At Christmas time, I pointed out that Matthew and Luke are the evangelists who gave us all the birth narrative material, and that John and Mark said nothing about a manger, Magi, Bethlehem, and all the other elements of our Christmas story.  Similarly, Matthew and Luke give us the “beatitudes” that are associated with what’s known as “the sermon on the mount” (in Matthew).  However, Luke’s presentation of them occurs on the PLAIN and not a mountain.  Moreover, Luke only lists 4 while Matthew cites 8.   

Why the difference?  Luke reports a geography in which Jesus spoke these words, and it appears to be a Gentile region of the Holy Land.  This is in keeping with Luke’s overall focus—that Jesus came not just for the Israelites but for ALL people.  The Christian message isn’t intended just for tribal people or citizens of the Roman empire, but for people who live in the 4 directions—everywhere in the world, Black, White, Asian, and everyone in between.  Jesus’s message was a “catholic” message.  That is, “universal.” 

 Matthew, on the other hand, addresses his gospel to Jewish converts.  His audience knows the Hebrew scriptures well—which is why you find in his Gospel the most number of quotes from the “Old” testament.  His audience would right away associate Jesus telling of the beatitudes on a mountain top because it was a mountain top on which patriarch Moses received the 10 commandments.  It seemed only right that Jesus would associate the 10 commandments with the Beatitudes when telling us afresh as to how we should live our lives,  

 Picture yourself being in the crowd that day and feeling as if Jesus was referring to you in one or more of the “Blessed” he mentioned.  You go up to him afterward and ask him something to the effect: “Were you referring to me in what you just said?”  Jesus smiles silently at you and you get a really strong sense of bonding with this man, this brother, this neat guy who made you feel you were really special.  You can’t help but smile back and the two of you share a parting hug as he moves into the crowd (all of them feeling a sense of affirmation just as you do).  

 Were he to visit us today, I think you’d hear something to this effect: “Blessed are the lectors.  Blessed are choir members. Blessed are the ushers, the communion distributors, committee members, and collection counters—and all who try to serve the faith community in different ways.  Blessed are you who feel alone but still smile at others and try to be friendly.  Blessed are you who feel blue but realize that others may feel even worse—so you direct a smile their way.  Blessed are those in hospice care who seek comfort.  Blessed are you who come to mass—and who bring a smile to God’s face. 

 The “Sermon on the Mount/Plain” was God speaking to the hearts of all listeners—reminding them that they are loved by their Creator.  In line with this thought, I had an experience this past week which brought God’s affirmation to mind.  It occurred when shown the photo of a parishioner taken 3 decades ago.  The photo showed a young person in a college gym—smiling for the camera along with friends who were playing basketball but who stopped to get a group photo. 

 What came to mind was that this person, and the others, have had their successes and have demonstrated their competence in the workplace, been good family and community members, and are all-around good folks.  However, God’s love for each one transcends whatever good or bad deeds they’ve performed, or mistakes they’ve made, or awards won.  Each person, as Scripture states, is “God’s work of art.”  Each is blessed in their own way.  The parish person in the photo tries—maybe like others in the photo—to become the best version of themselves by belonging to a faith-community. 

 You are working on the best version of yourself, with others, when you are present at Mass. 

 Whenever I mention some real-life issue in a homily, or offer some reflection on what I think our response as Catholics should be to some political problem, I (and any clergy person from any Christian church) run the risk of stepping on someone’s toes.  This usually occurs when addressing some specific current issue.  I, too, have been in the pews when a speaker advanced a position that I think is not consistent with what the Gospel says.  Please know that my concern is what Jesus would say–and nothing else.  I do not belong to any political party and profess allegiance first to God.  My pastoral focus is aimed at providing parishioners some sense of how our Catholic tradition applies to our contemporary world.   If what I say conflicts with your thinking, it is not because I wish to be combative or controversial.  I’m simply trying my best to state what I understand to be God’s perspective on one or another issue. 

 What follows is an article written by John Pavlovitz, a former pastor whose commentaries might conflict with your thinking but which I think are solid Christian teachings on the American socio-political scene.  His is a voice I tap and share with you because he addresses topics better than I do.  So I share his thoughts with you because I know he speaks with authority and sees contemporary issues through a Gospel lens.   With protesters on the streets of Hemlock and throughout the nation, I think it is important that you see why so many Christians (and others) are rightly concerned about Mr. Trump’s leadership.  The author addresses this topic well when he wrote to Country-singer Carrie Underwood who performed at the inauguration.  His letter captures what many clergy say about what’s happening in D.C. 

 Dear Carrie Underwood, 

I’m writing because I’ve heard you speak eloquently about your Christian faith in the past, watched you perform a song about the beautiful mystery of baptism, often listened to your now-ubiquitous invocation for Jesus to take the wheel: to guide the life you live and to let his will direct your path. 

 I also know that you’ve been a role model for girls and young women all over this nation, obviously well-aware of your influence on them. Given these things, as a former pastor and the father of a girl myself, I wonder how you reconcile your personal faith with a performance at the Inauguration of Donald Trump. 

 As a woman and professed follower of Jesus, exactly how do you make sense of using your tremendous gifts to celebrate an adjudicated rapist; a man accused by dozens of women of assault, harassment, and misconduct; a man who once said that if his daughter were not a blood relation, that he might be dating her? 

 I’m curious to hear you explain what message you think it sends to millions of survivors of sexual assault, who will watch you contribute to the coronation of a human being whose entire life, business history, and political career have been marked by the most vile, dehumanizing, and misogynistic language about and behavior toward women? Recall his entering the dressing room of the Miss Teen contestants unannounced and making them feel quite uncomfortable. 

 This is to say nothing of his 34 felony counts, his many indictments for high crimes, his near superhuman inability to speak truthfully, or his continual verbal attacks on immigrants, LGBTQ human beings, people of color, and all Americans who did not vote for him.  

As a declared Christian, you shared the spotlight while California burned and millions of its people were in the most dire need—and he spewed a steady stream of social media insults, lies, and abject hatred?  Where is the Jesus in any of this, Carrie? 

 What in the teachings of Jesus make it acceptable to partner with Donald Trump on any level?  Where have you seen him love his neighbor, help heal the sick, feed the poor, welcome the stranger, care for the least of these?  When exactly have you witnessed him embodying the peacemaking, humble, kindhearted directives of the Beatitudes?  How precisely have you seen Donald Trump live a love and compassion that bears any resemblance to Jesus? I’m not being rhetorical here or trying to insult you, I’d really like to know. 

 I understand you have boys of your own. I’m wondering when they grow up, if you’d like them to emulate Donald Trump, if you’ll approve of them treating women the way he has, if you’d be proud to have them speak about people the way he does.  Carrie, I don’t know you and so I can’t judge your heart or declare your motives or evaluate your faith and wouldn’t attempt to. I can only tell you what I see from where I stand (Jesus called it, describing the tangible fruit of someone’s outward actions.)  By their fruit you will know them. 

 And what I see from here, is an incredibly influential, talented woman who has chosen to wear her faith proudly on her sleeve—also choosing to use her gifts for an event devoted to perhaps the most predatory, most divisive, and least Christlike human being on the planet. As someone who spent decades learning and sharing the teachings of Jesus, none of it makes any sense. 

So, if you’re able, with some specificity, please share with me, with the tens of millions of Christians in this country, with the women who are being legislatively silenced by him, 
with the immigrants and refugees and foreigners he is persecuting, with the poor and elderly and vulnerable he is preying upon, and with the people of California and North Carolina whose unfathomable suffering he is exploiting and exacerbating right now—exactly how you feel Jesus is steering this decision.  To be honest, I thought I’d be in good company. 

 I assumed that most Christian people would dismiss Trump out-of-hand, naming his vile behavior as the very immoral sickness Jesus spent his life and ministry warning his followers to fiercely resist.      Boy, was I wrong! 

John Pavlovich is an author/speaker on Christian spirituality found on the Internet. 

This past weekend’s first reading shows you where the “Sanctus” part of the Eucharistic Prayer comes from—“Holy, Holy, Holy” is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.  And then these verses from Isaiah speak for each of us—theoretically—when it has the person (intended to be you and I) say: “Here I am, Lord.  Send me.”  That’s what each of us is supposed to feel and think and say after each Mass we attend—which is a good reason why these verses are in the middle of Mass.  They define why we gather—to draw strength—and be sent as an apostle of the Gospel.

