The Second Day of Christmas; Saint Stephen’s Day

“Instead of being a time of unusual behavior, Christmas is perhaps the only time in the year when people can obey their natural impulses and express their true sentiments without feeling self-conscious and, perhaps, foolish.  Christmas, in short, is about the only chance a man has to be himself.” ~ Francis C. Farley

Two Turtle Doves

The Second Day of Christmas is the one that reminds us of unconditional love and perfect dedication. It is the feast day of St. Stephen. We are reminded that love overcomes hatred as evidenced by his legacy left which somewhat troubles the hearts and souls of those who are filled with malice and malcontent.  That gift of love left by Stephen haunted his persecutor, Saul of Tarsus, until he could stand it no more.  On a dusty road, he saw the light and was forever converted. St. Paul cleared the way for all of us to follow.  Love triumphs, Love wins, Love endures.

What a message we receive in these days of Christmas celebration!  There is an urge to get it all over with, to pack up the decorations, put away the presents, clean up the mess, and to resume the day-to-day routines.  How about if we summon the spirit to resist that temptation right now?  Two turtle doves are the symbol of this second day of Christmas.  It is the perfect opportunity to think about those little loving creatures who dedicate their entire lives to each other.  They are little signs of God’s love; a love which makes no demands and asks no favors and has no strings attached.  Think of how unlike that our regular, busy or hum-drum days can be.  We require performance from each other.  We expect returns for what we give.  We keep step with an invisible and arduous drummer telling us to be worthy. 

Saint Stephen

I stand against trying to put Christmas back into storage bins and boxes.  Give it up!  Settle into the 12 Days and receive a new way of living out the love which is given so freely.  Perhaps, even after two thousand years, St.Stephen and St. Paul have personally left each of us with a cleared the way that we might navigate life differently.

Have Some Faith; A Message of the Christmas Season

I know you want to question everything, but sometimes it pays to just have a little faith.”

Lauren Kate

Our senses are bombarded with stories of conversions and restoration of faith during Advent and Christmastime. 

The tales have been woven into the fabric of our culture beginning on Thanksgiving with “The Miracle on 34th Street” and continue to infuse us for the next days and weeks until The Wonderful finally arrives on Christmas Day. Most all of us have seen these movies dozens of times. 

Yet, the hard-hearted becoming soft and compassionate, the miser becoming generous, and the troubled being saved, always seem to find a way of evoking sentimental feelings.  The reason is, of course, that this is the heart of our Christmas experience.  We are all hoping that we will be better people and that the world will become a kinder place.

The 2nd Sunday of Advent symbolizes Faith. One of the stories that always moves me is that of Saint Therese of France who had an incredible awakening in 1886 at age 14.  A simple thing had happened.  She had reached an age when the Christmas tradition of leaving her shoes by the fireplace in anticipation of presents was at an end. 

She completed the ritual with her parents after which she heard her father exclaim that he was thankful they would never have to do it again.  She began weeping, but the sadness was replaced by an incredible ‘white-light’ experience in which she was given a message of conversion by God.  The rest of her life became a testimony of Christmas which brought major changes to the Catholic Church. 

Christmas conversion and resilience of faithresonates deeply because, as Saint Therese shows us, the grace of God is alwaysat work.  It is the lesson at the heartof The Wonderful.  In the ordinary, warmearthiness of a stable God is born and new life comes to the earth.