Excerpt:  Job’s cry of hopelessness (1) stands in marked contrast to the hope of those who put their trust in Jesus (3), who “heals the broken hearted and binds up their wounds.”  Such are the blessings of the good news.

Excerpt:  As Moses challenged the Israelites to listen to God’s voice (1), so we are called to hear the voice of Jesus and live out His teachings (3) by what we say and do, whatever our vocation in life may be (2).

Excerpt: The Ninevites heard the preaching of Jonah and repented of their evil ways (1), thus experiencing the Lord’s compassion.  Do we repent when we hear the preaching of Jesus (3)?  Do we invest our lives in the world rather than in God’s Kingdom (2)?

There are four wonderful themes from the gospel. 1) There is the theme of “good news.” 2) There is the theme of “repentance.” 3) There is the theme of “belief.” 4) And there is the theme of “following the Lord.” The first theme, “good news” has six supporting parts.

a)   The “good news” is good because it speaks the truth about our human nature. We all need a sense of knowing that God is part of us and we are part of God. That’s why Jesus is one of us; so that we might be like Jesus. The good news is the truth about us and God. We are united with God and God with us. That’s truth; and that is good news.

b)   The good news is hope. There are least two gospel passages that relate to us that, “nothing is impossible for God.” That’s hope and that is good news. [Matthew 19: 26].

c)   The good news is peace. There is a rift between good people and bad people, between life and death. Only Jesus had victory over good and bad, life and death; over sin and grace. The power of Peace is good news.

d)   The good news is “promise.” Many people think of God in terms of threats. The God of Jesus speaks in promises; God is ready to give more than what we expect. It’s a promise. That’s good news.

e)   The good news is “resurrection.” Death meant the end of all things. With Jesus death is yet another step in life; we call it life after life; that’s good news.

f)    The good news is “salvation.” Salvation is not just escape from sin and liberation from past wrong doings of humanity. Salvation means a whole life and death change. It means living life and dying in the ways of the Lord; for the Lord gives life and death an eternal meaning. Salvation is good news.

      The second big theme from the gospel is “repentance.” The theme of repentance is simple. “Change your mind.” Change your mind about destroying yourselves and others. We can do that with Jesus.

The third big theme from the gospel reading is “believe.” To believe is to take Jesus at His word. Why believe? Because God will make any sacrifice to bring us to Himself. Take Him at His word.

The fourth big theme from the gospel reading is “follow me.” This is a personal invitation from God to all of us. “Be my partners.”  “Follow me.”

Our four themes from the gospel are 1) Good News. 2) Repent. 3) Believe, and 4) Follow. These four themes from the gospel provide guidelines for a partnership with Jesus. The following is a humorous story about partnership with Jesus.

“Finkelstein and Jesus”

Jesus was wandering around Jerusalem when he decided that he really needed a new robe. After looking around for awhile, he saw a sign for Finkelstein, the Tailor. . . So, he went in and made the necessary arrangements to have Finkelstein prepare a new robe for him. A few days later, when the robe was finished, Jesus tried it on – - and it was a perfect fit.

He asked how much he owed. Finkelstein brushed him off, “No, no, no, for the Son of God there is no charge! However, may I ask for a small favor? Whenever you give a sermon, perhaps you could must mention that your nice new robe was made by Finkelstein, the Tailor?” Jesus readily agreed and as promised, extolled the virtues of his Finkelstein robe whenever he spoke to the masses.

A few months later, while Jesus was again walking through Jerusalem, he happened to walk past Finkelstein’s shop and noted a huge line of people waiting for Finkelstein’s robes. He pushed he way through the crowd to speak to him and as soon as spotted him he said, “Jesus, Jesus, look what you have done for my business! Would you consider a partnership?” “Certainly,” replied Jesus, “That’s why I’m here. I am in the business of partnering.”

“Jesus & Finkelstein it is.” “Oh, no, no,” said Finkelstein. “Finkelstein & Jesus,” “After all, I am the craftsman,” said Finkelstein. The two of them debated this for some time.

Their discussion was long and spirited, but ultimately fruitful – - and they finally came up with a mutually acceptable compromise. A few days later, the new sign went up over Finkelstein’s shop: “Lord and Taylor.”

Mother Teresa of India had a tough but rewarding life with Jesus. Asked why she did what she did, she would answer, “because Jesus is everything for me; Jesus is everything for me.”

So we pray:  Lord Jesus, we are challenged by gospel themes that give life, purpose, direction, and peace. When You say, “follow,” please help us to have conviction to follow You in every way, every day. A simple prayer we make in the name of Jesus.  Amen.