When reading about the culture of the first century where Jesus lived, I noticed that the average male stood 5’5” tall.  Modern American males are–average 5’10”.  I think of today’s movies making “super heroes” of characters and then think of people at the time of Jesus not being tall hunks chiseled at 6’.  And this led to thinking about how God speaks to us people of the 21st century (or at any time in history).  Do angels appear, or must we have visions?

The short answer is “no.”  Rather, God speaks to you and me in the ordinary events of our lives and the interests that catch our attention.  I’ll give 2 examples from my life to show how God speaks to us.  After seeing these examples, look at your life-experience, and see where God has “spoken” to you—in the past—and now.

When teaching the president of the University asked me to moderate the honor society.  I was he 3rd one he appointed since the other 2 left the school for other assignments.  I had no interest in moderating the group but added the job to my other responsibilities.

A person who worked at the school was a member of years standing and suggested one day that I get the students to do a project.  Okay, I thought.  But what, exactly, might I get them to do?

I had a student in class who was CEO of 15 grocery stores in Ohio and West Virginia.  I asked him if he had “day old” bread that my people could pick up and deliver to the “Catholic Neighborhood Center” that fed sreet people and provided food to the needy.  He said he’d look into the matter, and a couple of days later told me to begin the pick-up the next week.  Thus started what became known as the “bread run” to Riesbeck’s Market in St. Clairsville, OH.

Long story short is that this blossomed into students and faculty and workers picking up 3 Riesbeck stores, 2 Panera bread stores, and 1 Kroger six days a week.  Panera, by the way, has a policy of giving away its baked goods to charities every day of the year.  This “ministry” that included so many people got Internet attention in nn article that said “Finally, an honor society is actually doing something important.”

A second example started one day when I stopped to save a turtle crossing the highway.  Naturally, people honked at me for taking 30 seconds to get the turtle.  Some in WV liked to run over the turtles–human nature having the capacity to save life and take life.  Arriving back at campus, I learned that it was a box turtle–a species that was disappearing from the region (partly due to people thinking it funny to run them over).  I put the little fellow in my campus garden, and word spread that there was a campus turtle.  Others brought box turtles they had at home–one delivery especially memorable.

A man stood at the fence with a little boy.  I asked if he needed directions and he said no, but that he had heard there was a box turtle  in the fenced-in garden. Signaling me that what he was saying was for the benefit of his son, he said: “We were thinking that our turtle would appreciate being with other box turtles.  Might I be interested in taking him?  Sure, I said, and so “Big Red” came to live at the garden (having a beautiful red color to his shell).  

My goal was to breed box turtles and re-introduce them into the environment.  Over time, I watched eggs being laid and baby turtles born there in the garden.  When the Jesuits left the University, I had to find a home for my colony of beloved box turtles (I fed them each day year-round and they were my friends).  Through the grace of God, I found that the nearby State university had a zoo program and would be happy to take the box turtles for its training of students to care for such local fauna.

I give these examples from my life in order to illustrate what occurs in YOUR life.  Namely, God speaks to us in our everyday experiences, activities, encounters, inspirations, and visions of what “might be” if someone only did it.  You crochet?  Maybe you should crochet blankets for elders who’d appreciate covering their knees when watching TV.  We have parishioners delivering food to people, helping at the food bank, singing in the choir, and many other involvements that are unique to their life.  THAT’S how God speaks to you and me.

The “bread run” and “turtle sanctuary” arose out of the clear blue–one unexpected happening leading to me being inspired by God to bungle my way through setting up 2 “ministries” that included and helped many others.  YOU are offered the same sorts of opportunities to “bloom,” to create, to make your mark in the world.

Thinking of these things brought to mind the Jesuit saint, Paul Miki.  He worked in Nagasaki, Japan until the emperor rounded him up and martyred him and 26 others.  He had established a vibrant Catholic community in a very non-Christian Japan, but the emperor wanted no foreigners in his country (sound familiar).  On the one hand, Miki went to his death by crucifixion–feeling as if all his good work had accomplished nothing.  In 1600, all Europeans were forced out of the country and werne’t permitted entry until 1860.  When the Jesuits returned, they were approached by a community of Japanese who told them that they had hidden their Catholic practice FOR 200 YEARS–and were overjoyed that they now had priests and a connection with the Church.

Miki never saw what he had accomplished–but Nagasaki remains the most Catholic city in Japan (where few Christians exist).  I asked a Japanese woman if Japan’s primary religion was Shintoism.  She said, in her broken English, “No religion in Japan.  Only religion of money.”  Money was the god of the 21st century Japan, according to her.

What is God saying to you about your vocation?

Presentation of the Lord Sunday refers to Mary and Joseph taking Jesus to the Temple and observing the Torah’s command to “purify” Mary and dedicate Jesus to God.  The ceremony is an Israelite example of what’s known as the “menstrual taboo” that anthropologists study in all cultures of the world.  For example, the Lakota Sioux Indians had a special ceremony for girls upon their first menstrual period.  Each month until menopause, the girl was obliged to separate herself from contact with others during her period.  Whatever your ethnic background, you can count on finding SOME sort of tribal “taboo” associated with this biological reality.

The Sioux referred to Sacred things as “wakan”—a word that referred to the mysterious or spirit realities they knew to exist.  Not having our biology books, the Lakota regarded the menstrual flow as mysterious—associated with the moon’s cycle and pregnancy.  Such things must be dealt with in a special (sacred) way—such as what occurred with Mary (and all Jewish women) at the Temple.  As stated, it seems cultures everywhere had SOME such behaviors associated with blood flows each month.  We’re just not in touch with this reality in the same way as were our ancestors.

This historical and anthropological background is all good, but what does it have to do with you or me?  Well, as you know, the Church has a liturgical calendar that is intended to put us “in touch” with concepts, or practices, or events of our religious and spiritual traditions.  We learn about the life of Jesus, the people with whom he associated, a theological understanding of what he taught about God and what our behavior should be, and varieties of behaviors associated with Christianity (the sacraments, pious practices, celebrations, etc.).  The Church’s liturgical calendar is LOADED with all sorts of yearly observances.

When I taught before coming here, I’d have a one-on-one appointment with each student in the different courses.  I’d ask many questions, and one topic surprised me.  Many students didn’t know how old their parents were or their birthdays.  Some students knew the dates of Mom and Dad’s birthdays, but many did not.  This told me that these types of students wouldn’t have a clue as to

This “Presentation” feast day is NOT just an event the Church highlights so that we know Jesus was presented in the Temple.  Yes, it tells us that his parents wanted him to grow up as a child who was schooled in scripture and one who lived his faith.  But the day ALSO should remind each of us—of the day that WE WERE PRESENTED IN THE TEMPLE, the church, for our baptism.  On that sacred day, our parents brought us into the faith community’s gathering place (a parish church) and we were welcomed by members of the faith community.

The Feast of the Presentation is, thus, a special day each year on which we call to mind how we’ve lived our baptismal identity.  It’s kind of a “check up” in which we reflect on the years and how we’ve walked a sacred road or if we’ve strayed from it.  In short, we’re not just looking at the historical event of Jesus dedicated to God when he was a baby.  Nope! We’re evaluating how and if we’ve walked and talked the ways of Jesus since OUR own “presentation in the Temple” (at church when we were a baby).

We observe this feast day each year on February 2^nd—Groundhog Day!  Like so many of the Church’s feast days, this one is based on the seasons of the year or the lunar cycle which tells us when it’s summer, winter, spring, or fall.  These seasons are, moreover, associated with the planting or harvesting of crops.  For example, this feast day occurs right between the winter and spring solstice.  The “groundhog” in Punxsutawney, PA will or won’t see his shadow on this day—and will tell us if there are 6 more weeks of winter before the weather sees us planting seeds.  Remember, too, that “fasting” during Lent is considered a “penance,” but it’s also the reality of our ancestors running low on food at that time of year—and HAVING to “fast” because there wasn’t much food to go around until better weather.  So our ancestors spiritualized their lack of food—and called it “fasting” and offering our sacrifice to God.  They put spiritual meaning on a fact of life—coping with little food during winter.

