INROAD

We’re lost when dealing with

so and so. We wish we knew

of an inroad to their mind or

heart - what makes them tick -

what would get them to tell us

what they really want. But

we see the signs in their face: 
CONSTRUCTION AHEAD, SLOW, 
STOP, CLOSED, UNDER REPAIR. 

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2018

December 29, 2018 

Thought for today: 

“The poor can't  lift themselves up by their bootstraps because they have no boots.” 

Words  of  Wisdom from 

Father  Horace  McKenna

HOLY   INNOCENTS

INTRODUCTION

The title of my reflection is: Holy Innocents.

This is a reflection for today: the feast of the Holy Innocents.

We know the story: Herod heard that there was a new born baby boy born in our midst - someone who might take over his power - someone who might take over his prominence - so he calls for the death of all new born baby boys - two years old or younger.

WE KNOW THE STORY

We know the story: number 1’s  don’t like to become number 2’s or 222,222’s.

We know the story: we are neither holy - nor are we innocent.

We know the story: there is always someone better in our midst - someone who will get the job - or the end piece of the birthday care - the piece with more icing - or the end piece of the meatloaf - if that’s the piece we love and have our eye on - or the donut with the raspberry filling.

We know the story: someone always gets better cards or a better roll of the dice in life.

We know the story: someone is always smarter than us - or finds algebra easier - or does the homework - and we didn’t - and so we cheat - making us once neither holy or innocent.

So people abort - babies - we can’t afford the cost - or do the extra for one more kid in our midst.

So people cut down those at work or school or life - who do the more - and we do the less.

When we’re babies we don’t know these things. We’re holy. We’re innocent.  But in time - we start to spot things we don’t like.  We don’t like to stand on line and see others get ahead of us.

What was our first awareness of sin or unfairness or me-first-ism?

What was our first sin?

Was it selfishness?

Was it jealousy?

Was it grabbing the other kids’ toys or dolls or candy or coins on the other kids desk?

When did we make our first real confession - telling God - telling a priest in a dark box - that we didn’t do what our mom or dad asked us to do - just a simple chore?   We wanted what we wanted when we wanted it. We didn’t want to be bothered when we wanted to watch our favorite TV cartoons.

THE READINGS FOR THIS FEAST OF THE HOLY INNOCENTS

When did we realize that today’s first reading is about us: we found it hard to admit we are not innocent - but when we did admit we can be selfish and sinful - we can be healed. [1 John, 5-2, 2]

When was the first time we said, “I did it! I lied. I sinned. I was wrong.”

Does every first child - have Herod feelings - when their parents come home with a new born baby?  Uh oh! I’m about to lose some of my privileges?

When was the first time we saw another look at us and forgive us - because they understood non-innocence- they too had made mistakes - they too learned that Jesus died to deal with all this messy side of life.

Jesus didn’t sleep perfectly every night. He knew darkness - and people who sinned.

Jesus knew morning and light - holiness and innocence.

CONCLUSION

And Mary and Joseph heard the screams of innocent children being slaughtered on their way out of Israel as they headed for Egypt - knowing they will probably hear the same sounds there in Egypt - that their ancestors heard a thousand years earlier before they escaped towards the ever illusive promised land.

December 28, 2018

NICHE

We walk around the room 

till we find a place of rest - 

our niche - but not for the 

rest of the evening - but for now - 

like life …. Sometimes here. 

Sometimes there. Sometimes 

anywhere. We have drink in hand - 

and hors d’oeuvres in the other …. 

our ears open for possible words …. 

connections - conversations. 

Phew …. All alone …. I really don’t 

know anyone in this room.  We’re okay 

for a while - for the time being. Then …. 

we have to move towards the tables. 

There’s more …. There’s always more.

Different people …. Different takes ….

We look at our watch. Next niche….

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2018

December 28, 2018 

Thought for today: 

“You can't talk  to  a person about his or her soul if that person has no food.” 

Words of Wisdom from 

Father Horace McKenna

December 27, 2018

MISTAKE

Mistakes: yep, I make them.

Procrastinatiion, rushing,

laziness, overestimating,

underestimating, or I find

I didn’t listen, or I left one

step out. The solution is

not to say “I’m sorry” but

to get it right the next time.

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2018

December 27, 2018 

Thought for today: 

“In the old days, we would go out in pairs and take care of the Widow Jones who had no bread or the Widow Smith whose rent was due. But now, the poor are a swarm all around us. We can't go out to them. How could you go to sixty homes? How could you go everywhere at once? We have to be ready when they come to us.” 

