became parents for the first time.  Of course they were overjoyed at receiving their daughter, especially as they had been waiting for a long time.  But I could also see their anxiety.

·        They had the usual anxiety about sleepless nights, changing diapers and what to do when the baby was ill.

·        But more serious was the anxiety of taking on the commitment to care for another human being for at least the next eighteen years.

And yet they eagerly took up this challenge with joy, trusting in the help of their family as well as the Lord’s help and guidance.

Scripture and Theology

In today’s gospel we have just heard how God called Joseph for the special task of being the foster-father of his Son.  Like my friends, Joseph was probably anxious at hearing this news.

·        Let us leave aside the usual anxieties that come with having a baby.

·        Let us leave aside the fact that an angel is talking to him!

·        Let us leave aside the fact that the baby is not even his!

Joseph was taking on the great responsibility of raising the Saviour of the world.  We have to remember that Jesus was truly God and truly human, learning things just like any other child does.  Joseph took on this responsibility to teach him.

·        It was Joseph’s job to teach him how to walk, talk and eat.

·        It was Joseph’s job to teach him the prayers, commandments and how to read the Bible.

·        It was Joseph’s job to teach him the trade of carpentry.

In short, it was Joseph’s job to teach how to be a man, a Jewish man.

But Joseph was not the first person in the Bible that God called and tasked with a great responsibility.

·        Seventy-five year old Abraham was going about his business in what is now Iraq, taking care of sheep and goats, and farming the land!  And then God comes and says: “Hey you, leave your land, your relatives, and from your father’s house and go to a land that I will show you. I promise to bless you and make you a great nation.”

·        Then there is Moses, a stutterer like me, whom God calls to liberate his people from Egypt, but to do that he has to pass through the Pharaoh!

·        And then you have the Prophets, whom God calls to speak truth to power and the whole nation, delivering messages that people don’t want to hear.  In today’s reading, for example, King Ahaz does not want to hear Isaiah’s prophecy that a Messiah will be born of a virgin.

And so, as a faithful Jew, Joseph must have been aware of how God operates.  And that is why, even if he is a little reluctant, he takes up the challenging job that God is giving him, taking pregnant Mary as his wife into his home.

And we know that Joseph carried out this mission as a father faithfully, accepting the usual challenges of a new born baby and far more serious ones.

·        It was their luck that Caesar was carrying out the census during Mary’s last trimester!  And they had to travel all the way from Nazareth to Bethlehem.  According to Mapquest, that is a distance of 100 miles and it would take you two hours by car, four and a half hours by public transport and 34 hours on foot!  Just think of the hours it took some people to get to Baton Rouge or Jackson, during Katrina!

·        And after going through the ordeal of travel, they get to Bethlehem and the hotels and hospitals are full!  I remember when my youngest brother was born in Uganda!  My mother and father walked to the hospital, thankfully two miles, not 100 miles, but there was no one to care for them.  So they returned home and a neighbour assisted my mother to give birth in our house.  Joseph and Mary did not even have that luxury of giving birth in her own home.  They had to give birth in a cowshed!

·        After the birth of Jesus, their problems did not end.  Now, with a new born child, they had to flee to go Egypt, a foreign country, rather than return to the comfort of their home in Nazareth. Think about the Syrian refugees today or any other refugees for that matter!  That was the call of Joseph!

Christian Life

Friends, God has not stopped calling people for his work, nor has he stopped asking a lot from those he calls.  Like he called Joseph and Mary for their special job of bringing the Saviour into this world, God also calls us too!  I can think of two challenging calls for us today: the call to marriage and the call to priesthood.

The call to Christian marriage is a call from God to lifetime commitment to each other, and to the task of raising children in the faith.  Those of you who are married will surely agree that this is not always an easy task!

·        What do you do when the romance in the marriage has died out?  What do you do when you no longer recognize the person you said “Yes” to at the altar all those years ago?  What do you do when your husband or wife is seriously ill for a long time?  Like God demanded much of Joseph and Mary, God demands of you total fidelity and commitment to each other, till "death do us part."

·        And then there is the commitment to the children.  Like he did to Joseph and Mary, God places a great responsibility in your hands as a mother and father, of raising a child or two or three, not just by feeding, clothing and generally keeping them healthy, but also raising them to know and love God and their neighbour.  This job of parenting, of teaching God’s ways has never been easy, but is made more difficult today by the often competing media messages that glorify materialism, drugs and sex.

