Dec. 18 Week devotions

Dec. 18-We had a choice of a psalm today or Mary’s great hymn of justice, in Latin, the Magnificat. From Christmas cards, we usually picture a sweet adoring mother. The Mary of the Magnificat is a firebrand. We hear a lot about keeping Christ in Christmas, Mary here wants to keep justice in Christmas. where do you see things as upside down at this time of year? How would it appear if the situations were suddenly reversed?

Monday-Many of us recall the phrase no room for them in the inn in Lk. 2:7. It is the same word we translate as guest room, for the Last Supper in Lk. 22:11. Jesus’s life was framed by seeking shelter in guest rooms. He was even buried in a borrowed grave. Jesus continues to seek a place to dwell within each one of us and in our congregations and communites. How welcoming are we to the presence of Christ? Inside, are we willing to make room for christ in the packed inns of our own selves?

Tuesday-Maybe some of you haven’t brought all your present yet. Maybe some of you are still doing menu planning. This is a generous time of year. I wish to make a brief plea for a form of frugality. please consider buying one less thing or saving some money on some items and give the money to the poor or to an organization that does work near and dear to your values. I get annoyed, too, at the constant drumbeat of charities looking for help at this time of year. Scrooge rejected their entreaties too. His Christmas miracle was in discovering generosity again.

Wednesday-We maintain continuing bonds with our loved ones, even when they have passed away. Perhaps you can compose a special toast to them. Maybe you could gather stories by or about them and place them in a stocking. Maybe you could even set out a place for them. You may find that admitting that you miss them drains some of the pain away more readily than repress all of the feelings in the name of holiday cheer. May you enjoy the communion of saints as you know that love bursts even the boundaries of death.

Thursday- I’m learning more about our blue hymnbook as time goes on. some of its carols are new to me.We sang #61, Twas in the Moon, in choir but it wasn’t in our hymnbook. The french missionary wanted the Native Americans to relate to the story, so the birth is in a rude lodging of twigs, and the baby is wrapped in rabbit skins. If you were retelling the story for 2011, what details would you make to conform to the present day?

Friday-We sing songs of peace on earth. how I crave that. the news is drenched in blood. Christmas peace get driven out of too many hearts out of anxiety, expectations, and sheer cussedness that we are determined to make as a stocking stuffer every single year. Perhaps if we are less alert for slights and more alert ot a chance at calm or reconciling we coudl come closer to the peace we crave.

Christmas Eve-I always picture this night as quiet, probably because of Silent Night. maybe it’s because I would walk through quiet streets on the way to Midnight mass. Maybe we can turn the carols off for a while, and hear the tune of our inner being. then we can hear the echo of that angelic chorus of long ago. What song do you long to hear as you practice some quiet time?