Today
is the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. But although they were the Holy Family,
nothing about their family life was easy—especially in the beginning. Recall how Joseph was trying to figure out a
way to divorce Mary quietly so as not to expose her to the law—which meant
stoning. After having it all explained
to him in a dream, Joseph agrees to take Mary as his wife. Then they have to travel to Bethlehem for the
census—on foot, with Mary being toward the end of her pregnancy. Mary has to deliver the baby Jesus in a
stable! Then shortly after Jesus is born
Joseph is told that they have to flee Israel, and they must go to Egypt until
Herod dies. Again, those early years
were anything but easy for the Holy Family.
But they trusted in God and in His plan for them, even if it made life
difficult.
The
seasons of Advent and Christmas are times for us to focus on the family. The family, as we know it, is under attack,
perhaps more today than any other time in history. As much as they believe otherwise, Congress cannot legislate, nor can any
court create, human laws that
supersede God’s law. Because God’s law is the truth; and we must
support the truth, we must defend the truth, and most importantly, we must LIVE
the truth. It is not only by our words, but by our actions, that we share God’s truth with the world around us. Just as family life was difficult for the
holy family, living according to God’s law can be very difficult for our
families today—but we must persist, we must persevere. And we have a beautiful example to follow, to
emulate, in the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. By using them as our guide we can better
approximate how God would like us to live our
lives. If we can trust in God’s plan
for us, and follow it even in difficult times, then we will be living the truth
and following God’s will.
Today
especially, we focus on the family. The
Becher Bunch has spent many a Christmas day driving long hours to be with family hundreds
of miles away. Yes, we have eaten
Christmas dinner in a smoke-filled Waffle House surrounded by
truck-drivers. And we have driven for
miles until we’ve found a Subway, which are the only fast-food places that are
open on Christmas—or at least so it seemed.
Was it all worth it? Depends on
who you ask I guess. It was to me. Family is the most important thing to me on
this earth. And as my kids grow up and
move to various parts of the country I know it will be next-to impossible to be
with them all each Christmas. But we
will do our best, because as I said, the gift of family is the most important Christmas
gift we can give--and receive--here on earth.
Ok,
so enough about that…let’s talk about the good stuff. What did YOU get for Christmas? Anything cool? Extravagant?
Any complete surprises—or was it just the stuff you put in your letter
to Santa? If your house is like mine,
I’m sure the present-opening was great; and some of the best moments are when
you see the look of joy on a loved-one’s face when they open the present you
gave them.
As for me, generally I can divide the
presents I receive into three categories:
1.
Things I would like to have, and appreciate
receiving, that I wouldn’t necessarily buy for myself. The stuff that’s needed to get through
life: Shirts, socks, shoes, underwear. I think gift cards and money would fit into
that category, too.
2.
Next is the stuff I get each year that I
need and use to fix things that are broken, or to make repairs to things, or
make things better. Tools are a prime
example. Or a grooming kit for those
times when I have facial hair. Or paint
to revitalize walls. You know, the practical,
“manly stuff.”
3. Finally,
there are the things each year that are really, really neat (which usually
means really, really expensive). You
know, the things you say “oh, you really shouldn’t have” but secretly—or maybe
even not so secretly—you’re glad that they did.
You think to yourself: “man, you
paid way too much for that…I’d never have spent that much for that…I could have
settled for something less costly.” This
would be things like jewelry, electronics, a cruise, a car, etc. They are things that demonstrate how much the
giver cares about you, and they often require some sort of sacrifice on the
giver’s part.
Well,
this year I received something from each one of those categories!
From the “necessary to live” group…I
got…God’s grace. It’s something I have
to have in order to survive in this world.
It’s something I need lots of, so I can get it when I need it. But, it’s something that I rarely think about
until I need it—right then! And so it’s good to have it stored up for
emergencies, or times of trouble, or sadness, or hopelessness.
And from the next category of “things I need to fix things”…I got…God’s
mercy and forgiveness—in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. I am a sinner. I break often. I need fixing often. I need to make myself better—constantly. Without God’s mercy and forgiveness I would
remain broken, sinful, unworthy of a place in heaven. Thanks to this special gift I can begin
again—be “as good as new” so to speak.
And finally, I received the most wonderful gift of all—the most expensive,
most costly, and most cherished gift…God’s unconditional love; given to
me—given to all of us—by a newborn babe in a manger. This gift of God’s constant love for me came
at so high a cost, at such an extreme sacrifice, by God’s only begotten Son, Jesus. God, through his Son Jesus Christ, paid too
much for me; sacrificed too much for me.
I could have settled for Moses, for Abraham, for Elijah. I could have settled for his only Son coming
to earth to save my soul as the most heralded King of all time who, from on His
throne, defeated evil without shedding a drop of His precious blood. No…no I couldn’t have—because that wasn’t
God’s plan. God knew just how I had to
be redeemed, to be saved from sin and death.
I couldn’t have settled for any less.
I am humbled when I think about how much he loved me; that he would
suffer such a horrible death so that I
might live. “Jesus, you shouldn’t
have…but I am so very grateful that you did.”
Yes, I received these three most precious gifts this year for
Christmas—just as I have for each Christmas before it—and just as I will for
each Christmas I am alive on this earth.
And you know what? So have,
and will, each one of you!
Whether you have stopped to think about it or not, you each were given
these very special gifts every year at Christmas. But wait—there’s more. Each one of us can experience each one of
these awesome gifts—God’s grace, God’s mercy and forgiveness, and God’s
unconditional love—each time we approach His table at Mass and receive the Sacrament
of Holy Eucharist! Every time we receive
His precious Body and Blood we experience all of these things. The real presence of Our Lord, under the
appearance of bread and wine, bestows on us His grace, His mercy and
forgiveness, and His unconditional love.
How amazing! We can all
experience Christmas every day of the year if we want to—365 days! God is offering us Himself; He is inviting us to the sacrifice of the
Lamb. All we have to do is say
“yes.” All we have to do is come, and
receive these three gifts—not wrapped in Christmas paper, but wrapped into one
marvelous gift of the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ in the Blessed
Sacrament. It’s that easy—and that awesome!
And so, as
we continue to celebrate Christmas, I invite you to think about this most
precious gift, and how it is constantly offered to each one of us by our loving
Father in heaven. And I urge you to take
advantage of this gift as often as you can, because each time we do, we grow
that much closer to Our Lord, that much closer to our ultimate goal—life
everlasting in heaven with God, and all the angels and Saints.
