Although this year has been yet another Christmas spent away from my beloved mountains, this year was not without it’s blessings. The hubby and I had a chance to continue turning our little house into a home as well as share a delicious meal with family. We also began some new Christmas traditions this year which we hope to carry on to future children. Wherever you are, I pray everyone is having a very Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas everyone! Whether you’re spending it cozied up with family in front of your favorite version of A Christmas Carol or reminiscing about past Christmases over dinner and eggnog, I pray everyone can celebrate the nativity of Christ surrounded by friends and family and good cheer. Here are some beloved Christmas traditions which my family loves to share every year.
Christmas Tree Hunting – In our house we never had a fake tree. While we all lived in Colorado we would gleefully bundle up, strap on our snowshoes and head out into the chilly mountain winter air in search of the perfect tree. Some years, the tree had a bit of a Charlie Brown quality to it, whether it be a doubled top or an odd bald spot at the back. Sometimes the tree was slightly too skinny or too fat or slightly bent halfway up but these quirks only made us love it more. We could never return home with the tree until we’d engaged in the annual snowball fights and sledding runs and generally wore ourselves out playing in the snow. Once home, we would crowd in the living room in our socks and slippers to decorate the tree while munching on homemade Christmas cookies.
German Christmas Cookies – During our childhood, every year around Thanksgiving we would cram ourselves into my Oma’s tiny kitchen along with all of our aunts, uncles and cousins, to help bake Oma’s legendary Christmas cookies. She always had a sixth sense for when the cookies were done. No timers in her house. Everyone would run for cover if ever someone distracted Oma and the cookies came out burnt. However, these catastrophes were rare and far between and in general, everyone was sent home with huge tins overflowing with our favorite Christmas delights.
The Christmas Puzzle – This is a bit more of an Advent tradition in our family as a partially finished jigsaw depiction of the last supper or the nativity is generally sprawled across our coffee table for the majority of the season. We always work to complete the picture by Christmas which on occasion resulted in my sister and I happily chatting until 2 in the morning to place the last pieces.
The Feast – While many people are fond of their Christmas turkey, the feast of the nativity has often spanned several days in our house. We loved embracing our Italian and German heritage respectively and there would usually be an evening for each. My sister and I always loved helping to make the annual homemade pasta. One year we even did homemade pretzels to pair with our favorite German beer for an appetizer. On Christmas morning my mom would always have cinnamon rolls and a delicious breakfast casserole hot and ready.
Go To Church – Even before we were Catholic we would don our Christmas finery to attend church with our extended family. At the time, we mostly went for the music as we were always sure to catch our favorite carols on Christmas Eve. However, having all now made our way to the Church, Christmas Eve and Christmas morning masses are something that I wouldn’t dream of missing. We still get the traditional hymns which are lovely to hear but the mass is so much more than that. Celebrating Christ’s sacrifice on the cross on the eve of His nativity is a profoundly moving experience for me, particularly when the sanctuary is overflowing with fellow parishioners. Some might grumble at the difficulty of finding parking at this particular mass but I love to see all of our fellow church goers, dressed to impress and there to reverence Christ.
In addition to all of the fun family traditions and the brightly wrapped packages under the tree, we should also let Christmas be a time of service to our neighbors. Perhaps that means bell ringing in front of the grocery store or volunteering for a local soup kitchen. Maybe it just means helping the elderly woman who lives next door hang her Christmas lights. Whatever it is, this is one Christmas tradition that your family will not forget.
For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. – Matthew 17:20-21
When asked why I converted to Catholicism it’s difficult to pinpoint an exact moment when my understanding blossomed into true belief. I’ve often said that there wasn’t a single instant which led me to the faith but many moments, both big and small, over the course of many years. Upon reflection, I think the first seeds of Catholic understanding in my life were all planted by my two wonderful parents, though we may have all been unaware at the time.
My very first exposure to Catholic teachings and literature did not come from the Bible. I first heard and fell in love with these teachings through the eloquent writings of JRR Tolkien in his tales of Middle Earth. Bedtime stories were always a must in our house growing up and Tolkien’s were our favorite. Even before any of us were Catholic and well before I myself could read, my dad spent countless evening hours sitting between my sister and I with The Lord of the Rings open in his lap, causing the letters to come alive with his various character voices as my mom sat close by knitting in her comfy armchair. To this day, my sister and I still eat up these stories, epic recounts of the eternal struggle between good and evil and all the rays of light that can still be found in a world falling into darkness. Tolkien’s work is bursting with Catholic messages and imagery.
My mom also planted slightly more literal Catholic seeds later when I grew up and moved away to Indiana. She gifted me with a small metal crucifix and a tiny car rosary. I was not Catholic at the time and had no intention of coming to the faith but my mom was not deterred. These she hung in my life with care and without my permission, the crucifix rather prominently displayed in the middle of my apartment living room and the rosary dangling from the rearview mirror in my car. Long after she returned to Colorado and left me to my new life in the Midwest, my crucifix and rosary still hung where she’d left them. In part, I was grateful for the prayers which came with them even if I myself didn’t subscribe to the faith they represented. They were little reminders of my mom’s love for me. I also knew that she’d look for them whenever she visited and never had the heart to explain why I’d moved them so they were left as they were, Christ on the cross watching over me wherever I went.
