Rise and Shine!

Tradition calls the family the domestic church.  I agree with this.  I have also leaned that the Liturgy is considered to be the collective work of the people, offered up to God.  I now like to think of my very family life as a liturgy, a work of prayer, to be offered up.  Somehow,  those mundane tasks intermingled with those beautiful moments of love and life, and even sorrow, are all intertwined and caught up in the vast cosmic life of the Church and join the very love, life, and sufferings of Christ.  That reality is something that I want to illumine my very existence every day, each moment.  I want to fully embrace the importance of my life, my work, my family, and each tiny thought, word and deed's potential sanctification.  I want to live a truly holy life.

That said, I need to find somewhere to begin.  Like many, I find it perhaps too easy to make New Years resolutions only to abandon them by mid-January, or to promise myself one thing and allow my progress toward that goal to be disrupted by other trivial matters that appear to be more urgent.  What I need is grace, the very help of God, to see this life for what it really is: an opportunity to know, love and serve God that I may be happy with Him in the next.  Now I know my objective, but how to pursue such a broad and multifaceted goal?  I need some enlightenment.  Enter this morning's readings from Mass.

Isaiah 60:1-5

[1] Arise, be enlightened, O Jerusalem: for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. [2] For behold darkness shall cover the earth, and a mist the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. [3] And the Gentiles shall walk in thy light, and kings in the brightness of thy rising. [4] Lift up thy eyes round about, and see: all these are gathered together, they are come to thee: thy sons shall come from afar, and thy daughters shall rise up at thy side. [5] Then shalt thou see, and abound, and thy heart shall wonder and be enlarged, when the multitude of the sea shall be converted to thee, the. strength of the Gentiles shall come to thee.

That is exactly what I need.  I need enlightenment!  I need to rise and shine!  Each new day, I am called to do just that, just as the Magi answered that call in the Gospel of Matthew, which we heard a few minutes later in Matthew 2:1-12.  I see now that I am called to see the star, the light of the world, in Christ, and to follow where it leads.  I am called each day to continue my work and prayer, my liturgy, but the only way I can see to do that is by the Light that is given me.  Only then can I allow my heart to wonder and be enlarged; only then will I have enough Love.  I have nothing of myself, only that which is given to me.

As part of our homeschooling this year, we embarked on an Advent journey utilizing books by Tomie de Paola.  Among some real gems we read as a family was a new family favorite, The Legend of Old Befana.  In this story, a woman is awakened by the light of the Christmas star coming in her window at night, then she witnesses the great procession of the wise men and others bearing their gifts for the Child who is King, and has come to change the world.  She is too set in her ways to follow the star promptly, so she misses her opportunity to travel with the caravan, and legend has it that she never finds the Child. 

Luckily for us, we can hope to continue that journey each day, living in the light, embracing each opportunity for its potential to be our greatest act to offer our Lord and King.  

Now I have a new way to explain this concept to my boy., I can give them little roles to play.  I can encourage them to be magi, or wise men, and offer their gifts to the King.  If they are stubborn, or busy doing something inconsequential, or just slow, I can caution them not to be Old Befanas.  Most of all, I can keep this lesson in my heart, thank God for it, and try to live by it.  Rise and shine.