Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Many years ago, a candy maker wanted to show, through the candy he made, that Jesus was born among us, lived, and died to save us all. So, through the use of color and shape, he created a piece of candy that told the story of Jesus. He created the candy cane. The white stripes on the candy cane stand for the fact that Jesus was sinless and pure. The small red stripes stand for the scourging Jesus endured before he died. The large red stripes stand for Jesus’ blood, shed on the cross. The candy cane is shaped like a shepherd’s staff, reminding us that Jesus is the Good Shepherd. Turn in upside down, and it is the letter “J”, the first letter of Jesus’ name and for joy that comes when we love him above all things. We can learn a lot from the candy cane, both to look at it and see Jesus, and, like the candy maker, to share the story of Jesus with those around us.
I was struck by the importance of angels this year in the gospel of the birth of Jesus Christ. The angels always say, ‘don’t be afraid.’ It didn’t occur to me that they must be very fearsome, like lighting that doesn’t go away. Angels are mentioned almost 300 times in Scripture. They are present in all the important events of salvation history and especially in the life of Jesus Christ.
Angels are greatly superior to human beings. They are pure spirits with no bodies but can take on bodily form. They don’t experience death or sin or suffering or any vices. They are more intelligent, more powerful, and more loving than us. They are God’s messengers and God’s army to protect us.
At Christmas they don’t appear to kings, queens, famous people, warriors, scholars, or prophets but to dirty, old, cold shepherds out in the middle of nowhere with their sheep in the middle of the night. The angels did not appear in warm, comfortable churches to people well-dressed like us. They appeared to shepherds.
Mary appeared many times in these two millenniums since her assumption and especially in the last two centuries. She always appears to people who are poor, unimportant in the eyes of the world and usually children. Jesus said that unless we become like little children, we cannot enter the kingdom of God.
The next time you see a homeless, poor, or jobless person, remember what Scripture says: don’t neglect hospitality because you may be entertaining an angel. And what you did for the least of people, you did for me.
Christ came all the way from the light and glory of heaven to bring us all the way up to a place that is greater than mansions, palaces of the masters of the universe and into his kingdom. What is this kingdom? It is a place of glory, eternal glory, joy and love, and it begins here. If this kingdom doesn’t start here as a seed, it cannot be transplanted to heaven when we die.
The word miracle in Greek means sign. Miracles are signs of heaven. A sign points to something else. The most widespread miracle is the Holy Mass where Christ comes to earth at the moment of the consecration, and he comes to us in Holy Communion. We are invited to open our souls to him and to open our mouths for him. He comes in something smaller than a manger. He comes to all who accept him. He comes to all equally, king and shepherd, president, or peasant, rich or poor. He came for you, just as truly if you were the only person here on earth, as if you were the only person ever created. He came and comes today for everyone, he comes for every one of us! Let us follow the shepherds and go in search for the one who came for us.