I would later find myself defending Catholicism during good natured religious debates over lunch with work friends. At the time I knew close to nothing about the faith except what my parents had told me since their return to the Church. I always felt compelled to correct the more blatant anti Catholic arguments on behalf of the two intelligent and loving people who raised me. Now I understand why. Looking back, all of these seemingly insignificant moments were indeed guiding me to the faith, one slow inch at a time.
Although we aren’t able to make it to Colorado for Christmas this year I’ll always remember fondly chilly days like these. Even if we did return to the house looking like the abominable snowman with ice sickles dripping from our hats, there’s nothing like a romp through the winter wilderness to set the world right again. I feel so blessed to have grown up in a place where hiking truly is an all seasons sport. Snow, rain or shine, with the proper footwear, there’s nothing to stop you from having a little adventure.
Though tomorrow is not a Catholic holy day of obligation it is one of the many days on the liturgical calendar during which we honor the Virgin Mary. Today marks the anniversary of the second apparition of Mary to Saint Juan Diego on Tepeyac Hill (now Mexico City). Our Lady had first instructed him to build a shrine there where she could bring comfort to all who visited. This had been met with some resistance by the bishop so Mary told Juan Diego collect roses and present them to the bishop in the dead of winter as proof of her apparition. Juan Diego did this and the cloak (tilma) he used to carry the roses can still be seen in Mexico City today, imprinted with the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Today, December 8th, marks the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, an incredibly important Catholic solemnity and one that is a holy day of obligation in the United States. This means we Catholics are required to attend this mass. As it falls during the season of Advent, the preparation for the nativity of Christ, there is a common misunderstanding about who’s immaculate conception we celebrate today. Everyone knows that Christ was conceived by the power of The Holy Spirit to the Virgin Mary. However, today we celebrate the conception of Holy Mother Mary, Queen of the Universe.
One of the first things that new Catholics learn about the faith is that, as the son of God, Christ was fully human and fully divine and therefore was without sin. This means that Christ never committed a sin during his time on Earth, from His conception to His ascension into Heaven after His resurrection from the dead. Necessarily, this also means that His mother, Mary, was without sin as her Son could not be contained in a place tainted by sin. Mary’s womb was the very first tabernacle in which our Lord resided and thus Mary must also be pure and virtuous.
This is also one of the explanations for how Mary could remain a virgin while still becoming the mother of Christ. From the moment of her birth, she was chosen to one day become the mother of God and ultimately the mother of us all. This does not mean that she had no choice in the matter. God is all knowing and outside of time. He knew what decision Mary would make when visited by the archangel, Gabriel. However, God also blesses all of humanity with free will and it was Mary’s yes which ultimately led to the salvation of mankind through the birth of Christ and His death on the cross.
Though she is merely human, Mary is venerated as the ultimate woman. She is the new Eve, the Blessed Mother, Holy Virgin, Star of the Sea and Queen of the Universe. Through her unfailing trust in God, Mary serves as a blueprint of perfect faith, obedience, and femininity. This is why we venerate the Mother of God on this feast day.
Many people, myself included, are enthusiastically getting into the Christmas spirit, decorating the tree, planning gift shopping and of course belting all the usual holiday tunes in the car. Amid the excitement it’s easy to forget that the Christmas season is in fact still several weeks away. Yesterday, December 3rd marked the beginning of the holy season of Advent, a time which is first and foremost dedicated to preparation for the nativity.
Although in countless households across the world, this preparation likely includes the baking of delicious Christmas cookies and the wrapping of toys and gadgets for family members, this should also be a time of preparation of our own hearts to receive our Lord, Jesus Christ. Our associate priest once aptly termed this time of the year as mini Lent. In addition to the jolly times and good cheer we enjoy with friends and family during the build up to Christmas, it’s also necessary to set aside time for quiet reflection and adoration of Christ. This is also a time of renewed service for many Christians, whether that be through bell ringing in front of the grocery store or by spending the weekends working at the local soup kitchen. Much like during Lent, we can all find ways to give of ourselves a little more this Advent season in a spirit of service toward our neighbors.
One of my favorite ways to embrace this spirit of giving is by helping to orchestrate the weekly Advent adoration and vespers services which have become a tradition at my home parish. The first time I witnessed one of these services I was still unbaptized and in my own process of discernment about the Catholic faith. The beauty and reverence of these evenings were instrumental in softening my heart to later receive Christ through baptism and first Eucharist. As such, I was determined to keep them as a regular Advent and Lent tradition at our church even after our former associate priest originally responsible for organizing the events was assigned elsewhere. These services were my first recognizable encounter with the Holy Spirit and the first time that I truly felt like a member of Christ’s Church. I pray that those in attendance now can receive similar graces this advent season as we all await the nativity of Christ.
I can’t help feeling a bit like a member of the Von Trapp family when surrounded by scenery like this. More than once while out on some lofty alpine trail we’ve broken into song despite our amateur musical talents. Drinking in blessings like this just makes a person want to sing.
Blessed in the Midwest 