Words of Wisdom from 

Father Horace McKenna

“GRR” THE SOUND

OF REMEMBERED ANGER

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily is, “’GRR….’ The Sound of Remembered Anger.”

G R R - “Grr” the sound of remembered anger.

What inner sounds do we make when so and so enters the room?”

“Grr” is one such sound.

ST. STEPHEN

Today is the feast of St. Stephen….  As we heard in today’s first reading from the Acts of the Apostles, when St. Stephen walked into a crowd,  some people got angry. [Cf. Acts 6: 8-10, 7, 54-59.]

Acts puts it this way: “When they heard this, they were infuriated, and they ground their teeth at him.”  They got angry at what he was saying in public in his preaching.  He was making Jesus sounds - preaching Jesus words - especially about forgiving one another.

In today’s gospel from Matthew 10:17-22, we hear about people hating Jesus and anyone who tells  his good news.

Notice the first two letters of the word “ground” or “grind”: “Gr”.

The title of my homily is, “’GRR….’ The Sound of Remembered Anger.”

NOTICE YOUR TEETH

Notice jaws. Notice teeth. Notice when we make the “Grr” sound.

There are people who annoy us. There are people whom we bother.

Catch what your mouth does when people who annoy us - or bother us - when we spot them in the room or walking into a room

Saki, the writer said,  “Women and elephants never forget an injury.”

Is that true? I’d assume that it’s both men and women who can’t drop rocks or hurts. Moreover, it’s often an “it all depends”.

Do elephants grind their teeth? I don’t know.

I know humans and dogs do.

Years ago in our house in Washington D.C. the rector had a German Shepherd dog named Bernadette.  Bernadette was also stationed here in Annapolis.  Bernadette was a friendly dog. Father Franny Salmon kept him  on a long, long rope - in the back yard - where the cars were parked. He was there to bark when strangers came through the back lot.

Father F.X. Murphy - who was also stationed here at St. Mary’s - was heading out of our backyard in our place in Washington D.C. In backing out his car, somehow the rope got stuck on the back fender of his car - and he dragged the dog about 6 blocks. People spotting this dragged dog. They were yelling and pointing to Father F.X. for all 6 blocks - before he noticed this.  He put the wounded Bernadette - with sore paws - in the back seat and came back.

I heard that Bernadette would go, “Grrrrrrrrrr!” every time F.X. pulled out in a car from that back lot - for years.

Father Tizio has Wilbur the pug - a pug - who remembers every person who ever gave him a treat.

Question: Do people make any inner sounds - grr - when we walk into a room - because of something we did or said 10 years ago.

CONCLUSION: HOPEFULLY

Hopefully when we walk into a room, people make “happy” sounds and they let their teeth and jaws have a rest.

Hopefully, when people get angry at us, we give them forgiveness smiles, sounds and words - like St. Stephen.

Amen.

December 26, 2018

MEAGER

Meager: now that’s one description

I don’t want ever to hear about myself.

I want abundance  - plenty - an ice

cream cone with at least 2 ½ scoops.

I want people to feel  I am not rushing

them - that I’m listening to them.

God is never meager. Try counting rain

drops or snowflakes or ocean waves.

Try counting leaves and stars and

the shades of every color.

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2018

ST. STEPHEN 

AND FORGIVENESS

INTRODUCTION

Today, the first day after Christmas, is the feast of St. Stephen, the first deacon.

It has always been a special day in the Church, a free day from work and school, all through Europe.

It’s also in folk songs, especially Christmas folk songs. “On the feast of Stephen, when the snow lay on the ground.”

A HOMILETIC REFLECTION

For a homily, for our reflection and consideration, I’d like to offer two thoughts on forgiveness.

FIRST: REPUTATION OF BEING A FORGIVING PERSON

First of all, wouldn’t it be nice to have the reputation of being a person of forgiveness. “He’s so forgiving.”

This is the reputation that surrounds St. Stephen. It’s like an aura that surrounds or envelops him.

As he was being stoned to death, he was able to say, “Lord, don’t lay this sin against these people.”

He is simply giving his version of Jesus’ last words from the Cross, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.”

I’ve read in several places that forgiveness is the # 1 theme of Christianity.

Of course, others have said that it is charity or giving or loving. Christmas is the season of giving.

Well, St. Stephen’s, the next day, is the season of forgiving.

