A Blue Christmas Tree for a Blue Christmas

A Blue Christmas Tree for a Blue Christmas 

December 2, 2012, 1^st Sunday of Advent

Jeremiah 33:14-16     I Thessalonians 3:12 & 4:2     Luke 21:25-33

First reading from Jeremiah

The Lord said, “The time is coming when I will fulfill the promise that I made to the people of Israel and Judah. At that time I will choose as king a righteous descendant of David. He will do what is right and just in the land. The people of Judah and Jerusalem will be rescued and live in safety. The city will be called `The Lord Our Salvation.’"

The word of the Lord

Thanks be to God

Alleluia, alleluia.

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke  

Glory to you, Lord

The Coming of the Son of Man

At that time Jesus said to his disciples: ‘There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will faint from fear as they wait for what is coming over the whole earth; for the powers in space will be driven from their courses. Then the Son of Man will appear, coming in a cloud with great power and glory[1]. When these things begin to happen, stand up and raise your heads, because your salvation is near.”

Then Jesus told them this parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. When you see their leaves beginning to appear you know that summer is near. In the same way, when you see these things happening, you will know that the Kingdom of God is near. Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.”

 

The Gospel of the Lord

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ

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Introduction

Advent & Hanukkah

This Sunday, Dec. 2, we liturgically exit Ordinary Time and enter into the Extraordinary Time of Advent in preparation for Christmas 2012. Today is New Years Day in the Church. Today we go from liturgical Cycle B to Cycle C. The gospel readings in Cycle C are from St. Luke. That great evangelist relates our favorite parables: the Parable of the One Lost Sheep (Lk.15: 1-7), the Parable of the Prodigal Son (Lk. 15:11-32, and the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Lk. 10:25-37). Today we also change the color of the liturgical vestments from the green of Ordinary Time to purple – the liturgical color for penance.

 

This Sunday, Dec. 2, the Catholic community will light the first of the four candles on the Advent wreath. Next Sunday, Dec. 9, the Jewish community will light the first of eight candles on their menorahs (their eight-branch candelabra) to begin the celebration of the Feast of Hanukkah – the Feast of Dedication. Hanukkah (which lasts for 8 days) commemorates the eight-day purification and rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem, after the Greek tyrant Antiochus Epiphanes desecrated it in 161 B.C. During Hanukkah Jewish households commemorate the rededication by lighting one candle on the menorah each day for eight days. That gives Hanukkah its other name: The Feast of Lights.

Christmas derailed

Before Vatican II, Advent like Lent was a strictly penitential season; it frowned on all partying, gift-giving and decorating before December 24. In 1969 a revised Roman liturgical calendar characterized Advent as a `season of joyful expectation,’ though not denying its penitential dimension. The revised calendar seemed, however, to give permission to skip the penitential aspect of Advent, and go straightaway to the joy and the fun of Christmas.

 So on the Friday after Thanksgiving, the nation always kicks off the Christmas season with a vengeance. Shopping malls are jammed with people in joyful expectation of a good bargain. That Friday is called Black Friday because retailers are in joyful expectation of a good profit, and of being well into the `black.’ Some retailers, eager to be the first to draw customers, even anticipate Black Friday and open their stores for Christmas shopping on Thanksgiving Day itself!

 On one Black Friday, Christmas was indeed derailed at a Walmart Super-center in Ekton, Md., when a crowd of 300 shoppers was waiting in `joyful expectation’ of getting their clutching hands on an `Xbox 360 Video Game Player,’ retailing at only $399! Some had kept a long vigil of 12 hours outside the Supercenter. When it was announced that the game player would be sold on a first-come-first-served basis (instead of using a number-system first proposed) a stampede ensued. It took more than 10 policemen to restore order. Later, a store official happily announced that no one had been seriously hurt in the melee. The whole scene was epitomized as `Black Friday and Oink, Oink, Oink!’

On another Black Friday Christmas was again derailed at a Walmart Store on Long Island. This time the derailment turned deadly! A frenzied mob of shoppers broke down the doors of the store, knocking several employees to the ground, and sending others running for their lives to avoid the horde. When the madness subsided, a temporary employee (34-year-old Jdimytai Damour) was dead, and four shoppers including a woman eight-months-pregnant were injured.