And yet you carry on as married people and as parents, knowing that this is a call from God, who always demands much from those he calls.

Sometimes people think that the grass is greener on the other side!  Married people might think that the life of priests, sisters and brothers, who are not married, must be easy!  Well, not exactly.

·        If God calls the married people to be mothers and fathers of two or three or four children, he calls the priest to be the Father of all his parishioners, even those who don't like him particularly.

·        If God calls the married people to teach their children, he calls the priest to preach to all his parishioners, speaking to them individually and addressing their individual concerns, all with the same 12 minute homily.

·        If God calls married people to be faithful spouses to each other, he calls the priest to be a faithful bridegroom to his bride, the whole Church.

Conclusion

In a few days we will be celebrating Christmas, because Joseph and Mary took up their call, of bringing God’s Son into this world.   Many other men and women in history have done the same, responding to God's call to do something for him.  As St. Theresa of Avila reminds us, we are the hands, the eyes, the ears and the feet of Christ.  Are you ready to be another Joseph, to do your bit for God?

Homily Advent 3: Waiting patiently for the Lord

Homily for 3^rd Sunday of Advent Year C 2016-2017

Isaiah 35:1-6; James 5:7-10; Matthew 11:2-11

Introduction

Few of us like waiting, especially waiting for two hours at the Doctor's Office or at the DMV.  We don't like waiting in heavy traffic or waiting to get on or off a plane.

When Children travelling on a long road trip keep asking "are we there yet?" "are we there yet?" I believe they are saying what we adults are too grown up to admit, that we want things to happen by yesterday and not in some distant future.

Scripture and Theology

It seems that even John the Baptist was tired of waiting for the Messiah.  He was growing impatient to know if Jesus was the promised Saviour.  That is why, as we heard in the gospel, he sent his disciples to ask Jesus: “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?”

Now for you and me, who have the advantage of 2000 years of Christianity, John's question might seem rather stupid; after all everybody knows that Jesus is the Messiah.  But John the Baptist wasn’t really sure.  Although they probably knew each other since their mothers were cousins, and although John had baptized Jesus, still he had some doubts.  Perhaps what he heard about Jesus, his humility, his teachings about mercy, did not fit his picture of the Messiah, the Saviour who would bring about the Kingdom of God. And so he just had to know: “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?”

If John’s question sounds unnecessary to us, the response of Jesus might also sound a little strange.  Jesus tells the disciples of John: “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them."  Perhaps the disciples of John, as they returned to him asked themselves: "what a round-about way to answer a straightforward question."

And yet when they told John the Baptist what Jesus had said, he must have been relieved; finally the waiting was over.  This is because, anybody familiar with the Old Testament like John was, would have heard in the answer of Jesus those key phrases that were the telltale markers of the Messiah.

In fact, we heard those phrases spoken in today’s first reading from the Prophet Isaiah.  Isaiah was speaking to the people of Israel at the time of their exile.  They too were impatient for the restoration of their Kingdom and kept asking: "When are we getting back home?  When will God fulfil his promise to save us?"

Isaiah basically told them to be patient because good things come to those who wait.  He used two images to explain those good things that would be coming:

1.    First, he told them that God would work on the land itself, turning the desert and parched land into fertile and blooming soil.  That land, most of which is desert, he said "will bloom with abundant flowers," like the fertile coastal land of Lebanon and Carmel, the area we know as Haifa today.  Isaiah was basically promising them something like the beautiful garden of Eden as it was before the Fall of Adam and Eve.

2.    Secondly, besides God improving the land, Isaiah promised that when the restoration would come, God would bring healing of body and soul.  Not only would the emotionally weak will be strengthened, but also "the eyes of the blind be opened, the ears of the deaf be cleared; . . . the lame [will] leap like a stag, then the tongue of the mute will sing."

That is why when John the Baptist asks Jesus: “Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?” Jesus answers the question by pointing to the same things, which Isaiah had promised that the Messiah would do: the blind regaining their sight, the laming walk, the deaf hearing.  And Jesus adds a few more good things of his own: “lepers are cleansed, . . . the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them.”

