Longfellow, who had very powerful incentives to turn to despair, instead created a poem that shows us that the joy of Christmas is not a denial of the brokenness of this world, but God's answer to it.
Let the Children: 10th Day of Christmas and St. Genevieve
But who can we trust if we can’t trust the God who became a little child among us, and showed us how to say, even in the final extremity, “Into Your hands, Lord, I commend my Spirit” (Luke 23:46)?
God’s Ways Are Not Our Ways: 9th Day of Christmas
God's Ways God's ways are not our ways. We hear a lot of Isaiah through the seasons of Advent and Christmas, but the passage below expresses with particular clarity one of the most striking and curious things about Christmas: For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, says the Lord.For as the … Continue reading God’s Ways Are Not Our Ways: 9th Day of Christmas
One of Us Yet Mother of God: 8th Day of Christmas
If Christ isn’t born of a human woman, He’s not fully human himself, in which case how can He die and redeem humankind? Mary is the guarantor that Jesus, while He truly is God, is truly one of us.
The Paradox of Christmas and St. Thomas Becket: 5th Day of Christmas
Today, on the 5th Day of Christmas, we find ourselves celebrating yet another martyr, St. Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, murdered by knights in the service of King Henry II of England on December 29th, 1170.
Wonder at the Incarnation: O Magnum Mysterium
"O Magnum Mysterium" - I've often thought that, however amazing it is that God could create this immeasurable universe, there's something much more astounding: He chose to become one of us . . .
Only in The Lord: St. Nicasius and Advent
St. Nicasius understood that human righteousness would overawe neither Huns nor Vandals. He himself put his trust in the Lord.
We Three Kings: Music for Epiphany
The Adoration of the Magi, by Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, 1655-1600 We Three Kings "We Three Kings of Orient Are . . ." Is there anyone out there who doesn't know this song? It's easily the most familiar hymn associated with Epiphany, at least as it's celebrated in the Western Church. I wrote more extensively about Epiphany … Continue reading We Three Kings: Music for Epiphany
8th Day of Christmas – The Scandal of Mary, Mother of God and Marian Medley
As Christians, we know that we are called to conform ourselves to the Truth, not to the impossible task of somehow conforming Divine Truth to ourselves.
St. Stephen and the Incarnation: 2nd Day of Christmas
We need to embrace the Gospel in its entirety. The joy of the Nativity leads to the sorrow of Cavalry, which itself prepares the way for the still greater glory of Easter.