Let's not mall each other over holiday: Christmas is not just about presents, parties and eggnog
BY Archbishop Timothy Dolan
SPECIAL TO THE NEWS
Monday, December 7th 2009, 3:09 PM
"We all know the sides by now. In one corner are those who want to remove any mention or even hint of religion, of the birth of Christ, from this holiday ("holy day") season, ready to rush into court to battle those who would dare even mention the birth of the Savior in a public setting. In the other corner are those who seem ready to call for jihad against any commercial outlet or business with a "holiday sale," ever prepared to organize boycotts, letter-writing and e-mail campaigns to counter these supposed pagan, secularist forces.
As I prepare to celebrate my first Christmas as archbishop of New York, I realize it might seem presumptuous to interject myself into this annual battle. But if any time of year calls for us to follow our better natures, this is that time. Thus, I call for a truce!
Obviously, I am enthusiastic about "keeping Christ in Christmas." For those of us who believe that Jesus, the Son of God and our Savior, was born to Mary in a stable in Bethlehem 2009 years ago, we never forget what it is and why it is that we are celebrating. Christ must remain our focus. We must never let the commercial aspects of Christmas overwhelm us or cause us to think that the gift-giving and the parties are all that matters. I know that for me, as much as I look forward to spending time with family and friends, exchanging gifts, sharing Christmas dinner and cheer, it all really begins deep down inside, with faith, hope and love, as we thank God for the gift of Christ, and share this sacred present with others.
However, many others don't believe as we do but still wish to celebrate this wonderful time of the year. Parties, decorations, holiday specials, gifts - I'm all for it!
Still we see the public relations battle, the calls to spurn this retailer in favor of that, the angry denunciations of those who wish to sing "Silent Night" or "The First Noel" at a town event. Even more troublesome is that this season, when we should be celebrating peace, we find instead so many ways to be at odds with one another. It really doesn't have to be this way.
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2009/12/06/2009-12-06_lets_not_mall_each_other_over_holiday.html#ixzz0Z71taxPV"
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Love this. I am telling you, priests are some of the most logical people you will ever meet. Fr. Carl (the priest at Sts. Joe and Paul) prays for our Jewish, Muslim, athiest and Brothers and Sisters of all other faiths during mass. He based his homily (sermon) on Sunday on something he heard on NPR...it was story of a Jewish man that is a Concetration Camp survivor and was asked if there were ever any happy times there. He said, "No, but there were times of great faith..." He went on to say that the men could hear the women singing in Yiddish when one of their children had been killed. He said, it was sad because you knew the women were singing to comfort a mother who had lost a child, but it gave him faith in the strength and love of his people. Totally unrelated, but never the less a story worth sharing.
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