The Gifts of the Magi

We all know the story of the Three Wise Men who came Bethlehem to honor the baby Jesus. They brought three gifts with them: gold, frankincense and myrrh. I have read this Gospel story many times but have not really looked at the deeper meaning of it. I asked myself why these three gifts? Shouldn’t they have brought more sensible gifts like food, blankets or diapers? Or was there more significance to these gifts? As I have been studying the Bible the past few years I find there is always more symbolism to be discovered! The Magi presented Jesus with gold, frankincense and myrrh. These gifts were very prophetic for they spoke of our Lord's offices of King, Priest, and Savior. The Gifts of the Magi do, indeed, hold special significance:

Gold: This carries obvious significance. It's precious and worthy across all cultures and times. It's a gift fit for royalty. It says to the Christ child, You will be a King

Frankincense: This resin is touted for its medicinal and soothing properties. Herbalists say it is calming, restorative, gently clarifying, and meditative. Ancient people burned frankincense, believing it to carry their prayers to heaven. Its use as incense illustrates His role as our Priest.

Myrrh: This is perhaps the most mysterious of the Gifts. Myrrh is an Arabic word for bitter, and it is considered a wound healer because of its strong antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties. Calling it mo yao, the Chinese used it for centuries to treat wounds, bruises and bleeding and to relieve painful swelling.

This holiday season (which really begins on Christmas!) let us accept from the hand of our Lord the gifts He desires to give to us; the same gifts He received. Gold (salvation), frankincense (holiness), and myrrh (suffering and subsequent healing), that we might be one with Him as He is one with the Father.
God Bless, Holly Clark

Sources: http://www.magi-gifts.com/
Catholic Source Book – Harcourt Religion Publishers

Mary, Mother of God

The shepherds went in haste to Bethlehem and found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known the message that had been told them about this child. All who heard it were amazed by what had been told them by the shepherds. And Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart. Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, just as it had been told to them.LK 2:16-21

Whenever I read the above Gospel selection I find myself reflecting on Mary and what kind of person she may have been. I see Mary as a strong person but yet gentle and reflective. Mary was given a choice to be the Mother of God, she could have said no… but she didn’t! She said Yes! Mary knew that Joseph, her potential husband, could abandon her and she would be an outcast, if not put to death. Mary could not have predicted what it would be like to raise the Son of God--- but she said Yes! Can you picture yourself saying Yes to such an unknown journey? Can you imagine how Mary felt when even the shepherds, strangers to her, were telling her that she was the Mother of God? Mary kept all these things, reflecting upon them in her heart. What faith and trust in God she must have had!

There have been times in my life when I have been afraid to take the road less travelled. It is safe and secure to never think about taking chances… I often turn to Mary when I know I have a decision to make. I sit in the pew and gaze upon our statue of Mary… I look into her eyes and see the warm glow of love she has for the Babe in her arms. I can almost hear Mary telling me, challenging me, to take everything into my heart, reflect upon my heart and then with Her Son’s guidance act upon my heart. Sometimes that might mean taking the path that is not safe, secure and a known destination. Imagine where we would be if Mary said No to the angel?

Take everything into your heart and reflect upon them. Hear God’s voice and find your path. The destination may be unknown but with the Father, Son, Holy Spirit and the Mother of God at your side, you know your journey will be an interesting one!
Blessings on the New Year, Holly Clark

The Perfect Christmas?

The Perfect Christmas?
As I progressed through Advent and crowded my days and my thoughts with all the things I needed to do for Christmas, I thought to myself is this what Christmas is all about? Getting everything just right? I fretted over cooking and shopping… made a ton of to-do lists… worried over having enough energy to get it all done. What would happen if I didn’t get everything done? Would Christmas be a disappointment if my M&M cookies didn’t get baked?
I was starting to feel a bit rebellious and started to devise ways of eliminating my to-do lists. But then I came into my office one morning and discovered a gift bag sitting in my chair. The gift bag was thoughtfully and artfully laced up with pretty curly-q ribbons and the gifts inside carefully wrapped with tissue paper. In an instant I knew what Christmas was all about!
As Christians we all struggle with the commercialism vs. prayer and faith aspects of Advent and Christmas. We want the peace that our Savior’s birth promises us. But that peace doesn’t come without hard work, sacrifice and love. As I gazed upon my gift bag for a bit I realized that someone had put a lot of work, time and love into creating a gift for me. I thought how blessed I am and this is the true meaning of Christmas: Sacrificing our time, energies and talents for others. God’s Christmas “gift” to us is the birth of his only Son, whom he knew would be rejected by mankind and eventually sacrificed on the Cross.