Buxtorf’s scolding

The ancient Jewish scholar Johannes Buxtorf II (1599-1664) scolded the Jewish community for having derailed Hanukkah from its original story and inspiration: the purification and rededication of their beloved Temple desecrated by a Greek tyrant. Buxtorf berated his fellow-Jews for being mired down in petty minutiae and dark superstitions in their observance of their Feast of Lights.[2] Christmas, like Hanukkah, also becomes derailed from its original story and inspiration: the birth of an Infant in Bethlehem of Judea, wrapped in swaddling cloths, and laid in a manger, because there was no room for Him in the inn. (Lk. 2:4-7) Buxtorf would also scold Christians for their derailment of Christmas, as he scolded his Jewish brethren for their derailment of Hanukkah.

:

“The most wonderful time of the year”

"It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" is a popular Christmas song written in 1963, and sung by pop singer Andy Williams in his first Christmas album:

“It's the most wonderful time of the year.
With the kids jingle belling,
And everyone telling you,
"Be of good cheer,"
It's the most wonderful time of the year.”

 

What makes  Christmas ”the most wonderful time of the year” is a whole host of things: brightly wrapped packages, Christmas trees all alit, holiday parties, upbeat carols in shopping malls, visits from friends and family, baking and cooking, and food everywhere. And to top that all off is the hushed joy of welcoming a tiny Infant into our world and hearts.

But not for everyone

But Christmas is not “the most wonderful time of the year” for everyone. There are many, in fact, who dread the approach of the holiday season. They have absolutely no heart for the cheer and bustle, the anticipation and excitement of the season. In no way whatsoever will you find them standing in front of a Walmart Supercenter in `joyful expectation’ of getting their hands on an Xbox 360 Video Game Player retailing at `only’ $399.

 For some of them are in a financial crisis in these day of a slowly recovering deep recession, and they don’t have money to spend at this `most spending time of the year.’ Others are in a grieving mode because they’ve lost a loved one in the never-ending war in Afghanistan. Or they’re in a grieving mode because they’ve recently lost a beloved spouse of 40 or 50 years. And then there are those who are frightened because they’ve received some very bad news from their doctor. At this time of `the rolling year’ especially, many find themselves in a very sad situation. For them “the most wonderful time of the year” has become the saddest time of the year. When we turn Christmas into an orgy of joy, we exclude all those who for various reasons weep. The season’s heavy expectation of joy is not an easy burden for them to bear. For them the bells of Christmas do not ring; they toll.

Christmas is for everyone.

So there’s a great need to be sensitively aware that many people are hurting at this time of `the rolling year.’ And there’s a great need to help such people cope with the Christmas holidays, which makes them feel very isolated. The inescapable bottom line is that Christmas is for everyone, not just for those for whom it is “the most wonderful time of the year.” Christmas is also, and especially, for those for whom it’s the saddest time of the year.

It’s time to recognize that the typical celebration of Christmas does not meet everyone’s needs. To fill this gap some churches actually offer what is called a Blue Christmas Service. People who for various reasons are not having a very merry Christmas, and friends who support them, are invited to come and sit with one another in a liturgy that speaks of the love of God especially for the grieving, the sad and the lonely.

If that’s not possible for some reason, we can at least try in our own way to be sensitive to those in our midst who are sad, while the world is glad. We can at least try to be sensitive to the fact that while many are dreaming of a white Christmas, a great many others are dreading a Blue Christmas. And we can at least try to be mindful of them, and find creative ways to include them in our celebration of “the most wonderful time of the year.”

The blue ones

The best Christmas cards are the blue ones: pictures of the Infant lying in a manger and warmed by the breath of beasts; or sketches of deer and birds seeking shelter from blizzard blasts under the compassionate arms of evergreen trees. The best Christmas carols are the blue ones: songs about wanting to be home for Christmas but there are too many miles to go; or songs about little poor drummer boys who have nothing to offer but themselves. The best Christmas stories are the blue ones: stories about miserly Scrooge and indigent Bob Cratchit and lame Tiny Tim. The best Christmas trees are the blue ones: they remind us (which we easily forget at this time of `the rolling year’) that Christmas - “the most wonderful time of the year” - is for many the bluest time of the year.

