St John of the Cross

Today, we celebrate the life of st John of the Cross.  Imagine living a life of poverty from the earliest age...having no father...wandering the streets homeless with your mother...and in spite of it all, have the gift to see the beauty and love in all the things around you!  This is the life of St John of the Cross and that was before he reached adulthood!  The story gets even better than that when he enters into the life of a monk.  Here is his story continued:

"After John joined the Carmelite order, Saint Teresa of Avila asked him to help her reform movement. John supported her belief that the order should return to its life of prayer. But many Carmelites felt threatened by this reform, and some members of John's own order kidnapped him. He was locked in a cell six feet by ten feet and beaten three times a week by the monks. There was only one tiny window high up near the ceiling. Yet in that unbearable dark, cold, and desolation, his love and faith were like fire and light. He had nothing left but God -- and God brought John his greatest joys in that tiny cell.

"After nine months, John escaped by unscrewing the lock on his door and creeping past the guard. Taking only the mystical poetry he had written in his cell, he climbed out a window using a rope made of strips of blankets. With no idea where he was, he followed a dog to civilization. He hid from pursuers in a convent infirmary where he read his poetry to the nuns. From then on his life was devoted to sharing and explaining his experience of God's love."

What an amazing holy man of God!  We can learn so much from his life.  It is so easy to complain and be negative in what we consider hardships.  God calls us to find the beauty in all that we have around us.  This is a lesson I need to remind myself...today I am going to try to list all the beautiful things in my day, especially when the day gets difficult.

And, today was one of those days when life got difficult!  I happened to open up the news right after the shootings in the Connecticut elementary school.  I was horrified at the thought that someone would shoot such innocent children.  And in such a time we pray...for us it was easy to find consolation in the following prayer that a friend of mine shared:


Holy Innocents, you died before you were old enough to know what life means, pray for all children who die young that God may gather them into His loving arms.
Holy Innocents, you were killed because one man was filled with hatred, pray for those who hate that God may touch their hearts and fill them with love.
Holy Innocents, you experienced a violent death, pray for all who are affected by violence that they may find peace and love.
Holy Innocents, your parents grieved for you with deep and lasting sorrow, pray for all parents who have lost young children that God may wrap a warm blanket of comfort around them.
Holy Innocents, those around you certainly felt helpless to prevent your deaths, pray for all who feel helpless in their circumstances that they may cling to God for courage and hope.
Holy Innocents, you who are now in Heaven, pray for all of us that one day we may join you there to bask in God's love forever.
Amen.

It was hard to get back on track after this happened, but for the sake of my own children we continued with our day.  Henry added a lamp to our nativity scene today...so fitting in the midst of this darkness we just felt in our nation.  "See that the crib has sufficient light. Be neat and orderly about your person; keep everything in its place in your room. Jesus, be the life and light of our souls. Amen"

We then read the Bible devotion from Matthew with Jesus once again speaking to the crowd about the hypocrisy that is seen in those who do not understand the ways of God.  Yet, he says, "wisdom is vindicated by her works."  We need not worry about what others think when we are following God's will.  The plan of action will bear fruits abundantly.

This message carry through in our Jesse Tree ornaments as Isaiah is called to speak for God...first being touched by the hot ember to his lips in a dream...he must go forth and deliver the Word of God. (Isaiah 9)


We then completed our day of school...finishing the quarter for the older boys!  Sean and Henry had a great science experiment to show the effects of acceleration and velocity (notice Zaira in the middle of it all!).  Edward is holding out for another round tomorrow but we are all hoping it will go quickly now that he has made it through long division!

We also had our last Math Counts until after the New Year.  We decided to have another fun activity...this time it was with geometric solids.  I found some geometric nets to print off from a website and had these ready along with some wooden solids.  We reviewed the names of the different shapes.  I thought it was funny because Brendan decided he would teach the group at this point as he already knew all the names of the geometric solids!  He was so cute and I do wish I had thought to video his instruction!  Then we discussed what a net is to a mathematician.  Finally, we put together our own cardboard solids from the nets printed!  What I did not tell everyone was that we were going to add a fun volume lesson into the mix as well!

I had marshmallows to fill the geometric solids they made.  I had everyone guess how many marshmallows fit in a given solid...they wrote their guess down and then tried to fill the solid.  By the time we were half way through, Henry had decided he would try using a volume formula to try to make a more educated guess...I think he figured out that there was going to a prize for the one who estimated the closest to the correct number!  It was a great transition into discussing the formulas for all geometric solids.  This lesson turned out better than I thought...I love it when everything comes together like that!

Now...remember that puzzle we 'started' on the first day of Advent...well let's just say that our Advent puzzle had been put on the wayside as we tried to complete our schoolwork.  This afternoon, Sean got off to a better start by almost completing the outer edges!  Once the others saw it coming together , they joined in as well.  We should be able to work on it more now...in hopes that we complete it in time for Christmas!

