December 14, 2007 - Issue #25
Local News | Opinion/Editorials | Letters to the Editor
Local News
A vital human touch
Hospital program touches tiniest lives
It may well be the cuddliest volunteer opportunity in the whole state of Alaska.
Made up of nearly 70 volunteers, it is called the "Kuddle Korps." Little training is required. You just have to love very small babies, and have patience to sit for a couple of hours in a rocking chair holding them quietly.
At Providence Hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in Anchorage, Dale Bader is the lead volunteer for the Kuddle Korps, and she also "rocks" during a two-hour weekly shift with the tiny infants.
Bader has rocked for 5 years and it shows.
Her motherly — and grandmotherly — instincts are undeniable by the way she tenderly but very efficiently tucks a premature infant into her arms.
"When I quit work, I knew I needed something to do. And I knew I wanted to hold babies," said the grandmother of seven. "I called every hospital in town."
The right call went to Providence Hospital where the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit is the largest in the state. Every other hospital in Alaska refers newborn babies who are premature or born with complications to Providence.
Nurse Nouha Wallin said they’ve had babies at Providence as small as a pound or born at only 23 weeks gestation – average gestation being forty weeks. She added, however, that busy nurses often can’t provide all the touching and holding that each baby needs.
That’s where the Kuddle Korps comes in.
Pointing to a small blue bundle lying peacefully in the arms of a "rocker," Wallin said, "This little guy was crabby and I was very busy. We hope the Kuddle Korps knows how much we appreciate them."
Parents, of course, are the rockers-in-chief. But when a baby has to spend several weeks, or even months, in NICU, it can mean parents have to get back to their own routines or work schedules and can’t be at the hospital day and night. This is especially true for parents from out of town who may have to travel back and forth to see their infants.
In these cases, the Kuddle Korps fills in. There are college men who are "rockers" – minimum age is 16 – and there is even a regular volunteer who is 99 years old. To volunteer, you must pass a security screening and then go through Providence Hospital’s volunteer training plus Bader’s introduction to the program and the NICU.
After three months on the job, volunteers go through a more intensive training, including information from an occupational therapist on infant development.
The NICU is a hushed place, with plenty of nurses quietly making their rounds from bassinette to bassinette. Soft lighting dims in the evenings to accommodate the body’s natural rhythm. Some babies are on oxygen, some just recovering from surgery. Tiny twins lay side by side with eyes wide open. The entryway is full of grateful letters from parents and lots of pictures of smiling, healthy "alums."
Dr. Lily Lou is the medical director of NICU. She’s unequivocal in her praise of the Kuddle Korps.
"For any baby that can’t be home with their families, it’s a life saver," the doctor said.
Occupational therapist Carol Matthews agrees.
"There’s a huge difference in the way babies act and look when they’re regularly touched and held," she said, adding that studies show that being touched is necessary for the proper development and even survival of infants.
Upon arriving for a two-hour shift, a Kuddle Korps volunteer puts jewelry, coats and personal items in a locker, then spends a full two-minutes scrubbing their hands and arms up to the elbows.
If someone feels ill or has been around sick children, they’re advised to skip their shift. Each volunteer dons a smock, and changes the smock and sanitizes his hands each time he moves to a new infant.
The nurses advise volunteers on which baby needs to be held, or who has been awake and now needs to sleep. Since each baby has a developmental care plan, nurses sometimes ask volunteers to move a child’s arms gently, or provide some other movement suggested in their care plan.For those who love babies, being a rocker is a hugely rewarding activity. Dr. Lou said she’s even been at hospitals where there was a waiting list of several years to become a volunteer. For information on the Kuddle Korps at Providence, call 261-3100.
Family reaches hurting teens
Vocation: Anchorage clan extends love by being a family
Catholic Deacon Dez Martinez and his wife Cindy pride themselves on establishing a "Kool-Aid House" wherever they live.
"A ‘Kool-Aid’ house is the one in the neighborhood where parents are always making Kool-Aid for the neighborhood kids," Deacon Martinez explained. "It’s the house where all the kids hang out."