Then others say that part of loving is forgiving.

Whatever.

We can simply be grateful that the first feast after Christmas features St. Stephen the patron saint of forgivers.

He is the first person to die in the spirit of Christ and he certainly died in his spirit.

Forgiveness is so central to Christianity.

I’m not saying, “forgetting”. I’m saying “forgiving”.

I’m not saying that we don’t admit our hurt, and feelings of hurt. Stephen was hit by rocks. Rock hurt. They cut. They kill.

I’m not saying that we don’t have feelings of anger and emotional inbursts about someone who hurt us, who said the wrong thing, who ruined our life or our reputation.

I’m saying, “Forgive!”

SECOND HOMILETIC THOUGHT

My first homiletic point is the idea that forgiveness is central to Christianity.

My second thought for today is less. It’s more self-centered. It’s this. When we forgive, we receive peace. We benefit from forgiving.

It’s sort of like making a poster that says: “Want peace; learn to forgive.”

This is the beautiful thing about the Christian life. In giving, we receive. In forgiving, we receive peace. We benefit from forgiving.

This is the message of so many who have done this.

For example, St. Ignatius said, “In giving we receive. In dying, we are born to eternal life.”

This is the paradox -- called Christianity, called “The Pascal Mystery.”

CONCLUSION

So that would two homiletic thoughts for the day.

Let me close with a poem by William Blake, which says what I just said, but much better. Amen.

A POISON TREE

by William Blake

I was angry with my friend; 

I told my wrath, my wrath did end. 

I was angry with my foe: 

I told it not, my wrath did grow. 

And I watered it in fears, 

Night and morning with my tears: 

And I sunned it with smiles, 

And with soft deceitful wiles. 

And it grew both day and night. 

Till it bore an apple bright. 

And my foe beheld it shine, 

And he knew that it was mine. 

And into my garden stole, 

When the night had veiled the pole; 

In the morning glad I see; 

My foe outstretched beneath the tree.

December 26, 2018 

Thought for today: 

“The greatest undeveloped  resource of our nation and of our world is the poor.” 

Words of Wisdom from Father Horace McKenna

MERRY CHRISTMAS 

TO ONE AND ALL. 

CURIOSITY

[Every Christmas  since 1993, I’ve written  a story for my  Christmas homily. I do this in memory of a priest I was stationed with - Father John Duffy. He wrote a Christmas story every year  for his niece in Boston. I found out  he did this - when he mentioned at breakfast one December morning -  that he had just finished his Christmas story. I nagged him to see it and he finally let me read it. Great story teller. Horrible typist. So without asking,  I typed it up on my computer and told him any changes would take seconds. We  did that. The following year he asked me to type up his handwritten copy of his latest  Christmas story. It was about a dad trying to get home to his family for Christmas in a snow storm. I did that. While typing that story I looked out the window to see how high the snow was. There was no snow. I realized at that moment the power of story. Then when he died  - December 24, 1993,  I decided to write a Christmas story in memory of Duff. This is Number 26. Here goes. It’s called “Curiosity.” And every Christmas - I’m curious what story will be born in my brain and how it goes. “Curiosity!”]

He woke up that Christmas morning having had a strange dream during the night before Christmas.

“Come to think about it,” he was telling me this years after all this happened, “I hadn’t had a dream in years - at least - a dream  that I remembered.”

Being curious, I listened. In fact, most of the time - people don’t open up their whole life to total strangers in rocking chairs - in nursing homes - but “Wait a minute,” I thought, “sometimes people do - so I better listen. It sounds like this guy -  still has his mind and his wits.”

I didn’t tell him that I was a retired brain surgeon and also a behavioral psychologist.  People had opened up their whole lives to me - that was one of my jobs - but  I really didn’t know this resident on corridor C - between rooms 68 to 98 - in Blue Meadow’s Nursing Home - as he was telling me his life story.

We were both old men - residents - widowers - with aluminum walkers - spending the last few years of our lives here in Blue Meadow.

“Well, I’m curious,” I asked, “tell me about that strange dream you had that night before Christmas years ago?”

He looked both ways - down the corridor and up the corridor - and then he began -  sort of whispering.  I turned my hearing aid up a bit.

He began quite dramatically: “God appeared to me - in my dream - well sort of!”

Silence.

He continued, “Now I wasn’t a big God person nor a small God person.  I was just a BMW car salesman in Atlanta, Georgia. Most years I’d go to church for Christmas and Easter - weddings and funerals - and at other times, sometimes. We didn’t have any kids - sorry to say.