Rev. A. J. Geraci

St. Paul Church

Yellow Springs, OH

Excerpt:  Through Baptism we have been joined to the Lord (2) who calls us to be His disciples (3).  How well do we listen to His voice (1)?  How willing are we do His will?

All of us grow up hearing a call. Perhaps it was our parents calling us for supper. Perhaps it was our teachers calling us to order in the classroom. Perhaps it was our athletic instructor calling us to make the right play Perhaps it was our music director calling us to sing the correct musical passage with the correct musical notes. Perhaps it was our future wife or future husband calling us to a blessed friendship in marriage. Perhaps it was a pastor or bishop calling us to service in the Church. Perhaps it was Uncle Sam calling us to serve the country. Perhaps it was the Internal Revenue Service calling us to pay our taxes. There are calls all around us.

Samuel got a call from God to be a prophet. St. Peter and St. Andrew got a call from Jesus to be apostles.

Once a person answers the call, the person changes; the person fulfills the requirements of the call; the person grows into the answer; the person becomes the answer to the call. Persons called to marriage become best friends to each other and they become mothers and fathers to children. Persons called to the service format of the country become protectors, peace keepers, and helpful leaders in the legislative, judicial, and executive branches of government. Persons called to serve the Church become teachers, pastors, missionaries of all sorts, and spiritual leaders of every kind. People become living answers to the call.

So we pray:  Lord Jesus, there are many calls. We know that we are the answer to each call. When You call, and You will, help us to discern what it is You want; what will be pleasing to You; and then, help to do it. Through Jesus we pray, for He is Lord forever and ever.  Amen.

Rev. A. J. Geraci

St. Paul Church

Yellow Springs, OH

Excerpt:  All nations are invited to sing the Lord’s praises for they have been called to hear the good news (2) and worship the long-awaited Messiah and King (3) with the gift of their lives.

There is an Epiphany legend that originates somewhere in ancient Persia. The legend goes something like this:  Once upon a time, a long time ago, a star, somewhere in that invisible world, left the heart of God and shot through the universe. It crashed through invisible barriers and then crashed through the invisible barriers of  the visible universe. It moved at the speed of light and all the other stars of the visible universe hushed their glow, dimmed their beauty and bowed their heads as this great star broke all the barriers of time and space. Down it moved, from an uncreated universe to a created universe, down, down toward the earth. Sprung from the heart of God it kept moving, silently, mysteriously, yet majestically. And when it encountered the atmosphere of the earth it split in two, a part of it circling the earth and the other part imbedding itself in the heart of the earth.

Oh yes, observers noted this new star. They  noted the radiance, a new light, coming from above; and they felt the radiance coming from somewhere in the caverns of the earth. It was as if the light of God was above, below, and everywhere. Three old observers, Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar charted the movement of this split star and they were overjoyed, filled with hope at what was to come.

There was one observer, however, who disliked the whole event. He was an evil genius. He knew Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar. They had all been educated together. And Gaspar, Melchior and Balthazar knew the evil genius. His name was Sargon. What a sour old person he was. All this talk about a star, a new radiance from within the earth and a light orbiting the earth. Well as fate would have it, Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar were on their way to a small village where the new radiance seemed to be found from above and below. They met Sargon. “Tell us, Sargon, have you discovered the meaning of this new light?” “No,” said the evil genius, “but I will.”

As the days passed, Sargon located the inner radiance. It was coming from a small cave tucked in the earth in a Near Eastern village. Sargon noticed a father, a mother, and a newborn child. They had been anticipated by the radiance of the star, both from above, and from below. Sargon only complained, “What’s so special about another newborn child, a newborn to parents who were Jewish peasants?”

On the other hand, Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar, and any number of curious shepherds were overcome with joy and hope, and a new sense of well being. In fact, Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar presented this child with gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The gifts were remarkable indicators of the destiny of this child clothed in the radiance of a star.

Old Sargon was having nothing of it. If he could not be happy, nobody could be happy. If he had no hope about this world, nobody was allowed to have hope  about  this  world.  If  he  could not believe in a heaven, where a star sprang from the heart of God, then, for sure, nobody was going to believe in a parallel, uncreated universe. Sargon began to assemble his forces. As he went from place to place, he ran into his old friends from Persia, Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar. His old friends knew that Sargon was up to no good. “Sargon,” they said, “open your heart and your mind and discover this child of Bethlehem, wrapped in the light of a star sent from the heart of God.”