John the Baptist must have been satisfied with this answer, for he sent no more messengers to Jesus, and in fact his disciples became disciples of Jesus.

Christian Life

Like I said at the beginning, it is part of our human condition to be impatient about everyday things.  But we can also impatient about spiritual things.  Perhaps you and I have asked Jesus our own version of John's question: "Are you the one who is to come or should we wait for another Messiah?"

·        For example, because of the terminal sickness of a family member or a friend, we might be a little impatient with Jesus, asking him if he is the Messiah, why is he doing nothing about it?

·        Or when we experience the unfortunate death of a young person for example, in our despair we might wonder, where Jesus was in all this!

·        For some us, our doubts might come from frustration with the way the world is going: wars and division, a culture of death as seen in senseless murders and the scourge of abortion, a world refugee crisis of enormous proportions.  These things might lead us to ask what happened to the promise of Jesus to be with us until the end of time!

We can turn to the Letter of St. James which we read in the second reading, advising us: "Be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord."  James suggested that we follow the example of the farmer who has to wait patiently and diligently for months to receive his harvest.  James is not suggesting that our pain as Christians is any less because we are Christians.  But he is suggesting that we bear it differently because we draw comfort from the Lord's promise, that all will be fulfilled when the Kingdom is finally restored.

Similarly, the promise of a brighter future given them by prophets like Isaiah allowed the exiled people of Israel to have hope that they would return home one day, and therefore allowed them to bear the paid of their exile.  Similarly as we go through life's difficulties, we might also draw comfort from knowing that this world as we know it is not all that there is.  Better things are yet to come, the kind of life after this one that we can only describe with imperfect images.

And yet as we look to the future with hope, we must also look around us today.  Did you notice what Jesus told the disciples of John the Baptist? "Go and tell John what you hear and see . . . ."  In other words, Jesus reassured John by pointing to the signs of his work already taking place there and then: the healing of the sick, the raising of the dead and the preaching to the poor.

When we ask Jesus our own version of John's question, when we question where he is, he just might say to us: look around at the many good people caring for others in my name, doing good in my name.

·        Look at those Italian nuns who have stayed in Somalia and care for the sick, when everybody left that war-torn country and many others.

·        Look at those Christian parents who not only give an example of fidelity in marriage to their children, but also raise them in the faith.

·        Look at the increasing numbers of young men and women joining the seminary and religious life.

Conclusion

It seems like just as we have no choice in how long we wait at the Doctor's Office or in traffic, we also have no choice in how long we wait for the Lord to satisfy our deepest longings.  In both cases, however, we have a choice in how we wait.

Do we wait in hope or despair?  Do we wait by keeping busy or by being idle?  Can some good come out of our waiting?

Homily Advent 2 Year A: Tidying up for Jesus

Homily for 2^nd Sunday of Advent Year C 2016-2017

Isaiah 11:1-10; Romans 15:4-9; Matthew 3:1-12

Introduction

Getting ready for a guest often requires serious preparation.  Just think of all the slaving you had to when you hosted the family for Thanksgiving Dinner.  There is the tidying up, getting fresh linens and towels, and of course preparing a good meal.  And the more important the guest, the more involved is our preparation.

Scripture and Theology

No wonder then that the First Coming of God's Son into the world required serious preparations.  God sent John the Baptist as that voice crying out in the desert, "Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths."  John's whole ministry was to prepare the people for the arrival of the Messiah.

But how would they prepare the way for the Lord?  How would they make straight his paths?  St. John tells them: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”

Repenting means turning around, like the military or boy scout command "about-turn" or "about-face."  It is a 180 degree change of direction, a complete reversal of orientation.  John is asking people to turn from sin back to God.  For them repenting means returning to the ten commandments of God, putting God first above all else, treating each other with love.  That is how to prepare for the coming of the Messiah.

In addition, because human beings always need signs to show what is happening inside them, John invited those who were repenting, to come to him for baptism.  This ritual of immersion in water would serve as a visible sign that they had repented, had turned from a life of sin back to God.  And as we heard in the gospel, many people "were going out to him and were being baptized."

But when the Pharisees and Sadducees came for John's baptism, for this sign of repentance, he turned them away.  He said: “You brood of vipers!  Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?”  Why is John denying them a chance to prepare themselves for the Messiah?  It seems that they came to be baptised, only because they wanted to be seen doing something righteous by the people, but inside there was no real conversion, no real about-turn.  They came to be cleaned externally with the water; but their hearts internally were still very dirty. 