The next time you see advertised on TV “Groundhog Day” with Bill Murray, you can tell family and friends the deeper meaning, or Christian interpretation of what is otherwise just a cute comedy.  It’s the story of a TV crew sent to Punxsutawney, PA to cover the behavior of a groundhog named “Phil,” and his appearance on that day.   Murray plans a smart alec reporter feeling bad about having to cover this lame story instead of something more exciting.  He keeps waking up on February 2^nd—wondering how he’ll ever get to February 3^rd.  The first time he lived the day, Murray was out for himself—cutting down people and having a wisecrack for everyone.  He thinks only of himself.  Each day, he wakes up and it’s time to re-live the day once again—with the same people saying the same thing, and him reacting to them in whatever way he wishes.

Eventually, his “do over” of each day sees him thinking of others first and helping different people one after the other—strangely becoming a kind of Christ-figure, man for others.  Murray’s character is named “Phil” just like the groundhog (also “Phil”).  Like the groundhog, he returns and “does over” February 2^nd over and over again—until he gets it right!  He finally reaches February 3^rd when he’s actually become a decent guy who relates to people in a Christ-like way.  In the film, his character even says at one point “Let me turn toward the light.”

This past week, I was reminded of this film since I had a number of encounters which, upon later reflection, I could have done better.  I could have said or done something I failed to do with this person or another.  And that’s the point of the film “Groundhog Day” and the purpose of our reflecting on the Presentation.

If we sincerely look at our lives—which we do when coming to Mass—we can see the time of the week when we could have lived our baptismal identity better than we did.  Amen. 

What follows is an editorial from the National Catholic Reporter.  Although it directly addresses the remarks at the National Prayer Service last week, it touches on topics that should make all of us uncomfortable.  One reason we come to church is to hear the word of God and act upon it.  We hear it in the reading of scripture, homilies, songs sung, and the presence of inspirational individuals who try their best to live their lives as instructed by the Lord.

However, it is a simple fact of life that none of us are saints, and that throughout history, Catholics have thought, said, and done things that bring a tear to God’s eye.  For example, how could our ancestors support the many cruelties of slavery? How could they slaughter American Indians as occurred in Gnadenhutten, Ohio in the 1770s?  There, regional citizens of Pennsylvania and Ohio came upon a town of CHRISTIANIZED Delaware Indians.  They rounded up over 100 men, women, and children—held them overnight—and then in the morning killed them all by hammering their skulls. 

There’s a legitimate, secular way of looking at current affairs and concluding one of two things.  Namely, the position you take is “On the RIGHT side of history” or “The WRONG side of history.”  These statements refer to you and me “standing with” any number of human issues that eventually prove to be the “side” that Jesus would have espoused and stood for.  In short, when you and I come to Mass or any of the sacraments, we’re TRYING to have our eyes opened to “doing the right thing.”  The National Catholic Reporter article follows:

The words that Episcopal Bishop of Washington Mariann Budde spoke were few. They weren’t shouted. They weren’t demanding. They consisted of insights and a request that might be heard anywhere at any time in a house of worship.

Because those words were spoken directly to the newly, second-time elected president of the United States during a widely covered prayer service at the Washington National Cathedral, they are likely to be remembered long after this administration has gone the way of the next election.

Hers was but one voice amid a growing chorus of religious figures condemning the Trump administration’s plans for mass deportation. Unlike others, however, she had the opportunity to address the president directly. The words have gone viral, but it is worth repeating them here:

In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country. … The people who pick our crops and clean our office buildings, who labor in poultry farms and meatpacking plants, who wash the dishes after we eat in restaurants and work the night shifts in hospitals. They may not be citizens or have the proper documentation, but the vast majority of immigrants are not criminals. They pay taxes and are good neighbors. They are faithful members of our churches and mosques, synagogues, and temples. I ask you to have mercy, Mr. President, on those in our communities whose children fear that their parents will be taken away and that you help those who are fleeing war zones and persecution in their own lands to find compassion and welcome here.

What Budde did wasn’t just taking advantage of an opportune encounter with the commander-in-chief. What she did was something she was obliged to do as a disciple of Christ preaching the Christian message. She gave a human face to those who, in the approach of a heartless administration, are a faceless group, shamefully maligned and made into a national scapegoat. They have become the new enemy, the inhuman “other” upon which our social ills and anxieties have been heaped. 

Some will disparage her words as a bit of performative preaching. Others will dismiss them because there will never be proof her words provided solace or safety for immigrants. Others will apply political calculus to her message and wonder which voters she might have affected or whether she merely solidified entrenched divisions in the Christian world as well as the wider culture.

All of that is irrelevant noise.

Was Jesus chastised for failing to accurately calculate the displeasure of Roman and religious leaders before pronouncing his next discomfiting truth?

If a Christian leader in her pulpit, addressing a president who voluntarily placed himself in that sacred space, cannot speak out of the heart of the Gospel, then we might as well turn our cathedrals, basilicas and other houses of worship into museums. 

President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance spent months ginning up inordinate fear among immigrant communities and exploiting the lies beneath that fear for political purposes. Trump has pardoned violent criminals who attempted an insurrection. He has been celebrated by crude racists and those who would endanger the LGBTQ community.

If Budde had not addressed those fears and begged for mercy, the service would have been, at best, a disingenuous engagement and, at worst, an act of fraud and cowardice.

Given Trump’s general avoidance of worship spaces, it is unlikely that any other minister of the Gospel will have the opportunity to confront him as directly. It is gratifying then to know that, in addition to Budde, there is a growing chorus of Christian leaders condemning Trump’s intended mass deportations and his insistent lies that the immigrant population is made up mostly of criminals.

Pope Francis, in an unusually blunt assessment, called Trump’s mass deportation plans “a disgrace.” Cardinal Robert McElroy, the newly appointed archbishop of Washington, warned earlier this month that an indiscriminate mass deportation program would be “incompatible with Catholic doctrine.”

Archbishop Timothy Broglio, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and head of the Archdiocese for Military Services, included additional elements in his critique: “Some provisions contained in the Executive Orders, such as those focused on the treatment of immigrants and refugees, foreign aid, expansion of the death penalty, and the environment, are deeply troubling and will have negative consequences, many of which will harm the most vulnerable among us.”

Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso, a Texas diocese on the border with Mexico, issued a lengthy condemnation of Trump’s plans, saying they “deeply affect our local community and raise urgent moral and human concerns.” 

The Department of Homeland Security’s decision to permit immigration raids in schools and churches “strikes fear into the heart of our community, cynically layering a blanket of anxiety on families when they are worshiping God, seeking healthcare, and dropping off and picking up children at school,” Seitz said.

In comments made during a Mass at the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City, Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich said, “The Catholic community stands with the people of Chicago in speaking out in defense of the rights of immigrants and asylum seekers.”

Understandably, the cardinal also opposes attempts by “government agencies to enter places of worship for any enforcement activities.”

Other denominations, including Quakers, Presbyterians, Unitarians and the United Church of Christ have all publicly declared opposition to mass deportations and support for immigrants. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America has declared itself a “sanctuary denomination.”

Underneath those declarations and public statements, untold numbers of groups, parishes, congregations, synagogues and organizations are making plans to blunt the Trump administration policies. Who knows? Trump, who declared in his inaugural address that his election was divinely ordained, may energize and unite mainline Christianity in the United States in a way we haven’t seen for decades.

In the meantime, one of God’s servants has intervened in a modest and respectful way, begging for mercy for the most vulnerable among us. It is an unremarkable ask for a Christian leader, but it may take remarkable action from the rest of us to see mercy served. 

N.B., Keep in mind that, politically speaking, both parties know there is a problem and have been trying to solve it.  That’s why it was so disappointing last year for both parties to agree on what to do—but Mr. Trump told Republicans to NOT sign the bill.  His reason for not wanting the border issue solved was that he wanted his campaign rallies to hear that HE will solve the problem. Sadly, voters have short memories and forget that he didn’t get both parties to agree in his first term!  Back then he made the same campaign promise and when millions crossed into the U.S.!  Bishop Budde, the Pope, and other denominations were not proposing a solution to border crossings.  Their appeal for compassion was no doubt made by clergy years ago when YOUR ancestors were being called swine and getting beat up (or killed) because they were “different” (the Irish, Polish, German, Italian, African, and other)children of God.

