Grace in Place of Grace

December 25, 2008

Christmas

The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shone. You have brought them abundant joy and great rejoicing, as they rejoice before you as at the harvest, as men make merry when dividing spoils. For the yoke that burdened them, the pole on their shoulder, And the rod of their taskmaster you have smashed, as on the day of Midian. Isaiah 9:1-3

The angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.” Luke 2:10-12 (Midnight Mass)

Piety

From his fullness we have all received, grace in place of grace, because while the law was given through Moses, grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. John 1:16-17

Study

B.C. Before Christmas. Before Christmas there was just Mary and Joseph. Each half of the Holy Couple was visited by the angel Gabriel who delivered essentially the same message. Do not be afraid. The problem was, they also got word from the emperor that they had to go to their own town to be counted in the census. Mary and Joseph have agreed to welcome the baby but probably wanted to do so in the privacy and “relative” comfort of their own home. Now, that would not be possible.

Fortunately, today we have Google maps. So we can easily research the best way to get from point A (Nazareth) to Point B (Bethlehem) for the census. At 157 km, (97.5 miles) we could make the trip for our morning commute – taking under two hours. On foot today with modern sidewalks, maybe two days would be enough to cover the distance. However, on foot or donkey, Joseph and Mary would have required quite a bit longer. [Anyone traveling with a pregnant woman or any other person with a tiny bladder and a baby pushing on it would find the journey taking longer…but I digress]

The journey 2008 years ago would have been via a fairly direct route once the Holy Couple got on the main route to Judea from the north. Three or four days of traveling would have brought them to Bethlehem although it might have taken as long as a week. Scholars tell us that the route would have taken them through various towns. Megiddo, Ibleam, Shechem, Shiloh, Ai and Jerusalem would have provided potential stop over points along the way. However, today, Bethlehem is located in the West Bank. The route is interrupted at several points along the way with security check-points and fences erected by the Israeli government as they have partitioned (walled off) parts of the Palestinian controlled region and its precious water supplies for use and control by Israel and away from the rest of the Palestinian people.

So whether you were trying to get close to Jesus two millennia ago or today, the task ahead is not easy. Obstacles abound. Yet the message is still the same. Do not be afraid to make room for the baby in our lives. Mary did. Joseph did. So, too, did the shepherds. Do not be afraid to make it happen.

Action

“Let us go, then, to Bethlehem to see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.”

If you have children, you can recall with joy the miracle of their birth or adoption and the emotions which overwhelmed you on that day of days. That gives you some sense of how joyful and frightened Mary and Joseph felt in the cave outside Bethlehem. The miracle of the birth can not stay in the cave, in the manger, in the Nativity. It must be spread. So the angels went to the workers and implored them to participate in the joy. So despite everything they had to do to tend their sheep, they set it all aside and they went to the side of Jesus.

Where is our Bethlehem? To where and whom are we called? Our Bethlehem is every place where someone is lonely. It is every place where someone is sick. It is every place where someone is imprisoned. It is every place where someone is rejected. It is every place where someone is hungry. Our Bethlehem is in the nursing homes, hospitals, jails, unemployment lines, food pantries. Yet it also is in the offices and factories and schools and homes throughout the land. Let us welcome the baby and pray through Him, with Him and in Him. Because today, God dwells with us, in us and works through us.

Without the incarnation, there would be no resurrection. The baby grows up and leaves the manger. He leaves the carpenter’s home. He leaves his mother and works throughout the world. Since the resurrection, the mission of going out to the world now passes to our hands. Accept this gift of mission today and get ready to go out in the world and proclaim the good news to all the shepherds and all who are God-fearing and will listen. Be eager to do what is good.

Christmas is a beginning. Yet this new beginning includes the same mission that is proclaimed at the end of every Mass. Go in peace to love and serve the baby who grows up to be a man after your own heart. Even though we probably have plenty of reasons to be afraid, to be hesitant, to be perplexed, to be anxious. Set them all aside. Be Merry. It’s Christmas once again!