Early & Late Advent

Is Advent a season of penance or of joyful expectation? It can be and should be a season of both. Liturgical language after Vatican II divides Advent into two parts - into Early Advent (the beginning of Advent to Dec. 17), and Late Advent (Dec. 17 to Dec. 24 - also called the Novena of Christmas). Let Early Advent be the penitential part of Advent. Let it be the more prayerful part of Advent. Let it especially be mindful that while many are dreaming of a `White Christmas,’ many also are dreading a `Blue Christmas.’ Let Early Advent be mindful especially of those who feel very excluded by a season that’s declared to be “the most wonderful time of the year.”

 Then let Late Advent be the joyful part of Advent: go to the shopping malls, and let the better spirit of Black Friday take over. Being sensitive to those suffering a `Blue Christmas’ will make a difference in our celebration of the Christmas season. For one thing, we won’t find ourselves in a `Black Friday’ frenzied crowd climbing over the bodies of others to get our hands on a prized but limited gift. Being sensitive to those suffering a `Blue Christmas’ will, strange to say, add a dimension of joy to our Christmas, which wouldn’t leave us when the curtain comes down on the holiday season, and our Xbox 360 Video Game Player retailing at `only’ $399 has either been broken or tossed aside.

Conclusion

A blue Christmas tree glowing just for them

We don’t crusade against the busyness of the Christmas season: the hurrying and scurrying, the buying and selling, the producing and consuming. After all, this is the way a great many people make a living. Nor do we crusade against the joy and merriment of the season; let the bells of Christmas ring and let the carols of Christmas sing that this is “the most wonderful time of the year.” 

But at this time of `the rolling year’ we do crusade for being mindful and sensitive that Christmas is the saddest time of the year for many, and that Christmas is also, and especially, for them. They are having a very blue Christmas, and there’s a blue Christmas tree glowing just for them.

        The first candle lit

          on the Advent wreath

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[1] Daniel 7:13

[2] In Synagoga Judaica, chapter 23.

Feast of Christ the King

 

Pope John XXIII 

(Nov. 25, 1881–June 3, 1963)

Feast of Christ the King 

November 25, 2012, Feast of Christ the King

Daniel 7:13-14       Revelation 1: 5-8       John 18:33-37

 First reading from Daniel

During this vision in the night,   I saw what looked like a human being. He was approaching me, surrounded by clouds, and he went to the one who had been living forever and was presented to him. He was given authority, honor, and royal power, so that the people of all nations, races, and languages would serve him. His kingship would last forever.

The word of the Lord

Thanks be to God

Alleluia, alleluia.

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

Glory to you, Lord.

Pilate said to Jesus, "Are you the King of the Jews?"  Jesus answered, "Do you say this on your own or have others told you about me?" Pilate answered, "I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests handed you over to me. What have you done?" Jesus answered, "My kingdom does not belong to this world. If my kingdom did belong to this world, my attendants would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not here." So Pilate said to Him, "Then you are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice."

The Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Introduction

Crowning the old year with a feast

Today is the 34^th and last Sunday in Ordinary Time. Today marks the end of the Church’s liturgical year. After having celebrated all the feasts of Our Lord and His saints through 52 weeks, the Church crowns her fast-departing old year with a feast in honor of Christ the King. Next Sunday, December 2, is New Years Day in the Church with the arrival of the first Sunday of Advent in preparation for Christmas 2012.