This type of home was important for the Anchorage couple as they raised their young kids because it allowed them to be a part of their children’s lives and reach out to others with gospel love.
"We’ve always been surrogate parents," Cindy said. "Dez would always bring some single airman home from work that didn’t have a place to go for the holidays, or things like that."
In an age where broken families and high divorce rates are quickly redefining the typical family, the couple felt a calling to become foster parents.
"And the Holy Spirit led us to that call in a way that we didn’t expect," Cindy said.
Cindy and Deacon Dez recently returned to Alaska for his last assignment in the Air Force before retirement. Cindy took a job as program director for the McAuley Manor and Charlie Elder house — Catholic Social Services’ two long-term foster care homes for teenage girls and boys, respectively.
The overnight parent who worked at the girls’ home moved on to another position, and Cindy often logged long hours at the house. So she asked CSS if she could simply take over the overnight slot and move into McAuley Manor with her whole family. CSS agreed, and the Martinez clan put down roots.
Up to five girls between ages 12-19 years can live in the girls home at any given time. Many residents come from a varied past. For some, the chance to live at the home with the Martinez family gives them a rare first hand experience of a healthy home and family meal times.
"I remember one of the residents was amazed when I came up to fix a closet door," Deacon Martinez recalled. "For her, it was something that she never experienced — when something broke at home, it stayed broke."
At least once a week, the Martinez family makes it a priority to sit everyone down for a family meal with the entire family and the residents.
"We keep it as normal as possible. Our (immediate family) helps prepare the meal to give the residents and staff a break," Cindy said.
She recalled one girl’s reaction to the meal when they first started the tradition.
"She asked me, do you and your husband really talk that way, with all the pleases and thank-yous," Cindy said. "They’ve never seen that before!"
"It’s normal for us," Deacon Martinez said. "But for some, it’s like — this is weird!"
What might appear strange to others is a way of life for the Martinez clan and part of their vocation as a couple and as a Catholic family.
"Faith is a part of who I am and who we are as a family," Cindy explained. "Knowing that we have a good family, it’s just an overflow of love. There is no way we can keep all this love to ourselves. We just can’t help but share it."
Their teen boys agree.
"It’s pretty cool, I’ve learned a lot," 15-year-old son Alec said. "I’ve learned how lucky I am to have a good family."
Cindy said the family model is one that foster and group homes across the country are starting to implement.
"It gives the residents a holistic view of families," she explained.
"It’s good for the girls; they know that someone genuinely cares." Deacon Dez added.
But there is always more to do.
"Providing for the girls, it takes the whole community to help out," Cindy said.
A group of women called the McAuley Moms helps mentor the girls, putting on teas and other events for the residents, while also serving as role models.
"We really need a group of men to do something similar for the Charlie Elder house," she said.
For the Martinez family, helping out isn’t a heavy burden but something they want to do. Those that answer that call, won’t be disappointed, Deacon Martinez said.
"The love grows; you just keep adding more love."For more information about volunteering at the teen homes, contact Cindy at cindy.senamartinez@cssak.org.
One day for Christmas is not enough, says local deacon
The repetitive, upbeat Christmas carol chronicling the twelve days of Christmas is a familiar holiday tune. It’s featured on holiday albums, from philharmonic orchestras to the Muppets. There’s even an Alaska version specifically tailored to the Last Frontier, complete with five rolls of duct tape.
Though the traditional song is not outwardly Christian or Catholic, historical urban legends say it contains hidden symbolism and was used as a catechetical teaching tool for persecuted Catholics in Protestant Europe.
Regardless of the exact origins of the legendary song, Catholic tradition firmly holds to the practice of celebrating the full 12 days of Christmas – not just as a song – but as a time of joy and sacredness from the Nativity to the Epiphany on Jan. 6.
"It’s just too important a holiday to celebrate on one day," said Deacon Ted Greene of Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in Anchorage. "I think the church gives us 12 (days) to reflect and remember. It just can’t be done on one day."
The Feast of the Nativity celebrates one of the greatest mysteries of the church, he said, which is why the celebration lasts for days.
