ST.  STEPHEN’S  OR 

FORGIVENESS DAY

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily is, “St. Stephen’s Or Forgiveness Day.”

Today can be called just that. I’m assuming that this first day after Christmas, because St. Stephen was the first martyr,  the Church decides to use it for the first  feast after Christmas.

FORGIVENESS

I read somewhere - I wish I remember where - that the really unique message of Christianity is forgiveness. The writer said it’s unique among world religions that this is our primary stress - even more than love.

Love is certainly a central theme in world religions. Every group has the Golden Rule in some form - but forgiveness: no,

For some reason, out of the many things I read, I remembered that - but don’t remember the source.

Question for all of us Christians: is forgiveness central to our way of believing and seeing and being?

Translation: do we practice unconditional forgiveness?

ST. STEPHEN

Today’s first reading from The Acts of the Apostles ends at verse 59.  It leaves our verse 60.

Verse 59 reads as we heard, “As they were stoning Stephen, he called out, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’”

Then verse 60 - which ends the 7^th chapter of Acts - goes like this, “Then he fell to his knees and cried in a loud voice, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them’ and when he said this, he fell asleep.”

The turkeys. They left out that key verse. Ugh. Yet, I forgive them, for whatever reason they were asleep and missed the message.

And Bibles that give cross references - give at verse 60 the cross reference to Jesus on the Cross - who said just before he died, “Father, forgive them they know not what they do” Luke 23:34.

FORGIVENESS: ONE OF THE GREAT SECRETS OF LIFE

Jesus gave great teachings about how to live life to the full.

Core to many of his teachings is to be aware and care about the impact that our thinking does to our thinking. He tells us to not only put down the rocks - but to unearth and get rid of  those sharp angry rocks that roll around in our memory. If I’ve learned anything about life I’ve learned that people have memories. We remember our hurts and our mistakes - our sins and our disasters.

Learning the message of forgiveness - and unconditionally accepting God’s love for us no matter what we have done or what has been done to us - is very liberating.

Whenever people hear this the but’s butt in. But she knew what she was doing. But he did something horrific. But if you only knew what really happened. But how can I be forgiven on what I have done.

NEWTOWN, CONNECTICUT

We’re still feeling and reeling from the Newtown, Connecticut story. When I read the comments and commentaries in the newspapers or comments on TV,  I notice whether the speaker or writer says, 26, 27 or 28,

I say 28 died that day. I don’t know why folks leave out the Mom. I can understand leaving out Adam Lanza, but 28 were shot that day. Horrible. Horror. Pain. Craziness.

Father forgive him - them - some blame the mother - for they don’t know what they were doing.

With Jesus on the Cross, with Stephen on the ground, both bleeding to death, I say the words of Luke in both Luke and Acts, “Father forgiven them for they don’t know what they are doing” and “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.”

CONCLUSION

On the day after the Newtown, Connecticut killings, I was reflecting on all this and I wrote a small poetic piece that I put on my blog. Nobody noticed it, so let me conclude by reading it out loud.

                        HOW DOES IT HAPPEN?

            How does it happen when we die?

            Do we all move in a crowd towards God?

            Thomas Merton pictured crowds of people

            like prisoners or displaced people being

            moved from station to station from far

            countries - all those people who died this

            night from all around the world. He

            pictured Hemingway - walking that walk -

            shuffling those steps - after he shot himself.

            How does it happen? What happens next?

            Do all these little kids crowd

            around Adam Lanza and hold him till he

            lets go of whatever it was that killed him

            and them. I don’t know how all this

            horrible stuff happens. Like everyone

            I don’t know how someone could kill a child

            or anyone else, including themselves.

            How does it happen? How, God, how?

OOOOOOO

Painting on top: The Stoning of St. Stephen [c.1780] by Rembrandt. Notice Rembrandt with stone in hand right above Stephen's raised right hand.

X 

MARKS 

THE SPOT

Quote for Today - December 26, 2012

"To us Christians, the first Christmas Day is the solstice or bottleneck of history.  Things got worse till then, ever since we had lost paradise; things are to get better since then, till we reach paradise once more. History is shaped by an X."

Ronald A. Knox [1888-1957]

Questions: 

Do you agree with this statement - in light or in the dark of the Holocaust, the Wars in A.D., abuse,  Newtown, Ct. etc. etc. etc.?

