Fr Kevin Kilgore

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Gospel: Luke 2: 15-20

When the angels went away from them to heaven,
the shepherds said to one another, 
“Let us go, then, to Bethlehem
to see this thing that has taken place, 
which the Lord has made known to us.”
So they went in haste and found Mary and Joseph, 
and the infant lying in the manger.
When they saw this,
they made known the message
that had been told them about this child.
All who heard it were amazed
by what had been told them by the shepherds.
And Mary kept all these things,
reflecting on them in her heart.
Then the shepherds returned,
glorifying and praising God 
for all they had heard and seen, 
just as it had been told to them.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Often people imagine God as being a bigger version of Santa Claus. Even religious art depicts God the Father as an old man with a flowing white beard. 

We imagine God sitting up there in heaven, making his list, checking it twice. He’s going to find out who’s naughty or nice. We might cheer and sing, but we can also shudder, wondering if we’re getting a sack of coal for Christmas.

Maybe we made a mistake or two this year. Maybe life took an unexpected turn. Or maybe we blame the health scare, the loss, or the disappointments we experienced on God; it was his fault. He means to punish us.

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But that is not the God whom the prophets foretold. Isaiah tells us, when our God comes to earth, the blind will see; the lame will walk; the sick will be healed; the dead will be raised.

This is our God. 

Mighty. Powerful. Compassionate. A missionary, who left the glory of heaven to come down to earth.

Today as an infant. Wrapped in swaddling clothes, warmed by the breath of oxen, cuddled in his mother’s arms. Weak, tender, and mild.

Off in the distance, Mary and Joseph can hear the roar of the crowds, packed into the inn, eating and drinking, warm, and cheery-eyed with no room for them in that place or in their hearts. The rejection Jesus experienced that night foreshadows what will come.

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Still, Mary and Joseph rest out in the elements under a starry night sky, wondering, “What child is this, whom angels greet with anthems sweet, while shepherds watch are keeping?”

This is the mystery of Christmas. God becomes flesh of our flesh. Bone of our bones. Immanuel. God with us. God for us, who comes, not with coal, but with mercy. 

Not to judge, but to heal. Not to make his list and check it twice, but to offer a clean slate, hope and salvation to all.

In that sense, his birth is our birth. His life is our life. He will live among us – and yes, he will die among us – so that all who believe in him might not perish, but might have eternal life.

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While our Christmas trees have been surrounded by gifts large and small – toys, trinkets, the newest technology – we gather to celebrate someone greater than Santa, Jesus Christ.

May we welcome him into our hearts and homes, for salvation has come! Merry Christmas!

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Image credits: (1) HubPages (2) God the Father, Cima da Conegliano (3) The Christ Child, Andreas Johan Jacob Müeller

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Gospel: Luke 1:67-69

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.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Zechariah’s wife, Elizabeth, has just given birth to their son, John the Baptist. John’s birth breaks the near year-long period of silence that Zechariah endured after doubting the archangel Gabriel’s proclamation that Elizabeth would bear a son.

As his lips are opened, he breaks out in song, praising God. “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel! He has come to his people and set them free.,” he sings. “And you, my child will go before the Lord to prepare his way.”

Zechariah is overwhelmed, not only by the joy of having a son, but also by the knowledge that his boy, John the Baptist, will prepare the way for the Lord.

What Zechariah – or anyone in Israel – didn’t know was what, exactly, God would be like when he came.

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The Greeks imagined God to be a passionless Being, beyond joy and sorrow, unmoved by the pleas of humanity. 

The Jews understood God to be litigious and demanding, yearning to bring his judgment upon the earth. Perhaps no one paints a clearer picture of this than John the Baptist, who preached of the coming “wrath.”

However, Jesus didn’t fit into either of these two molds. Rather, he revealed a God of unspeakable humility, who becomes a baby at Christmas and dies like a thief on Good Friday.

A God who is wildly in love with his people, who turns water into wine at a wedding, who isn’t afraid to associate with sinners, who forgives readily, whose heart breaks at the sight of a widow burying her son.

A God who promises grace to all who ask, who seeks to shoulder our burdens, who instructs his people, leads by example, and feeds the poor, not only with bread, but with his very Self. 

This is our God.

Yet how many of us still struggle to accept him as he is? Joyful, humble, meek, and mild.

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This Christmas, may we not only gaze upon the Christ-child in wonder, but also ask for the grace to become like him, who loves us and gives himself for us.

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Image credits: (1) Reform Magazine (2) Zechariah Holding John the Baptist, Catholic Daily Reflections (3) iStock

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Gospel: Luke 1:57-66

When the time arrived for Elizabeth to have her child
she gave birth to a son.
Her neighbors and relatives heard
that the Lord had shown his great mercy toward her,
and they rejoiced with her.
When they came on the eighth day to circumcise the child,
they were going to call him Zechariah after his father,
but his mother said in reply,
“No. He will be called John.”
But they answered her,
“There is no one among your relatives who has this name.”
So they made signs, asking his father what he wished him to be called.
He asked for a tablet and wrote, “John is his name,”
and all were amazed.
Immediately his mouth was opened, his tongue freed,
and he spoke blessing God.
Then fear came upon all their neighbors,
and all these matters were discussed
throughout the hill country of Judea.
All who heard these things took them to heart, saying,
“What, then, will this child be?
For surely the hand of the Lord was with him.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Mark Twain once said, “The two most important days in your life are the day you were born… and the day you know why.”

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In today’s Gospel, we celebrate the birth of John the Baptist. From the moment of his birth, people were wondering, “Why was this child born? What will he become?”

They intuit John will do something great for God, simply because of the circumstances that surround his birth.

First, Zechariah was struck mute by the angel Gabriel in the Temple; then Elizabeth miraculously conceives this child in her old age; finally, the boy is not named after his father. 

Instead, his name is John.

In Hebrew, Jehohanan – or “John” – means, “God has been gracious.” After praying for their entire adult lives to have a child, God gives Elizabeth and Zechariah a son, whose mission will be to prepare the way of the Lord. 

Certainly, God has been gracious.

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John reminds us that we all have a “why,” a reason for our lives given to us by God. My mother used to say, her “why” was simply becoming a mother, much like Elizabeth and Mary.

My “why” has been serving God and his people as a priest. 

What is your “why”?

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Perhaps the answer changes, even simplifies, over time. 

But we can all be sure of this: the same Lord who breathed air into our lungs at birth also gives us a purpose – not only in the grand scheme of things – but also in the little tasks we are called to do each day.

May we discern his will and do it joyfully today. 

Saint John the Baptist, pray for us.

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Image credits: (1) shashankadler (2) John the Baptist as a Child, Bartolome Esteban Murillo (3) Acuity Process Solutions