Holy Innocence

Gospel:  Matthew 2: 13-18

By our choice of association and our actions we decide whether we are citizens of the city of man or the city of God.  The city of man is characterized by association with the rich and powerful.  This city is gripped by perpetual fear of losing said power and wealth, and so any means at all are employed to preserve their wealth and power: lies, coercion, violence.  This is the city of Herod in today's Gospel, and both the innocents and innocence are its victims.

The city of God, by contrast, is characterized by association with the poor and marginalized.  This city is animated by love, for here there is no desire for wealth and power.  The only desire here is to serve others in loving-kindness and compassion.  This is the city of the Lord Jesus, of the shepherds and the Magi.  This is the place where both the innocents and innocence itself are protected.  

Today is a day to reflect on which city is our place of citizenship, which city holds our allegiance.  Which city is the one to which we are journeying?  

The Peace Has Returned

Gospel: John 20: 2-8

The peace of Christmas had been disturbed by the message of persecution yesterday, but today the peace returns in the resurrection of Jesus.  All of this may seem strange in its placement in the Christmas season, but we are quick to forget what Advent had been all about, and we are slow to see what the message of the stable is all about.

In Advent we awaited the coming of the Savior of the world, a title that had been one for the Roman Emperor.  But Jesus, the true Savior of the world, will not save the world through bloodshed and military conquest as Rome does.  Instead, salvation will come about by laying down his own life in place of ours, in showing infinite love to finite creatures so little deserving of the gift.  

Jesus comes through the way of humility: the poverty of the stable, the vulnerability of a baby, the coming to outcasts and foreigners, ministry to the poor and marginalized, the washing of feet, and execution on a cross as a condemned revolutionary.  Even the empty tomb is a humble announcement of victory over death and salvation for all.  This must be our way as well.   

Where Did the Peace Go?

Gospel: Matthew 10: 17-22

It seems like only yesterday that we were present at the stable enjoying the peace of a newborn child and the joy of those gathered at the mystery.  For today we are again presented with the threats to peace: the stoning of Stephen, the blood lust of Herod, and the words of today's Gospel that remind us of the threats to us that are ever present.  

In one sense these threats are ever present.  In the material world we are constantly subject to incessant change and the misfortunes that accompany it.  However, in the spiritual realm we can and must remain fixed in the love of God, our only impermanence in the universe, the only source of eternal peace.  We were drawn to the stable in order to be introduced to this peace so that we might find it and keep it throughout our lives.

This peace can be likened to a home well-prepared and provisioned for a storm.  It remains at peace as the storm rages, knowing the storm will subside and pass at some point.  And even if the storm does overtake it, like Stephen the peace is not lost, for the vision of love found at the stable animates our hearts at all times.