Do you agree with this statement - if you simply apply it to yourself - your history -  if you are a baptized Christian?

THE PRESENT

He was in the mall - the big mall - doing his Christmas shopping.

It was early Saturday afternoon - less than a week before Christmas.

He liked to buy small presents - quality presents - the perfect present - for family or friends.

He looked around and around and around and no gift seemed just right. So he headed for the Food Court - for a hamburger, some fries, and a shake. It was 5 to 1 and 5 presents to go - his 5 kids - 3 girls, 2 boys. The Food Court was packed - just like the rest of the mall. Tray in hand,  he got a small  table. A couple was just getting up. He napkin cleaned it off  and sat by himself.

He loved these moments - just watching people - parents with little ones - grandparents with little ones - people together - including people alone like he was. He liked to imagine - as well as to go figure - what each person’s story was.

Jack’s five kids were grown up and gone. But all five would be back together on Christmas Eve for a Christmas Dinner - the first Christmas Dinner all the family would be together for in years. The next day - Christmas day -  they would be with their own families. Jack and his wife, Lois, knew Christmas was always time to be with one’s own little family - once one’s own little family got started.

They knew Thanksgiving was different. Four out of the five usually made it to Thanksgiving Dinner - taking turns in their different homes - but every family has one or two that sort of shift away: distance, differences, or the spouse they married have their own family traditions as well. The key was to enjoy the “Whatever’s” of life.

Differences could cause corner talk - or comments that needn’t be said - because who knows what’s really what’s what with any one of us?

Anyway this Saturday afternoon - just before Christmas - sitting there all alone in the Food Court - in the big mall - at exactly 1 PM - someone started singing a Christmas carol. Interesting. And she was good. “Joy to the World, the Lord Has Come.” Then another person - this time a guy - great baritone voice - stood up and repeated those same opening words, “Joy to the World, the Lord Has Come.”

Then 25 people - at least 25 people -  stood up and burst out with the rest of that Christmas song, “Joy to the World, The Lord Has Come.”

He had seen these Flash Mob singing scenes on e-mail’s folks had sent to him from time to time. Here he was in the middle of one live and in person.

Then it was another 50 people at least who started to sing - bursting out with sound. Were they an opera company or a church choir?

People from all sections of the Mall headed for the sound - and faces and eyes were filled with surprise and tears and amazement.

Out came the cell phones. His didn’t have a camera on his cell phone - or if he did, he didn’t know how to work it.  Many, many people were photographing the scene. Many had those small digital cameras. Picture. Picture. Picture. Snap. Snap. Snap.

As people lifted kids up on their shoulders or tables or what have you, memories of being at parades with his dad as a kid - or at church at Christmas - came back to him.

He began wondering if there is a difference in different people. Do some people just enjoy the present moment? Do some people miss the present moment by getting pulled into the past by the present moment? Do some people miss the present moment because they have to hold onto the present moment by getting a picture of it for future reference? Do people ever look at all these pictures they took? Why can’t people just enjoy the present in front of them?

He caught himself. He laughed at himself. “Here I am judging others and by doing so, I’m missing the present moment myself. Why do I always do this? Why God, why?” 

He didn’t noticed the “God” word slip into his thoughts.

They sang three songs - just three  Christmas songs - “Joy to the World, the Lord Has Come”; “O Come, All Ye Faithful”; and  finished with “Silent Night!"

Everyone clapped. People continued with the pictures. He saw folks reaching for paper napkins from the counters of the food shops that were all along the edge of the big food court - to wipe away tears.

Then the singers headed into the rest of the mall of the parking lot.

Jack finished his hamburger and fries - both of which had become a tiny bit cold. His shake had disintegrated a bit. He sat there wondering about something down deep - but he wasn’t sure just what it was. He walked a lot when Lois died of cancer just 7 months ago. 55 was too young to go. He didn’t blame God - although he knew two of his kids did. They were the church goers. It wasn’t that - but something was stirring in his silent night.

He stood up and cleared off his table for the next person. A mom and dad and their little kid were just there as he had stood up. The father said, “Thanks for cleaning up the table.” Then he added, “That singing was great wasn’t it?” Jack said, “You’re right! I needed that.”

