“I’ll be home for Christmas”…
…is perhaps one of the more poignant secular Christmas tunes. It speaks of that desire for connection, for belonging, for a place where life makes sense and we know we are both blessed and called to be a gift to the world.
So, welcome home this Christmas to the St. Justin Martyr parish community. We are glad you are here. We are glad that you have found a sense of home within this community. And whether your presence here is a yearly thing, a monthly choice, or a daily decision, thank you for that response born of faith. In a year that has seen the re-emergence of a different side of the abuse scandal in the church, the faith that brings you here can feel tinier than a mustard seed, and more fragile than a candle burning in a hurricane. Yet, that is what hope engenders in us, what faith believes and what love makes possible – that the church of Christ still stands as a place of welcoming love, even in the midst of our brokenness and sins.
We can begin anew, even when all we see is our broken dreams and our broken promises. There is a grace to this Christmas night/day which makes us dream new dreams and see new visions. This is what Isaiah saw, even while he and his people were in exile in far away Babylon. The hope of a new beginning and the chance to begin anew – that was what he knew in his prayer and reflection. From that place he penned these amazing and still hopeful words:
“For a Child is born to us, a Son is given us;
upon his shoulder dominion rests.
And he shall be called Wonder-Counselor,
God-Hero, Father-Forever, Prince of Peace.”
A modern poet spoke of this vision in this way:
You know our deepest longings
and listen to our hope-soaked dreams
calming our expectations with
a gentle reassurance –
that what is holy, and good
and beautiful and eternal
is about to dawn
upon an unsuspecting world.
On behalf of the staff and people whom make up this community of faith called St. Justin Martyr: “May all that is holy and good and beautiful and eternal dawn in your world. Merry Christmas and Welcome Home!”
Fr. Bill