We’ve had feast days each weekend since Christmas but this weekend we are simply in what the Church designates as “Ordinary Time.”  We’re coming off the birth of Jesus and the Gospels beginning His story of God becoming incarnate (taking on flesh)—so where do we go from there?  Answer: his public life and, in John’s case, the first miracle of his public life: the wedding feast at Cana (at which Jesus changes water into wine) at the request of his mother.

A curious element of John’s Gospel is that he never mentions Mary’s name—while the other Gospels DO.  And yet, a powerful scene within his Gospel is at the crucifixion when Jesus tells John “Behold your mother” and tells her “Behold your son” (John).  Theologically, this touching scene has been understood to mean that John represents humanity and that in keeping with the theme of the Gospels that we are “brothers and sisters in Christ,” Jesus is reminding us one last time the heart of his “Catholic” (meaning “universal”) message.  Namely, he is the son of God and our brother—with Mary as our symbolic or adoptive mother.  The human race is NOT a bunch of unrelated tribes, nations, and ethnic groups—but one people—God’s children.

And yet, for John, she remains un-named in his Gospel.  Oddly enough, Islam’s sacred book, the Qu’ran, has an entire chapter devoted to Mary, and is named “Mary.”  She is the only woman mentioned by name in that holy book, and that name appears more times than it does in all the Gospels combined.  But in our non-Gospel way, many Christians think of Muslims as heathens when they are our cousins in the faith (along with our Jewish brothers and sisters).  Why do people who claim to be Christian get on the anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim bandwagon?  All 3 faith communities are within the Abrahamic faith tradition!! 

Scholars have long wondered why the Cana story is not found in the other 3 Gospels.  The great St. Thomas Aquinas thought the wedding might have been John’s!  And so, he reported the event.  However, later scholars hold that the apostle John was probably NOT the writer of this Gospel.  And why does the Gospel begin with a wedding that had water changed to wine. 

Well, maybe the following was at play.  Namely, audiences were already familiar with the major event in Israelite history known as the 10 plagues visiting Egypt.  ONE of those plagues was the Nile River water changing into blood.  Voila!  That story’s water being changed to blood foreshadowed the Christian eucharist.  Jesus said to regard the wine they drank as his “blood” and thus be his continued presence when the community “broke bread” at the “table of the Lord” (altar). 

Some Christian fundamentalist groups will say that Jesus changed the water into grape JUICE and not wine—thus not having his disciples consume an alcoholic beverage.  Some preachers will say that the Koine Greek word did not mean “wine” but “juice.”  However, when one holds to believing a falsehood, or a lie, there is nothing you can say to change their mind.  Reputable scholars who are well-versed in ancient near-east biblical languages—all say that the word John used meant “wine” and NOT “grape juice.”  Tell that to some fundamentalists and they will not accept the truth.

This same pattern of denial exists within what some call the Trump cult.  60 courts ruled AGAINST each allegation that Trump’s people raised (when saying the 2020 election was fixed).  Many of those courts were overseen by Trump-appointed judges.  Some of his aides and family members told him that he lost (which he admitted in rare interviews).  He had even made plans long in advance of the election to protest if he DID lose.  But he still pushed what became known as “the big lie” saying that he actually won.  And now, some who are being appointed to his cabinet are being rewarded for still pushing “the big lie.”  He know they will support whatever he says—be it truthful or not.  His nominee for Attorney General is one such person—doing what his former Attorney General would not do (lie).  He fired Mr. Barr for holding to the truth.

Meanwhile, fundamentalists have the same mindset as Trump cultists.  They are presented with facts but reject them. In biblical studies, this topic uses the following terms.  When one translates a text accurately and objectively—without bringing their prejudices or personal opinions to the topic, one is referred to as a biblical “exegete.”  They are not influenced by thinking that is unrelated to the text’s original meaning within the original context.  By contrast, one who translates a text and who injects their bias is not doing an “exegesis” of the text, but an “eisegesis” (a “reading INTO the text” something that isn’t there.  E.g., I’m opposed to drinking alcohol, so I will make sure there is nothing in scripture that has heroes (especially Jesus) drinking alcohol. 

When there is a different opinion based on facts that are 50-50, reasonable people say the topic is a call that’s “to tough to make.”  However, when the evidence is 99% in one direction—and people cling to the 1%–there’s no changing the minds of the 1%.  In Mr. Trump’s case, he won votes for selling the “big lie” and bible scholars lost a segment of “Christians” to fundamentalism when saying Jesus drank wine.

Even Bishop Papias—a first-century Christian leader—knew people who knew Jesus, and he reported that Jesus said the finest wine would be in heaven.  Tell that to a fundamentalist, and they will tell you (with zero evidence or knowledge) that Bishop Papias was wrong. 

Since so much has been made of this political topic over the past few years, it seemed a timely example to use—especially since a result of this purely political strategy was this week’s presidential inauguration.   Enough voters were persuaded that 2020 was a “stolen” election—to illustrate that the lie “worked.”  This political topic isn’t made to replay the past election.  Rather—whatever the topic–each of us always needs to re-evaluate the “water” of our thinking—and ask God to refine it to produce wisdom in all matters we address.  Such is the story of Cana—Jesus changing the sterile water of our everyday thought into a symbolic wine of high quality.

If the above points are too provocative or uninteresting, points that all of us can learn from the Cana story are these: 1) Ask Jesus for help (as Mary did); 2) Be specific in your prayer when asking what needs change—water to wine; 3) do what he asks (as the waiter did); 4) realize that your life-efforts are intended to help others and make life better for them (as our political leanings must be our effort to serve the many and not the few).

With Martin Luther King Day being this week, here is a prayer formulated by a clergyman who inspired him:

Open unto us/me, light for our/my darkness
Open unto me, courage for my fear   Open unto me, hope for my despair
Open unto me, peace for my turmoil
Open unto me, joy for my sorrow
Open unto me, strength for my weakness
Open unto me, wisdom for my confusion
Open unto me, forgiveness for my sins
Open unto me, tenderness for my toughness                                          Open unto me, love for my hates
Open unto me, Thy Self for myself    Lord, Lord, open unto me!

Today’s 2^nd reading from Corinthians noted that we each have our special contribution to make.  The following lyrics are from a spiritual that Martin Luther King liked to quote:

If you can’t be a pine on the top of the hill, be a scrub in the valley. 

But be the best little scrub on the side of the rill. 

Be a bush if you can’t be a tree.  If you can’t be a highway, just be a trail. 

If you can’t be the sun, be a star. 

For it isn’t by size that you win or you fail, be the best of whatever you are.  

Last week, we had the baptism of a beautiful little girl.  As I’ve mentioned many times, when we see such a darling innocent, and feel all sorts of affection for this gift from heaven, we get some sense that God has the same sort of affection for each of us.  Even though we might be mature and respected members of some community, we are needy infants in God’s eyes. 

I make the above point so often that I seek new theological “material” to offer for reflection on the topic of God’s love for each of us.  Today’s first reading provided it.  This is what the first reading said: “God’s delight in us is like a bridegroom rejoicing in his bride.  Just so does your God rejoice in you.” 

Try and recall how you felt when falling in love with a special someone.  That flurry of emotion and thought that you had back then—is what God feels for you. 

On the day we inaugurate a felon as president, we also honor a King—M. L. King.  Unlike the felon’s message, the King spoke wisdom in stories such as this one.

A little girl who wandered away from home, and could not be found when people went to search.  Community leaders said that everyone should gather in the field, hold hands, and walk together over the brush and meadows to search for the child.  Finally, they found the little girl—dead.  And that night, the mother wept quietly saying over and over again: “If only we had held hands yesterday.”

Such was the point of Martin Luther King’s preaching and teaching.  It was also the preaching and teaching of Jesus.  And should be what each of us holds as our own.

Once upon a time, there was a baby eaglet who fell from his large nest in a tree and flopped his first flight into a chicken pen.  There he befriended the chickens and they welcomed him to eat with them.  When the owner of the chickens saw the interloper, he also welcomed him.  From that time on, the eagle grew up living with chickens.  Years later, the eagle looked up at the sky and saw a beautiful bird soaring high in the clouds.  He asked a chicken who it was up there, and the chicken replied that it was an eagle, the king of all winged creatures  The one-time baby eagle continued to peck at the ground and eat corn with the chickens since he continued to consider himself one of them.