A recent feast

The feast of Christ the King was instituted as recently as 1925 by Pope Pius XI.[1] At that time, the pope was battling various kings of this world. He was fighting anticlericalism in Mexico and the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia. In his own backyard, he was fighting the Kingdom of Italy which had confiscated the papal territories. With his newly instituted feast Pope Pius was saying in so many words, “We have a King who is greater than all you kings. He is Jesus of Nazareth – `the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.’” (Rev. 19:26)

A bit superfluous feast

This late November feast of Christ the King seems a bit superfluous; already in early spring we have a feast honoring Christ as king. On Palm Sunday, the Church cries out, "Hosanna to the Son of David!  O King of Israel, hosanna in the highest!" Holy Week is a better context for proclaiming the kingship of Christ. It sets Jesus upon a donkey and not upon a throne. It places a palm branch in his hand and not a scepter. It plants a wreath of thorns upon his head and not a tiara. And the Passion read on Palm Sunday sets the records straight for anyone who might be tempted to build an earthly kingdom for Jesus. He tells Pilate, "My kingdom is not of this world." (Jn. 18:36)

Rogue kings

The human race has a long history of rogue kings. King Herod, leery about Jesus, “the new-born king of the Jews, slew all baby boys two years and younger.” (Mt. 2:2-16) In the second half of the 20^th century, Saddam Hussein lived as a king in the eight palaces he built for himself, but ended up hiding in a hole in the ground. Hussein dotted the landscape of Iraq with kingly statues of himself, and he filled the dumps with the remains of people who didn’t want him as king.

  Scripture: Jesus is king.

However we might feel about kings, Scripture is clear: Jesus is a king. He is king as He comes into the world, and as He leaves it. At his conception, the angel Gabriel announces to Mary that the Lord God would give her Son the throne of his ancestor David, and of his kingdom there would be no end. (Lk. 1:32-33)  At his trial, the Roman governor Pontius Pilate asks Jesus, “Are you a king?”He answers, “Yes, for this I was born, and for this I came into the world.” (Jn. 18:37) Accordingly, a gang of Roman soldiers wove a crown of thorns and pressed it down on Jesus’ head. (Mt. 27:29)  Then they forced Him to climb the hill of Calvary and nailed Him to a cross. On the top of the cross Pilate hung a notice written in Hebrew, Latin and Greek: Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum - Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews. (Jn. 19:19)

Today Nov.25 - the birthday of a great man

Today Nov. 25 is the birthday of a great man. He was born poor like Jesus, 131 years ago in 1881. Some of us very senior citizens were fortunate enough to be his contemporaries, and we remember him with very deep affection. His name was Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli. He was born in a little Italian village called Bergamo Sotto il Monte (Bergamo at the Foot of the Mountain). Though born at the foot of the mountain, Angelo made it up to the top. On October 28, 1958, the College of Cardinals elected Cardinal Roncalli to succeed Pope Pius XII who died on October 9, 1958. Roncalli took the name of John XXIII. On November 4, 1958, the day of his `coronation,’ a crown was placed upon his head. In his homily that day the new pope said that he had in mind for his pontificate the example of the Good Shepherd who came not to be served as kings are served but to serve.

Then the very next day after his `coronation,’ John sped off through an elaborate Vatican gate to serve. He visited aging brother priests in nursing homes. He visited inmates in the nearby Regina Coeli Prison along the Tiber. “I come to you,” he told them, “because you couldn’t come to me.” When he celebrated his first Holy Thursday as pope, he revived an ancient custom of the Church; like Jesus John girded himself with a towel and bent down to wash the feet of 13 young priests. That foot-washing rite had fallen into disuse for many centuries, and the disuse itself was symptomatic of a prevailing institutional attitude of being served instead of serving.

                                        A `man’s man’ close to tears

Good Pope John’s example emanating from the lofty heights of the Petrine office drew the whole Church and world. It drew Morris West, an Australian writer (1916-1999). In a little volume entitled,  A View from the Ridge written in 1996, Morris West (then in his eightieth year) writes that he feels like a mountain climber who after a long and arduous ascent has reached a height and then pauses to catch his breath, in order to muster up enough courage for the last lap of his journey. Then writing of his own personal life experiences in and with the Church, West paints a portrait of two Popes: John XXIII and John Paul II. Though West was a kind of `man’s man,’ when he writes of Pope John XXIII he becomes quite emotional.

I am very close to tears as I begin to set down the words. What can I say of a man so manifestly good? In his hands the crosier of the bishop has meant what it was meant to mean—the crook of the kindly Shepherd, to whom the way-worn and the stragglers meant more than those penned up safely in the sheepfold.

