Post of December 8th: Our readers may recall that the Sisters of Notre Dame in the United States became one province in July. Formerly our four provinces had their own particular feast and patron. When suggestions poured in for a new name for our united province, the results were quite conclusive. As the Sisters of Notre Dame in the United States, we chose the patroness of our country—Mary, under her title Immaculate Conception. Today is the first time we celebrate as one. With Mary we say, “May it be done to [us] according to your word.”
Post from December 7th: The days of Advent scintillate with one luminous message: God Himself will come to save us! Today’s First Reading paints a vivid picture in which all nature rejoices at the coming of the Lord. The desert blooms with abundant flowers, streams burst forth into pools for animals to drink. The highway is readied for the Messiah, and all along this holy way people rejoice and sing.
Today turn someone’s desert into a garden, transform someone’s lameness to leaping, be a friend to bring others to Our Lord. God Himself will come, but it’s nice to know that God permits us to prepare the way.
We are sorry that these posts have been missing for a few days! The tech issue is now solved so you can check in each day for two or three posts until we catch up. BLESSINGS on your Advent Days and Christmas Preparation!
From the Bloggers!
Post from December 6th: The story of Saint Nicholas, known long before the time of Charles Dickens, was propagated through Dicken’s novel The Christmas Carol. Its vivid description of Saint Nicholas and Christmas festivities changed the way England celebrated the feast. His novel led to much more decoration, gift giving, and special food by the Londoners.
Because Dickens wanted his grandchildren to understand the Gospel, he incorporated the major themes of the Gospel in his novel. Dicken’s Christological view runs across every page. A Christmas Carol is a story of conversion. All humans are portrayed as good with everyone having potential for redemption even Scrooge. A close reading of the original novel shows the author’s emphasis on “caritas,” charity. There are no class systems at Christmas, Marley is a prophet, there are references to the star of Bethlehem and magi, and Tiny Tim is vicar for Christ. Writing about this novel, G. K. Chesterton said he was glad Scrooge was converted to the punchbowl instead of away from it. Thank you, Charles Dickens, for creating such a joyous feast imitating the angels who first brought news of great joy.
Jesus was a very busy man. He would have been hired as an efficiency expert today. But no matter how much he taught, walked from town to town, cured and fed the multitudes, he felt he needed help. He laments that “the laborers are few.” He then sends out his disciples with his own authority and asks us to pray for more disciples. We can be a disciple and in our own way cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers.
Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “Everybody can be great. Because anybody can serve. . . . You only need a heart full of grace.” How will I serve today? How will I do my part?
Leonard Cohen claimed there’s a crack in everything, and that’s how the light gets in. We all have our cracks, our imperfections, our faults and fault lines. But “the Lord is my light and my salvation.” The light of God, His grace, can penetrate anywhere. So, we have nothing to fear. God can get through the cracks. The two blind men in today’s gospel didn’t follow Jesus’ directions to keep their cure quiet. Instead they blabbed the whole story “through all that land.” Perhaps that crack of seeming disobedience spread the light for many others to know Jesus and come to him in faith. Who may have heard the story? Herod? The man with a shriveled hand? The Canaanite woman?
O God, let others see beyond my cracks, my faults, to see you and your work within me.
We’re a few days into Advent. How are we doing? We’ve been making choices to make a better world. Today let’s choose to make a better me. Is that possible? Let’s start by trusting in the Lord. God gave us all we need to be images of Him. That’s more than a great start! Can I choose today to live as healthily as I can in body, mind, and spirit? Coaches talk of an athlete’s “personal best.” Matthew Kelley has popularized “best version of myself.” Think of some way you can be more the person God created you to be. If that looks almost impossible, trust in the Lord forever.
I love today’s readings from the lectionary, because I love to eat. The First Reading describes “a feast of rich food” that God provides for his people. In the Gospel Jesus feeds the crowd with seven divinely blessed loaves and a few fish. The tone of both readings suggests that everyone is happy, particularly the lame who can now walk and the blind who now see and the whole crowd that goes home with full stomachs. Many of our best Biblical stories involve food. God and food go together attested by Jesus Christ, who said “I am the Bread of Life.” Bearing the name of Christ, we Christians want to follow the example of Jesus who provided food. Mother Teresa said, “If you can’t feed a hundred hungry people, then feed just one.” Today choose to feed at least one person.
Dr. Seuss said, “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.” I believe things will get better and believe they already are. We are on our way to a world where God’s kingdom will be ever more visible, for we constantly pray “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Along with prayer, we sacrifice, serve, perform works of mercy. Some day “the calf and the young lion shall browse together.” Peace, unity, right relationships will prevail. It’s coming, but we have to help it along. We need to “care a whole awful lot.” What act of caring will you choose today?
Anne Frank wrote: “How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” Today we can choose to not waste a minute in making our world better. That’s what the first four apostles called by Jesus did: they “immediately left their boat. . . and followed him.” What could I do immediately today? It’s easy to let another day go by, but what about today? Could I buy a toy for a poor child today? Could I get around to making that phone call? Could I help someone arrange a zoom visit with a relative in a care facility? Could I refrain from the next sarcastic or unkind comment that pops into my head? These are choices that demand our immediate attention.