We did check out our pumpkin again today...it does not appear to have changed much in the last couple of days but who knows what is happening on the inside!  Only time will tell.  All I know is that it is pretty gross even without a lot of change in appearance!

We read some more of Jesus of Nazareth.  Because there are two separate accounts of Jesus' birth some theologians want to believe that the Gospel writers were trying to fit their accounts to prophesy...however Ratzinger assures us that the two accounts are only written to share two different sides of the story...both are accurate for what they were trying to bring forth to those who read their Gospel.

It would be like us telling the police what happened at the scene of a crime...we would all have different points of view and possibly different reasons to be witnesses...Matthew and Luke tell their account to emphasize the theology that they were called to spread to the world.

Looking back at the events of the day, I think we all pent a little more time appreciating each other.  I took pictures of the children doing the ordinary things of the day.  Yes, even more than I already do!  Like, Zaira playing peek-a-boo with Sean with the sofa cover.  She loves playing this game and I just love watching her discover new ways to engage others to play it with her.  She has these boys wrapped around her finger...as they will stop everything to make her smile!




We got the younger boys to sleep and then a fun project began for Sean and Henry.  We got a big package in the mail today for Zaira!  She has been really struggling with the desire to be more mobile as she watches her brothers have so much fun around her.  We decided to find an activity center for her to play with...and we found the perfect match for her.  Unfortunately it came in a gazillion pieces!  The boys were able to get it together (and even read the directions to assure me that it was all put together correctly!).  She woke up just in time to try it out!  I am sure this will get a lot of use in the next year or so as it grows with the child into the toddler years.

St Lucy...Where are You?

Today, we celebrate teh feast of a young maiden who would rather be tortured (eyes poked out, covered in hot pitch and resin, dragged through the streets by an ox, and finally had her throat slit...Can you imagine?!) then renounce her vow of virginity promised to the Lord as a sign of her commitment to pray for His will.  She offered up all her sufferings for those who did not believe in God so they might see her witness and become a Christian.

Imagine a young girl of 14 today taking such a stand.  We might not have men ready to torture girls into renouncing their faith in such a bloody way in today's time.  However, do we not see girls being forced to submit to the ways of society through peer pressure?  The ways might be different but they lead to the same end...and the girls who wish to stay true to their commitment are tarred and feathered...hung out to dry...by their friends and peers every day.  To me, it is even worse, as St. Lucy saw the end to her torture quickly...girls today must suffer for years with little support from our culture...praying that they will not succumb to the ways of this world.

I will get off my soap box but take some time to pray for our daughters today...it is such a hard life as a teenager and into adulthood.  St. Lucy, we ask that you look down on our daughters and beg for extra graces to be showered down upon them from God in Heaven.  Amen!

Traditionally, the youngest daughter would wake up early in order to make a special breakfast (we always made Lucia Buns).  Then dressed in a St. Lucy costume, she would awaken the others in the house with the words, "Make way for the Lord!"   Unfortunately, our little sweetie is still a little too young to make breakfast and holler out any understandable words.  Amanda, of course, is far away in NY...We tried it with the boys last year, but it is just not the same...LOL!  So, I woke up and made a nice breakfast waking the boys with the words of St. Lucy.  It was still not the same and all in the house looking forward to the day when we can truly enjoy this feast day tradition.  Get ready, Zaira!  I tried to find a picture of Amanda from year's past to show you the simple costume worn on this day in our house but I was not able to find one.

St. Lucy is one of the patron saints for those with eye problems due to the fact that her eyes were removed as one of her tortures.  We always say a special prayer for those who are blind (in sight and in spirit) because of my dear niece, Clare (born without the formation of one of her eyes).

We continue with our Bible devotions.  Today we read from Gospel of Matthew, to hear Jesus telling the crowd to be willing to open themselves to the prophecies and open their ears to the message of John the Baptist.  This passage is reinforcement of the message St. Lucy also sends us today.  May we all take notice and hear the warning to prepare for the coming of the Lord!

What I always find interesting about this passage is the straightforward message that Jesus gives the crowd.  Imagine...you have been waiting for the return of a special relative...you know that when that relative comes, he/she will be followed by an even more special gift.  Then the relative appears one day (maybe looking a little different but still your relative), and you ignore him/her because you are just not sure if it is really him/her.  THEN...the gift arrives and tells you...your relative has come in disguise...maybe you missed their arrival but that's OK because now I am here!  SURPRISE!!!  Would you ignore the gift?  Would you say...I think I will wait around to be sure of the signs?  Well, we do that every day that we reject the Word of God for our own desires.  I do it...you do it...we are no better than those of the crowd....let us not walk away from the message with a self-righteous attitude.

