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Christmas Mass at Dawn Luke 2:15-20 |
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| Background: This selection from Luke continues the story of the birth of Jesus begun during the Mass at Midnight. The shepherds, the lowly ones, are the first to respond to what the Lord has made known to them. Not only do they make haste to see the Child; they also report what they saw to others who also are astonished. In this way Luke foreshadows the astonishment that will accompany Jesus throughout his public life. Unlike many who hear Jesus and those who preach his gospel, the shepherds and their listeners glorify God. Mary, who earlier praised God for the news he revealed to her, reflects upon this again in her heart. |
read the padre |
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Story: Once upon a time on a Christmas Eve not so very long ago, four members of one family were not looking forward to the next day’s celebration. The Mom was upset with the Dad because he was late getting home from his company’s Christmas party the night before forcing them to miss most of the neighborhood Christmas celebration. The Dad was hurt that his wife didn’t even try to understand why he couldn’t leave the party before his boss did. The oldest daughter had been in a funk all week because she didn’t have a date for the New Year’s Eve party. Her brother was mad because he had to go to his Grandparents’ pre-Midnight Mass gathering and couldn’t play hockey with his buddies. Only the fifth member of the family, a pre-teenage girl, seemed to have any Christmas spirit. Indeed she had so much Christmas spirit that she never even noticed how crabby everyone else was. When she began to play Christmas carols and invited the others to sing a-long, the older girl snapped, "Why are you bright and cheerful?" The brother joined in saying, "Save you piano playing for Grandma’s. It’s going to need some livening up!" The parents simply scowled and said nothing. The younger girl, still oblivious to the tension around her, said, "Well, why don’t we practice some Christmas Carols now and then when we get to Grandma and Grandpa's we can bring some Christmas joy to them? They never seem to have much fun except when we are there." Over the next few minutes, the others slowly moved around the piano and soon all were singing their favorite carols. Maybe it was the night. Maybe it was the young girl’s enthusiasm. Maybe she was the angels’ song for them. |
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