He paused ….

He continued, “My wife was killed in a car crash - not long after we got married - and I was so devastated - that I never got married again. She was the love of my life.”

“Woo,” I said to myself. “I’m rather new to this nursing home. Is this what people talk to each other about in nursing homes: telling each other about their lives?”

I didn’t know this guy yet.

He continued talking, “That Christmas Eve I had the dream. It was around 3 in the morning - when Santa Clause was making his rounds - around the world - and getting his chocolate chip cookies and cold milk. No wonder he was a big boy.  I guess God was also making his rounds -  putting  a letter  in my mail box - and maybe many others - in the different ways God Bethlehems people.

“Relax,” he continued, “I’m not crazy.   God put a letter in my mail box. I heard the shuffle of paper in the metal slot on my front door. It woke me up at 3 in the morning. I went down to the front  door and saw this light brown envelope half way through my mail slot.

“I quickly opened the door. It was cold - but not snowy out there - and I looked up the street and down the street - and didn’t see anyone. No cars were moving.

“I went back inside. I was  in my bathrobe - slippers - and pajamas.

“I sat down in my living room Lazy Boy chair and looked at the letter.

“I opened it up. Sure enough it was signed ‘God’.”

I asked myself, “Well, what do I ask for?

“I thought it was one of those jokes. It said, ‘I have one gift for you this Christmas. But you have to come up with an answer to the gift you want by 3 o’clock this afternoon - that is: Christmas afternoon.”

“Not having a wife …. not having kids …. what do I ask for - whom do I ask?

“Well, obviously  I went  to church that Christmas…. In a way It was like going  for the first time in my life. I prayed to God for an answer to the  question. ‘What should I ask for?’”

“I remembered hearing in church or somewhere - a long time ago - about King Solomon - David’s son - who had the same experience. God had asked him, ‘I have one gift for you. Ask for it and it’s yours.’ And Solomon  asked for the gift of understanding.

“And God gave it to him….

“I wondered, ‘Is that what I really need? Understanding?’

“I kept thinking….

“However,  the word, ‘Curiosity’ kept hitting me - not understanding.

“I said to myself, ‘No way. Nobody asks God for the gift of curiosity.

“But - I couldn’t shake that word out of my brain - and I became very curious. Why curiosity?  Why should that be the gift I ask for?

“So that afternoon - at 2:59 -  I said to God, ‘Curiosity. I want the gift of curiosity.’”

Silence.

Pause.

He continued, “’Wait a minute,’ I asked myself.  ‘I’m curious. It was just a dream. There was no letter in my mail box - in real life -  no letter sitting there in my living room - next to my lazy boy chair.

Silence.

Then came more….

“I still asked God for curiosity - and curiosity changed my life.

“My mom was still living. Funny, she was in a nursing home. I found myself buying a small tape recorder and lots of yellow pads and every Wednesday evening and for a couple of hours every Saturday and Sunday I sat with her and together we wrote her life  - and my dad’s life - and the more we wrote - the more curious we became and it brought my mom such delight that someone was dying to hear her story.

“I became curious about the Civil War and Sherman’s March through the south and everything I could find out about Andersonville Prison Camp in Georgia - and I found out we had a great-great uncle who was a guard there during that horror.

“I became interested in God - God and science - and the power of curiosity and faith.

“I made peace with the Problem of Evil and the Problem of Cancer - and the Problem of people dying suddenly in car accidents - like my wife. I learned that I had to deal with the Problem of Good - why is there so much good in our world? Like split pea soup with tiny chunks of  ham - as well as milk shakes and waffles and volunteers. Oh.  I volunteered to coach Little League baseball and Midget football and I joined the local rescue squad.

“I wondered and became curious about questions like, ‘If we were all blind, how would we discriminate? If we were all deaf, how would we communicate with each other - besides using sign language?  Is there something out there - still to discover?”

“I discovered that curiosity could be a better gift than understanding - because it’s the step before understanding. It’s the step that leads to understanding.

Pause. Silence.

Then this other old man said to this old man, “Wait, I’m talking too much? I’m curious about who you are.  Who are you? What did you do for a living? How did you end up here in Blue Meadow’s nursing home?  Why did they call this place, “Blue Meadows?”

