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Sirach 3:2-6,12-14; Colossians 3:12-21; Luke 2:22-40

In the infancy narratives of the birth of Christ, Mary and Joseph are the key characters.  We hear about the shepherds and their response to the newborn king.  We hear about the foreign dignitaries who paid homage to the newborn king.  We hear also about a jealous local king name Herod who is threatened by the news of this newborn king.  We hear also about Elizabeth and Zechariah, the parents of John who would become the Baptist.  But of all these names, Mary and Joseph clearly are the key characters in the story of the incarnation, God becoming human.

Today the Church places them before us as the model of holiness by which we all are to live as families.  We listen to the ancient words of Sirach and the apostle Paul as they outline for us the virtues, or qualities, of holiness that each family should embody; qualities such as compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, fidelity, and forgiveness.  As we ponder these words we can see clearly how these virtues were lived in the Holy Family.  We also can use them as a sort of examination of conscience for our own family, celebrating the ways we live out these virtues and perhaps making some family New Years resolution to work on those qualities that need improvement.

We would be remiss, though, if on this day we did not look at the broader meaning of the word family.  By this I do not mean the various ways that family is attempting to be redefined by our modern world.  The reality of people’s lives and the choices they make have placed many people in non-traditional families.  People in such situations would benefit greatly by living these virtues.  Although many people find themselves in these situations it is an indisputable fact that children thrive the best, and grow to their greatest ability when they are raised in homes with a mother and father who likewise are striving to grow in holiness.  The model of the family that God created from the very beginning, is the model of holiness that best serves us personally and as a society.

Faith teaches us that the family is the model for Church, and the Church is the model for family.  In other words everything that is good and holy and nurturing in a Church should be present also in the family.  Likewise, everything that is good and holy and nurturing in a family, should also be present in a Church.  Sadly, we do fail on both accounts, but even so we are called to strive for this holiness.  This is the way in which the Church asks us to look more broadly at the meaning of the word “family.”

As a family of faith, we are responsible for, and accountable to one another.  This is the primary reason the Bismarck and Fargo Dioceses have entered into the Catholics Come Home initiative.  We are simply recognizing that so many of our brothers and sisters in faith are separated from our family and we need to take the steps to reunite with each other.  As people of faith we also need to practice these virtues of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, fidelity, and forgiveness.  In our personal call to holiness we also are responsible for helping others grow in their personal holiness.  This is where we are responsible for and accountable to one another.

As people of faith, though, we are also to be aware of the entire human family.  This is why we need to be aware of the political issues that affect people’s lives.  One such example is immigration reform.  Other than the native peoples who first lived in this land, America is a nation of immigrants.  Most of us are here today because our ancestors immigrated to this nation.  What is our attitude towards people who have come here from other nations?

If you think of the story of the Holy Family, the first years together they lived as refugees in a foreign land.  What did they find when they arrived in Egypt?  Were they welcomed with open arms by the people of Egypt?  Did they have a home, or were they relegated to a refugee camp?  Was Joseph able to practice his trade as a carpenter?  Or did they find themselves homeless, and penniless, dependant upon the generosity of strangers?  Were Joseph’s dreams more like nightmares, such as the dreams of fathers who find themselves in safe houses and shelters today?  Like them was he wondering where the next meal will come from, or whether or not there will be safe shelter for their children tomorrow?

As Christians in America we need to be concerned that there be immigration reform that is applied fairly and equitably so that every person who wants to come to this nation will have the opportunity to do so.  This requires reform, not just on a federal and state level.  This requires reform also of hearts that closed to people of foreign origin, as well as the reform of the hearts of those who would exploit immigrants as sources of cheap labor.  Here again, the virtues of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, fidelity, and forgiveness are the are necessary to fair and equitable immigration reform.