BUT...wait...it will all be OK because Jesus tells us that if we open our ears to hear the Good News, and we are willing to accept it...we will find what we are looking for...the gift will be ready for us!  Once again, we hear the message of Advent...the gift comes to us on Christmas day and all days we are ready to do His will.

The nativity scene continues to have all the needs of the Holy Family provided by the little hands in our family.  Edward brought a supply of food to the crib. We are to deprive ourselves of some food at mealtime or candy we would otherwise have as a treat.  We ask that "Jesus, be our strength and nourishment. Amen."

As we come to the conclusion of our school quarter, we have more time to enjoy the special blessings of Advent.  Today, I had Advent music playing in the background.  NO...that does not mean Christmas music...there are special songs that help us prepare for the coming of Christ.  You will not hear Christmas music in our house until December 25th!  We intentionally do not turn on the radio or pull out the Christmas music until then.  If you would like to learn more about these hymns and chants, look at St. John's Choir and this Advent Choral Music website.  I also have a more modern CD that I like that is not so much of the chant-style called Wait for Me.

The other bit of interest for us today was making a decision about "Christmas" parties.  This is always a hard one for us...everyone wants to have a party this time of year.  It seems the closer we get to Christmas day, the more parties we are invited to attend.  We have to decide what the right option is for each one...we base our final decision to attend on the purpose of the party.  Is the purpose to fellowship...allowing us an opportunity to talk about the real reason for the season...or it about getting something in a frenzy of secular icons.  Maybe that seems harsh to some, but to confuse the children with Santa and reindeer and winter wonderland fantasies has no appeal.

Tonight was one of those occasions to talk to the boys about why this party was OK compared to others we would politely decline.  Tonight the party was with our local beekeepers association.  I thought about who would be attending and how the event would most likely unfold, and I knew that it would be a very enjoyable evening of fellowship.  We chose to go to have the opportunity to share stories about our bees and ourselves....knowing there could possibly be an opportunity to share our traditions.

Sure enough a more family atmosphere was presented and we were able to sit around enjoying a few sweets and talk.  The boys had a great time listening to the veteran beekeepers talk about their hive experiences.  And, when those stories ended we settled into talk of the holidays.  An elderly woman asked if we were excited to watch Zaira open gifts for the first time.  I smiled and said Christmas was a little different in our house.  She asked what I meant and I told her about the joy we had in giving to others.  Before I knew it, most of the group was listening to how our family celebrates Christmas.  We were able to share with about 15-20 people in a short little talk.

And, wouldn't you know it we were then blessed with food and bee supplies from the group.  Each of the beekeepers gave each of the boys something to carry out as we were leaving!  So sweet and it helped the boys to see that we are often blessed in ways we least expect by sharing our faith with others.

We came home and learned about the King Hezekiah's trust in the Lord that would save his people from their enemies.  His faithfulness also gave him blessings that were unexpected when his enemies were defeated in the quiet of the night leaving their tents empty! (2 Kings 18-19)

We also read from Jesus of Nazareth about the account from Luke of the census that would lead Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem.  It was another evening of deep historical content about Caesar Augustus.  The parallels between Augustus and Jesus were very interesting but probably will need more focus of thought to fully understand.  I think the main point tonight was that Jesus exists within an historical context.  Also, Augustus also considered himself a savior for the people as he unified the known world under his leadership.  However, as we know, it is not about temporal needs but our spiritual needs that the true Savior comes to us.  Finally, it is good to understand that God's timing is better than we could imagine, as He knew that through the unification of the 'world' under Roman rule would allow an easier dispersal of the Good News to all mankind.

Our Lady of Guadalupe

Our Lady of Guadalupe is one of those feast days that we really try to enjoy each year.  his apparition is well documented and full of mystery and miracles from the beginning of Our Lady's appearance to Juan Diego to the present day...the obvious supernatural event is too important to not celebrate.

Here is a brief account of the story...if you do not know it...I encourage you to read the full account:

In 1531, Mary appeared to Juan Diego near Mexico City.  She asked him to send a message to the bishop requesting a shrine be built at the location of the vision.  The bishop asked for a sign to be given to ensure it was a truth apparition.  The Virgin would not only provide one but three signs -- Castilian roses in the middle of winter, miraculous cure for Juan's uncle of a deadly illness, and especially of her beautiful image on Juan's mantle.  These signs would not only convince the bishop  to build the shrine but also convince the people to seek conversion to Christianity  Within a short time, six million Native Mexicans had themselves baptized as Christians.

The story really does not end at this point...there have been so many miracles documented at the shrine surrounding the incorruptible tilma that still shows her image.  Many have tried over the years to destroy his miraculous image in hopes to destroy the faith of the people.  In spite of these attempts, the tilma continues to be a sign of hope for all who see it or know its story.