And I said, “I’m curious too, ‘Was that really a dream about God giving you that  letter that Christmas Eve? Or do you think God says to everyone on the night before Christmas: I have one gift I want to give you, but you have to figure out what it is, by 3 o’clock  Christmas afternoon.”

NO  FEAR

Years ago, there were t-shirts with the words,

“No fear!” broadcasted  on them.  The scriptures

often have angels and others saying, “Don’t

be afraid.”  Well, that’s the Christmas message

and that’s our prayer for every new born baby.  

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2018

December 25, 2018 

Thought for today: 

“We must not  measure greatness from the mansion down, but from the manger up.”   

Jesse Jackson, in his speech 

at the Democratic National Convention, 

San Francisco, California, July 17, 1984

UPSIDE

Someone said, “But there is a downside.”

I said, “I only want to look at the upside.”

Someone hearing me say that, said,

“Well, that’s crazy. That has a big downside.”

I said, “Well, then, you take care of downsides

and I’ll take care of upsides - and watch me smile.”

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2018

CHURCH  BUILDINGS 

WE’VE  EXPERIENCED 

INTRODUCTION

The title of my thoughts for today - Morning Mass December 24^th -  is, “Church Buildings We’ve Experienced.”

DAVID’S PALACE - GOD’S TENT

Today’s first reading - 2 Samuel 7: 1-5, 8-11, 16, is all about Nathan the Prophet nagging David for not building a house for God. “You David are living in a great house built with cedar and God is living in a tent.”

David, we have a problem here.

QUESTIONAIRRE: NAME 5 CHURCHES

We’ll human beings have certainly built great houses for God.

Here’s my questionnaire: Name 5 favorite or inspiriting church buildings you have  entered or been in and the story behind you getting there? 

Since we’re all so different, I thought it would be a great conversation.  Don’t tell all 5 at once.  Tell them around the table or the conversation one at a time - giving each person their choice - one by one.

Here are my 5.

FIRST: LOURDES

In the 3^rd year of high school, Father John Barry said, “If you ever get to France, get to Lourdes and make sure you go to the baths.” Well in 1993 my two sisters and my brother-in-law went to France and each of us got the choice of one place to visit. My sister Peggy picked Lourdes - so that was taken care of. It was well worth it. So if you haven’t been to Lourdes, put it on your list.

SECOND CHARTRES:

Second for me  would be Chartres Cathedral. It’s about an hour from Paris.

I once listened to a vinyl record by Charles Laughton and on that  record he talks about 2 significant times he went to Chartres Cathedral and how that impacted his life.

Well I got there - and I would recommend to everyone to get to Chartres  - the  Marian Shrine in Europe since the 11^th century.

THIRD: SAGRADA FAMILIA

Third for me was Sagrada Familia - in Barcelona.  I got there 2 times. It’s still being built. Right now the tallest church in the world is Ulm Cathedral.  By 2026 Sagrada Familia will be the tallest.  Check it out.

FOURTH: COLOGNE CATHEDRAL

Fourth would be Cologne Cathedral. Back in 1993 I was taking a train from Hamburg Germany to Paris. Well, my niece Claire’s husband told me to take the hour earlier train - get off in Cologne - walk up the street - and check out the Cologne Cathedral. Then  walk back to the train station and get on the train to Paris that you were ticketed for. Surprise, there was no seat for me - from Hamburg to Cologne  - but looking back it was all worthwhile.

LAST:  SAINT MARGARET OF CORTONA  CHURCH - COLUMBUS OHIO

Fifth - would be St. Margaret of Cortona, Church in Columbus Ohio. It’s a relatively small church - in an Italian Neighborhood settled by Italian stone workers brought to America to build the state buildings in Columbus. I was preaching a parish mission there in the late November of 1999.  The pastor told me that the church was built from stones from the nearby rock quarries. The church has won design awards and honors.

CONCLUSION

What are your 5?  I could  have picked St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City  or St. Peter’s in Rome or St. Paul's in London - and I’ll probably have 50 more - the more I think about this - but I thought these 5 would bring out the point I wanted to make.

Thanks for listening.

December 24, 2018 

Thought for today: 

“The worst sin  -  perhaps the only sin - passion can commit, is to be joyless.” 

Dorothy Leigh Sayers, 

Gaudy Night [1936], chapter 23

December 23, 2018

FLY IN DECEMBER

Some saint loved roses 

in December. How about flies? 

I guess I’m not a saint. 

© Andy Costello, Reflections 2018

WHO  AM  I 

IN THE MANGER? 

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily is, “Who Am I In The Manger?”

