A King for All

“See, darkness covers the earth,
and thick clouds cover the peoples;
but upon you the LORD shines,
and over you appears his glory.”

Isaiah 60:2

On the feast of the Epiphany the Church celebrates the revelation of God to all the peoples. The three Magi or the “Wise Men” or the “Kings” followed a star they saw in the sky and traveled from the East to Bethlehem to see and meet the king to whom that star pointed. The Magi saw a sign, they discerned, and they followed. What a great act of humility on their part. Learned men with great respect and probably royalty too, saw a star, studied, and understood that something greater was happening, something that moved them to leave the comforts of their own countries, homes, and palaces to traverse through dangerous and uncertain terrain to meet not a king known already, a king whose reputation preceded himself, but rather a newborn king. A baby! They came all this way to see a helpless, vulnerable baby whose throne was a manger, the place where animals fed, and whose palace was a cave, a dirty, cold stable, and when they arrived, they neither complained nor judged, but rather they laid prostrate on the cold, dirty ground before this baby because they knew that He was the newborn king, of not only the Jews, but also for them, Gentiles. They knew that who was before them was the newborn King for all.

The pilgrimage of the Magi helped fulfill the prophecy that the Messiah will be worshipped by kings and also represented all Gentiles. The Magi approached Herod and asked where the “newborn king of the Jews” is to be found, they were told Bethlehem. When the Magi arrived, they realized that this newborn King was not just for Jews, but for Gentiles too, so they knelt, prostrated, and worshipped. At the beginning of their journey, they went to the local king, Herod and heeded his call to “go and search diligently for the child.” But after meeting the newborn King, it was not Herod’s word that they heeded (to bring him word on where Jesus was), but rather the call of the messenger of the newborn King, the true King, who in a dream told them to not return to Herod but rather leave another way. And so they did. It is Jesus’ authority now that bears weight. When we have come to encounter Jesus and His humble majesty and profound love and boundless mercy, our lives will never be the same again. We ought to drown out the voices of “other kings” and live our lives differently, and do so like the Magi, to journey by a different way, one led by the star of the newborn King and His Cross.

So, brothers and sisters, this journey of faith led the Magi to the One true God, and in response they worshipped and they left as pilgrims who have seen the Lord, and now His light shines upon them, and they have no need for the star to guide their way for the light of the Lord in their hearts now leads them. The clouds of hatred and despair has darkened our world, but His light still shines. No matter how much the Enemy may try to darken this world with the clouds of violence, selfishness, and death, if we have encountered the Lord, there is a light within us that can never be extinguished. When we come together as one, our light becomes one and can shine through the dark clouds, lighting the path for those who have yet come to know the Lord, so that they may come to encounter this newborn King and know and experience His love, He who was born for us all.

We Have A Mother

“When the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son,  
born of a woman, born under the law,  
to ransom those under the law,  
so that we might receive adoption as sons.”

Galatians 4:4-5

On the first day of the new year, the Church gives us a day of great festive rejoicing, the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God. Although the title is about Mary, every Marian feast day really points to Christ. In proclaiming that Mary is the Mother of God, the Church is reminding us of the divinity of Christ, that He is both fully man and fully God, that Jesus is One with the Father and the Holy Spirit, One God. And, as such, since Jesus is God, then His mother, Mary is indeed the Mother of God, the Θεοτόκος, Theotokos, the “God-bearer.”

In the Gospel passage for this celebration, we hear that “Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart” (Luke 2:19). “These things” are what the shepherds shared with Mary, the Good News that the angels proclaimed to them, that a Messiah and Savior has been born, a Savior for them too, and with Him comes peace. Mary shows us the power of saying “yes” to God and the fruits of living it out in one’s life. God’s will is our lives may not always be easy, but it will always bring peace and joy. Mary’s “yes” at the Annunciation, when the Angel Gabriel came to her  to tell her that God has chosen her to be the mother of His Son, was a sign of trust that is rooted in a relationship of love. From that point on, Mary’s verbal “yes” is expressed by both active and passive ways. After saying “yes,” Mary traveled to see Elizabeth and then with Joseph journeyed to Bethlehem where Jesus was to be born. Then we see the passage that we hear today. While Mary gazes upon her newborn Son, shepherd comes to tell her of the great things told to them about her Son. She listens, reflects, and ponders. Mary acts (goes to Elizabeth and travels to Bethlehem) and then Mary listens. Soon, she will act again when Joseph brings Mary and Jesus and flees to Egypt. Thirty-three years later Mary will stand gazing upon her Son one again, but this time not down upon the manger but up upon the Cross.