"First you have an octave – that’s a major celebration from the church – eight days focusing specifically on the Nativity," Deacon Greene told the Anchor last month. "Then the Epiphany and the Baptism of Jesus celebrates the manifestation of Christ.
According to the "Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy" from the Vatican, the Twelve Days of Christmas or "Christmastide" also looks at additional mysteries that are related to the manifestation of Christ. Several days focus on the martyrdom, especially on Dec. 28 when the Church celebrates the Holy Innocents, "where blood was shed because of hatred for Jesus and because of Herod’s rejection of Jesus’ Lordship."
The importance of family is also an important celebration during Christmastide as Catholics meditate on the Holy Family at its earliest beginnings.
Deacon Greene said the practical application of contemplating the Holy Family during the twelve days of Christmas is simple.
"Spend time with your families…look at the meaning of what the Nativity is," he said. "Look at prayer, re-read the Scripture stories of the Nativity and celebrate together as a family."
That family extends to the Church as a larger spiritual community, he said.
"We as parishes should ask ourselves how we celebrate during the octave," Deacon Greene said. "Our Lady of Guadalupe holds off on their parish staff’s Christmas party until the octave. Why don’t corporations do this?"
According to PNC Wealth Management, the cost of all the items in the song "The Twelve Days of Christmas" this year would run just above $78,000. The study is reflective of America’s preoccupation with consumerism during the holiday season.
"Usually, we as Americans are like, the presents are open, it’s over," Deacon Greene said. "But it’s not. The commercialism robs us of the sanctity of the season."
The focus, he said, should be on acts of kindness and celebrating joy. But because the Christmas hype and decorations begin going up soon after Halloween, people have a tendency to get sick of the season by the time it is just starting.
"It’s anti-climatic; we miss the day to the preparation. By the time all the preps are done, it’s as good as over," Deacon Greene said.
Spending time on things like acts of kindness and just slowing down to spend time with family is the way to overcome this, he added.
"Popular piety, precisely because it can intuit the values inherent in the mystery of Christ’s birth…can ensure that the strong religious tradition surrounding Christmas is not secularized by commercialism," states the Directory on Popular Piety and Liturgy.
Each day of Christmastide has a particular focus, from one of the saints, like St. John the Evangelist to the Holy Innocents.
"Looking at the stories of the Saints, like Basil, John or Stephan are great devotions and ways to celebrate during the Twelve Days of Christmas," Deacon Greene said.
He pointed out that two parishes, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Anchorage and St. John Neumann Mission in Cooper Landing celebrate the feasts of their patron saints during Christmastide.
"Families and teachers should keep the advent wreath up until the Baptism of the Lord," Deacon Greene advised. "Replace them with white candles as a way to remember. And for goodness sakes, leave the tree up until at least Epiphany."
Even once the Twelve Days of Christmas are over and life begins to return to normal, the church still reflects on the manifestation of Christ."It is not truly over until the Baptism of the Lord in the middle of January," he said. "Think of it in terms of Easter…we spend forty days in preparation, and then fifty to celebrate."
News & Notes
Moderator of Curia appointed
Father Tom Brundage was appointed last month to be the "Moderator of the Curia" for the Anchorage Archdiocese.
The curia consists of the people and organizations that help Archbishop Roger Schwietz govern the archdiocese, especially as it pertains to directing pastoral action.
As moderator, Father Brundage will assist the archbishop in organizing and coordinating offices, persons and activities of the chancery offices, except for the activities of the vicar general and the chancellor/archdiocesan financial officer.
The moderator addresses significant concerns and important events, which affect the whole curia, while also engaging in any advisory groups as determined by the archbishop. He also moderates the activity of the archbishop’s cabinet.
As moderator, Father Brundage is charged to act as a catalyst and resource for the other members of the curia to encourage a spirit of ministry and service.
In addition to his new role, Father Brundage is also the archdiocese judicial vicar and pastor of St. Michael Church in Palmer.
Archbishop marks 40 years since ordination
Anchorage Archbishop Roger Schwietz will celebrate his 40th ordination anniversary on Thursday, Dec. 20, by presiding at the 12:10 pm Mass at Holy Family Cathedral in Anchorage. A dessert reception in the parish hall will immediately follow the Mass. All are invited to the Mass and reception.