JOSEPH BREIGHNER

I picked up a copy of the Catholic Review magazine yesterday afternoon - before going into the confessional. They were in the back of the church. I got there earlier than usual, so I had time to page through the different articles.  I stopped and read the article by Father Joseph Breighner, “Jeers to Cheers”. Then people started coming in for confession.

I always find Breighner’s writings wonderful. I had heard him speak over at Millersville, a few years back. Excellent speaker.

In the article -  he wrote the following, “As a philosopher put it: ‘We look into other people’s eyes to see who we are.’”

I began thinking about that. I didn’t know people did that. Do I do that? I had to answer: “I don’t know.” Then I added, “I’ll have to think about that.”

So that to me is a good article - a good goal for a magazine article - as well as a sermon: to do some good thinking.

Since it was a Christmas article I thought he was going to say: “People look into the manger to see who they  are.”

It didn’t.

But then I said, “That’s a good idea for a Christmas homily.” I write a Christmas story every year, I’ll do that tomorrow, so I’ll give a Christmas homily today with the title: “Who Am I In the Manger?”

Go up to the manger, the crib, the Christmas crèche here in church or at home or on a Christmas card this Christmas and ask, “Who Am I In the Manger?

THE BABY

The baby is front and center.

The baby is what it’s all about.

Carl Sandburg said, “A baby is God’s way of saying the world must go on.”

 “In Joseph Heller’s novel Something Happened the main character, Robert Slocum, says, `I know at last what I want to be when I grow up. When I grow up I want to be a little boy.’”

Natalie Goldberg wrote, “We never graduate from first grade.”

Doug Lawson wrote, “The aging process has you firmly in its grasp if you never get the urge to throw a snowball.”   

Listen to yourself at this winter’s first snow fall. See if you still have that urge to throw a snowball at someone. If you don’t, get with it. Remember Jesus’ words, “Unless you be like little children, you won’t be in the kingdom of God.”  Through snowballs, even if you’re in your nineties.

There’s an Iranian proverb that sort of says the same thing, “Children are a bridge to heaven.”

Anonymous said, “Babies are such a nice way to start people.”

So when you see the manger, start with the baby and start to see babies in the light of your life.  What was it like when I was born?  What were my parents thinking and saying and feeling?  See parents caring for their kid and see our parents doing all that for us.

What were my Christmases like? What was my growing up like? Get out the pictures and study them.  Talk to each other about what growing up was like?  Ask those still around, what they went through and if they are much older than me, did they remember what I went through?

So Number 1: when I see the baby in the manger, what do I see in myself and in life?

NEXT: MARY AND JOSEPH

What do I see in Mary? What do I see in Joseph? What do I see in my parents, living or dead?  If I am a parent, what is / what  was / that like?

What’s with Catholics and Mary and Joseph and the Saints?

This is St. Mary’s Parish.  What is that about?

Today’s gospel has Mary going to Elizabeth?  Both are now pregnant. Elizabeth says, “Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb.”

Do we ever say that to our mom for housing us - for bringing us into the world?  When in our life, has our mom felt blessed, for having had us.

So too our dad.

There are a hundred things to think about when looking into the manger - especially about our parents and being a parent.

NEXT:  THE ANIMALS

We might reflect upon the ox and the ass,  the sheep and the birds.

I do a lot of baptisms. I often wonder what kids are thinking when they see what they see.

Have we ever watched a child looking at a dog and breaking out into a smile?

Have we ever felt like an ox, having to do all the work, and nobody even notices - or says, “Thank you Ox.”

Have we ever felt like an ass?

I won’t go further than that.

SHEPHERDS AND KINGS

Sometimes we’re shepherds.  Sometimes we’re kings.

Sometimes we’re called upon to care for others: like grand parenting, babysitting, teaching, being a crossing guard.  Every person should be a waiter or   waitress at some point in one’s life. Everyone should be a volunteer, an usher, a setter up with tables at a parish or a group picnic.

And sometimes we’re king to queen, like at 25^th and 50^th anniversaries or at a retirement party, when we get gifts: a gold watch or perfume or Old Spice.

I like something Ginny Dauses - who is our high school youth minister - says. She likes to say at the end of a high school retreat,  “When the 3 kings finally saw Jesus, they gave their gifts, but went home a different way.

CONCLUSION

I would hope that by stopping to look into the Christmas manger and seeing ourselves in the story, we would go away - and do life in a different way - a better way.