We can never have the perfect Christmas, since that only occurred once a little over 2000 years ago, but we can sacrifice our time, talent and energies in our gift-giving, baking & cooking, and prayers of joy and love. It is not about achieving the perfect Christmas but the love we put into the effort!
Merry Christmas and God Bless, Holly Clark

Interruptions: Gifts or Disturbances?

The angel Gabriel was sent from God… to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, and the virgin's name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
"Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you."
Luke 1:26, 27, 28

As you read theGospel above, transport yourself back in time and put yourself in Mary’s place… you are about to go to bed… you are thinking about the next day’s chores or maybe planning your upcoming wedding, or just going about your thoughts as usual. And lo! A bright light appears in front of you… are you frightened or do you feel a strange warmth come about you? The light begins to speak… "Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you." Like Mary, you wonder what sort of greeting this could be. Could it be a sign of going mad? Or a true messenger of God? (And why would God be talking to me, of all people?) As you converse with the angel you begin to sense a larger presence, a sense of history about to unfold. You say “Yes!” to God’s request to bear a child… you know you could die for not being married yet and you know there are hardships to come. You think if this is really God interrupting my life then it must truly be important.

Have you ever had an interruption in your life that changed the course of your life’s journey? Have you ever said yes to something when you had no idea of the outcome? Mary’s life was changed because of an interruption that she was not expecting… and look what her gift of “yes” gave the rest of the world! Today reflect back on your own interruptions of life and ask yourself are they gifts from God or disturbances to curse? You may surprise yourself with the answer!
God Bless, Holly Clark

Making a Difference

Advent 2011
The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me; he has sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor, to heal the brokenhearted,… to announce a year of favor from the LORD and a day of vindication by our God.
Isaiah 61:1-2

Oh what a wonderful time of year it is! When I read the above passage from today’s reading I feel such joy! I feel as if truly the spirit of the Lord GOD is upon ME! I feel He is calling upon me personally to bring glad tidings to the poor and to try to heal the brokenhearted—to try to make a difference in the world. Read this passage over again… How does it speak your heart? Do you hear the voice of Jesus? Do you feel the warmth of the Spirit as you ponder these words?

Advent is a time of quiet reflection. Every year it gets harder and harder to find that quiet place in my life and in my mind so that I can reflect upon Advent scripture readings and listen to God’s Word… but we must try to listen with all our heart amidst all the distractions the world puts in front of us. God gave us His Son to bring glad tidings to the poor and heal the broken-hearted. Jesus, however, did not intend for His mission on earth to end when He gave Himself up on the cross—It is WE who must carry on Hs mission until He returns again in the fullness of time. It is WE who must help the poor, needy, and brokenhearted. It is WE, one at a time and all together, who will make a difference in the world. Think about it… How will you make a difference this year?
God Bless, Holly Clark

Putting Thanksgiving into Christmas

This past Thanksgiving I felt very overwhelmed by the advertisers and media hype surrounding “Black Friday” (the day after Thanksgiving where we all go into a trance and buy, buy, BUY gifts for Christmas). And some people spend Thanksgiving day putting up Christmas décor! I keep feeling our day of giving thanks has turned into an introduction to the Christmas rush and crush.

Last week I happen to see an advertisement, secular in nature but very Christian-like, featuring an upside down wishbone with a Santa cap on it with the caption “putting thanksgiving back into Christmas.” The ad went onto ask why is there such frenzy into buying so much for people who already have been blessed with a lot of stuff? They would like us to pause for a moment and give thanks for all we have and reflect upon those who have little or nothing in life, the poor, the hungry, the dying… I thought to myself what a great way to begin Advent… Thinking of the needs of others and what better way than by donating our time, talents and dollars to those who need our help and thanking God for everything we have?

Advent is a time of thoughtful reflection upon our faith as we await the coming of Christ… God gave us the best “Christmas Gift” ever… the gift of His only Son, Jesus. Jesus didn’t go into a frenzy shopping for the apostles and Mary and Joseph… He gave the gift (and continues to do so) of His time and care and charity to others.