Cards for Archbishop Schwietz should be mailed to: Archbishop Roger L. Schwietz, OMI, Archdiocese of Anchorage, 225 Cordova Street, Anchorage, AK 99501. Mark envelopes in the lower corner with "40th." For additional information please call Mary Gore at 297-7755.
Martyrs book now in English
The book, "Martyrs of Magadan: Memories of the Gulag," compiled by Father Michael Shields is now available in English. The book takes a look at the stories and memories of those who spent time in Joseph Stalin’s prison camps. Two victims’ stories are told in their own words at www.MagadanCatholic.org
The book is available for a donation of $15. To order call 1-80-638-6333, visit the Web site (click on the projects link) or send your donation and shipping information to Need, 725 Leonard Street, Brooklyn, NY 11222-0384.
Prayer service for abortion victims
The Knights of Columbus Statewide Interdenominational Prayer Service for all those touched by abortion will take place on Saturday, Jan. 19, 2008, at 2 p.m. The event will be at the Anchorage Memorial Park Cemetery on 9th Ave and Cordova Street. For more information, contact James or Ann Curro at (907)-349-3772 or email pbear1@gci.net.
49th Eucharistic Congress
Catholics from around the world will gather in Quebec City, Canada in June for the 49th Eucharistic Congress. The Congress is a 10-day diocesan pilgrimage that offers an opportunity for prayer, reflection and action with the universal church, centered around the Blessed Sacrament. Catholics from the Anchorage Archdiocese are invited to attend the conference. Currently, a group is forming with the Diocese of Juneau. The cost is estimated to be about $1,200 for airfare and lodging in Quebec City.
For more information, contact Father Jim Oberle at the Chancery at 297-7778.
ACYC 2008 set
The time and location is set for next summer’s Alaska Catholic Youth Conference (ACYC). The 2008 ACYC event will take place June 2-5 at Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Anchorage. Organizers are now putting together a team to start planning the event. Those interested in volunteering can contact Matthew Beck at 745-3229. DJ Bill Lage from Catholic Dance is slated to attend the event for talks and to host a dance. More information on DJ Bill is available at www.catholicdance.com
Columns
Postcards from Rome: Mass with the Pope
One of the nice things about living in Rome, sub umbra Petra, "in the shadow of Peter," is that the pope lives right down the street. On occasion one or two of the national houses will be asked to assist at a papal liturgy. As a seminarian, I had the honor to serve Mass for Pope John Paul II on Christmas Day, 1991, but I had never been to Pontifical Mass with Pope Benedict XVI. So I signed up.
Two days beforehand, a little blue ticket with the papal seal showed up in our mailboxes, instructing us to be at the Blessed Sacrament Chapel in St. Peter’s Basilica at 9 a.m. When we arrived, we flashed our blue tickets at the gate and the Swiss Guards pointed us through the proper doors. First we walked past the Chapel of the Pieta, where Michelangelo’s statue of that same name resides. That is where the pope vests for Mass. Next we walked past dozens of tables with snappy gold vestments laid on them. That is where the new cardinals were vesting for Mass. One of the two Americans, Cardinal DiNardo (or "Cardinardo" as they are already calling him), was there already and he chatted with us as we passed. Finally, we arrived at the Blessed Sacrament Chapel, where we vested…and waited.
The only thing more powerful than 300 priests preaching the Gospel or celebrating the Mass, is 300 priests praying silently in front of the Blessed Sacrament. And that’s what we did for the next hour. Finally, it was time to go, past the new cardinals in their snappy gold vestments, past the Chapel of the Pieta where the pope was vested and on into the nave for the long walk up the center aisle.
The amazing thing about a High Pontifical Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica is that it is celebrated in exactly the same way that we do at home. At the Sign of Peace it was time to move. We took our places along the main aisle. In my case, I was near the main doors and soon we went outside to give communion to the thousands of pilgrims who had been watching on the jumbo-trons in the rain. Here were people from all over the world, but all of one faith. They were all here for the same reason and a little rain was not going to deter them in the least.
