Aging is all about changes. Some changes are in-evitable. Some are good. And some are plain difficult.
Changing seasons is welcome. On the Sunday after Thanksgiving, I stood sorting through my closet before dressing for church. The time for rusts and golds was past and it was too soon for Christmas colors. I picked purple.
An hour later as I walked into church, our sacristan grabbed my arm. “You remember that you’re a lector today, right?” I hadn’t, of course.
Q. I am getting ready for my annual trip out east to spend time with my mother over the holidays.
Mom is in her 80s and it is getting more and more difficult for her to do everything — yet she insists on keeping up all of the old traditions and will not allow any of us to help.
By the time I leave she is exhausted and I am stressed and feeling guilty. Is there any way to convince her all the “fuss” is not necessary, without hurting her feelings?
(A daughter in Dodgeville)
On Saturday, Dec. 3, despite the rainy weather outside, a beautiful time of sharing, celebrating, and entertaining took place at the Apostolate to the Handicapped’s annual Christmas Mass and dinner party held at Monroe High School.
Remember when we used to wait until after Thanksgiving for Christmas decorations to be put up in public places and most homes? Now we start seeing Christmas decorations in September!
I still wait until after Thanksgiving to start decorating our home and do most of my Christmas shopping. The first Sunday of Advent should be the sign for Christians to start preparing the way of the Lord. After all, it’s Christ’s birthday that we are supposed to be celebrating on December 25.
An Advent homily that often comes back to me during this time of the Church year was delivered by a priest who shared what he was doing for Advent to help him appreciate the true meaning of the season.
For that Advent he would slow down and stop at every yellow light and wait patiently for it to turn green. This little exercise would hopefully remind him of the people of God who waited so long for the Messiah to come and save them.
On July 4, 1939, Lou Gehrig enjoyed an early Thanksgiving Day. On Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day at Yankee Stadium, the Hall of Fame first baseman told 61,808 baseball fans that he was the luckiest man on earth.
At age 36, he was dying from Lou Gehrig’s disease (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis); yet, he was thankful because God gifted him with great athletic ability, wonderful fans, teammates, and a good family.
The lights are lit and the tree is up. The celebration of Christ’s birth has only just begun. The joy in the air is contagious for now, but how can we keep that joy long after the holidays are gone?
It does not take much thinking to come to the conclusion that all the happiness Christmas brings is in the anticipation and celebration of Christ’s birth, us making an effort to be so close to him with our families as he comes into the world.
 |
| This column is the bishop’s communication with the faithful of the Diocese of Madison. Any wider circulation reaches beyond the intention of the bishop. |
Dear Friends,
As you read this letter, Christmas will be upon us and the Year of the Lord 2010 will have almost expired. As we look around the whole world, we see the violence of war and terrorism raging, we see hunger thriving in so many places as well as extreme poverty, we see senior citizens being actually or virtually euthanized and we see the slaughter of the unborn, we see God’s gift of human sexuality, naturally oriented toward unselfish love, cheapened and continually used for every kind of self-centered entertainment. It’s not a “pretty picture,” but it is a picture of this world that, we claim, belongs to God this Christmas.
Vigil for Life will host “Empty Manger” caroling on the sidewalk outside Planned Parenthood at 3706 Orin Rd. in Madison on Thursday, Dec. 23, from 5 to 6 p.m.
I have a ritual I practice on New Year’s Eve or day, depending on what is going on in my life. I take some quiet time to review how God has worked in my life over the past year.
Last year I recalled a journal entry that summarized a talk I still remember. It was given during a day of prayer. The presenter, a wonderful Holy Cross priest, made a simple but profound statement. He said that Christian discipleship can be summed up by two words — “Come” and “Go.”