I believe I can say with certainty that I remained in communion with the Church even when the Church itself excluded me[2], and I remain there still, principally because of the presence of John XXIII, the Good Pastor, whom I never met, though I did meet his predecessor (Pius XII) and his successor (John Paul II). Goodness went out from this man to me. I acknowledged it then. I acknowledge it again.

 

Conclusion

King according to Jesus & John

Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, who was born in Bergamo at the `Foot of the Mountain,’ made it to the top of the hill as Pope John XXIII. When he got to the top, John like Jesus played a completely new game of King-on-the-Hill. In the old game, when you got to the top, you drove everyone down, and proclaimed yourself king. In the new game when Jesus got to the top (when He was lifted up on the Hill of Calvary) He drew everyone up to Himself. (Jn. 12:32) When Good Pope John got to the top, when this kindly shepherd was seated on the lofty throne of Peter, he drew Morris West and the whole Church up to himself. And when John lay dying on June 3, 1963, it’s no exaggeration to say that the whole world was there kneeling at the bedside of this great man, who was capable of bringing `a man’s man’ very close to tears.

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[1] In his encyclical Quas Primas (Dec. 11, 1925)

[2] Though West was and always remained a Catholic, his various writings contain a good deal of criticism about the Church, and the Church was not always pleased with him.

Thanksgiving 2012

Thanksgiving 2012

 

November 18, 2012, 33^rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Daniel 12:1-3     Hebrews 10:11-14, 18     Mark 13:24-32

The Book of Daniel

In those days, I Daniel, heard this word of the Lord: "At that time the great angel Michael, who guards your people, will appear. Then there will be a time of tribulation, the worst since the nations first came into existence. When that time comes, all the people of your nation whose names are written in God’s book will be saved. Many of those who have already died will live again: some will enjoy eternal life and others will suffer eternal disgrace. The wise leaders will shine with all the brightness of the sky. And those who have taught many people to do what is right will shine like the stars forever.”

The word of the Lord

Thanks be to God

Alleluia, alleluia.

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark  

Glory to you, Lord.

Jesus said to his disciples: "In those days after that tribulation the sun will grow dark, the moon will no longer shine, the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers in space will be driven from their courses. And then will  appear `the Son of Man coming in the clouds[1]’ with great power and glory. He will send out the angels to the four corners of the earth and gather God’s chosen people from one end of the world to the other.”

"Learn a lesson from the fig tree. When its branch becomes tender and sprouts leaves, you know that summer is near. In the same way, when you see these things happening, know that the time is near, ready to begin.    Remember this! All these things will happen before the people now living  have all died. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. But of that day or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."

Introduction

A very busy calendar

At the moment we have a very busy calendar. Today, Nov. 18^th  (the  33^rd Sunday of Ordinary Time) is the 2^nd last Sunday of the liturgical year of 2012. This coming Thursday Nov. 22^nd the nation will celebrate its feast of feast: Thanksgiving. Then this coming Sunday, Nov. 25^th (the very last Sunday of the liturgical year) the Church will celebrate the feast of Christ the King as a grand finale to the church year. The Sunday after that, Dec. 2^nd will be New Year’s Day in the Church with the arrival of the 1^st Sunday of Advent in preparation for Christmas 2012. In city parks towering Christmas trees already light up a world darkened by “wars and the rumor of wars,” darkened also by a very slowly recovering economy, by the price of gas at the pump, by the unwillingness of Republicans and Democrats to compromise for the sake of the common good, and darkened especially by the recent deeply contentious presidential election.

An apocalypse – to scare people

The readings for the 33^rd Sunday of Ordinary Time speak about the End Time. These End Time readings are called Apocalypses. An apocalypse is a literary form which appeared two centuries before and three centuries after Christ. At first glance, an apocalypse seems to be scaring people:

"In those days after that tribulation the sun will grow dark, the moon will no longer shine, the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers in space will be driven from their courses.” (Mk. 13:24-25)

