Monday, December 4, 2017

It's beginning to sound a lot like Christmas!

I was listening to the radio this weekend, and surprise! I was confronted with Christmas music. One of the songs was that old classic, "The Twelve Days of Christmas."

It took me back to an article I read some time ago that said this is really a song about Christ Jesus -- the singing bird in the Tree of the Cross. Even though the folks at Snopes have shown this isn't really a medieval catechism song, I still think the content of the article is worth sharing, so that we can all look for opportunities to see Jesus, to think about His birth, and to imitate His love in the midst of this intensely busy season of Advent.

Without further ado ...

Jesus Christ is the Partridge in the Pear Tree, hung upon the Tree of the Cross to protect us, the "birds of the air which rest in its shade" (Mark 4:32), and who gathers us as a mother hen (Matthew 23:37).

The 2 Turtle Doves are the Old and New Testaments of the Bible ... they come as a pair.

The 3 French Hens are the Three Theological Virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity, which like French hens, are known to produce abundant fruit (both eggs and good works).

The 4 Calling Birds are the Four Gospels whose "voice goes out to all the world" (Ps 19:4)

The 5 Golden Rings are the Pentateuch, the first Five Books of the Old Testament, which show the "chain" of sin in the world from which Christ came to free us.

The 6 Geese A-laying  are the six days of Creation, coming to life and birth like hatching eggs.

The 7 Swans A-swimming are the Seven Sacraments, keeping up with the "S" theme.

The 8 Maids A-milking are the eight Beatitudes which help us to "not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life" (John 6:27).

The 9 Ladies Dancing are the nine Fruits of the Holy Spirit, which show the outward results of a right disposition before God, bringing us to "sing and dance for joy" (Luke 6:23).

The 10 Lords A-leaping are the Ten Commandments, which was "our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith" (Galatians 3:24).

The 11 Pipers Piping are the eleven faithful Apostles whom "we hear in our own tongues speaking of the mighty deeds of God" (Acts 2:11).

The 12 Drummers Drumming are the twelve points of doctrine in the Apostle's Creed. ... And in case you're wondering what those are:
1. I believe in God the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
2. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
3. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary.
4. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.
5. He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again.
6. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
7. He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
8. I believe in the Holy Spirit,
9. the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints,
10. the forgiveness of sins,
11. the resurrection of the body,
12. and the life everlasting. Amen.

So ... I hope this is a little inspiration to be looking (and listening!) for the Presence of Jesus, even during these busy days leading up to Christmas.

Happy Advent!
-Father Ryan


PS - In case you're looking for the original article, there are several editions of it, but the one I read was at https://www.ewtn.com/library/HOMELIBR/TWELVDAY.TXT.   God bless! -Fr. Ryan

Tuesday, November 7, 2017

Election Day!

I was praying the Liturgy of the Hours yesterday -- the collection of psalms, prayers, and Scripture readings that priests, consecrated religious, and some lay people pray every day -- and I was struck by the timeliness of the meditative reading in what's called the Office of Readings, an extended time of reflection on a Scripture passage and some other meditation from the writings of a Saint or some document of the Church.

Yesterday's reflection came from one of the documents of the Second Vatican Council, called Gaudium et Spes from its first words in Latin (meaning "Joy and Hope"), or in English, the more long-winded title, "The Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World." And I thought it was appropriate to meditate on and to share as we come to this day when we exercise our civic responsibility and privilege, to vote for candidates who will work for a better world for ourselves and those around us. The Church describes these responsibilities -- for our elected officials, and for each of us -- like this:
Men must not be content simply to support the efforts of others in the work for peace; they must also scrutinize their own attitudes. Statesmen, responsible as they are for the common good of their own nation and at the same time for the well-being of the whole world, are very much dependent on the opinions and convictions of the general public. Their efforts to secure peace are of no avail as long as men are divided or set against each other by feelings of hostility, contempt and distrust, by racial hatred or by inflexible ideologies. There is then a very great and urgent need to reeducate men and to provide fresh inspiration in the field of public opinion.

Those engaged in education, especially among young people, and those who influence public opinion, should consider it a very serious responsibility to work for the reeducation of mankind to a new attitude toward peace. We must all undergo a change of heart. We must look out on the whole world and see the tasks that we can all do together to promote the well-being of the family of man. We must not be misled by a false sense of hope. Unless antagonism and hatred are abandoned, unless binding and honest agreements are concluded, safeguarding universal peace in the future, mankind, already in grave peril, may well face in spite of its marvelous advance in knowledge that day of disaster when it knows no other peace than the awful peace of death.

In saying this, however, the Church of Christ, living as it does in the midst of these anxious times, continues unwaveringly in hope. Time and again, in season and out of season, it seeks to proclaim to our age the message of the Apostle: Now is the hour of God’s favor, the hour for change of heart; now is the day of salvation.

To build peace, the causes of human discord which feed the fires of war must first be eliminated, and among these especially the violations of justice. Many of these causes are due to gross economic inequality and delay in providing necessary remedies. Others arise from a spirit of domination and from a contempt for others, and, among more fundamental causes, from human envy, distrust, pride and other forms of selfishness. Since man cannot bear so many violations of due order, the result is that, even where war does not rage, the world is constantly plagued by human conflict and acts of violence.

The same evils are also found in relations between nations. It is therefore absolutely necessary that international institutions should cooperate more effectively, more resolutely and with greater coordination of effort, in order to overcome or prevent these evils, and to check unbridled acts of violence. There must also be constant encouragement for the creation of organizations designed to promote peace.

On this Election Day, may God grant us good-hearted candidates who will work for this true peace in the world, and give us a sense of hope in the united hearts of humankind, that we may all work together in this "hour of God's favor" to transform the world according to the Heart of Christ! Even "in the midst of these anxious times" (a prophetic phrase from over 50 years ago!), we "continue unwaveringly in hope," for He is the one who has redeemed us!

God bless you, and God bless America!