This week ask yourselves “Where would Jesus be on Black Friday? Where would Jesus spend His time and energy during the holiday season?” Spend some time reflecting upon these questions and how to put Thanksgiving into Christmas by giving thanks to God for His greatest gifts- his love and His Son.
God Bless, Holly Clark

Driving in the Dark

Advent 2011
A few months ago I had blown out a headlight on my car and my family kept pointing it out to me. I thought I saw okay at night… I’ll get to it when I have time… and then… the road, more recently, was getting really dark and I thought I’m getting old, my vision is going. Then one evening, while parked in front of the Shea Center, at night, I turned on my car and now noticed that BOTH of my headlights were out! I wondered how long I’d been driving in the dark with no headlights. The very next day I got new headlights and God said let there be light for Holly! Our faith journey is much like driving a car… the new car has very bright headlights and we see very clearly the road ahead… then we drive through mud and our lights dim… we clean them off… but then one light goes and then another and soon our faith, and our car, are now in darkness. We need to constantly pay attention to the light of our faith. We need to pay attention- clean it up and replenish it from time-to-time.

The holy season of Advent is a period of darkness and reflection. In many ways we are steering our faith in the dark as we await the coming of our risen Lord. How often do you feel like you are living in the dark? Do you feel as if your faith is hidden from you at times? How you may long for new headlights to see the road ahead! Christ will bring us new light when He comes again.

Today, before you light your first Advent candle, reflect upon areas of your life where you feel in darkness… pray for light and guidance. Light your candle and feel the soft glow upon your face. Notice that you may not see too much in the darkened room. But next week notice how the lighting of the second Advent candle brings more warmth and light and you can see slightly better. Let us look forward to the time when all of our candles are lit and we see our faith clearly in the light of Christ.
God bless, Holly Clark

Counting Blessings

A while ago I read a book called 14,000 Things to be Happy About by Barbara Ann Kipfer. This was a book that just simply listed 14,000 reasons to be happy, such as: new babies, a well-crafted chair, having a sense of your own space, a real person answering the phone, autumn leaves, family, friends, etc. I took out a highlighter and highlighted all the items that I was happy and thankful for. I found myself highlighting more items than not. While I did not highlight radish spread, the buzz of a bumble bee or full body stockings [don’t you dare picture me in one!]… I discovered so much that I was happy about and thankful for. It is the little everyday things that we take for granted…

I pick up this book every now and again and discover new blessings to be thankful for and I now read it in the light of faith. St. Augustine challenges us to question our realities and examine what we are thankful for. St. Augustine asks “Who made them if not the Beautiful One?” As I look over what I have to happy about I give full credit to our Father in Heaven. It is God who created us, gave us our creativity to paint, invent, observe the universe and is ultimately responsible for everything we touch, hear, taste, see and create. This Thanksgiving Day, perhaps after dinner, see if you and your family could come up with at least a hundred little (and big!) things and persons to be happy about and then give thanks to God`. Today I will be remembering all of the little things in life that I am grateful for and thanking God for allowing me 14,000 plus things to be happy about.

God Bless, Holly Clark

Our Beloved Dead

The month of November has traditionally been reserved for remembering all of our beloved dead. Here at Sacred Heart and St. Rose we offer Masses of Remembrance where we remember those who have had funerals here and elsewhere in the past year and offer special prayers for them and their families and friends. In my position I often take the initial phone call from a funeral home, or sometimes a family, and as I take down the information I ask myself what this person was like, who were they and how are their families coping. And I say a little prayer, when I get off the phone, for the deceased and their families. As loved ones come into my office to arrange the funeral liturgy with the priest I am able to give words of comfort and am reminded of the words of Jesus: “Blessed are they who mourn; they shall be consoled.” By virtue of our Baptism we are all called to console all those who are grieving.*

The Ministry of Consolation begins with the parish community. We offer our love and strength to those who have lost their love and strength. We offer our prayers to those who have lost their voice or perhaps cannot see or hear our Lord. And we share own experiences of grief and faith so that no one has to journey alone. Jesus is with us on the journey, but you and I are His ears and voice, His bridge to the bereaved.

This month I will be remembering your deceased loved ones in prayer and I will pray that the Lord brings you comfort in your grief journey. My own Father is with Jesus now and when I hear of a death I like to think of Dad up there greeting them along side of St. Peter.

—God Bless all who mourn, Holly Clark
*Source: Console One Another, Rev. Terence P. Curley