Did You Hear What I Heard?

Did you hear what I heard?

The Christmas rat race was not designed for meditation.

By now you've spent weeks thinking about gifts, foods, house-cleaning, and decorating. You've spent hours in stores, in the kitchen, on the phone. You've battled the weather, the car, the craziness of your job, and the end of a semester.

You've hurried the whole family to church for at least one Mass this year. You unbutton the kids, sing a carol, plop in your pew, and hear the reader drone, "A reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah."

And you wonder, "What does Isaiah have to do with real life?

The Christmas Season

Isaiah has lots to do with real life. But the Christmas Scriptures, faithfully proclaimed, are poorly heard in the Christmas rat race.

You'll hear three readings at the Mass you attend this Christmas. But you'll miss nine. The Catholic Church offers four Masses for Christmas. Most folks have heard of Midnight Mass, but did you know that we also have a Vigil Mass, a Mass at Dawn, and a Mass During the Day? Three different readings come with each Mass, but we may read any readings we wish at any Mass we celebrate. Theoretically, you could hear the midnight readings at six in the evening, and the dawn readings around noon.

But all the readings are worth hearing, so if you'd like to meditate on them at home, this column may help you.

The Christmas Story

"Once upon a time. . . ."

Four of the Scripture readings just tell the same story. They're the easiest to understand, the most basic ones for the feast. If you meditate on nothing else, try one or more of these:

Luke 2, 1-14. This famous Gospel from Midnight Mass recounts the birth of Jesus. The census, the inn, the manger, the swaddling clothes, and the angels all appear in these few verses. We also hear the first proclamation of the good news: "Today a savior is born."

Luke 2, 15-20. If you like the angels, you'll love the shepherds. They hear the news and tell it in turn. This reading comes at dawn because that's when the shepherds appeared.

Matthew 1, 1-25 (or 18-25). The long version frightens many away: It includes the infamous genealogy of Jesus -- hard slogging all the way. Otherwise the Gospel for the Vigil tells a pleasant version of Mary's pregnancy, the appearance of the angel to Joseph, the meaning of the name "Emmanuel" (God is with us), and the birth of Jesus.

Acts 13, 16-17. 22-25. The Vigil Mass also includes this sermon by St. Paul, in which he proclaims the arrival of Jesus as the pivotal moment in salvation history.

The Meaning of the Stories

Telling stories brings back the joy of the day, the mystery of the feast, and the memories of Christmases past. Have you heard some family stories this week? Told some? Made some new ones? If so, you're already entering into the mystery of Christmas, since Christ will be present in the stories you tell.

All stories put a spin on their message. Note how they focus on the word "savior," to show that salvation is the meaning of Christmas. Has a family member died since last year? Are you poorer economically? Physically? Spiritually? The stories bring you good news: Whatever binds you is conquered in the birth of this baby, whose name, "Jesus," means "Savior."

Prophecies

More than any other prophet, Isaiah dominates the Advent season. All four Masses of Christmas turn to him to explain the meaning of the season. Look for 9,1-6 (Midnight); 52, 7-10 (Day); 62, 1-5 (Vigil); and 62, 11-12 (Dawn).

These texts mark Israel's return from exile. Restoration to the promised land fills them with new hope for a glorious age. They envision a leader who will bring them heaven on earth. These meditations find their fulfillment in Jesus, the Messiah.

Several themes appear:

Light. The new world will be like coming from darkness into light. It's no accident we celebrate the birth of Jesus when the days get longer.

The nations. The prophet believes that all nations will come to recognize the Messiah as the king. He will rule not just over Israel, but over the whole world.

Marriage. The land will be called "Espoused." Earth will be married to heaven, as humanity and divinity live together in Jesus.

Salvation. The theme returns, promising that a savior or redeemer will set things aright for God's chosen ones.

Gospel. "Good news" will be proclaimed -- even the feet of those who tell it are called blessed.

Reflecting on these passages, think of how these themes bring hope to your life. Christmas proclaims that God who created us didn't stop there. God redeems us. In love for us God became like us. Jesus entered the human drama to give humans hope. This is the Gospel: God created what lasts in each human being, and promises us unending life. Our lives would seem dark without the promise of the light of Christ. Warring nations would hasten despair if we did not believe that all will bow before the one redeemer. Even marriage can be better understood by Christmas: It is an act of creative love in which two give of themselves so that new life may grow.

The Meaning of Christmas

A third set of readings comments on the meaning of Christmas. Though more difficult to understand, they complete the long meditation on the Scriptures that shed light on this feast. The Letter to Titus. Paul wrote this letter to an early Christian leader. In the passage for Midnight (2, 11-14), Paul explains that God's grace has appeared in the world, offering salvation, and teaching us how to live. Similar to the passage we hear at dawn (3, 4-7), it proclaims that the love of God has appeared to save us and prepare us for eternity. Thus, we hear that the appearance of Jesus ("God's love and grace") eventually will teach us how to live our lives, and bring us home to heaven.

The Letter to the Hebrews. We don't know who wrote this letter, but the opening passage reflects eloquently on revelation, or how God lets us know things. The passage from the Mass During the Day (1, 1-6) says that God has spoken in many ways in the past, and we've seen evidence of that in the prophecies of Christmas, but now God speaks more directly through the Son, who perfectly represents the Father. Thus, in Hebrews we learn who Jesus is: This child born so simply is the awesome son of God.

John. The most sublime chapter in the whole Bible is proclaimed on Christmas Day: John 1, 1-18 (or 1-5, 9-14). It presumes that long before there was a Jesus in Bethlehem there was a "Word of God," a way that God the creator communicated to the world. This "Word", which existed from before time, entered time and took on human flesh. Christmas celebrates God becoming human -- God affirming human beings by becoming one. God thus elevated human nature to a sublime purpose of manifesting God to the world.

These four passages, though more difficult than the simple stories of Jesus' birth, help us understand what those stories mean. They mean that God loved you enough to become like you, to give you hope, to reassure you, to let you in on the big picture. Christmas gives us a context for the dreariness of life. It lets us see that our sufferings have an end, even a meaninglessness before the power of the mystery of God.

If you've ever had trouble breaking through to God in prayer, Christmas will surprise you: It's God breaking through to us. God goes to great lengths to let us know that the creator also redeems. that's the Christmas carol God wants us to hear.

[This article first appeared in The Catholic Key, December 25, 1992, p. 3.]