What words do you associate with light? How about darkness?

Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness.- Martin Luther King, Jr

Scripture Text: (1 JN 1:5—2:2)

Beloved:

This is the message that we have heard from Jesus Christ

and proclaim to you:

God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all.

If we say, “We have fellowship with him,”

while we continue to walk in darkness,

we lie and do not act in truth.

But if we walk in the light as he is in the light,

then we have fellowship with one another,

and the Blood of his Son Jesus cleanses us from all sin.

If we say, “We are without sin,”

we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

If we acknowledge our sins, he is faithful and just

and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from every wrongdoing.

If we say, “We have not sinned,” we make him a liar,

and his word is not in us.

My children, I am writing this to you

so that you may not commit sin.

But if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father,

Jesus Christ the righteous one.

He is expiation for our sins,

and not for our sins only but for those of the whole world.

“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:5).

No matter what we’ve seen or done or experienced, this statement remains true: darkness cannot overcome the light. In the face of the nightmares of abortion, poverty, genocide, and homelessness, despite the shadows cast by unrestrained greed, lust, and warmongering, the word of God remains true. And so we can declare, “Do not rejoice over me, O my enemy… when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me” (Micah 7:8).

Each of us knows in some way the darkness of sin or tragedy. To all of us, Jesus calls, “Come out!” (Isaiah 49:9). “Don’t let the darkness overwhelm you. I’m still here, and I want to help you. 

“What you do is what matters, not what you think or say or plan.”

Let us all remember this: one cannot proclaim the Gospel of Jesus without the tangible witness of one's life. - Pope Francis

Scripture text: (1 JN 1:1-4)

Beloved:

What was from the beginning,

what we have heard,

what we have seen with our eyes,

what we looked upon

and touched with our hands

concerns the Word of life —

for the life was made visible;

we have seen it and testify to it

and proclaim to you the eternal life

that was with the Father and was made visible to us—

what we have seen and heard

we proclaim now to you,

so that you too may have fellowship with us;

for our fellowship is with the Father

and with his Son, Jesus Christ.

We are writing this so that our joy may be complete.

The witness of the disciple (St John) is simply and strikingly presented in the first reading at today’s mass:  What we have seen and heard in our own lives we report to you – we share with you.  But IF we have seen and heard it in our own lives, then our lives have to demonstrate that.  Pope Francis has been calling all Catholics to be “JOYFUL” because IF we have seen and heard the truth of God becoming human in our own lives  THEN we must manifest that truth by our attitudes, choices and way of life.  What have we seen and heard?  In some way or another we have encountered the profound loving care of God’s personal attention to us.  If that hasn’t happened for us, then we must pray in confidence that God will disclose God’s self to us, and we have to attentively listen to the soft whisper of God that changes everything – like a mighty wind. 

St. John’s passion can be ours, too. As we cooperate with the ever-present grace of God, we can come to know him more and more clearly. We can taste his own passion for us, and that passion will enkindle a fire in our hearts. Even the smallest step of obedience, surrender, or cooperation with God can spark the flame. God doesn’t need much from us, just an open heart and a flexible will.

“You will face your greatest opposition when you are closest to your greatest miracle.”

"All past persecutors of the Church are now no more, but the Church still lives on. The same fate awaits modern persecutors; they, too, will pass on, but the Church of Jesus Christ will always remain, for God has pledged His Word to protect Her and be with Her forever, until the end of time." – St John Bosco

Gospel Text: (MT 10:17-22)

Jesus said to his disciples:

“Beware of men, for they will hand you over to courts

and scourge you in their synagogues,

and you will be led before governors and kings for my sake

as a witness before them and the pagans.

When they hand you over,

do not worry about how you are to speak

or what you are to say.

You will be given at that moment what you are to say.

For it will not be you who speak

but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.

Brother will hand over brother to death,

and the father his child;

children will rise up against parents and have them put to death.

You will be hated by all because of my name,

but whoever endures to the end will be saved.”

In the midst of all the Christmas joy, the Church reminds us in today’s gospel that Christ’s coming into the world is not welcomed by everyone. We celebrate today the feast of Saint Stephen, the first martyr. We have heard in the first reading of today that some “could not withstand the wisdom and the spirit with which [Stephen] spoke” (Acts 6:8-10; 7:54-59). They opposed his teaching, became furious and murdered him by stoning. Even in the face of death, Stephen prayed and confessed his faith in Christ as the Son of God, seeing “the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”

St. Stephen experienced what Christ told his disciples and us in today’s Gospel: being challenged and opposed, even persecuted, is unavoidable as many violently reject Jesus’s teaching. Stephen, however, encourages us not to lose faith as “the Spirit of your Father” will speak through us and those who endure will be saved. For most of us a commitment to follow Christ does not require the sacrifice of life, such as in the case of Stephen. However, many Catholics experience severe opposition today in many places in the world.