As Christians we must also acknowledge the poor and the homeless, the imprisoned and those who live in institutions as part of our human family.  We must acknowledge people of other nations, even those who would threaten our lives, as members of our human family.  We must strive for these virtues of holiness in our dealings with every person in this world.  It is only then that we can begin to hope for a lasting peace on earth.  It is only then that we will be holy, as Jesus, Mary and Joseph are holy.

And so today, as we celebrate this Eucharist, the Body and Blood of Christ who is with us, let us pray that the virtues of holiness will grow and overflow in our hearts.  Let us pray for holiness among all people until that day that we live in eternity as One Holy Family.

In our church, on the feast of Epiphany, we write initials over the doorway, what does this stand for or mean?

Epiphany, like Christmas, is celebrated in various ways by different nationalities and cultures. The customs and traditions surrounding these days give them a distinct feel and meaning.
In many Slavic traditions, Epiphany is observed by marking the year on the mantle of the entrance to a room or house. In the center are the initials of the traditional names of the three wise men: . The purpose is to ask God’s blessing on the home, marking it as though the wise men had come and found therein the Christ Child. It reminds us of the marking of the doorways in Egypt with the blood of the lamb so that the angel of death would pass over. God’s blessing comes to each home as a source of protection and grace.
In some places, Epiphany is celebrated much like a mini-Christmas. Gifts are exchanged in memory of the gifts of the wise men and special meals are prepared. In any event, the manifestation of Christ as the light of the world is a time to seek God’s blessing and rejoice in the gift of Jesus to us and to all the world.

©2009 Liturgical Publications Inc

Used with permission

The following letter from Ken Hackett, President of Catholic Relief Services, shares crucial information about the growing disaster in East Africa:

You are probably starting to hear about a humanitarian crisis unfolding in East Africa, mostly affecting Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia. Catholic Relief Services staff in the region report dreadful conditions. This just came in from a refugee camp in Kenya:
They’ve walked for days or weeks from Somalia, and their shoes show it. Dusty and worn, the sandals of a little boy dangle in his hand as he wails in the center of the camp. Nearby, his exhausted 22-year-old mother, Momina, rocks her sobbing baby. “We had sheep, goats and cattle—over a dozen,” she says. “They all died from the drought…. Food was running out. So, we left.”
These terrible conditions have sparked an exodus of refugees—mostly women and children—pouring into Kenya and Ethiopia in search of food.
East Africa’s worst drought in more than half a century is causing extreme hunger for more than 11 million people. Severe lack of rainfall has resulted in failed crops, critical shortages in food and water, and countless numbers of livestock dying from dehydration and starvation. Further compounding the crisis are drastic increases in food prices.
All this brings to mind sobering images from the Ethiopian famine of 1984. Who can forget the pictures of emaciated, listless children on TV? The full scope of such a humanitarian catastrophe was not fully realized until after so many had died.
This time is different. This time, we know what is likely to come as the disaster unfolds. I am asking you to help CRS with a generous gift so that we can quickly increase the scope of our efforts there to feed and provide water to as many needy people as possible. Help us prevent another tragedy.
Since 1960, CRS has provided water and agricultural programs in Kenya and Ethiopia, where current drought conditions are not as dire as in Somalia. Your previous gifts are already saving lives because those programs helped us dig deep wells that have helped lessen the drought’s effects. But this drought is so widespread that our existing efforts are not enough. We need your help.
I ask you to please give now and help prevent another disaster like the 1984 Ethiopian famine. Please help our brothers and sisters in East Africa, who so desperately need our help.

For more information or to help, go to http://www.crs.org.

As I write this article, I’m enjoying a lovely North Dakota summer day. The sun is shining, the blue sky is dappled with whispy white clouds, and the gold and orange lillies are blooming outside my office window. It’s a good time to think about the simple things to do to care for this beautiful world God has provided for us.
Here are a few suggestions from the World Wildlife Fund:
 

• Put on a sweater, or take one off. Since the pendulum in N.D. seems to swing between furnace and air conditioning and rarely stops in between, this can help conserve energy.   

