Today Begins the Straight Shot to Christmas
I want to pick up on last week's "resolution" as we all get back to a more normal pace this day after the Labor Day holiday weekend. We suggested that we all
The Straight Shot grew from those first first inklings of "Christmas is coming" that arise in the soul as the days grow noticeably shorter towards the end of August. Maybe you've had these feelings yourself. Since summer effectively ends with the Labor Day holiday weekend, thoughts and yearnings begin to the (albeit now distant) coming of Christmas. So from the day after Labor Day until December 25th, we can't help but see, hear and feel the approach of that great holy season that starts with the spirit of preparation beginning the first Sunday of Advent and culminates with the wonder and joy of Our Lord's birth on Christmas Day, extending then through the Twelve Days of Christmas, and only really ending (for us hard core types) with the feast of the Presentation in the Temple on February 2nd. At least that's how I see it.
But a problem arises with each year's "Straight Shot to Christmas" as I return to work the day after Labor Day. The problem is work itself. My childlike heart nurtures an image of growing excitement inspired by the coming of Christmas. But my adult responsibilities of faithfully executing the duties of my job with diligence all too frequently seem to interfere with my enjoyment of the excitement of the days leading up to Christmas. Ah, if only I didn't have to spend so much time and energy at work! If only things could be like they once were when I was a child and all I had in this world was to think and dream of the sacred and secular more and more entwined as the days passed from September, through October and November, accelerating in anticipatory excitement day by day during Advent until Christmas Eve opens its window on that pivotal day not only of my individual existence, but of the history of the world itself, the manifestation of the Incarnation of Jesus Christ as true God and true man, come to save us all from our sins and open the gates of Heaven to all Mankind who had rejected His Love in the Garden of Eden in the persons of Adam and Eve.
Still, it has occurred to me recently that work doesn't really have to get in the way for us adults to enjoy the Straight Shot to Christmas. We don't need to regret the passing of childhood simplicity if our days are ordered properly. There's no reason we can't get down to our work each day without somehow clouding our soul's enjoyment of the coming of Christmas. Perhaps these words from Abbot John Chapman O.S.B. (1865-1933) will help us see why. It all comes down to performing our daily tasks, both personally and professionally, in the true spirit of that which we have all been taught by our holy Catholic faith:
Resolve to thank God each morning for another day to know, love and serve Him. Then get on with whatever day's work awaits you. Otherwise, you're just wasting your time.With this in mind, the following remarks were additionally inspired by certain peculiar thoughts and feelings that come to me every September. We'll lump them all together and call them the "Straight Shot to Christmas."
The Straight Shot grew from those first first inklings of "Christmas is coming" that arise in the soul as the days grow noticeably shorter towards the end of August. Maybe you've had these feelings yourself. Since summer effectively ends with the Labor Day holiday weekend, thoughts and yearnings begin to the (albeit now distant) coming of Christmas. So from the day after Labor Day until December 25th, we can't help but see, hear and feel the approach of that great holy season that starts with the spirit of preparation beginning the first Sunday of Advent and culminates with the wonder and joy of Our Lord's birth on Christmas Day, extending then through the Twelve Days of Christmas, and only really ending (for us hard core types) with the feast of the Presentation in the Temple on February 2nd. At least that's how I see it.
But a problem arises with each year's "Straight Shot to Christmas" as I return to work the day after Labor Day. The problem is work itself. My childlike heart nurtures an image of growing excitement inspired by the coming of Christmas. But my adult responsibilities of faithfully executing the duties of my job with diligence all too frequently seem to interfere with my enjoyment of the excitement of the days leading up to Christmas. Ah, if only I didn't have to spend so much time and energy at work! If only things could be like they once were when I was a child and all I had in this world was to think and dream of the sacred and secular more and more entwined as the days passed from September, through October and November, accelerating in anticipatory excitement day by day during Advent until Christmas Eve opens its window on that pivotal day not only of my individual existence, but of the history of the world itself, the manifestation of the Incarnation of Jesus Christ as true God and true man, come to save us all from our sins and open the gates of Heaven to all Mankind who had rejected His Love in the Garden of Eden in the persons of Adam and Eve.
Still, it has occurred to me recently that work doesn't really have to get in the way for us adults to enjoy the Straight Shot to Christmas. We don't need to regret the passing of childhood simplicity if our days are ordered properly. There's no reason we can't get down to our work each day without somehow clouding our soul's enjoyment of the coming of Christmas. Perhaps these words from Abbot John Chapman O.S.B. (1865-1933) will help us see why. It all comes down to performing our daily tasks, both personally and professionally, in the true spirit of that which we have all been taught by our holy Catholic faith:
“We have to learn in practice what we always knew in theory: everything that happens is God’s will. God’s will always intends our good. God’s will is carving us into the likeness of His Son. Every moment is the message of God’s will; every external event, everything outside us, and even every involuntary thought and feeling within us is God’s own touch. We are in living touch with God. Everything we come in contact with, the whole of our daily circumstances, and all our interior responses, whether pleasures or pains, are God’s working. We are living in God – in God’s action, as a fish in the water. There is no question of trying to feel that God is here, or to complain of God being far, once He has taught us that we are bathed in Him, in His action, in His will.”Yes, "bathed in Him, in His action, in His will" our thoughts, actions and even our feelings no longer need to interfere with the Straight Shot to Christmas. Abbot Chapman's words free us to go about our business and enjoy the coming of Christmas. Rejoice!
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