But the kind of preparation for the Messiah that John wants involves real changes in one's life.  That is why he challenges the Pharisees and Sadducees saying: “Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance! . . . [for] every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”  In other words, before you come to this religious ritual called baptism, there must be a change in your heart.  And after you live this ritual of baptism, there must be a change in the way you live your life, living it in virtue and charity.  And so, preparing for the Lord requires two services: the religious service of baptism but also service to one another in our daily lives.  By coming to John for baptism, the Pharisees and Scribes had done first, but had nothing to show for the second.

Moreover, John the Baptist tells the people that what he is asking for is rather low hanging fruit; when the Messiah comes much more will be expected.  We can think of John’s baptism as being the hors d'oeuvres, the anti-pasti, the appetizers, preparing for the main course, which is being served by Jesus himself, when he sets the Kingdom of God in motion.  That is why John says: “I am baptizing you with water, for repentance.  But the one who is coming after me is mightier than I.  I am not worthy to carry his sandals."

And then John goes on to say:

·        "He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire."  The Holy Spirit will bring you forgiveness and the fire will burn away any sins that remain, a painful experience you would want to avoid by being ready now.

·        John goes on to say of the Messiah: "His winnowing fan is in his hand."  For those who did not grow up in the country, a winnowing fan is an implement used to separate the grain from the chaff.  John says that when the Messiah comes, that is exactly what he will do, separate the good from the evil, the virtuous from the sinful.

·        And John concludes: "He will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”  In other words, he will gather those who have repented and turned towards him into his Kingdom and will dispatch those who refuse to hell.

And so, seen in this light, we can understand why John the Baptist is not mincing his words at all when he says: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”

Christian Life

John's words were meant to prepare for the people of Israel for the First Coming of the Messiah.  That same message also helps us during this season of Advent to prepare us for the Second Coming.  For us it is no longer: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” For us the message is: “[Repent], for the kingdom the kingdom of God is among you” (Lk. 17:21).  Jesus Christ by his life, death and resurrection has already set the Kingdom in motion and is bringing it to fruition through the Church.  We had better be ready, be already turned around from sin to God, from vice to virtue when the Kingdom is finally fulfilled.  Although we do this preparation throughout the year, Advent is a special dress rehearsal of preparation for the Second and final coming of the Lord.

Let me offer three steps we can take to help us repent as we wait for the Lord's Second coming: interior conversion, the sacraments, a life of virtue.

First, we must repent interiorly within our hearts and minds.  After making an examination of conscience and taking stock of our relationship with God we might say to ourselves, "I really must get rid of this habit; why I am doing this?  There are many resources that can help us to reach this point, but reading the Word of God often convicts us into turning around towards him; so does listening to our ministers, our friends, our family.  When with God's help we have searched our lives and reached the decision to change, we are ready for the second step.

For the people of Israel that second step was the ritual of John's baptism;  for us it is the all the sacraments, but especially the Sacrament of Penance and the Eucharist.  These religious services or rituals are not empty signs.  They are the means through which God gives us his divine help, his forgiveness, his mercy.  They are also the means through which we tell God that we are committed to being faithful to him.  And because we shall come to the sacraments, after making that interior change in our hearts, we can be sure that we will not be driven away like John did to the Pharisees.

The third step in repenting is returning from the sacraments ready to produce good fruit in our daily lives, something that the Pharisees and Sadducees failed to do.  After confession the priest often gives us a penance: a prayer to say, a bible passage to read, or an action to perform.  These penances are meant to help us remain on the straight and narrow path, producing good fruit.  Even at the end of Mass, the priest sends us forth saying: “Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life.”  This too is an invitation to continue showing our repentance by living a life worthy of the Word and the sacraments we have celebrated.

Conclusion

Advent might not be as glamorous as Christmas or Easter, since it is essentially a time of waiting.  But Advent should not be a wasted or boring waiting, a complacent or lazy waiting.  Let this Advent be for all of us a busy time of putting our house in order, tidying up a little for the arrival of the greatest guest ever: not only the newborn Jesus we celebrate at Christmas, but also the Risen Lord when he finally comes to us claim us for God.