In Rome, two gifts are offered that cannot be received in any other place. The first is a sense of history. The second is a sense of universal church. These are the gifts that those of us who study here try to bring back home with us. Nowhere are they more freely offered than at a Mass celebrated by the Holy Father.
The writer is the pastor of St. Andrew Church in Eagle River. He is spending the next several months in Rome to complete his doctorate in ecumenical theology.
Holiness in the ordinary
I have been a long time reader of the splendid essays that Father Bill O’Malley, the Jesuit, writes for America Magazine.
Bill has taught English and Religious Studies at Fordham Preparatory School in the Bronx for a lot of years. Perhaps it is because I myself was once a teacher of religious studies in a private school that I can identify with his approach to the minds of young scholars.
In a recent issue of America Bill titled his essay: "Accessible Holiness. The good news: We’re all invited. The bad news: It takes effort." He goes on to say, "The seniors I teach would cringe at being called holy. The very word secretes poisons like ‘uninteresting,’ ‘sexless,’ ‘goody-goody,’ ‘unsophisticated,’ hardly the path to popularity."
On reading that article, I got to thinking a bit about holiness and I imagine it is true to say that most of us would "cringe" at being labeled holy. The very word would seem to set us apart from the rest of humanity. Our first tendency is to say, "Hey, I’m hardly any different than anyone else. We’ve all got our faults, right?"
At the same time I recall the famous quotation of St. Iranaeus (130-202 AD). In his book on heresy he writes: "The glory of God is the human person fully alive." That insight tells me that holiness is not some separate quality that is poured into us from heaven. Rather, it is an integral part of our human condition. The well-known rabbi, Abraham Heschel, put it this way: "Just to be is a blessing. Just to live is holy."
This whole notion of holiness came to mind then as I read the gospel for the Fourth Sunday of Advent and its narration of Mary’s pregnancy along with Joseph’s puzzlement and consternation over the angel’s explanation of how all this came about.
It may almost seem impossible to imagine but Jesus, the Son of God, Son of the Eternal Father, was born into an ordinary family and grew up in a home and in an environment that was scarcely different from any other family of his day. Did Joseph and Mary have any idea that the ordinary things they did to raise their son had something to do with his character as Son of God? My hunch is that they simply saw themselves as ordinary parents doing their "parenting thing."
The holiness of Jesus’ life only became evident when he began his career as preacher of good news of God’s kingdom. It was then that it must have become clear to Joseph and Mary that their "parenting" had a deep effect on the very way Jesus spoke of God as his Father.
All this tells me that there is a unique holiness in the ordinary progress of family life although we may not have the insight to recognize it while it is happening.
With that I return to Bill O’Malley’s comment, that the goal of one’s life is not simply to make a living but to discover what living is all about. I suspect that this is what must have gone through Jesus’ mind when he came from his baptism and spent those long days in the silence of the Judean desert. "What’s to become of all this?" he must have asked himself.
Like Jesus, we all gradually grow into our full humanity and in doing so we discover that there must be something sacred about it all. Otherwise, why make the effort? Here is Bill O’Malley’s final word: ‘Holy’ need not be confined to achievement. Just striving is enough." "Amen to that," I say.
The writer is Anchorage Archdiocese director of Pastoral Education. He also serves as canonical pastor and coordinator of parishes without resident priests.
Distracted prayers during Advent
This is about waiting — waiting and dogs and Advent and prayer and empty wombs in no particular order.
I think a personal prayer life is one of the most important things a Christian can have. Without it, we approach our community worship and our Christian outreach without a spiritual core, without that relationship that can only be between us and the Mystery we call God.
But I’ll admit I often fall far short in my endeavor to pray. I have a prayer spot — it’s the dining room table, which faces the big windows in my living room. It looks out at the trees across the street and the changing seasons. I’ve sat there most mornings for about 12 years trying to learn to pray and trying to learn to listen.
But there are mornings when I sleep in and have no time left for Morning Prayer before the day’s deadlines close in. There are mornings when the newspaper headlines seduce me.
There are mornings when, instead of listening, I preach little homilies at God or write columns in my mind, and if Mystery can yawn and shake Its head, I suppose It does.