• Walk the walk. Drive less, enjoy bicycling, or get to know your neighborhood better by strolling through it

• Go for seconds – guilt free! How many items can be reused instead of thrown away? Padded envelopes, the plastic cell-packs from our seedlings, a plastic water bottle…

• Watch your waste. Oil, paints, ink cartridges, batteries do have special disposal procedures.

• Paper or plastic? No thanks! Bring your own bags along for shopping. Many have commented that bringing cloth bags to the grocery store has now become a habit.

• Flip the switch. As we are enjoying the longer days of summer, we still need to remember to turn off unneeded lights (and other energy-using items).

• Plant a seed, or a tree, a shrub, a tomato plant. The benefits are many and varied.
   
• Return to sender. if you receive too much mail or too many catalogs, contact the companies and have your name removed from their lists. Less clutter at home is an added bonus.

The leaders of more than fifty Christian denominations and organizations, including the presidents of Catholic Relief Services and Catholic Charities, and Bishop Stephen E. Blaire, Chairman of the USCCB Committee on Domestic Justice, have signed the document printed below, calling for our political leaders to protect poor and vulnerable people, as they act to reduce the deficit.

A Circle of Protection: A Statement on Why We Need to Protect Programs for the Poor

In the face of historic deficits, the nation faces unavoidable choices about how to balance needs and resources and allocate burdens and sacrifices. These choices are economic, political — and moral.

As Christians, we believe the moral measure of the debate is how the most poor and vulnerable people fare. We look at every budget proposal from the bottom up — how it treats those Jesus called “the least of these” (Matthew 25:45). They do not have powerful lobbies, but they have the most compelling claim on our consciences and common resources. The Christian community has an obligation to help them be heard, to join with others to insist that programs that serve the most vulnerable in our nation and around the world are protected. We know from our experience serving hungry and homeless people that these programs meet basic human needs and protect the lives and dignity of the most vulnerable. We believe that God is calling us to pray, fast, give alms, and to speak out for justice.

As Christian leaders, we are committed to fiscal responsibility and shared sacrifice. We are also committed to resist budget cuts that undermine the lives, dignity, and rights of poor and vulnerable people. Therefore, we join with others to form a Circle of Protection around programs that meet the essential needs of hungry and poor people at home and abroad.
1. The nation needs to substantially reduce future deficits, but not at the expense of hungry and poor people.
2. Funding focused on reducing poverty should not be cut. It should be made as effective as possible, but not cut.
3. We urge our leaders to protect and improve poverty-focused development and humanitarian assistance to promote a better, safer world.
4. National leaders must review and consider tax revenues, military spending, and entitlements in the search for ways to share sacrifice and cut deficits.
5. A fundamental task is to create jobs and spur economic growth. Decent jobs at decent wages are the best path out of poverty, and restoring growth is a powerful way to reduce deficits.
6. The budget debate has a central moral dimension. Christians are asking how we protect “the least of these.” “What would Jesus cut?” “How do we share sacrifice?” As believers, we turn to God with prayer and fasting, to ask for guidance as our nation makes decisions about our priorities as a people.
7. As believers, we turn to God with prayer and fasting, to ask for guidance as our nation makes decisions about our priorities as a people. 

  8. God continues to shower our nation and the world with blessings. As Christians, we are rooted in the love of God in Jesus Christ. Our task is to share these blessings with love and justice and with a special priority for those who are poor.

Budgets are moral documents, and how we reduce future deficits are historic and defining moral choices. As Christian leaders, we urge Congress and the administration to give moral priority to programs that protect the life and dignity of poor and vulnerable people in these difficult times, our broken economy, and our wounded world. It is the vocation and obligation of the church to speak and act on behalf of those Jesus called “the least of these.” This is our calling, and we will strive to be faithful in carrying out this mission.

To learn more about the Circle of Protection and to sign your name to it, go to the Sojourners site- http://www.sojo.org/