At the foot of the Cross, Mary shows us what it means to be a disciple of her Son. If we are to truly follow Jesus, we must even to the Cross. It is not easy to endure or to witness, but it is an inevitable part of our journey. Only by going to the Cross will we be able to share in the glory of the Resurrection. Like Mary, we must listen, reflect, and ponder at the Cross. Listen to the Voice of God as He calls us by name and tugs at our hearts. Reflect on how far He has brought us and the moments of grace and Providence in our lives. Ponder the unmerited and undeserved love with which God has, continues to, and will love us. Then, when the time comes, we will have the strength, courage, and hope to continue our journey, even through the harsh storms that might face us along the way. We need not fear for Jesus, who is Emmanuel, is with us and He has given to us Mary, His Mother to be our Mother, who knows well the journey of discipleship with its trials, its graces, and its fruits. If we have Our Lord and Our Mother, then we truly need not be afraid.

May we in this new year learn to listen, reflect, and ponder, and with the grace of God, follow His Son unreservedly, even to the Cross, for heaven is our homeland and the glory of the Resurrection, our destiny.

“Home Alone” Through a Christian Lens

If I were to mention the movie “Home Alone,” I am sure you will think of a little boy who had the house all to himself and needed to navigate some unexpected situations. I’ve only watched the movie a handful of times in my life, but it’s always been simply a Christmas movie. However, recently, I read something online arguing that it really is a Christian movie, and some of the examples they give truly do support that claim. So, I watched the movie again, but this time through a Christian lens.

The post mentions — well, spoiler alert if you have not watched the movie before — that it is at the church where Kevin seems to have a longing for reunion and reconciliation. It also speaks of the elderly neighbor as a Christ-figure, which I thought was quite neat. In the earlier part of the movie, the elderly neighbor is seen at the store with a wounded hand, which the post compares it with the wound of Christ. This same figure is also at the church when Kevin comes in. He was listening to his granddaughter practice singing “O Holy Night” and upon seeing Kevin, approaches him saying, “Merry Christmas, may I sit down?” just as the Lord comes to us and always asking if He could enter into our hearts, never forcing Himself on us. Then the man says something that made me think of Christ, “You can say hello when you see me, you don’t have to be afraid.” Be not afraid. We know that the man later saves Kevin from the burglars. Be not afraid, I am with you, I have come to save you.  Old Man Marley might very well be a Christ-figure.

Another aspect of the movie that moved me was the mother and her desire to be with her son. After realizing she had left her son, Kevin, behind, Kate becomes frantic and feels like a horrible mother. Upon arriving in Paris she immediately goes to the pay phones and calls the local police department begging them to send someone to check on her son while asking the others to go through her phone book making calls. Then, she goes to the ticket counter and asks for a ticket back home only to be met with fully booked flights. She is relentless and refuses to give up. She agrees to wait at the airport for a standby seat. The rest of the family goes a relative’s home in Paris. Kate finally persuades an elderly couple to give her their tickets in return for money, airline tickets, and even the jewelry on her that the elderly woman seems to have liked. When she arrives in Scranton she is again met with no available connecting flights to final destination. Luckily a musical group offers her a seat in the truck they will be renting to drive home. When she arrives she runs into the home and screams for her son. He comes down and they embrace.

The mother is like the Good Shepherd, who is willing to leave behind the 99 in search of the one lost sheep at all costs. She stayed behind while the others went to rest. She paid a hefty ransom of monetary and material gifts, however much it cost. Even when she faced challenges, she kept going and never gave up, just as Christ never gave up when the Pharisees challenged Him or when He fell under the weight of the heavy cross on the way to Calvary because what moved them both was love, love for a child. The mother is also like the father in the Parable of the Prodigal Son who longs to see his son, and when he caught sight of him, he ran to him and embraced him. The mother ran to her son and hugged him, forgiving for him for how he may have misbehaved that got him sent in the attic in the first place, and asking forgiveness for leaving him behind. All was forgiven in that embrace.

A final detail that caught my eye was the timeline. If I counted correctly, it seems like Christmas Day was on the third day, the day the family was reunited, echoing the Resurrection, a new beginning, a new life, a new opportunity to live again as a family. Yes, “Home Alone” may not be found explicitly in the “Religious” section of the movie store, but it does ring some Christian themes and motifs. So, I do agree with the post I read that argues “Home Alone” is a Christian movie. It may not be advertised as such, but just as our Lord taught in parables, perhaps this movie is similar, teaching us truths about God and about the Kingdom through a medium and approach we might relate to and understand more easily.

On the surface Kevin may have been home alone, but he wasn’t really alone or lonely. God was with him and He placed people in his life that would make him know of His love and to show him that he’s never alone. Little Kevin put it best when he told Marley, “If you turn on the lights, it’s no big deal.” Christ is Our Light and He was born into this world of darkness, dispelling it and telling us, “Take courage, it is I, do not be afraid. I am the light of the world and I have already conquered the world. I am with you always, even until the close of the age.”