This story about the eagle who thought he was a chicken, is related to the story of a mom and dad who took their second child to be baptized.  On the way home from the ceremony, their 4-year-old was crying in the back seat.  Asked why he was crying, the little boy replied: “The priest said he wants us to be brought up in a Christian home—but I want to stay with you guys.”

The eagle in the chicken coop was raised to think it was a chicken—and had no other sense of its identity as one who could soar high in the sky above.  It would never ascend to the identity it was created to be.  And so it might be the same with us.  We might never find the fullness of our identity were it not for baptism and the religious formation that should ensue.  That is, we might never become the best version of ourselves if left to see ourselves solely through a secular lens.  We are eaglets programmed to soar and not remain grounded.

This week the Church celebrates the feast of the baptism of the Lord.  It is not intended to celebrate the historical occurrence of Jesus being baptized by John.  Rather, it is a feast that calls us to reflect on what our baptism means for us today. 

Referred to as a “sacrament of initiation,” baptism was an experience during the infancy of most of us.  It was a day on which our family members brought us to church and welcomed us into a faith community that had preserved the vision of life that Jesus taught.  They sorely hoped that His vision would influence our growing-up years.  They wanted this because they knew their precious little one from heaven would encounter challenges that would blur their baby’s recollection of the God who sent them here.

Our family intended to give us a sense of belonging and orientation for life that would help us become a person known for our faith, hope, and love.  Our family members knew that the sacraments and church practices made us members of the Church—a belonging that would help us hone our unique identity into the gift God intended us to be.  It would help us realize that creation was incomplete without us in it.   Our family brought us to our baptism because they wanted us to realize that God created us special—and that God doesn’t make junk.  

Keep in mind that God did not need sacraments, scripture, prayer, or involvement within a faith community.  It was WE who needed these gifts—that would help us face challenges and acquire a vision of why God dreamed our creation into being.

Sadly, we live in an increasingly secular society in which growing numbers of people find involvement with Church to be something they think that they can do without.   In “first world” countries that have a high standard of living, people tend to rely on “things” and not the God who made them.  Not surprisingly, with cell phones preoccupying the attention of so many people over the past few decades, individuals are feeling more isolated and lonely.  Young people find it a challenge to relate conversationally with peers or elders because their socialization occurs via text messaging and eyes fixated on cell phone videos.

Is it any wonder that a commercial played throughout the day on the radio has Ronald Reagan’s son as its pitch-man who states in an arrogant tone of voice: “The fastest growing religious group in America today is the non-religious—especially among the young.  Join the Freedom from Religion Foundation for 20 dollars.  This is Ron Reagan, lifelong atheist and not afraid of burning in hell.”

As an anthropologist of religion, I see Reagan’s group “evangelizing” a gospel of their own.  It is one that is 180 degrees in the opposite direction of the Christian Gospels.  Surprising to me is Reagan’s proclamation of having no fear about burning in hell. While he says this in a scoffing tone of voice, I say the same thing. Namely, like him, I also don’t believe in a devil throwing me into hell.  That’s not my religion!

Instead, I think of Ron and countless others losing an opportunity to be an even better person than they are.  Embracing the Gospel, we can grow, as Luke said of Jesus, “in wisdom and understanding.” 

As former president, Jimmy Carter was laid to rest, he was remembered for speaking of his faith influencing him: “I have one life and one chance to make it count for something. I’m free to choose that something. That something—the something that I’ve chosen—is my faith. My faith demands that I do whatever I can, wherever I can, whenever I can, for as long as I can with whatever I have, to try to make a difference.”

This past week, a “pop-up” Internet article appeared that told of celebrities who died in 2024.  I was surprised to see photos of faces that were no longer with us.  After questioning some comments that were associated with different individuals, I explored the topic further, and discovered that this article was a slickly presented and edited set of lies.  Someone, like those who send a “virus” to as many computers as they can invade, was just presenting misinformation.  I couldn’t help but ask: “Why do you do this?”  All I could think of was the lies that still fill the airwaves that promote the Trump agenda.  For example, the Senate hearings on cabinet nominees.  Once again, not being “sworn in” to tell the truth, “untruths” pour forth. In such a world, people baptized to be truth-tellers are much-needed. 

When I see lies fill the airwaves and behaviors that occur simply because some people wish to cause problems for others, I’m reminded of the prayer of St. Michael.  One of its lines refers “to all the evil spirits that prowl around the world seeking the ruin of souls (i.e., people’s lives).”  Such is the world—a world in need of us, the baptized.

This weekend is when we celebrate he Feast of the Epiphany—a word that means a new realization or new understanding of something.  In everyday English, you could say “I had an epiphany,” and then proceed to tell one or more people about some new insight you acquired.  The epiphany we celebrate this weekend refers to the Wise Men coming to the realization that this baby in the manger is the King of the Universe, the promised Messiah or Christ that as prophesied from old.

We’re all familiar with the Christmas story of Wise Men coming to Bethlehem, and we see manger scenes at church and in homes that depict angels, shepherds, and sheet gathered around the baby in a manger (which was “no crib for a bed”).  We see the word “manger” and realize it’s a French word meaning “to eat.”  And we put 2 and 2 together and realize that a manger is a feeding trough.  And how apropos it was for Matthew to depict Jesus in such a place where food is found.  We realize that this early Gospel scene in the life of Jesus is pointing to the end of the Gospel when he becomes Eucharistic food at the Last Supper.

Hmm.  Putting the above 2 topics together, we realize that coming to Mass is our own coming to the manger to receive the “bread from heaven,” or what we call “the lamb of God” here at the “table of the Lord” in the form of communion.  Each time we attend Mass, we ask God in prayer to nourish us with more and more epiphanies—more insights that help us live the best version of ourselves.

At this time of year, we picture in our minds and wonder why the Gospels of Mark and John do not refer to the birth of Jesus.  Unlike Luke and Matthew addressing the birth, they simply had other topics to present.  Remember, the Gospels are not biographies, but theologies of the Christ-event.  And we think of the cruel King Herod—a man who killed some of his wives and children.  He was also a jealous King—killing all babies under 2 years of age in order to destroy any child who might one day replace him as the king.  As stated in the past, Gospel elements are all worthy of our reflection, e.g., to what extent are YOU like Herod—envious of what praise comes to others and not yourself?

And isn’t the star in the sky an inspiring touch to the Kodak moment of seeing mother, father, and baby surrounded by animals and angels as the star shines above them.  The Christmas season is definitely one that is rich with religious meaning.  However, scripture scholars tell us that the birth narrative is almost entirely symbolic.  They say that the only historical realities of that special scene are the existence of Jesus, Mary, Joseph, and Herod!  All the other material is rich with theological meaning that Matthew wanted to note—but nothing that actually took place (except the birth of a child SOMEWHERE under some unknown conditions.  

Catacombs of the 2^nd century have art still visible that shows two to four Wise Men. After all, scripture cites no actual number of kings from the far East—just that 3 gifts were brought.  At other times in history, Christian communities said there were 12 visitors—until the tradition of 3 became the standard (based on there being 3 gifts mentioned in the story).

What sorts of theological truths was Matthew trying to communicate?  Remember, he was writing 50 years after the death of Jesus, and there were truths that he was inspired to report that had been passed down over that period (a sprinkling of which are cited here).

For example, the kings represent ALL leaders of ALL peoples in the world coming to honor the King of Kings.  And where did they find this scion of royalty?  In a crib, in the presence of farm animals, and the simple folks in the fields—and even King Herod (who represents the wealthy class who likewise were allowed to honor the newborn king—but didn’t.  Matthew subtly implies that secular leadership is not on a par with God (despite some political leaders wanting to present themselves in this way).

Gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh were traditional gifts brought to kings and even mentioned in the Old Testament.  Even the galaxy itself bore witness to this son of God made incarnate!  A special, celestial light shone down on the “holy family.”

In 1896, author Henry VanDyke was inspired to write The Other Wise Man—the story of Artaban, who intended to accompany 3 other kings to where they heard a king was to be born under an especially bright star in the sky.  Artaban had a ruby, sapphire, and pearl that he wanted to present to the king.  However, he was delayed in meeting with his fellow kings, so they left without him.  He was detained by helping a man who had been beaten up and left to die on the road.  Artaban paid an innkeeper to nurse the man back to health—paying him with the sapphire.