Nothing can turn the tide against anti-Catholic sentiment that exists in our culture more powerfully than the joy-filled, confident witness of people who are filled with the Holy Spirit in loving service of their neighbor, especially the poor.

We must become as children--We must become vulnerable ourselves to stand before the vulnerable Child - Born for us today.

"It is in the child Jesus that we see most clearly the defenselessness of God's love.  God comes without weapons, because he does not want to conquer from the outside but to win us over from within and to transform us from within.  If anything can conquer the arrogance, the violence, and the greed of man, it is the utter vulnerability of a child . . . ." Pope Benedict XVI

Scripture text: (IS 9:1-6)

The people who walked in darkness

have seen a great light;

upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom

a light has shone.

You have brought them abundant joy

and great rejoicing,

as they rejoice before you as at the harvest,

as people make merry when dividing spoils.

For the yoke that burdened them,

the pole on their shoulder,

and the rod of their taskmaster

you have smashed, as on the day of Midian.

For every boot that tramped in battle,

every cloak rolled in blood,

will be burned as fuel for flames.

For a child is born to us, a son is given us;

upon his shoulder dominion rests.

They name him Wonder-Counselor, God-Hero,

Father-Forever, Prince of Peace.

His dominion is vast

and forever peaceful,

from David’s throne, and over his kingdom,

which he confirms and sustains

by judgment and justice,

both now and forever.

The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this!

It is so easy for our hearts to become hardened and thereby blind our eyes to the surprise of God. Christ is often encountered in such unexpected places and unexpected ways: in bread, in the poor, in those in need, in self-sacrifice, in forgiveness, in a baby. 

We become blinded and fail to see God in the “little things” when our hearts are calloused by sin, and with the root of all sin, the sin of sins, pride. 

To see the Lord requires repentance, a change in heart, a turning away from all that is false, a shedding of the scales of sin which blind us, a clearing out of all that clouds the vision of the Prophet Isaiah noted above, a shrugging off of all the burdens that hamper us from climbing the mountain of the Lord. 

Trust in the meekness of His Mercy, a Mercy which is so abundant as to be infinite, unstoppable, unconquerable -  if you let it.

Let us prepare, then, our hearts to receive the Lord through the Sacrament of Confession.  Let us cleanse ourselves from all those faults that might otherwise prevent us from seeing him and welcoming him.  

The Word Became Flesh - This is the message of Christmas: We are never alone.

"Rejoice and be glad that so great and good a Lord, on coming into the Virgin's womb, willed to appear despised, needy, and poor in this world, so that men who were in dire poverty and suffering great need of heavenly food might be made rich in him." -- St. Clare of Assisi

Gospel text: (LK 1:67-79)
Zechariah his father, filled with the Holy Spirit, prophesied, saying:

“Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
for he has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty Savior,
born of the house of his servant David.
Through his prophets he promised of old
that he would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all who hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hand of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear,
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.
You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
to give his people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

He was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman. He grew up in still another village, where He worked in a carpenter shop until He was 30. Then for three years He was an itinerant preacher. He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never had a family or owned a house. He didn't go to college. He never traveled more than 200 miles from the place He was born. He did none of the things one usually associates with greatness. He had no credentials but Himself. He was only 33 when public opinion turned against Him. His friends deserted Him. He was turned over to His enemies and went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed to a cross between two thieves. When He was dying, His executioners gambled for His clothing, the only property He had.. . . on earth. When He was dead, He was laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend. Twenty centuries have come and gone, and today He is the central figure of the human race, the leader of mankind's progress. All the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever sailed, all the parliaments that ever sat, all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man on earth as much as that One Solitary Life.

The Christian claim is that God is more than an idea or the summit of all the aspirations of the human heart. He so loved the world He created that when it was lost through sin, He came as a child. He pitched His tent among us. He became like us, so that we can become like Him and live for eternity in an intimate family relationship with Him.

Let us become a Christmas people and offer through our lives of love the greatest gift of all.

“Joy is not the absence of suffering. It is the presence of God.”