One staunch believer writes,

Yes, Jesus’ words are scary and not pleasant to read. Yes, Jesus’ words grab your attention, and they had better grab your attention! This is not your world or my world to pick and choose what we like and don't like about what Jesus tells us. If you are a person who refuses to believe in a punishing God and who ignores anything `scary,’ then how do you understand the words of Mark 13?: "In those days after that tribulation the sun will grow dark, the moon will no longer shine, the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers in space will be driven from their courses. And then will appear `the Son of Man coming in the clouds’ with great power and glory." (Mk 13:24-26) 

An apocalypse – and to scare but to console

Strange as it might seem, apocalypses were written not to scare but to console people. They were written because the times were incredibly tough, and the writer believed that only a stunning intervention of God and His Messiah could fix matters. The apocalyptic strokes themselves are not to be taken literally, as some preachers like to do. At second glance, therefore, the seemingly frightening event described in Mark 13 was for Mark's readers not a prediction of frightening things to come, but were actually words of consolation for a generation that was accustomed to this kind of literary genre:

 “Then will appear 'the Son of Man coming in the clouds'[2] with great power and glory. He will send out the angels to the four corners of the earth and gather God’s chosen people from one end of the world to the other.” (Mk. 13:26-27)

  

Thanksgiving - our purest feast

On this 33^rd Sunday, some preachers will choose to scare people, and some will choose to console them. Other preachers (perhaps many) will  simply skip over this somewhat confusing and fuzzy subject of the End Time, and will happily hasten to speak rather about the nation’s most popular feast: Thanksgiving - this coming Thursday, November 22.

Thanksgiving is not only the nation’s most popular feast, it’s also our purest feast. Unlike Christmas which has gone astray with its tinsel and toys, and Easter which has gone astray with its bunnies and bonnets, Thanksgiving has remained faithful to an original inspiration: to give thanks at the family table. Thanksgiving still sends us all hastening “over the river and through the woods to Grandmother’s house we go.” At Thanksgiving sons and daughters (scattered all over the country) crowd the airways and highways, as they hurry home, uncluttered with no other gift but themselves.

 

At one time they couldn’t fly away from home fast enough. Now they can’t wait to get back (momentarily at least) to the `nest’ called home. There they receive warm welcome in a cold world. There they find encouragement and affirmation in a dog-eat-dog world. There at home where grace (gratis) abounds, they don’t have to pay for every last thing. There at home sons and daughters don’t have to prove anything, because they are loved even though their mothers and fathers know their faults very well.

 Thanksgiving remains faithful to its original inspiration. It doesn’t call us to give thanks for high-tech toys like ipods, iphones, etc. Rather, Thanksgiving calls us to give thanks for the basics of life – like family and friends, a roof over our heads, a warm bed to sleep in, food aplenty to eat, good health - and tender loving care when we are ill. Thanksgiving remains faithful even to its original menu itself: turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie.

A Thanksgiving story

A long email received some time ago reads:

Late last night, I received a frantic call from my elderly mother whose furnace wouldn’t turn on. It was in the lower 30's here in Milwaukee. When I offered to pick her up and have her sleep over at my house until the furnace could be fixed, she declined the offer. She said she had plenty of blankets and that she’d be alright. I immediately contacted a friend who works for a heating business. He said he didn’t want her to spend the night without heat. So I picked him up with his tools at his house.

 

At my mom's place it took him two hours to fix her furnace. (A bee’s nest was not allowing the furnace to start.) He also fixed her fireplace. So she can now use that also to help heat her home. She has a fancy thermostat which a Philadelphia lawyer would have had trouble figuring out. So my friend also patiently walked her through. My mother asked, “How much do I owe you?” and he quickly replied, “Don’t worry about it.” (On the side I had told him that I would take care of the bill.) My mom then gave him a turkey for Thanksgiving. When we got into my car, I asked, “How much do I owe you?”  He said, “Your mom just gave me a Turkey for Thanksgiving dinner, and then he added, “How about 2 gallons of cider?” 2 measly gallons of cider and nothing more for such a greatly appreciated deed!