Upon arriving in Bethlehem where the star had stopped, Artaban knocked on a door and a terrified woman opened it—holding her baby close.  He saw her frightened by the soldier coming from another house and headed for hers.  Knowing these soldiers were sent to kill Jewish babies (as done by Pharaoh when Moses was an infant—another parallel Matthew wove into his gospel plot)—Artaban placed his ruby in the soldier’s hand and said “There are no children in this house”—and the soldier moved on.

The thankful mother was who informed Artaban that Mary and Joseph had fled to Egypt.  And so he headed in that direction.  However, he kept finding himself being stopped by different people in need week after week, month after month, and year after year.  He could not turn his back on people in need, so he spent 30-some years looking for the Bethlehem king.

Learning that this king was to be crucified in Jerusalem, he made his way there.  En route to Calvary, he came upon a woman being sold into slavery, so he took his final gift—his pearl of great price—and paid for the woman’s release.  As reported in the gospel, an earthquake occurred when Jesus was dying on the cross, and as Artaban made his way to the cross, a roof collapsed on him, and put him at death’s door.

This is how Van Dyke described the scene:

As he lay dying, he bemoans never seeing the Messiah. He’s heard to say: Not so, my Lord! When did I see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty, and give you drink? When did I see you a foreigner and take you in? Or naked, and clothed you? When did I see you sick or in prison, and come to you? 33 years have I looked for you; but I have never seen your face, nor ministered to you, my King.'” The 4^th wise man heard a voice say: “Since you have done these things for the least among you, you did it for me.”  A calm wonder and joy lighted the pale face of Artaban like the first ray of dawn on a snowy mountain peak. A long breath of relief exhaled gently from his lips. His journey was ended. His treasures were accepted. The Other Wise Man had found the King.

Asked about writing this story, VanDyke said:

“I do not know where this little story came from–out of the air, perhaps. One thing is certain, it is not written in any other book, nor is it to be found among the ancient lore of the East. And yet I have never felt as if it were my own. It was a gift, and it seemed to me as if I knew the Giver.”

Like Matthew’s Gospel, this story distills the message preached by the evangelists.  Artaban was sketched as a “role model” for us readers of the story.  Each of us has our precious gem-like existence in being the unique person we are.  And life always asks of us “What are you doing with the jewel that is you?” 

A contrast of this story at this time in American history is being played out in the news as a new administration is being put together.  Commentators have pointed out that the new, unfolding administration has more billionaires than any administration in U.S. history.  Their involvement promises to net them even more riches—with no hint of them having any interest in following Artaban’s example.  By contrast, kudos to the billionaire who, in the 1940’s, donated to the Smithsonian Institution the “Sapphire of Artaban.”  It was donated with the condition that the donor remain anonymous.

This act of generosity was truly a creative form of catechesis (teaching the Gospel).  For viewers to understand why this sapphire was named for Artaban, they would have to read a summary of the story such as appears here.  Might any heart be moved by the tale?  Might any new member of the administration give any thought to actually serving the public good?

Christmas arrives and families come from near and far to gather.  Family members become Santas who distribute “presents” to one another against the backdrop of specially prepared food that makes everyone gain weight at this time of year.  Churches see their pews fill with persons seldom or never seen in the congregation during the year.  More often than not, “a good time is had by all” when gathering as families in their mother churches.  Their experience is just what God, the Divine Doctor, ordered.  We are all better off because of the experience.  And yet, once the holiday is over, attendance at Mass drops back down to a pre-Christmas level.

For that one day, however, people experience a sense of belonging, inspiration, hope, and faith.  They are recipients of the grace Jesus intended to impart when the sacraments were first experienced. For example, the year-round daily and Sunday Masses are, theologically, where Bethlehem is to be found.  Just as the “manger” was (as the song states) “no crib for a bed.”  It was a feeding trough—where animals fed.  The association of Jesus was associated with the feeding through the manger, so this association spilled over into the Eucharistic “table of the Lord” where generations of Christians were fed.  And just as the birth narrative informs us that the baby was named “Emmanuel” or “God with us,” so the “table of the Lord” is where the “real presence” of Christ reminds us that the Risen Lord is present there in the “sacrament” (the visible presence of an invisible reality). 

The religious images of Christmas, surprisingly, are only found in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke.  Mark and John say nothing about the birth of Jesus, or the Wise Men or Herod, or no room in the inn.  With 2 Gospels not mentioning anything about the early life of Jesus, we see that these writings are not biographies.  They are theologies—offered by 4 different authors who are trying to communicate the meaning of who Jesus is and why he came among us.

The richness of this story’s imagery, and the theology it teaches, can be endlessly tapped by each of us.  The tale told about Joseph and Mary registering as part of the census takes us to be “counted”—symbolizing our being counted come judgment day when God asks how we’ve lived our lives.  The tale tells of us taking roads to new life—to find nourishment for our life journey.  Primarily, we are told which star to follow in life—as it gives us the guiding light we need to live our lives the best we can.  Other stars might beckon—such as power and wealth—but there is one star that shines the best way to take.

On the surface, the Bethlehem story reports the birth of Jesus and is embellished with the arrival of kings and sheep and angels.  On one of its deeper levels, its story is also about each of us.  It’s about a God who so loved the world and so loved YOU—that creation was not complete without your presence in it.  Jesus affirmed the natural world by becoming part of it—and so embraced yours and my individual creation—you and I with our weaknesses and strengths and idiosyncrasies of behavior, our likes and dislikes—in short, our uniqueness.

Not until St. Francis of Assisi (1181-1226) did Christians make representations of Bethlehem by crafting Nativity scenes, or creches, that depicted Mary, Joseph, Magi, animals, and a stable.  Ever since that time, we’ve had visual aids helping us see ourselves in the scene and see the many messages God revealed to us in the narrative as a whole.  For example, are we a king like the despicable Herod (who killed half of his children and several wives). Are we envious like him–of another king taking our place in the neighborhood, and so lie to the Magi in asking them to tell him where Jesus was found?  He did not want to join them in welcoming the new child, but instead wanted to eliminate the potential rival.  The elements of the story make us evaluate whether we are Herod-like or Magi-like in welcoming people. 

Or are we like Joseph—about whom we know practically nothing—and do we simply live our lives, anonymous in the eyes of the world, doing our best—and successfully raising a son?  This Joseph and wife Mary—like Josephs and Marys in Hemlock and Merrill, help show us “the Way” in which we are to live our lives.  They knew the experience of seeking shelter and being told there was no room in any inn for them.  They relied on their wits to find a place to stay.  They did the best they could—just as the little donkey that carried Mary did what it could:

Just a little donkey,
but on my back I bore
The one and only Savior
the world was waiting for.

Just a little donkey,
but I was strong and proud—
I gladly carried Mary
through the chaos of the crowd.

I brought her to a stable
where she made a tiny bed…
A place for baby Jesus
to lay His little head.

I pray the world remembers
that special Christmas night
When just a little donkey
carried Heaven’s Precious Light.

Scripturally, we don’t know how many Magi came to the birth, if any. After all, the theological point of their presence is that all persons in power will eventually have to bend their knees to the Risen Christ—and that wise men and women STILL seek him.  Deep in their hearts, they know that His authority is like that of an infant compared to an adult.  And this reminds us that we who “know the score” in life are really like infants in need of everything (when God looks upon us).   This is why a baby SHOULD signal to us that WE are infants needing God’s care guidance and affection.  We may seem to the world that we are mature and accomplished, but in God’s eyes—we are the one in the manger.

So whenever you see Gospel elements of the Christmas story—those elements are intended for YOU.  They remind us of who God is and who we are.  If a given thought or image stays in mind—stay with that thought or image.  God may have sent that seed of reflection your way—so that you might grow, as Jesus did, “in wisdom and understanding.”

The stable, it is said, was just a cave, a shelter for animals and some straw.

–A cave as was the common shelter of our ancestors who shared the common earth.

Somewhere in time we lost our love for caves.

We instead sought the stars—and not unwisely—for there is truth in them, also.

But when the light of the world chose a place for birth to give us hope in our darkness, it was a cave he chose—leading us there by a star—in order for us to find the birth of stars within.