As he headed back into the Mall, he wondered what those words, “I needed that” meant.

He turned a corner and in another section of the Mall he spotted a small silver colored pewter Nativity set in the window of a jewelry store: Mary, Joseph, Jesus in a Manger, an ox and an ass, and two shepherds, one with a sheep in his arms and another with a sheep on his shoulder. It was compact - this 7 piece set. He walked into the store and asked a salesman. “How much does that pewter Nativity set in your store window cost?”

“Let me check,” he said.

Sheepishly he came back and said, “$314 dollars.”

Jack said, “Can I see them?” 

The salesman got a key and opened up the front window  to get at them. He then brought over some of the set to show him. They were small - solid - with neatly etched features. They were quality pieces - the kind of work you would find in a very rich chess set.

Jack asked, “Do you have more than 1 set?”

The salesman said, “Let me check.”

He got down on his knees and once more took out his keys and opened up a cabinet under one of the display cases in the store. He moved some stuff around and yelled up - still on his knees, “We have 4 more sets with this one.”

Jack said, “Perfect! I’ll take all five.”

The salesman was totally surprised - knowing they were in that store window for about 4 weeks now - and maybe underneath for years.

Jack asked, “Could I get them wrapped?”

“No problem.” The guy brought them over to a young high school or college kid and asked if she would gift wrap them.

Jack said, “Thank You” and paid with his credit card. He asked the salesman if he heard the singing.

“Oh that’s what that was all about.”

Jack headed to his car and home. He had his last 5 gifts bought in one swift move. It was a good choice - the kind of gift that will last for years. Kids and grandkids can play with them and they won’t break. Everyone will have their own set! There will be no arguments - like what happened with a few pieces of mom’s jewelry after she died. And years from now people will ask, “Where did you get that great Nativity set?” And he said to himself, “They will say with pride, ‘Oh my dad bought all 5 of us this same  set for Christmas many years ago.’”

Christmas Eve was a wonderful dinner. All the kids came to Jack’s house for the dinner. His 3 daughters came early and cleaned and cooked and arranged for a wonderful Christmas eve dinner and celebration together.

Everyone opened their gifts in their dad’s house after dinner and all 5 kids were pleasantly surprised with the gift of their solid pewter Nativity Set.  “Wow dad. These had to be very expensive.” He answered, “I don’t have to worry about cost anymore with your mom gone - as well as getting hamburgers, shakes and fries.”

The next day Jack went to Mass - Christmas Mass - the first Mass since the funeral Mass for his wife Lois. Why? He didn’t know. The priest said in his homily something like Bethlehem means “House of Bread - and each church is a House of Bread - and the best Christmas present is  to accept Jesus the Bread of Life into our life - starting again this Christmas.”

Jack spotted the Nativity Scene - the crib - up front - in the church. He smiled and said to himself, “The sets I bought are better.” Then he thought about what his daughter said to him the night before - at their Christmas Eve Dinner - in the kitchen - just before she went home, “Dad thanks for the Nativity Set. Beautiful. I got to get back to Church.” 

Then he cried when the whole church sang together including himself, “Joy to the World, the Lord Has Come.” and then again when they sang, “O Come, All Ye Faithful” and then again when everyone sang after Communion, “Silent Night!” He noticed nobody was taking pictures. He realized they realized Jesus is the Christmas Gift - in the flesh, in our faith. Jesus is in our Past, in our Future, in each Present moment.  

Surprise. On the way out of church that Christmas day he spotted his daughter, Connie, and her family and they spotted him. As she hugged him, he said into her ear, “Connie, we’re both back. Joy to the World, the Lord Has Come.”

THERE WAS NO TRUMPET CRASH 

AT JESUS'  BIRTH - BUT THERE WAS

EVER AFTERWARDS

Quote for Christmas Day - December 25, 2012

"In a flash, at a trumpet crash,
I am all at once what Christ is,
since he was what I am."

Gerard Manley Hopkins [1844-1889]

  

A COLD CHRISTMAS

Quote for Today -  December 24, 2012

"Heap on more wood! - the wind is chill;
But let it whistle as it will,
We'll keep our Christmas merry still."

Sir Walter Scott [1771-1832], in Marmion [1808], VI, Introduction, Stanza 1

OTHER

For full screen hit that square button!

