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 For most of us Thanksgiving hits and we brace ourselves. The huge newspaper arrives Thanksgiving morning stuffed with sales and offers seeking to drag us into the vortex. There's no question that our society has highjacked our most sacred holiday and turned it into a circus of sorts. What's a Catholic to do?
For so many this is a tough time of year. All that's missing in our lives seems to get highlighted. Financial strain, strained relationships and just plain busy-ness can suck the joy out of even the most devout among us. When my father passed away many years ago I remember dreading that first Christmas. I knew I couldn't pretend all would be the same so I tried to focus past all the "stuff". Instead of wishing Christmas wouldn't come I realized that had Christ not come, the dread would not be of just one day, but all days would be dreadful. There'd be no hope. I was amazed to find that it turned out to be one of the best Christmases. By focusing on the real meaning, that Jesus came to redeem us, set us free and give us eternal life in heaven I was taken out of the craziness and found real, abiding peace. Today we often hear that "the real meaning of Christmas" is family and friends, children and traditions. Not so. Those are wonderful parts of Christmas, but not the real meaning.
Strip away the hustle bustle and ponder that. I like to skip ahead this time of year and think about Easter, my favorite holiday. With Easter we think of hope and spring and new life. Well, same goes for Christmas but how often do we think about that? In the words of the Exultet that is sung at the Easter vigil:
What good would life have been to us,
Had Christ not come as our Redeemer?
Father, how wonderful your care for us!
How boundless your merciful love!
To ransom a slave you gave away your Son.
O happy fault, O necessary sin of Adam,
Which gained for us so great a Redeemer!
As we enter this holy season of Advent, let's prepare by resetting our lenses on the Truth that came to set us free and take the rest of it all in stride. The season will come, and the season will go but Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. And He is all of our Hope.
May God richly bless you and your families in the most holy of seasons. |