There was even a morning recently when I let my dog distract me. In those moments I am grateful that I have a patient God, a God who waits, and if I’m lucky, a God with a sense of humor.
Sunny is a golden retriever who is actually a big chicken. She whimpers all night New Year’s Eve because of the firecrackers. Strong wind brings on incessant crying. She is very brave about barking at moose or big dogs from the confines of the house — but take her for a walk and pass a dog that barks at her and she stares straight ahead and mutters in doggy talk, "Dog? I don’t hear a dog. Do you hear a dog?"
The darkness of winter mornings lit only by a candle is a good way for me to enter into prayer, and I was settling in on a recent Advent morning when I felt Sunny right under the table brushing her luxuriant golden fur up against my legs. Back and forth she went, peaking out from beneath the table, then hovering close to me again.
I tried to ignore her. But then, someone else in the house turned a light on down the hallway, and Sunny emerged from under the table and stared up at the ceiling. It was only then that I realized my candle had been casting unfamiliar shadows on the ceiling and they were frightening Sunny.
The light went off, and I, obviously not deep in contemplation at that point, tried to duplicate the shadows to see what Sunny would do. But she had curled up in a ball across the room, no longer frightened, and I realized it was time to get ready for work. I had to laugh and hope that an understanding God could accept the fact that part of my prayer time had dissolved into an experiment to see if I could scare the dog.
What is that quote about God not being done with me yet? Isn’t that what Advent is all about?
In "Prayer and the Quest for Healing," Barbara Fiand writes: "We pray daily so that our day might become prayer."
And here’s a thought from Meister Eckhart for those of us who don’t feel we’re "enough" this Advent or that our prayer isn’t at its best: "It is the empty womb that allows God to be conceived."
Merry Christmas.
The writer is a stewardship and hospitality coordinator at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Anchorage.
Inebriated elephants and the voyeuristic media
"Paris Hilton works to raise awareness of inebriated elephants in India." That is an actual newspaper headline hanging over my desk at home that recently appeared in the Anchorage Daily News’ newly revamped "People" section.
The clipping hangs over my desk not because I’m a fan, but as a reminder of why I left the secular media, and as a way to bring me back to reality if I ever pine for my salad days as a television producer.
In my view, it is an epidemic of tabloid journalism, everywhere I turn. The latest blog, reality shows, etc., all shamelessly exploit and offer a voyeuristic binge into other’s lives where people gleefully get sloshed in sensationalism.
Before I go further, I understand the pull as a former purveyor of the perfunctory "news". There’s nothing more intoxicating to a producer than scooping the competition with a juicy tidbit or flashy "breaking news" item. But that rush comes with a price, a sort of hangover of the conscience.
My first such experience came while interning for a TV station in Indianapolis. I was shadowing my mentor, Jim Hester, to reports of a breaking homicide, possibly gang related. We raced to the scene, while being passed by cop car after cop car.
It was exhilarating until the family of the victim showed up, and the "scoop" turned into a sobering dose of reality.
It was tough, embarrassing, and worst of all, it hurt to witness the spectacle.
My colleague and news mentor noticed how the scene was affecting me. After the job, he pulled me aside and reminded me of two things.
First, the importance of faith.
Faith in something higher than ourselves is the only thing that will get you through something like that, Hester said.
"Also, and most importantly, pray for the family," he stressed, and exonerated me to never forget the importance of human dignity, because behind every breaking news story, every superstar actor and even anchors, is a human being.
The true reality, from a Christian perspective is the dignity of the human person. The Catechism of the Catholic Church specifically addresses just how important it is to uphold that dignity in the media.
"There is a modesty of the feelings, as well as of the body," it states, adding that every person is a temple of the Holy Spirit and should be treated as such on all levels.
The prevalence of tabloid journalism exists because it is an easy escape for people. The Catechism recognizes "that social communication and mass media can give rise to a certain passivity among less than vigilant consumers about what is said or shown."
In other words, discretion when it comes to the media is crucial because our view of human dignity can slowly erode away.
It’s subtle, and you don’t even realize it is happening.