For our own times, we can learn from this event as well.  The first lesson is that God has chosen Mary to lead us to Jesus.  God wants us to seek out Mary in order to follow her life of humility and  obedience to His will.  Through Mary, we are able to see the greatest gift, her Son...the Son of God...Jesus.

The second lesson is the way in which Mary appeared to Juan Diego and on his tilma.  Mary did not appear to Juan Diego as a European Madonna but as a beautiful Aztec princess speaking to him in his own Aztec language. If we want to help someone appreciate the gospel we bring, we must earn to work within their culture. By understanding them, we can help them to understand and know Christ. Our Lady of Guadalupe is patron of the Americas.


Today Brendan brought fresh, clean water to the crib. This will help us to avoid every untruthful word and every deceitful act. "Dearest Mary, obtain for us true contrition for our sins through your son, Jesus.  Amen."

We are beginning to feel renewed energy to complete our lessons.  I just hope we can make it until Friday.  We did make it through the second day of shopping as well....getting around the grocery store with everyone can wear a person out....but it is all worth it when we are told that it is nice to see our family in the store.  We have one checker who goes out of her way to check us out if she is able.  Today she was so upset because she was working the 'less that 15 items' register, but she still managed to come over and talk to the boys and Zaira.  So sweet!

Thankfully, the temperature was cool enough for us to leave our cold items in the car and we went to Mass to celebrate the feast day.  Father gave a great homily about the importance of Our Lady of Guadalupe not just for Mexico, but all the Americas.  The Scripture readings were from Revelation, describing the woman clothed with the sun, moon, and stars (Rev 11-12).  This image of Mary crushing the serpent's head is the answer to the promise God gave Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden.

We begin to see in the Jesse Tree ornaments the references to light, which foreshadow the true light that guides us in Jesus.  We read from 1 Kings 18:36-39, in which Elijah builds an altar to allow the Lord to consecrate it by fire...showing the people the true light of God.  Only Jesus can guide through the darkness of this world.

We went to bed again tonight to the interesting discussion of Jesus of Nazareth...we read about the idea that some think of the Virgin birth as legend reminiscent of Egyptian/Greek legends.  This was a pretty technical part of the book.  I am sure it was WAY over the understanding of the boys...and maybe a little over mine as well.  I think the main idea we can walk away with is that Jesus really was born of a virgin and that the story was likely placed in the narrative as a better understanding of the mystery of Jesus' origin.  I think that as we try to explain away the concept of Jesus as God some seek out reasons for the Bible stories.  I just leave to be a mystery that I do not need to fully understand to know that God became man.

I also wanted to mention one tradition that we have in our house...it comes to mind as we are now beginning to receive letters and cards in the mail.  A friend of mine ask me if I mind getting a card from her...she knows our method of celebrating the different seasons.  I laughed...Christmas cards are one of the ways we fill our Advent season...we love getting news and well wishes from our family and friends.  Each card sent is treasured (and saved if it has a religious theme) and reminds us how blessed we are to have so many loved ones in our lives.  We take the cards and set them out on display...the cards also serve as a reminder to say a little prayer for whomever it is from.  Each night we look at the cards at family prayer time and ask God to bless them.

So, today I wanted the family and friends who have sent cards recently to know that we especially pray for you during the Advent season...To the Puntch family who are such an important part of our lives...for our new bishop who will continue to guide us spiritually in such a big way...and for Rebekah and her growing family...such a blessing to have a newborn so close to Christmas!

Well...Another tiring but fulfilling day of Advent.  The best part is the feeling of anticipation that is building as we near the end of this week.  We can definitely feel the rise of excitement in the air.

Another Inspiring Pope

The saints who were called to be early leaders of the Church are calling out to us!  A second day in a row with a pope feast day!  It really is interesting to hear about this early history.  Today we celebrate the great St. Damasus.  He was pope in the 4th century.  He truly loved the Scriptures and wanted everyone to have a better understanding of the Word.  He commissioned another great holy man, Jerome, to translate the entire Bible into the Latin language.  All learned men studied in Latin at the time and it was a much needed translation in order to spread the message of Good News!  It was a daunting feat for an entire committee of men...much less one man...to gather all 72 books of Scripture into one volume.  I think this is a wonderful celebration for Advent as we should be looking for our own ways to spread the Good News!

As pope, St. Damasus worked hard to bring structure and unity to the faithful.  He defended the rights of the Holy See and encouraged the practice of singing the Psalms in the churches both day and night.  This would also include ending the Psalms with the Glory Be.  He wanted to venerate the saints and show respect to all Christian dead by beautifying their places of burial.  He was busy during his pontificate of 18 years (actually a long time for a pope back then!)!

We read from Matthew about the parable of the Lost Sheep.  As I read this parable, I looked out at the boys (who are getting used to imagining themselves in these passages) and thought..."What would I do if one of these little ones was lost?"  Of course, I would stop everything and search for them!  I would first gather up the ones at home in a safe place and begin my search.  I would not think twice about looking until he was found!