"When you got what you wanted, were you happy?" "Do you remember when you were a child, how ardently you looked forward to Christmas? How happy you thought you would be, with your fill of cakes, your hands glutted with toys, and your eyes dancing with the lights on the tree! Christmas came, and after you had eaten your fill, blown out the last Christmas candle, and played till your toys no longer amused, you climbed into your bed and said, in your own little heart of hearts, that somehow or other it did not quite come up to your expectations. And have you not lived that experience over a thousand times since?" - Archbishop Fulton Sheen

Scripture text: (PS 25:4-5AB, 8-9, 10 AND 14)
R. (see Luke 21:28) Lift up your heads and see; your redemption is near at hand.
Your ways, O LORD, make known to me;
teach me your paths,
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my savior.
R. Lift up your heads and see; your redemption is near at hand.
Good and upright is the LORD;
thus he shows sinners the way.
He guides the humble to justice,
he teaches the humble his way.
R. Lift up your heads and see; your redemption is near at hand.
All the paths of the LORD are kindness and constancy
toward those who keep his covenant and his decrees.
The friendship of the LORD is with those who fear him,
and his covenant, for their instruction.
R. Lift up your heads and see; your redemption is near at hand.

If we notice anything in today's world, it is that people are thirsting for the supreme goodness and love of the divine “Other”, who is the source of life itself. In countless ways, people are seeking happiness, and striving to find peace, security, and fulfillment.

However, they are often sadly unaware of how to attain the desire of their heart. This is especially evident during the season of Christmas when, influenced heavily by the frenetic quest of a consumerism gone awry, people are loading up on material gifts in an effort to experience a taste of the happiness they so crave. At the foundation of gift giving, the office parties and the celebrations, the bows and ribbons and toasts and rushing from place to place, is a deep, unquenchable thirst for happiness.

Do you want to be happy? As St. Teresa of Avila wrote, "Whoever has God lacks nothing; God alone suffices."

This is not a fairytale fantasy, but a reality made possible by the Son of God who became man in order that you might come to share in God's supernatural, divine life.

Does this mean you will never suffer? No. Recall how Christ suffered. The way to life everlasting is the cross. There is no other way. But even in the face of suffering there is joy because Christ gives you the gift of his Spirit, who overcomes and conquers your fear and suffering.

When God gifts you with his love, when he possesses you and you possess him, nothing can take that from you. Nothing but, of course, your own free choice.

Who will you choose this Christmas?

“The enemy is fear. We think it is hate; but, it is fear.”

"I never shrink from any undertaking which I know is good and necessary, no matter what the difficulties. If, for example, I must see some unfriendly important person, I don’t hesitate, but first I recite a Hail Mary. I do the same before calling on anybody. Then, come what may, I do my best and leave the rest to the Lord." – St John Bosco

Scripture text: (IS 7:10-14)

The LORD spoke to Ahaz, saying:

Ask for a sign from the LORD, your God;

let it be deep as the netherworld, or high as the sky!

But Ahaz answered,

“I will not ask! I will not tempt the LORD!”

Then Isaiah said:

Listen, O house of David!

Is it not enough for you to weary people,

must you also weary my God?

Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign:

the virgin shall conceive, and bear a son,

and shall name him Emmanuel.

Do we hesitate to look for signs?

Look closer: Our lives are full of signs of beginnings.  When the robin returns, spring is close at hand.  A first cry means the baby is born.  To build peace after years of struggle, Nelson Mandela extends a hand to his jailers.  A candle is lit in the darkness. Witnessing the presence of the sacred, we sign the cross.

God promised that a child will be born whose life shows how “God is with us.”  Who would have thought a son of God would be homeless at birth, a refugee for years, tortured and crucified as a criminal, only to return to his friends after the resurrection?  Our horizon shifts.  There is much more to reality than what we expect.

When we find our place with the poor, with the child, with the single mother, with the gang member, with our enemies, we are the signs that God is with us.  Pope Francis warns us not to close our doors to sinners and imbibe our own righteousness.  In his recent letter, he writes, “I prefer a Church which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a Church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security.”  God’s kingdom is not a fortress.  When we move outside the walls, we share in the freedom of God. 

Many times we are afraid to ask for signs and try to justify our weakness, saying we don’t want to tempt the Lord or we aren’t worthy. But often, we are just frustrating God by acting in our comfort zone and not willing to take the leap of faith and ask for something that would potentially change things either within ourselves or within our lives.

“Ask for a sign from the Lord, your God; let it be as deep as the netherworld, or high as the sky!”  (Isaiah 7:11)

Be open to signs – they are all around us!