The Holy Family (A)

 Sir 3:2-6, 12-14; Col 3:12-21;   Mt 2:13-15, 19-23

Exile, deportation and seeking asylum in other countries have been common in our history.  Wars and civil strife have torn apart many families, and separated parents and children, brothers and sisters, or husbands and wives for many years, and, often, perpetually. 

The story of Boris and Anna Kozlov is very touching. Boris and Anna Kozlov were married in 1946.  After three days Boris had to ship out with his Red Army unit.  By the time he returned, Anna was gone, consigned by Stalin’s purges to internal exile in Siberia with the rest of her family. Nobody knew where the family was, or what had happened to Anna... Boris became frantic. He tried everything he could to find his young bride, but it was in vain. She was gone. 

After 60 years, one day, Anna Kozlov caught sight of the elderly man clambering out of a car in her home village of Borovlyanka in Siberia. There, in front of her, was Boris. An extraordinary coincidence leads them both to return to their home village on the very same day. 60 years of separation has made their reunion inexpressibly joyful.

Christmas (A) Dawn

Isaiah 62:11–12; Titus 3:4–7; Luke 2:15–20

There is a beloved story told in many cultures about a poor young girl who longed to bring a gift to the newborn King. In one version, she has nothing—no gold, no silver, no fine clothes, no precious spices. As she watches others go to visit the Christ Child, her heart aches. She sits alone by the roadside feeling the cold morning dew. Suddenly, she sees a small shivering bird lying in the grass, unable to fly. Moved with compassion, she picks it up gently, warms it in her hands, and wraps it close to her heart. When she finally arrives at the stable, she is embarrassed that she has nothing worthy to offer—only a tiny bird. But when she kneels before the manger, the bird begins to sing the sweetest melody the people had ever heard, a song full of pure, trembling joy. The Child Jesus smiles, and the entire stable brightens. The girl realizes that what she thought was nothing became everything when offered with love. That is why Christmas is so beautiful—it teaches us that the smallest acts of love, offered from the heart, become the greatest gifts to God.

Christmas (A)

Is. 9:2-4, 6-7; Tit. 2:11-14; Lk. 2:1-16

There is a touching story from the First World War that has been retold in many books and films, because it captures what people call the “Christmas spirit.” It was the Christmas of 1914, and the war was only a few months old, but Europe had already become a battlefield of fear and death. On Christmas Eve, in the trenches of northern France, soldiers from both sides—the British and the Germans—were freezing, exhausted, and homesick. As night fell, the gunfire unexpectedly quieted. Then, from somewhere across the cold air, a German soldier began to sing: “Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht…” - “Silent Night, holy night.” The British soldiers listened in stunned silence, and then, as if drawn by a force greater than war itself, they began to join in with the English version. Voices that had been raised in anger and fear now blended in a fragile harmony. Soon, soldiers began to climb out of their trenches, not with weapons but with hands lifted in peace. They exchanged small gifts, chocolate,