There is an emerging movement that sees its members speak about belonging to a “Christian culture.”  This “culture” can include atheists and agnostics, and all sorts of people who practice or condone behaviors that Jesus specifically forbade.  People in this “Christian” culture will accept laws against stealing goods from stores, and murdering someone without good reason, and other basic concerns (like stopping for a red light).  However, this same “Christian” culture is “Caucasian” and intolerant of anyone who is not “WAS” (“white Anglo-Saxon).  The acronym USED to be “WASP”—the “P” being “Protestant.”  However, the new “cultural Christian” doesn’t have to practice the faith. 

In short, this movement is Christian in name only and largely reflects what the Nazis did in pre-War Germany.  The “Fatherland” was the new God with Hitler as the savior who would restore to power the mythical “Aryan” race that had been so dishonored in WW I.  One of the many bizarre things that the Nazis did was distribute photographs of young people who “looked” like what they imagined was a mythical Aryan child.  One such photo—described as having the “ideal” appearance of an Aryan—was actually the photo of a little Jewish girl.  Had the Nazis known of her true identity, she would have been killed—as Jewish people were earmarked for extermination.   Sadly, today’s American Nazis and “White nationalists” are traveling the same road as Germany did.

The above social trend has spilled into people’s practice of the Christian faith—with church-going individuals making no connection between the message of Jesus and the actual human persons his birth addressed.  This trend came to mind when I came across the reflections that follow.  I did not write them, but think that whoever did compose the piece was on the right track of identifying the person who was put to death by the Romans 2000 years ago.  The child born in Bethlehem did NOT come just for those of White Anglo-Saxon descent.  Being a Jew himself, the baby Jesus could hardly be anti-Semitic.  Instead, he entrusted us with the task of taking people off he diverse crosses on which they hang in everyday human activity. 

Welcome to the annual Christmas party! Help yourself to a hot buttered rum. Mind the big bowls of popcorn; we’ll be needing those later.

Now, before we begin our annual holiday festivities, there are a couple inveterate party poopers in attendance that I’m just going to have to address.

First, we have the omnipresent Smug Anti-Theist who thinks they’re getting off a good one by pointing out that a lot of Christmas traditions come from earlier pagan celebrations. I’m not talking about people who point out things like that because they think it’s a fun historical fact; I think it’s a fun historical fact too. 

I’m talking about the tiresome people who honestly believe they’ve disproved Christianity because Saturnalia exists. To which I reply: Yeah duh. We’re Christians. That’s what we do. We baptize pagans.  We also take elements of all the many cultures we come from and cast new meaning on them in the light of the Gospel.  We baptize yule logs, mistletoe, candles, pine trees. We baptize the name “Brigid.” We baptize temples and make them churches. We baptize special times of year. We baptize goddess imagery and use it differently to illustrate truths about the Virgin Mary. We baptize calling God by different names. We baptize everything.  Want me to baptize you? Christians aren’t threatened by Saturnalia.

Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s move on to our fellow Christians. There is a certain type of Christian Christmas party pooper who likes to grump at people who are touched by the Holy Family’s poverty and helplessness in the infancy narrative this time of year. You know the type.

These are the people who post op-eds or preach sermons about the Holy Family not REALLY being poor or not REALLY being refugees. People who assure us that Mary wasn’t anything like today’s single mothers or that Joseph wasn’t the same as an immigrant dad taking his children to safety. They want to keep Jesus, Mary, and Joseph up on a pedestal lest anybody sully them by pointing out that they were humans and can teach us something about the inconvenient humans we encounter in our day-to-day life. And they are wrong. They are so wrong it’s ludicrous.

I’m going to go ahead and make a hard and fast rule: if someone writes an entire article or preaches a sermon assuring you that any Gospel passage, on Christmas or at any other time, is not really meant to remind you to empathize with marginalized people, you may throw popcorn at them and disregard it. They’re always wrong. Even when they have a ghost of a point, they’ve missed the broader point of the entire Gospel so they’re simply wrong. 

If they say “Joseph and Mary weren’t really refugees” throw popcorn and disregard it.  If they say “Jesus wasn’t really a foster kid” throw popcorn and disregard it.  If they say “The Holy Family wasn’t really poor” throw popcorn.  If they say “The Holy Family weren’t similar to a blended family” throw popcorn.  If they say “The Virgin Mary wasn’t comparable to a teenage single mom” throw popcorn.  If they say “The Three Kings weren’t really a sign that God wishes to manifest Himself to everyone including scary brown people who have a different religion to us” throw popcorn.

If they say “Jesus wasn’t really lynched on Good Friday” or “Jesus wasn’t really sexually abused on Good Friday” or “Jesus wasn’t really spiritually abused on Good Friday” throw popcorn.  If they repeat any version of “The Gospel doesn’t really mean that we have to take care of poor people” throw popcorn.  If they say “‘The Son of God has nowhere to lay his head’ isn’t supposed to make you think of the plight of homeless people” dump the whole bowl over their heads and make them go stand outside.  If they say “The persecution of Jesus’s people by the Romans isn’t supposed to make you think about racism,” you’re going to have to make a batch of nice sticky caramel candy corn and carefully stick it to their best clothing.  And don’t take it any more seriously than that. 

The whole point of the Gospel is that Jesus came to earth as a human to make His dwelling among us, to become one of us, and draw us all up into the Life of the Blessed Trinity. He specifically chose to do this as a member of an oppressed race in an occupied land, who would know poverty, who would take refuge in a foreign country, and who would eventually be abused and tortured to death by a brutally unjust racist police force.

He suffered for and with us because He loves us. But this glorious gift also leaves a great demand on us. Christ told us that whatever we do to the least of His brethren, we do to Him. He is always present for us in marginalized people. Wherever you see people that society wants you to despise, you know for certain you are looking at Christ.

So there you have it.  We’re allowed to have fun at Christmas, and Christmas makes a demand on us on behalf of all marginalize people.

Now, let’s have a party.

When Was Jesus Born—

B.C. or A.D.?

In which year was Jesus born?

While this is sometimes debated, the majority of New Testament scholars place Jesus’ birth in 4 B.C. or before. This is because most date the death of King Herod the Great to 4 B.C. Since Herod played a major role in the narrative of Jesus’ birth (see Matthew 2), Jesus would have had to be born before Herod died.

This begs the question: How could Jesus have been born in B.C.—“before Christ”?

The terms B.C. and A.D. stand for “before Christ” and “anno Domini,” which means “in the year of the Lord.” These terms are used to mark years in the Gregorian and Julian calendars—with the birth of Jesus as the event that divides history. In theory, all the years before Jesus’ birth receive the label B.C., and all those after his birth get A.D. If Jesus had been born in 1 A.D., these designations would be completely accurate.

However, as mentioned above, it seems most likely that Jesus was born in 4 B.C. or earlier. How then did the current division between B.C. and A.D. come to be?  The monk Dionysius Exiguus,  was the originator of the B.C. and A.D. calendar (based on when the calculated Jesus was born): Dionysius lived from about 470 to 544 A.D. He was a learned monk who moved to Rome and became well-known for translating many ecclesiastical canons from Greek into Latin, including the famous decrees from the Councils of Nicaea and Chalcedon.

Although we are not exactly sure how he came to this conclusion, Dionysius dated the consulship of Probius Junior, who was the Roman Consul at the time, to “525 years after ‘the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ’”—meaning 525 years after Jesus’ birth, that is, 525 A.D. Because of Dionysius’s calculations, a new calendar using B.C. and A.D. was born. The terms B.C.E (Before the Common Era) and C.E. (Common Era) also use this calendar.  These latter usages became standardized in the late 20^th century.

Even though Dionysius Exiguus calculated his date for the year in which Jesus was born in the sixth century, it was not until the eighth century that it became widespread. This was thanks to the Venerable Bede of Durham, England, who used Dionysius’s date in his work Ecclesiastical History of the English People.

Instead of today’s 4-week observance, Advent USED to be a period of 40 days on our liturgical calendar.  It was a counterpoint to Easter’s Lenten season. This 3rd week of Advent is called “Gaudete” (“Rejoice”) Sunday.  It refers to us ALMOST being at Christmas—and so we should rejoice in realizing once again that Jesus was born.  During this season, we are called to reflect on Jesus coming to us 3 times: 1) at Bethlehem, 2) in our lives by the way we live, 3) at the “2nd Coming.”