I asked the boys what they thought about the passage.  Wouldn't it be hard to go out and be weary from the search?  How would you feel about going in places that you could not imagine going?  Would you take the time to go deep into the briers and the mud holes or into dark caves where wild animals might be located?  Just as the shepherd would do these things without question, Jesus does the same by entering into the worst of sinful locations to pluck us from our sins.  Why does he do this?  It is made clear in verse 14...Because we are a part of His flock (His children through baptism) and he could not imagine losing us to the wild animals (sin and temptation) to perish.

This theme of the shepherd was also found in our Jesse Tree ornament.  We also continued the story of referenced in 1 Samuel.  We learn of Samuel seeking to find the person God wanted anointed.  Of all of Jesse's sons, God chose the youngest...David....the one who was sent out in the fields to care for the sheep.  He chose David over all the strong looking brothers...because God does not look at our outward traits but from within to find our strengths!

Today baby Zaira brought the fuel to keep the crib of Jesus warm. We are asked to "Give up our own will; obey our superiors cheerfully and promptly.  Jesus, let us do Your will in all things. Amen."

We had a productive day of school...Edward is convinced that long division is evil...LOL!...we will be glad for a break from that for a few weeks.  The older two are going to be ready to take their quarter tests tomorrow.

We had a chance to do a fun art class to break up the burden of testing!  We continue to enjoy the art class and it is a great motivation to get school work completed.  Today we drew pictures of Australian animals. We had a few computer glitches so we might try to go back on later this week to draw some additional animals.

We even got into town today to shop for food!  I did not think we would make it.  Not only did we do this first round of shopping (tomorrow we will complete the task) but we were blessed with two opportunities to bless others.  One of our friends was in need of a sombrero and we had one stuck in the back of our closet.  We gladly took it to her for a surprise.  Also, right before leaving, our crisis pregnancy center sent out a list of office supplies needed...we looked through the list and bought some of these supplies to take to the center.  The boys were happy to be a part of both 'gifting' opportunities.

We were supposed to come home and have a Roman meal to remember our saintly pope we learned about today.  However, I was so tired after our shopping adventure, I decided hamburgers were a better choice (sometimes it is OK to take the easy way, right?).  There was a special deal after 5pm at a drive-thru in town and we were just a little early so we needed something to do.

I was so glad for the opportunity to stop by the local Planned Parenthood to say a Rosary with the older boys (the younger ones had fallen asleep...how nice!).  I love it when things work out for a better good...we happened to be at the clinic to pray right as the workers were leaving for the day.  It was good for the boys and I to take the time to pray for each worker individually as they left the gated area.  As the gate closed for the evening, we prayed that one day it would close for god and the evil of abortion would end.  Then we picked up our dinner and headed home to enjoy a quiet evening.

In our reading of Jesus of Nazareth, we looked back at the prophecy of Isaiah (7:14).  Looking at this message from the prophet as a historical message, we need to determine if it really is in reference to the birth of Jesus.  Why would Isaiah give this message to King Ahaz over 700 years before the birth of the Messiah?  Looking at the passage, it almost seems out of place.  Isaiah is warning the king to not go into an allegiance with a pagan country and to trust in God to give them the protection they need.  Isaiah is telling King Ahaz to have faith!

Imagine being told that to go into an allegiance with a pagan country can be avoided by waiting for a child to be born of a virgin...a child to be named Emmanuel!  I am surprised the king did not throw the prophet out of his sight!  It just does not seem to fit.  Furthermore, it does not come true (looking historically) as a message designed for the king...there was no child born in his time to remedy their situation.  In fact, the king DID go into allegiance with the pagan country and suffered because of his lack of faith in God's protection.


The Gospel of Matthew states that that promise would only be fulfilled in the birth of Jesus (Emmanuel...God is with us)...born of a virgin (Mary).  So, why was King Ahaz given this message?  To show the glory of God and remind the Chosen People that God had not forgotten His promise.  A timeless message that could only be answered in God's timing for those who continued to trust in God's plan.

And, that is how I sent the boys to bed tonight!  To ponder the amazing plan of God.

Sweet Brendan....we have been so into the reflections for Advent that our evening prayers have shifted from our norm.  He came to me this evening and said, "Can't we say a Glory Be?"  So he and I had a quiet little prayer time together and recited the best prayer to glorify God...now and forever!

Pope Melchiades?

The early popes are not often remembered by name...I know I have never heard of Pope Melchiades...Have you?  And yet...this man (considered a saint) was a very important part of our faith history.  He is considered a transitional pope and a martyr (not because he died for the faith but because he was persecuted and persevered for the faith during a time of martyrdom).  He began his episcopacy under the persecution of Diocletian.  However, he would lead the Christians into an era of peace, being the first pope who could openly celebrate Easter without fear of physical martyrdom.

