Dear Friends,
The truths
of Christmas are like the ornaments on our Christmas trees. We can see them at
a glance, in an overview or blur, or we can concentrate on them: separate,
memory-laden ornaments or separate Christmas insights that may be new to us
this year
Here
are three such Christmas thoughts:
Joseph chose to adjust his life to fit his wife’s new journey.
He didn’t say: ”Look, Mary, I am the man
of the house. You are to be part of my life journey.” No, he became. He chose.
He went to distant places both geographically and in his heart. Emmanuel
unexpectedly became his companion on the journey of life. As with Joseph, God
travels with us when we adjust our lives to the journey our loved one walks.
God , the divine guest, comes to live in our homes and in our hearts.
Is our house a place of welcome for God? Pregnant Mary was initially unwelcomed
by Joseph. God spoke to him in a dream and only then did Joseph say his yes. They, together, were unwelcomed in the inns of
Bethlehem. No room in the inn. Good luck. We won’t even try to shoehorn you in.
I repeat, is God welcome in our home? Surely we say God is with us at work, at
school, in our deserts and foreign places. But is God wanted in our home? When
other guests come, it clear to them that this is a home where faithful
believers live? Is God’s presence apparent or are people dubious that God lives
here with us?
Finally, God does not create us only to abandon us to
make our life journeys alone. Many of the Christmas cards we receive bear
silhouettes of Mary and Joseph, traveling alone to Bethlehem, and then Mary
Joseph and Jesus fleeing to Egypt, traveling alone. The Magi are likewise
pictured. But none of them could travel alone. Caravans or at least small
groups, traveling together helped ward of wild beasts and bandits. Along the
way, too, there were signs, dreams, stars that told them, one and all, to leave
their comfort zones. In each case, as the travelers moved closer to their
destination, valuable surprises awaited them. In each case, what met them on
the way or as they reached their destination was not what they expected or
wanted. They encountered their next step with God.
A prayer published by the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging, is for all of us,
since we are all on the journey of life,
and underscores what Christmas could be for us this year:
God of the
journey, be our traveling companion.
Guide us over
terrain both pleasant and perilous.
Share our
laughter when the sun shines.
Lead us to
shelter when the storms come.
Over hills and
through valleys, forests and deserts, bless us with steadfast hope.
For with you,
the Holy Pilgrim, we are never alone.
Never unheld.
Never unloved.
May
your Christmas joy be boundless.
~Joan Sobala, SSJ