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily is, “Other.”

Life is about myself - I live it - I learn it - I figure it out as I live it - but then again - life is about the other.

The other person in the crowd - the old lady looking out the window - the other woman … the other man … the other making the noise … the other person on the road - or in the car - or maybe taking my job… or has a need to go to the bathroom - so he or she sits at the end of the bench instead of moving in …. 

The other….

For some reason that’s the thought,  - “OTHER”  - that popped up as I read today’s readings - as I wondered about what to preach on this 4^th Sunday of Advent - with Christmas just two days away.

The other…. This will be about basic stuff. You’re sort of stuck with me this Sunday morning. I’m the other priest and my name was on the list to celebrate this Mass. Another priest would be speaking on some other topic or other theme. Isn’t that the way it often works? I expect this and I get some other something or some other person.

THE BABY

We were all once upon a time another baby - the other - who came as a gift and a hope or a surprise to mom and dad.

We were a me - and if it was a well functioning family  - we got the limelight and the pictures  - that first month or two or three or more. We got the attention. We got the lifting up into safe arms when we were scared. We were heard and then held when we were a scream in the night. We were fed - changed - bathed - put in a safe place for sleep and play.

I once heard a priest give a series of talks during which he referred to a baby as “His majesty the King” or “Her majesty the Queen.”  This other priest seemed to think this was very significant.  I never grasped fully what he was getting at. I think he was saying that he noticed that some people never get over the fact that the king or queen position is not for life - and then all their life they resent having to give up that position - like when a brother or sister arrived or when another person had an idea - or a different way of doing something.

Maybe because I’m the fourth and last kid - I didn’t understand what the guy getting at - unless it was just that. My sister Mary has been fond of saying that our parents had 4 only kids - and we were all close in age. I get that - but sometimes I don’t get that. Sometimes we hear the other - but we’re not sure what the other is saying.

What I do get is that at some point in life we have to learn to deal with each other - especially the other person - that there is more than one of us on the planet. There’s always the other. Like Robinson Crusoe there is the moment we see the other’s footprint on our beach - and it’s not our size. Uh oh! It’s the other….

I know I once visited my niece Jeanne to see her new baby, Sophie - her and husband David’s second kid. Jeanne brought Sophie into the room and placed her on the floor in one of those baby carry cases. I was sitting on the couch - and began looking down at this beautiful tiny baby. Then I started going, “Hi! Hi! Hi!” to this tiny creature - hoping she’ll laugh and smile. While doing this Benjamin the first born comes over and sits on the carrying case blocking out Sophie and says, “Hi Uncle Andy!” I didn’t ask if Sophie did this to her sister Olivia - when she came along.

Do we all do that sometimes in our life: blocking out the other?

THE PLAY HOUSE

I once heard Bernard Basset, the Jesuit, he’s now dead, tell in a talk a story that went something like this. Better this is how I heard and interpreted the story - because that is what we do with other people’s stories. Once upon a time there was this little kid who was born into a horrible family situation and ended up being totally wrapped up in himself - and loaded down with problems. The family fell apart and the kid was put into foster care and given large doses of therapy and love from adults. Then one day he was put in a small play house in a corner of this big room. The play house had toys and windows and a door. The team of therapists were watching everything from behind a two way mirror. A door in the room where this play house was situated opened up and in came about a dozen kids - roughly the same age as the kid in the doll house. They immediately headed for the toy boxes and pulled out their favorite toys and started playing with them on the floor in this big room.  Hearing the voices the little boy in the play house stood up and looked out the window at the other little kids playing about 30 yards away. He watched and watched. Bernard Basset said that a therapist said out loud: if he opened his door and went over and started playing with those kids, there was great hope for him. If not, uh oh!  He opened the door and went over and played with the other kids.

That’s a life time story for me. I’ve seen loners in my life - folks who have never come out of themselves. They are priests and doctors, mothers and fathers, this and thaters. From my experience of priest loners I discovered the horrible principle: “The stranger the ranger, the more the avoidance; the more the avoidance the more strange the ranger  becomes - and on and on and on.”

So parents bring their kids to playgrounds and to cousins. They have slumber parties and Birthday and Halloween parties. Hopefully Pre-K helps. Hopefully every school, every place, every parish, every family is a welcoming place.