So this made me think...why don't we know more about these early popes?  It seems we skip from Peter to Gregory the Great with little thought to the men who led our early church through persecutions.  I think we will take some of our religion time over the next few weeks to learn more about these early leaders of the faith.

The boys and I were back to STARTING our day with our Bible devotion.  We read from Luke about the paralytic man whose friends lowered him from a hole in the roof in order to be healed (5: 17-26).  I read the passage and then asked the boys to imagine they were in the story as I read it a second time.  Then I asked which character they imagined being...they all gave different answers.  I also asked what they thought about Jesus forgiving the paralytic man of his sins.  Sean said..."He did not just forgive the paralytic!"

What?!  We went back and read the passage again.  Sure enough..."When Jesus saw their faith, he said, 'As for you, your sins are forgiven.' ...in verse 20.  Most of the time the focus ins on what Jesus said but 'you' can be a singular or plural pronoun.  The only way to know for sure if 'you' is singular or plural is to look back in the passage for the antecedent, which would be 'the men.'  Is it possible that Jesus forgave the sins of ALL the men who came to see Him that day?  Well, as we know...anything is possible with God.

It makes me think about the times when we go out of our way to bring a friend to church.  Maybe someone who has been away from God for a long time and we want them to renew their commitment to Christ.  When we lead them back to the faith, we gain from that experience as well.   In helping others, we help ourselves...not our physical needs but our spiritual needs are met.  I have often felt that when I help guide someone else to spiritual healing, I have the desire to be healed spiritually as well.  For me that means going to confession...it is like I have a greater desire to be forgiven through the sacrament.

After that great devotion, blankets were added to the nativity scene...the warmth needed on a cold night with gentle care...reminds us to "avoid harsh and angry words; be kind and gentle to all. Jesus, help us to be meek and humble like You. Amen."

The Jesse Tree now as a symbol to reflect the story of Samuel being called by God (1 Sam 3).  The last words of this chapter are so profound...Samuel grows up and "God revealed himself to Samuel through his word."  He would be one of the greatest prophets for the Lord...attesting to God's promise to bring the Messiah.  We can certainly learn from the humble call of Samuel to this role as prophet. When God called...he answered without question.

We had a quiet day of school today...we worked hard but as with any big school break...the light of the end of the tunnel looks so far away...will we make it to Friday...the boys are already so stir crazy!!!  We had a photography class for 4H learning about taking still life photos.  Then they went to bed early tonight...and we did not even get to nightly reading of Jesus of Nazareth.  We will try to read a little extra tomorrow.

Oh...almost forgot our pumpkin experiment...day 3!  IT is looking pretty gross...I hope this ends soon!  Come on bugs and rain!

2nd Week of Advent Begins

I love Sundays, especially in Advent...it marks another step on our journey to understanding the coming of Jesus.  This week the message calls us to listen to the prophets as they tell us: "Make way for the Lord!"

The morning devotionals were delayed again this morning but not because we were rushing through school...but instead rushing to go to church for religious education.  Not only did the boys need to be there on time, but I would be teaching the class!  My friend and I swap off weeks to teach the children (there are only 5 who attend regularly so we have a group class) and it was my turn.  My friend asked that I teach on the second goal set by our bishop.  At the time when she asked, I agreed without thought.  A few days ago, I actually looked to see what I was to teach:

"Present an understanding of the human need for a personal relationship with Jesus  Christ based on revelation and faith."

I was at a loss...not because I did not know what to say to the class...but how to decide what part to say and how to word it in a way that would help them grow!  After all, this was so...well...PERSONAL!!!  I thought about it throughout the week and finally last night decided I needed to do something...so I prayed!  Ha!  What a thought, right?  And it came to me as I was writing my blog post...I had it there the entire time!  The Jesse Tree devotion.

I would teach the group about the importance of a personal relationship with Jesus by teaching them about the Salvation History found in the devotion.  I would not only show them a wonderful Advent devotion (one of my favorite things to do this time of year is share Advent customs, as you know by now), teach about salvation history, and stay on task with the goal set for me.  I would just get the group 'caught up' with the ornaments from the first week by telling the stories while they colored their ornaments.

Also, I would explain how we also have a salvation history to tell much like the stories we read in the Old Testament.  The Creation story is seen in our own creation at conception...God has His hand in creation still today!  We also see how, just as Adam and Eve, we fall to sin at some point in our lives.  However, God has promised us salvation through His son, Jesus Christ.  All of the steps along the branches of the Jesse Tree all point in the same direction...when God makes a promise, He keeps it...and that has not change today...we can be assured of salvation when we accept Jesus into our lives!  It is a personal choice and I pray that we each find that path to salvation....that we listen to that call to "make way for the Lord!"