During my last six months as a producer at a local TV station in Anchorage, I didn’t even own a television.
It wasn’t easy, but I don’t necessarily miss it. I still watch plenty of DVDs on the computer and iPod, but not having a TV does help moderate my consumption.
I also hold on to Hester’s advice of not losing my humanity, and making sure I pray for victims of the tabloids.
Ironically, I’ve found that there are more important realities in life than drunken pachyderms, anyway.
The writer is the assistant editor of the Anchor.
Editorials
Hold off on the party
It’s hard to wait for the sweetest things in life. Hawaiian vacations in February, honeymoons with our beloved, a soldier’s homecoming – these all ignite hopeful expectation because they make present that which we long for.
During Advent, the church also asks us to wait and hold off on the Christmas party until we complete our Advent journey and once again rejoice at the birth of Jesus Christ.
Advent, like Lent, receives little fanfare from a popular culture that hates to wait for or deny itself anything.
But, like many things, the party is so much sweeter when we wait.
People often complain of "Christmas burnout" by the time December 25th rolls around. That might have a lot to do with the fact that we often start the party before the guest of honor arrives. By the time he does, we are already stuffed on sweets, filled with wine and ready to sink into the couch.
So let’s hold off for another 10 days. The church is full of Advent traditions to help us prepare for the coming of Christ. Let us light Advent candles around our dinner tables and listen to Isaiah’s great prophesies that foretold the coming of Christ. And when we reach Christmas let us celebrate with gusto (for 12 full days) that Jesus came to earth and is coming again. For information on how to observe Advent visit www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20020513_vers-direttorio_en.html#Chapter%20Four.
Christmas in the flesh
Of all celebrations, Christmas is king. Bigger and more renowned than Thanksgiving or New Years it looms large on the calendar and dwarfs everything that falls under the "holiday season."
But why? Why do we make such a deal of December 25th – eating more food and buying more gifts than any other time of year? Businesses love Christmas because they can count on people to pull out all stops as they decorate the mantle place, the tree and the front yards of the world. Cellars will be stocked and freezers filled.
Many folks will travel across the country and gain a good 10 pounds on fudge balls and peanut brittle celebrating this party of all parties.
In a sense, it is a grand "holiday of the flesh."
Of course, Christmas suffers from cultural distortions and confusions about the reason for the season. Many people consume without much thought and purchase goods more out of habit than devotion.
Even the most devout believer, however, would have a hard time denying that a faith-filled Christmas is most definitely a celebration of the flesh.
For at Christmas, the world rejoices that God wrapped himself in human skin, weaving his very being into a human body of flesh, bones and vocal chords, so that he could relate to us in a fundamentally new way.
In becoming flesh, God connected himself to the earth. Christ would celebrate wedding parties, drink wine, break bread, and smell the fragrance of frankincense and myrrh. He came to save the world by showing us how to participate in it fully and rightly.
Certainly, he cautions against gluttony and excess. In fact, during this present Advent we are called to fast and exercise self control as we await the anniversary of his birthday celebration.
But when we finally reach Christmas, our vocal chords vibrate with carols of joy and thanksgiving. Sweet fragrances fill the air as material gifts are exchanged. These are the physical forms – the miniature incarnations of love - by which we celebrate the greatest physical incarnation in human history. God joined us in his physical creation so that he could save what he had made. This mystical arrival of God in the flesh changed everything.
The wine and bread changed, blind eyes and crippled limbs were renewed. The whole earth was lifted up and rejoiced because the warm body of a little naked child arrived in Bethlehem.
In a few days, we will once again raise our voices and our glasses. God came down to earth and made a way for us to join him in heaven.
Merry Christmas indeed.
Letters to the Editor
‘Playtime catechesis’ is real work
I would like to thank Mr. James DeCrane for the informative article ("Catechesis meets Playtime") about Catechesis of the Good Shepherd that ran in the 11/30/07 Anchor. I have been involved with this program since close to its inception, and think it would be better represented as work time rather than playtime. The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd environment is ideally a prayerful, quiet space that should lead the child to contemplation and reflection. The materials are part of this environment that help the child become quiet with God and listen.
Anchorage