 After I dropped him off at his home I thought about when I was a boy and my mom would call the doctor to come to our house when I was sick. I remember one time my mom (without any cash at the time) asked the doctor to bill her (his fee was $2.00 or $3.00 for a house-visit), and she promised to pay him on payday. And I remember also our family doctor once telling my mom, “Why don't you just make me lunch and we will call it even?” The kindness which my friend, the repairman, showed my mom last night reminded me of times long gone by. After school today, I will get him his cider. It was nice having someone do something so nice for my mom. After last night, I feel there’s still hope for mankind. Steve

Conclusion

Thanks - despite the lingering tough times

Many of us are still struggling to extricate ourselves from a long and deep recession. Despite the lingering tough times, we will still manage this Thanksgiving to prepare a bountiful dinner of an 18 pound turkey, tasty stuffing, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie. Despite the lingering tough times, there are still many blessings to count. Those blessings come in many forms. It came in the form of the man in the heating business, who came to the rescue of a poor woman whose furnace shut down on a cold winter day. He and people like him are great blessings to be counted along with the turkey and pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving Day.

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[1] Daniel 7:13-14

[2]  Daniel  7:13

New Light on the Widow's Mite

 

Apoor widow also came and dropped in two small copper coins worth about a penny.

(Mk. 12:42)

New Light on the Widow’s Mite

November 11, 2012, 32^nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

1 Kings 17:10-16  Hebrews 9:24-28   Mark 12:38-44

The widow of Zarephath - 1 Kings 17:10-16 

In those days, Elijah the prophet went to Zarephath. As he arrived at the entrance of the city, a widow was gathering sticks there; he called out to her, "Please bring me a small cupful of water to drink." She left to get it, and he called out after her, "Please bring along a bit of bread." She answered, "As the LORD, your God, lives, I have nothing baked; there is only a handful of flour in my jar and a little oil in my jug. Just now I was collecting a couple of sticks, to go in and prepare something for myself and my son; when we have eaten it, we shall die." Elijah said to her, "Do not be afraid. Go and do as you propose. But first make me a little cake and bring it to me. Then you can prepare something for yourself and your son. For the LORD, the God of Israel, says, 'The jar of flour shall not go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry, until the day when the LORD sends rain upon the earth.'" She left and did as Elijah had said. She was able to eat for a year, and he and her son as well; the jar of flour did not go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry, as the LORD had foretold through Elijah.

The word of the Lord

Thanks be to God

Alleluia, alleluia.

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark  

Glory to you, Lord.

The widow in the Temple treasury - Mark 12:38-44

In the course of his teaching Jesus said to the crowds, "Beware of the scribes! They like to walk around in long robes, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets. They rob widows of their homes, and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive a very severe condemnation."

Jesus sat down opposite the Temple treasury and observed the crowd dropping their donations into the collection-boxes. Many people, obviously well-off, put in large sums. A poor widow also came and dropped in two small copper coins, worth about a penny. Jesus called his disciples together and said to them, “I tell you that this poor widow put more in the offering box than all those rich folk put together. For they all gave of their surplus, while she gave her very last penny.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
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Introduction

Veterans Day

Veterans Day is usually observed on Nov. 11. It originated as `Armistice Day’ on Nov. 11, 1919 - the first anniversary of the end of World War I. Congress passed a resolution in 1926 for an annual observance, and Nov. 11 became a national holiday in 1938. As a way to honor those who served in all American wars President Dwight Eisenhower signed legislation in 1954 to change the name to Veterans Day. The day honors military veterans with parades and speeches across the nation, and a national ceremony takes place at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

Not a parable but an event

The story of the widow’s tiny offering is not a parable but an event in the life of Jesus. Seated one day near the Temple treasury, He saw well-off people dropping sizeable donations into the metal collection boxes. He could, in fact, `hear the size’ of their donations, as they landed audibly into the metal boxes. Along came a poor widow who dropped in two small copper coins which made no sound at all as they landed into the box. Jesus immediately called his disciples‘attention to the poor widow; they had their eyes focused on the wealthy tossing in their big donations, and they didn’t notice the widow casting in her mite.

The two accounts belong together.