In Mass, we find the Good News heard in all the readings.  First in the Old Testament book of Baruch, the message is one of rejoicing..."Look to the East...rejoice in the splendor...God will lead Israel with mercy and justice" (5:1-9). The theme of rejoicing continued in Psalm 126, " The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy."  Paul sends a perfect 'Advent' prayer that can be spoken across the generations in his letter to the Philippians..."that your love may increase ever more and more in knowledge and every kind of perception, to discern what is of value, so that you may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ..." (1:4-11).  This led to the Gospel reading clearly state that John the Baptist came to spread the Good News that the Messiah was coming soon!  "John went throughout the whole region of the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins...A voice of one crying out in the desert:  'Prepare the way of the Lord,
make straight his paths...and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.' (Luke 3:1-6)."

Our deacon took all of these messages and combined them so beautifully.  He shared that it is through our witness that God is able to share love.  We need to be open to God's actions through us to help others.  We, like John the Baptist, can be the 'voice of one crying in the desert' telling others to 'prepare the way of the Lord."  In today's world, this prophetic message is needed.

When we returned home, we headed straight out to our apiary to bless our bees.  I am so glad we were able to do this!  Our beekeeper cat (I am going to write a children's story about him one day!) joined us as we walked from hive to hive praying for the fruitfulness of our bees.  It was a special moment in our day that we were all thankful to enjoy.

We came in from the beehives to our Bible devotions.  Henry added the swaddling clothes to the scene.  Just as swaddling clothes were wrapped around the Christ child, we should fold our hands in prayer to secure our minds and place the focus of our prayers on Jesus.  "Jesus let me love you more and more! Amen."

Later in the evening, we reflected on Gospel message once again.  John the Baptist "broke into the complacency to proclaim that the wait was over."  The word 'complacency' is such a strange word to the boys, so we look it up to have a better understanding..."self-satisfaction especially when accompanied by unawareness of actual dangers or deficiencies."  Doesn't that speak volumes of our own state of being?  We go through life thinking we have enough...STUFF...and in reality our needs cannot be met without our Savior!  Our deficiencies are shown to us and we realize that the only way to overcome them is by allowing Jesus into our lives.

The Jesse Tree ornaments for today continued to show how God was with the Israelites to guide and protect...we added the stories of the victories at Jericho and Gideon to our salvation history.  The boys immediately remembered the Veggie Tale versions of these stories.  Even though I think  the Bible stories are so much better, at least they remember the general idea of what is meant.  They will get the real stories eventually.

We ended the day with the reading from Jesus of Nazareth.  Tonight we read about Joseph...imagine Joseph's surprise when Mary tells him about the coming of Jesus...he could not believe that Mary would break their betrothal vows...he would need to end their marriage before it began...yet he was a 'just' man.  In the book, we are told that this is the connection between the Old Testament covenant and the New Testament covenant.  To be called 'just' is equivalent to our modern day word 'believer.'  To be just meant you had a commitment to follow the word of God (the Law).  Just as we, as believers, look to the living Word of God...Joseph must trust God's will based on what he knows.  Joseph had to make a decision...this was beyond his own life with Mary...this was about his life with God.  Did he trust that God's promise of a Messiah could be possible?  Did he trust that this promise could happen in his life time?

We also must ask ourselves...Do we trust God's will?  Do we trust that God has something better planned for us in His promises?  Joseph shows that he has courageous faith...are we willing to show this same courageous faith?

A great thought to fall asleep thinking about and challenging ourselves for the remainder of Advent!

Immaculate Mary

Our 'speed schooling' back fired on us yesterday and we had to have school on Saturday.  It was not too bad but the boys were glad when the school day finally came to an end.  There is just something about doing school on the weekend that brings a gloomy feeling to the day.  The worst part was that in the rush to get it all done (and the extended period it took us to finish!) we did not even start our Bible devotion until the evening!  Not the way we had hoped to be doing things AND maybe if we had done the Bible readings earlier in the day, we would have had a better school day.  Oh my...the hard lessons we learn!  However, we can also see the light at the end of the tunnel, as next week we will be taking quarter tests and then be able to enjoy our month off from school!

We did manage to do one important school project that was long overdue!  We rid our home of the giant pumpkin we bought back in the beginning of October.  Yeah..I know...pretty embarrassing   But it made a really good step stool for Brendan to help us at our puzzle counter!  And it really was only a problem this last week when we noticed the small leak on the floor.  So, we had the brilliant idea of making it a science experiment by setting it out in our wooded area near the house.  We will watch it decay on a daily basis...pictures of course will be kept to document the process.  So...fair warning if you get squeamish at the sight of such things...but it should not take long from what we saw of it today!  LOL!

The way I look at it, we can tie this into the Advent season.  Think of it as a closer look at how sin left unchecked rots away at our soul!

