Widen Your Circle
Summary of a Fr. Gerry Creedon homily from December 30, 2007
"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly." Colossians 3:16
God is not singular, He is Father, Son and Spirit. When God came among us, He did not come as an isolated individual. He came as Son of God, yet also son of Mary and Joseph. He was found in relationship. I am hoping that for all of us, the Christmas season offered the opportunity to renew the bonds of family.
I spent Christmas night with my sister Nora Mary, her husband Con, and their children. They immigrated to Toronto Canada around 1970. For many years they were childless. They adopted Fergus, and a year later Richella. Then they were surprised by two children who came biologically, Daniel and Aidan. This Fall, the last of their children finished college and now all four are employed and independent. That is a plateau of success and satisfaction.
Con had retired eighteen months ago from 40 years' teaching, most of them spent instructing emotionally disturbed teens. You would think he deserves a rest. Well he retired on a Tuesday, and went for serious cancer surgery on a Thursday.
Fergus was married in July and we all rejoiced that an aggressive cancer was kept at bay and that Con could participate in the wedding. Although his prognosis was bleak he has beaten the odds. Christmas was especially joy filled because he was gifted with a remission and has had a break from chemotherapy. We are praying that this miracle will continue for many a long day.
Con comes from a family of builders. He has never let a workman into his house to install a shower or build a wall. He does it himself. Chemo has affected his extremities. It is poignant to see him ask my sister to assist him in buttoning a shirt. It is in the interaction of family that we learn trust. Mutual dependency brings intimacy. Let us not wait for illness to teach us the value of mutual trust.
Our society puts a premium on independence to the point of isolation. Family members find it difficult to have time together. Each is pressured by their own vocations and avocations. I believe we need to be intentional about time together. It may be a good idea to identify a particular evening to sit down to eat, put candles or flowers on the table and shut off phones, TV and computers. Why not say Grace, adding words of thanks and petition? At least during Advent and Lent, let's share a reflection from the parish booklet or the weekly scripture, and consider its call. Let us follow with a half hour for dialogue on the areas of life and questions that often go unaddressed.
Pope Benedict issued a papal message for the New Year's World Day of Peace. He has entitled it: "The Human Family-Community of Peace". "A family lives in peace," he writes, "if all its members submit to a common standard. This is what prevents selfish individualism and brings individuals together, fostering their harmonious coexistence, and giving direction to their work. This principle, obvious as it is, also holds true for wider communities: from local and national communities to the international community itself."
We are challenged to widen the circle of the family to include all humanity. If we believe God is our Father, and that Jesus came among us as a brother, then all the people of the earth are destined to be our sisters and brothers. If we had this vision of faith, we would not tolerate the war and violence that tear apart the fabric of humanity. Nor would we live easily with discrimination, racism or the fear of the stranger.
We would image God, the mystery of interaction, Father, Son and Spirit. We would be a blended family. We would image Mary, Joseph and Jesus.