It was a stroke of genius (“inspiration?”) for the Church to highlight our call to rejoice—for reasons unrelated to the theology just summarized.  The medical community refers to this time of year as having an increase of what they call “Seasonal Affective Disorder” (“SAD”).  This is a type of depression that “happens usually during fall or winter. It is thought that shorter days and less daylight may set off a chemical change in the brain leading to symptoms of depression. Light therapy and antidepressants can help treat SAD.”  It sure is therapeutic for us to focus on the “Light of the world” being born at this time of year, and bringing “new life” to us when we might be in the throes of experiencing darkness and depression.

From a less scientific perspective and more associated with folk beliefs is the belief that a full moon affects our moods or behavior.  Anecdotally, people who work in hospitals or care facilities often report that residents are emotionally not centered when a full moon occurs.  Individuals might note an inability to sleep or feel emotions more strongly during this period.  However, studies have not confirmed the reality of a full moon having such an effect on people.   However, as with SAD, it is consoling for people to feel the full moon’s effect on them.  They can be consoled in realizing via “Gaudete”/Rejoice Sunday that God is alive and bringing them new life at a time when they especially feel the need for it.

This week had some important feasts for us to consider during Advent.  One was the Feast of the Immaculate Conception—the dogma declared in 1854 that tells of Mary being conceived “free from “original sin.”  That is, since Jesus was like us in all things but sin, we have to account for his not inheriting it from his parents.  If God was his father, great.  No sin there.  But what about Mary?  With Augustine influencing Church teaching that asserted we all inherited original sin—Jesus would have inherited it through Mary.  But that can’t be since Church teaching also said that Jesus was “like us in all things but sin.”  Voila—the solution was for the Church to declare in 1854 that God had made an exception in Mary’s case.  God saw to it that she was spared original sin.  Problem solved.

As you might suspect, not all Christians thought this perspective was well grounded.  It leaned too heavily on thinking of God as a puppeteer—injecting Himself into human affairs and pulling strings when strings needed pulling. However, one angle on this dogma that HAS earned broad support is that it calls attention not just to Mary’s conception—but to ours, too.  That is, when God created Mary, you, and me—God did not create just another organism who was of no consequence.  Nope!!  Just the opposite.  God made each of us for a reason, for a purpose, for a special role to perform and life to lead.  As Mary’s conception would one day bear the Savior, so our conception would one day see us bear——-What? 

The answer to that question can only be discovered by us in prayer—by conversing with God about why we were made who we are.  This topic is certainly worth pondering at Mass–and justice to ourselves and the world is that we be OBLIGATED to reflect on this reality.  That’s why this is a “holy day of obligation.”  God doesn’t benefit from our taking the time to discern why we were created—but we benefit from putting in the time—in order to discover our God-given identity.

This week of Advent also gave us the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe—who is associated with an apparition of Mary seen by a 50-year-old peasant named Juan Diego near what is now Mexico City in the 1500s.  Once again, scholars look at the Guadalupe tradition and are divided.  Nay-sayers look upon the devotion as void of historical facts and largely a myth promoted by Catholics to help convert Native people.  Others point to what was experienced as Mary greeting an ordinary person and revealing Jesus through Mary.  This debate aside, the historical reality that is NOT contested is the faith of millions who have benefited from the Guadalupe story.  As Gabriel came to a peasant girl to reveal the greatness her life would bring to the world, so are each of us reminded of the special vocation we have from a God who made us and threw away the mold of our unique beauty.  The people of Mexico and the Americas learned of Mary’s embrace of New World populations—a reality that is denied by those who characterize refugees as animalistic pests who should be sent back from where they came. 

The Church deemed it important to canonize Juan Diego and place his feast day in the same week as that of Our Lady of Guadalupe.  As with all the saints, his life is a beacon for us “ordinary people” who are called to do extraordinary things.  Receiving a message just as Mary had received one, he served the God who called upon him on an ordinary day near Mexico City.  His example reminds us to be on the lookout for God tapping us for some special role.

The other important date this week is December 11th, my ordination anniversary.  I say that with a sense of humor.  Were it not for parishioner Tom Mayan emailing anniversary blessings, the date would have gone by unnoticed.  However, an article I read did bring to mind the reality of a priest shortage.  The Archdiocese of Baltimore is closing two-thirds of its parishes.  This brings to mind the prophetic voice of Vatican 2 that brought to our consciousness a concept that needed expression 50 years ago.  That concept is “the priesthood of the laity.” 

Just as the early Christians relied on one another to sustain a practicing community of believers, so today our faith communities rely on the people in the pews to step up and give of their time, treasure, and talent more than ever before.  Fortunately, St. John’s DOES have people actively serving “the people of God.”  But there is always a need for more ministers of communion to visit the homebound or distribute at Mass, more lectors, choir members, social justice committee members, and social committee folk.  Other roles await your stepping up.

At this weekend’s masses, Russ Milan, chair of the finance committee, informed us that the parish was overall operating in the black and that special collections for those in need have always been supported well. 

In the week ahead, I volunteered to homilize at the vicariate reconciliation service.  My role is to remind people that they take to heart what Jesus is quoted as saying in Matthew’s Gospel: I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.  Jesus was reminding his listeners that our challenge is to help those in need.  If you hear people debate issues and aren’t sure WHAT to think, His words are what should guide our attitudes and behavior.  If what someone argues will primarily benefit that person—go to the light and away from their darkness.  If your positions benefit have the wealthy make decisions that negatively impact those in need, go to the light—where those in need huddle for your help.

In the recent election, as with so many others, people often vote for candidates whose election will actually HURT those who vote for them.  This is due to the electorate being seduced by Madison Avenue campaign advertisers who know what “buttons to push” to get people’s attention (and vote).  Moreover, some candidates are “slick” salesmen who can lie to your face and have you believe them.  According to neutral campaign observers, Mr. Trump presented a steady stream of lies at his rallies, and this misinformation persuaded many to vote for him.

Misinforming the public seems more successful than educational institutions!  For example, Fox News draws 42% of the viewing public for the information it offers.  However, studies reveal that its viewers are the most MIS-informed of television audiences.  This is why the network was sued for 1 billion dollars for KNOWINGLY telling its audiences that the 2020 election was “stolen” when it knew full well that what it was telling viewers was a lie.  Even though people who watch the other networks are better informed than Fox viewers, those other networks attract fewer viewers.  Since most Americans are considered “low information” voters, their lack of information ends up putting people into office who will not represent those who voted for them.

MANY issues are beyond the grasp of us Americans.  This has often humorously and depressingly been shown in the past by Johnny Carson and Jay Leno in their “Person on the street” interviews. 

When estimating the size of different social groups, Americans rarely get it right.  Here are some samples of what people think and what the reality is (drawn from solid sources of information such as union membership rolls, census data, insurance companies, social security, the U.S. Census Bureau, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and polls by YouGov and other polling firms.      

People THINK about 26% of the population earn 500k or more a year, but the actual percentage is 1%.    People THINK 36% of workers belong to unions but the actual % is 4%.    People THINK 30% are vegetarian but it is 5% .   People think 34% are left-handed but the actual figure is 11%.     What people THINK and what is TRUE are often enough not the same.  Americans tend to vastly overestimate the size of minority groups. This holds for sexual minorities, including the proportion of gays and lesbians (estimate: 30%, true: 3%), bisexuals (estimate: 29%, true: 4%), and people who are transgender (estimate: 21%, true: 0.6%).

It also applies to religious minorities, such as Muslim Americans (estimate: 27%, true: 1%) and Jewish Americans (estimate: 30%, true: 2%). And we find the same sorts of overestimates for racial and ethnic minorities, such as Native Americans (estimate: 27%, true: 1%), Asian Americans (estimate: 29%, true: 6%), and Black Americans (estimate: 41%, true: 12%).

Surprisingly, except for Indians, all Americans come from outside North America.  However, as a nation, we carry biases or prejudices against “foreigners” when, at some point in the past, OUR ANCESTORS were “foreigners.”  Children of immigrants are not born with a “foreign” gene, but instead adapt immediately to the country their parents adopted.  The message of the Gospel is, as you know, that we are all brothers and sisters—spiritually AND biologically.  Advent is a time when we try to internalize this reality.