Immediately before the story of the widow’s tiny offering in the Temple, we read Jesus’ vitriolic words against the widow’s religious leaders: “Beware of the scribes! They like to walk around in long robes, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets. They rob widows of their homes, and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive a very severe condemnation." (Mk. 12:38-40)

The rubrics allow for a shortened reading of today’s gospel. One may omit Jesus’ vitriolic attack on the scribes (Mk. 12: 38-40), and read only the account of the widow casting her two copper coins into the Temple treasury. (Mk.12: 41-44) But why shorten a gospel which is already short – only six verses? More importantly, the two accounts belong together. The first is an account of the scribes, teachers of the Law, robbing widows of their homes, and the second is an account of the Temple elite robbing a poor widow of her two copper coins.

The traditional interpretation

The traditional interpretation of this story of the poor widow who tossed  her two tiny copper coins into the Temple treasury is that she really gave more than the those `fat cats’ who gave from their abundance; she gave from the little she had to live on. The traditional interpretation has Jesus praising the beggar-widow for her supposedly selfless offering; it has Jesus lifting up the poor widow as a shining example to be imitated. That’s been the interpretation for centuries, and most preachers this Sunday will preach a sermon on the `Wonderful Widow’s Mighty Mite.’

A new take

There is a new interpretation (but not very widespread) of this story of the poor widow tossing in her two tiny copper coins into the Temple treasury. When Jesus says she put more in the offering box than all those rich folk put together, He is not praising her; He is simply stating a fact as He sees it. He is not presenting  her as a shining example to be imitated; rather He is presenting her as a poor victim exploited by the Temple elite who duped her into thinking it was her religious duty to give to those `fat cats’ even the very little she had to live on. In such case, the poor dear is not to be praised; she is to be pitied for not being savvy enough to keep at least one of the two coins for herself. (Now that, indeed, is a new take on what used to be affectionately labeled the `Wonderful Widow’s Mighty Mite.’)

Not only not savvy but even crazy!

There is one person (and maybe a few others), however, who thinks the poor widow was not only not savvy but was even crazy! He writes:

Whenever I read this passage, I often wonder about the poor widow's state of mind. Personally, I think she was crazy! If I had been in her shoes I would not have given even one thin "mite" to the Temple `fat cats,’ let alone two. Why would she want to support the Temple system - one that oppressed people like her? Go back a couple of verses in Mark 12 and you'll find Jesus warning his listeners about the teachers of the Law- those who held high honor in the institution of the Temple. “They like to walk around in long robes, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets. They rob widows of their homes, and for the sake of appearance say long prayers." (Mk. 12: 38-40)

In the very next passage, we find the widow giving all she has to an institution whose leaders rob widows of their homes. What kind of fool is this woman that she would have anything to do with an outfit that will take the last of her money - and her house to boot? You see, she must be crazy!

Regardless of our interpretation of this Scripture, the Bible is still full of other passages that emphasize the importance of selfless giving. So nothing changes there.  But it is interesting and even refreshing to see this story of the poor widow in a new light. This passage does not commend a poor widow for giving her last two copper coins to the Temple `fat cats.’ Rather, it condemns a religious system that kept taking from the poor but did very little (or nothing) to help them.

Positive responses

One person responding positively to this rarely heard interpretation of the story of the poor widow asks:

Why in the world would Jesus praise a very poor woman sacrificing her two small copper coins - all she had to live on? It’s one of those times when I read a passage and wonder how in the world did we miss this interpretation all these centuries?

 

Another person responding positively writes:

I’m 56 years old, have been in church all my life, and all I ever heard was how we need to be like that poor widow and give all to God. Isn’t it obvious that if you saw a widow give her last two copper coins to some religious organization in the hope that she could purchase salvation, or purchase blessing, or buy healing, or buy prosperity – isn’t it obvious that you wouldn’t commend her? You’d want to stop her, and you’d want to shut down the religious system which preys upon the desperate.

 

Conclusion

The need to reread our Scriptures

The trouble, however, with this new insight into the widow’s mite is that we now have to give up our beloved old version of this passage, which now on second thought isn’t so beloved after all. The story now is not about a good widow who `generously’ gave her last two copper coins to the Temple.  It’s about a poor benighted widow who has been tricked by her religion to give her last two copper coins to the Temple `fat cats.’ This new light on the widow’s mite stresses the need to reread our Scriptures.