So, on to more Advent type thoughts!...I promised a better explanation of Mary's title of Immaculate Conception.  First, let me say that it might seem confusing to be able to go to Mass to celebrate this feast the night before, but basing the idea on the Jewish festival time frame, we follow the idea that the feast begins at sundown and ends at sundown.  Therefore, the feast begins the night before the feast day at sundown and ends at sundown of the day of the feast.

Normally, we would probably have not gone to Mass twice in one day, but considering the need to show unity with our parish church, we felt like we should celebrate with them.  It was a true blessing to have a nice meal with our church family...no regrets for the rush it caused us last night.  In the end we were able to settle into the moment and enjoy the feast!

The feast did continue for the family throughout today (in spite of our school day).  We spoke about the Annunciation as the angel came to Mary to ask her to be the Mother of God.  This is a confusing part to fully understanding this doctrine.  Why speak of the conception of Jesus (the actual feast day of which is March 25th) if we are supposed to be celebrating the conception of Mary?  However, it is in the greeting of the angel that we are given our first clue that Mary is not your ordinary maiden.

The angel Gabriel greets her, "Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you."  The angel is announcing the salvation promise to Mary because she has been prepared by God to be the first to receive this gift of salvation.  This timeless treasure, that God had promised from the time of the fall of man, is given to Mary so she can bear the Son of God in her womb.  Now this might seem like a HUGE leap of interpretation of this passage.  However, if we stop and think about why this is possible......we realize that God becoming man as a infant took place through the ability for Mary to be obedient and say "YES!" so we might be saved from the disobedience of Eve who said "NO!" to God.

For Mary to hold Jesus in her womb, she needed to be free of all sin as nothing unclean could be in the presence of the Lord...imagine having God Incarnate within your WOMB!  Surely, God would feel the same about this close proximity within and want a clean (FULL of GRACE!) place to reside on earth until His birth!

Throughout the history of Christianity, the theologians have discussed this doctrine.  In 1854, Pope Pius IX declared this an accepted dogma (incontrovertible doctrine) of the Church.  He declared on December 8th that Mary from "the first instant of her conception, by a singular privilege and grace granted by God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race, was preserved exempt from all stain of original sin."  We in turn celebrate this feast in honor of this doctrine and to lay witness to the great gift of salvation presented to her as Mother of God....the joy of being the first recipient of this saving grace!  And in turn, we remember our hope of salvation in our own lives and into eternity through this same gift!

We were able to reflect on this gift as we continued our nativity scene devotions this afternoon.  Edward added soft straw to the hay as a reminder that we should perform little acts of mortification, such as bearing a burden without complaint.  Our prayer..."Dear Jesus, Who suffered so much for us, let us suffer for love of you. Amen"  Such a small offering to be one with Christ in his burden of salvation.

We could see this also in our first Jesse Tree ornaments, as we placed a lamb on the tree.  We read from Exodus 12:11 and heard how God preserved the Israelites from the angel of death by commanding that they slaughter a lamb and smear blood on the door post on the first Passover.  We are also reminded of the lamb being sacrificed for our own preservation.  In the effort to guide the Israelites, God presents the Ten Commandments to Moses on Mt. Sinai in Exodus 20:22-23.  This was represented on our second ornament with a stone tablet.

In Jesus of Nazareth, we read about Mary's Fiat as well...how this reaction was a moment that would change her life forever...when we look back at our moments in which we are changed we have a small glimmer of understanding of what it was like for Mary throughout her time as Mother of God on earth.  There was no looking back and choosing a different path...the angel departs with the words to her...Do not be afraid! and she is left to carry out the decision....to face Joseph...her parents...the world as the Mother of God and all the consequences of that decision.  Also to face the pain and suffering of watching her only son ridiculed...suffer and die.  We are also left to our decisions in life to face the consequences, and yet, God is with us when we do His will...just as God was with Mary.

We found all of these devotions reflecting on the Annunciation helpful, but we had a very hands-on opportunity tonight as well.  We are blessed with a community-wide presentation of life in Bethlehem.  The normal location for the rodeo in town was transformed into Old Town Bethlehem for the night!  We were able to walk through the streets and witness a wedding feast, shopping center with live fish, spices, music, sweets, grains and more...as well as farm animals, temple school, an inn to full to accept visitors and shepherds camped out on the outskirts of town...not to be outdone, the Roman soldiers marched through the streets gathering up those who had not paid their taxes or were just be annoying.  As we walked the streets we heard of the news that a special child had been born in a stable and three wise men were trying to find him.  There is so much more to take in and can only be truly understood if you are present.  We go each year around this time and are so blessed by the experience.

As you might be guessing, we did not get out to bless our beehives and it will just have to wait until tomorrow!  I am a little disappointed but learning to try to let it go.  I suppose if it does not happen tomorrow, it was not meant to be and we will try again next year.