Hopefully, there are professionals at all the various levels of life who can spot stuff and talk to parents and staff their about kids. Thankfully there are all those wonderful volunteers in the scouts and Little League and Pop Warner and Dance Groups. Hopefully, little kids are also allowed to integrate and have fun without supervision tons of times  - and their creative juices make this world a magical world for themselves and others.

QUESTION: WHO HAVE BEEN THE OTHERS IN OUR LIFE?

The title of my homily is, “Other.” Now I can’t picture anyone on the planet writing on their hand in ballpoint pen, “Other!” - but I have seen people writing on their hand with a ballpoint pen: “Judy” or “Mike” or “Penny” or “Patrick”.  We’ve seen names of others as tattoos on the skin of others: mom, Millie, Molly, Maude and Sally. We seen the initials of thousands of people carved into trees or scratched into hardening cement or spray painted onto walls or magic marked onto school books or bags or casts for  broken bones.

The other….

Today - right now - forget about this other preaching up here. Locate a ballpoint pen and write down the significant others in your life.

Use the number 3: who have been your 3 best teachers - 3 best friends - 3 people who changed your life - 3 people you worry about - 3 people you couldn’t figure out - 3 people you could say anything to?

I laugh at the e-mails I get from time to time. I don’t have Facebook or some of these other things but sometimes I receive an e-mail that says that someone I never met or heard of - has befriended me.

I still like the comment that if we have 5 people who are friends with us in this life, we’re lucky. I’m 73. I can list my 5:  and 3 of them have already died. Bummer.

We need the other. The first book of the Bible - Genesis - has God saying, “It’s not good to be alone.”

GOD: HERE IS WHERE THIS OTHER MIGHT LOSE YOU

If I was in that play house and God was out there - and I spotted God - would I open that door and go out and meet God?

Do I even think, see, consider God as Other?

What is this other called God like? The Jewish Scrolls and Scriptures answer that question with lots of answers: Creator, Shepherd, Judge, Law Giver, King, Father, Mother, Someone with a Will, Peace,  to name a few.

Jesus comes along in that tradition and we have a breakthrough on who God is. Jesus is God. Yet Jesus also tells us about the Other - whom he calls “Our Father” - and he also talks about the Spirit. It takes the followers of Jesus a long time and a lot of discussion, but they finally nail down in Creed and Council that Jesus told us God is Trinity - without using that actual word.

God is THE Other - but the Other is not just one Person - the Father. There is this Other Person, the Son. Then there is the Other Person: the Spirit. Amazing.  God is a Trinity of Persons - One God. Go figure.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Merry Christmas. For the Christian we have been gifted with a great teaching - that God can become a reality for us.

Let’s backtrack a tiny bit - and talk about the Second Other - Jesus the Son of God - who comes as a  Baby - who is also one of us - who was born of a virgin - the fruit of her womb - as we heard in today’s gospel.

Christmas is the Advent, the beginning, the coming of the Christ. We know the story - it’s pictured on a million Christmas cards and stamps and cribs. It’s told so well in Luke’s Gospel on the Charlie Brown Christmas Special - the Midnight Mass Gospel - which some priests like to read at all the Christmas Masses. This baby grows - yet he lays low for 30 some years - and then leaves his significant 2 others: Mary and Joseph. He reaches out to others. Some accept him; some reject him. Life.  We know the feeling.

CONCLUSION

With regards the Other - the title of this homily - Jesus taught us two central messages: first the visible others:  we are to love the other - forgive the other - give to the other when the other is hurting, rejected or down - go the extra mile for the other, give the shirt off one’s back for the other - lay down one’s life for the other; secondly, the Invisible Other: God. The Other is the Father who loves the Son and the Spirit of Love between the Father and the Son - is God. This is the secret of life - loving each other. When we are in communion with each other and with the Other called “God” - we are experiencing heaven here and  this can lead us to heaven hereafter. Amen.

WHAT  WERE ST. THOMAS' 

SERMONS LIKE?

New Quote - December 23,  2012

"When you preach the Gospel, beware of preaching it as the religion which explains everything."

Albert Schweitzer [1875-1965]

Painting: Doubting Thomas by Caravaggio [1573-1610]