Sunday Homily, December 28, 2014, Holy Family
Genesis 15, 1-6; 21, 1-3 , Look up at the sky and count the stars, if you can. This is the official selection. But for us, I've included 16, 1-10; 17, 9-12; 18, 1-3 & 9-15. This stuff is too rich to pass up.
Psalm 105, The Lord remembers his covenant forever.
Hebrews 11, 8, 11-12, 17-19, By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called.
Luke 2, 22-40, The purification of Jesus.
Genesis obserevations :
What : the very first book of the bible beginning with Adam & Eve, the two creation myths, Cane & Abel, Noah and the flood, the Tower of Babylon, and then the big 3 patriarchs of the Jewish nation. They are Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The book is a fun read. It is not history, but speculation and tribal myth.
Date: contemporary scholarship thinks that the work was composed either before or during the B.C., the all important Babylonian Captivity. Why? Give the Jewish people a sense of historical identity and tribal cohesion.
Today’s selection: all about Abraham, the first of the 3 Great Patriarchs. Abraham is crying and lamenting the fact that he has no children. Why? Sarah was childless and Abraham was 99 years old. A “we have a problem, Houston” situation. The Lord hears Abraham and uses a beautiful metaphor to show Abraham what is going to happen.
Because the editor of this reading has so taken the fun out of it, I want to read a bit more. Sit back and enjoy the story of how Abraham and Sarah had a baby. I'm including parts of three other chapters between chapters 15 and 21.
Another Christmas Story
On Christmas Eve I told you a Christmas story and said that it was a Christmas event. And what is a Christmas event? It is an event where a person receives peace, joy, and light. It usually happens between people. But I can have the same event in a place, for instance, the Meyerson, or riding across Iowa on my bike, or backpacking in Yosemite. It happens often to me here with you people.
In fact, somebody asked me why don’t you just take this Sunday off? We were here just a few days ago. I know why. I am having too much fun here. This is not an obligation, it is a treasure.
Anyway, our story goes like this. It comes from Steve Blow, the columnist of the Dallas Morning News, December 25. You may remember Steve has written Rosemary and me up a couple of times.
He says there was a lady named Renee of Lake Highlands on her way to work the morning before Thanksgiving. She pulled into the neighborhood Whataburger drive through to get a pick up.
When she got her diet Coke, the girl in the window, who was very cheerful, said like, “This ought to pick you up.” There was no one in line behind Renee, so she chatted, saying, “Well, at least, I’m off Thanksgiving and we can have a nice Thanksgiving meal. How about you?”
The cheerful girl said, “No, she had to work and the Thanksgiving meal would have to wait until she could earn the money to buy the food.” She had two jobs to make enough for herself and her two children.
By now a new customer had pulled up behind Renee. She had to move. Before departing, she blurted out, “I’m going to get you Thanksgiving.”
Jazmen Woods, the Whataburger girl, said customers tell her stuff all the time. She pays no attention.
But that afternoon, Renee called the Whataburger and later took a whole Boston Market Thanksgiving meal to Jazmen’s apartment in the Vickery Meadow area of northeast Dallas.
That was only the beginning. Renee discovered that Jazmen had hardly any furniture for herself and her two young children. So she went on line to her neighbors, telling the story saying, “If you would like to contribute to making Christmas special for this sweet family, please feel free to join me.”
You know the rest of the story.
Another Christmas event that gives peace, joy, and light.
Like I asked Christmas Eve, When were you touched in this special way?
And to whom do you share peace, joy , and light? (Besides to me.)
Source, Steve Blow, Dallas Morning News, December 25, 2004