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Some call them Kings and some call them Wise Men. Tradition tells us there were three, but there are stories about the Fourth Wise Man. In the New American Bible English Translation (above), Matthew calls them “… Magi from the East …” While much of the world celebrates their Feast, the Feast of the Epiphany, on Jan. 6, for many years here in the United States and in other countries, we celebrate it on the Second Sunday after Christmas.

We know the story so well. We tell it and re-tell it in countless ways every year. As we approach and celebrate Christmas in this year of 2020, we are all, in one way or another, tired, maybe especially tired of hearing that Christmas (and the holidays) will be different in this most challenging and difficult year. So, what do we do? We can each ask ourselves as individuals and families, what is the best way that we can celebrate Christmas this year?

On Dec. 3, I received an email from a parishioner that included a request, “Might you, dear bishop, consider decreeing a Year of St. Joseph for our diocese?” Included with the request was a reminder that Dec. 8 would be the 150th anniversary of the declaration (by Blessed Pope Pius IX) of St. Joseph as Patron of the Universal Church (1870–2020). Also included was a list of 11 dioceses in the country that had already announced they would have a “Year of St. Joseph” in 2021.

I think that many or most Catholics are familiar with the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe and I would hope that many are familiar with the basic story. If you are reading this and the story is new to you I encourage you to Google it or to do some research and learn about this apparition and message of our Blessed Mother that took place almost 500 years ago and, yet, is still so relevant and important in the life of the Church today.

The Season of Advent has been described as a Season of Hope, Peace, Joy and Love (or Faith). You can find a few different explanations of the “Advent Wreath” and its meaning, as well as the meaning of each of the four candles. Most agree that the “first” candle symbolizes Hope. As Advent of 2020 unfolds, we might ask ourselves, “How hopeful am I?” or “Am I feeling very hopeful these days”? Are we ready to do what St. Peter tells us we always should be ready to do? Can we give a “reason for our hope”?

In our reflection this morning, I would like to invite everyone, those gathered here physically, and those joining us by livestream, to pause for a moment and recall the first time you heard or came to appreciate the phrase, “life begins at conception?” Or, perhaps, in other words, can you recall learning or coming to appreciate what it means to say that we believe, as Scripture teaches us, that every person, male and female is created in the “image and likeness” of God, unique and unrepeatable, a child of God?

In the 11th Chapter of John’s Gospel, we hear of the death of Lazarus and Jesus’s arrival after Lazarus had “already been in the tomb for four days.” We eventually hear how Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead. I have found there are two moments in between Jesus’ arrival and raising of Lazarus that are most important for our prayer and reflection. First, the encounter between Jesus and Martha (Jn. 11:17–27) is filled with emotion. Martha is mourning the death of her brother. She may even be angry with Jesus as she says, “If you had been here, my brother would not have died.” How many of us have experienced this grief and pain at the death of a loved one? As a priest, trying to offer consolation, I have found Jesus’ words so comforting, “Your brother will rise.” I have also been inspired and strengthened by Martha’s faith, “Yes, Lord, I have come to believe.”

Some 56 years ago, during the Second Vatican Council, the Church published Lumen Gentium (“the Light of Nations”), which reminded us what the Church has always believed and taught: “We are all called to holiness” or “We are all called to be saints!” Do we take that call seriously? Do we believe it is possible to live a holy life? I know there are many who take this call seriously, and most are aware, like St. Paul, of how often we fall short in living out that call. At the same time, it is possible because with God (and his grace) “all things are possible.”

I have always found Dorothy Day to be a fascinating, complex individual (and it is not just because she is a fellow New Yorker born in Brooklyn!) She was a prolific writer with strong opinions. Her words were always inspiring and often challenging. Day’s road to Catholicism was not an easy one, but she could not turn away from the beauty of the faith that tugged at her heart. Her tireless work of behalf of the poor, the outcast, the marginalized, along with her steadfast commitment to the Catholic faith, are models for us all. In 2002, New York’s John Cardinal O’Connor initiated Day’s cause for sainthood. While those around her called her a saint, Dorothy Day, always feisty and in true New York fashion, replied, “Don’t call me a saint. I don’t want to be dismissed so easily.”

How do we become the people we are? Some philosophers would say that we all, eventually, ask the basic/fundamental questions: Who am I? How did I get here? Why am I here? For those of us who become serious about our faith and come to believe that Scripture and the Church can guide us to the answers to those questions, we can usually point or look back to those who taught us or who introduced us to Jesus. While it is a biological fact that none us would be (here) without our parents, so many of us come to realize that our parents were not only God’s instrument to give us the gift of life, but they were the ones who brought us to Jesus and gave us new life in Baptism.

Do you remember the name “Todd Beamer,” his phrase, “Let’s Roll” and the story of “Flight 93”? Have you heard the name “Welles Crowther” and the story of his “Red Bandana”? Maybe you have your own, more personal story that you remember and share? I remember FDNY Captain Timothy Stackpole. Do our children and young people know those names and stories? The three names I mention are three of the “Heroes of September 11th.” Each, like so many others on that day, put the words of Jesus into action and laid down their lives to save others.