“Nonsense,” said Sargon, “I’m only interested in what this light from the sky will do for me. I’m only interested in what the light from the cave will do for me. To hell with the child and his peasant parents.”

“Have it your way,” said Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar. “But Sargon, they said, “your way will not last.” And the three wise men disappeared into the night. They repeated their warning that “your way will not last.” Time passed and Sargon was dead, and gone. But the holy child shines on, forever.

So we pray:  Christ Jesus, sprung from the very heart of God, yet now taking flesh in the heart of this world, radiant light all around us, from within the earth and from the heavens above, You outshine the darkness of ignorance and sin; help us to choose You that outshines the darkness of ignorance and sin, help us to choose You as our hope, our wisdom, our truth. You are King, God, and Sacrifice. As King, You establish a peace not of this world; as God, You redeem us and save us from our destructive, unloving ways; as Sacrifice you gave yourself completely, suffering on a cross to prove Your love for all of us. Help us to choose You and Your ways of living, loving, and dying. For our ways will not last.

Hear our prayer Lord, for we need You. You are  the radiance of God’s wisdom. You are the star that will never set. You are hope that is forever, and love that is never spent. Your ways outlast our ways, and You live forever and ever.   Amen.

Rev. A. J. Geraci

St. Paul Church

Yellow Springs, OH

We are celebrating the Octave of Christmas. Today is the last day of the Octave. The Octave started last Sunday, Christmas Day, and includes today the eighth day after Christmas. The octave celebrations have their roots in Jewish practices which were then copied in the early Church, but with a Christian perspective.

The Christmas Octave means that starting with Christmas Day, every day after Christmas Day is a celebration of Christmas Day up to and including the eighth day.

When Jesus was born, in good Jewish style, eight days were designated to celebrate His birth. So in a manner of speaking and in ritual practice, the Jewish families celebrated each day as a birthday. Then came the eighth day. The eighth day had a double meaning. It was first of all, the last day celebration   of     the    birth   of   Jesus.    Secondly, since  it  was  the last day celebration it took on a special significance; instead of just celebrating a birth, the birth took on new meaning derived from the name of the child. On the eighth day, in good Jewish style, the child was circumcised and named. The name gave a special direction to the life of the child. The child was given the name “Jesus,” the name the angel had given Him before he was conceived. The name Jesus implies that the child would take on the direction of being Saviour, Son of God, Son of Mary, Redeemer, Messiah, Lord. His name, Jesus, meant that He would save His people, and all who would believe in Him.

One fellow in the parish commented that he thought that the eighth day after Christmas was Epiphany. I explained, “no,” that the Epiphany is the twelfth day after Christmas. The eighth day is the day of Circumcision, the day of naming the child. We also call the eighth day, the Solemnity of the Motherhood of Mary. We honor Mary as Mother of the Saviour, Mother of Jesus who is Son of God, Lord, Messiah, and Redeemer.

Now we move to the end of Jesus’ life. There is a special octave, a special eight day occurrence.

On Palm Sunday Jesus enters Jerusalem as King, as God, as Sacrifice. He enters Jerusalem as  royal Son of the royal line of David. Jesus enters Jerusalem also as Son of God; His miracles attest to His Divine Power; so do His divine words. He enters as Sacrifice; His love for all of us cost Him His life. Every day for a full week, for a full eight days, Jesus is living out His role as King, God, and Sacrifice. We call these eight days, Holy Week. It is the same themes each day that week. Pontius Pilate admits with a question, “So you are a King?” The leaders of Jerusalem convict Jesus of claiming to be God. And Jesus is led to the sacrifice of the cross. Then on the Eighth Day, Jesus is given a new direction, a new dimension; on the eighth day Jesus rose from the dead. The meaning of His resurrection is cosmic. All creation suddenly has an eight day meaning, all creation takes a step from sin to redemption and from death to life, life in the resurrection. Yes, on that eighth day, not only did Jesus change, but Jesus changed all creation with Him. Life moved on to a new dimension, to a new day of creation. All life moved on to an eighth day event, the Day of Resurrection.

Now the same fellow in the parish asked me if there were now eight days in the week. I said, “no.” The “eight day title” simply gives the seventh day a new meaning, a new direction, just like the octave of the birth of Jesus did when He was born; just like Easter Sunday does for Holy Week.

There is an old expression which comes from antiquity, “eight day wonder.” And that is what Jesus was and is. That’s what the octave of Christmas means. That’s what Holy Week means: “Jesus is an eighth day wonder.”

So we pray:  Lord Jesus, Your birth, life, and death changed all of us, and all of creation. Thank you for what You accomplished for us in the two,  eight day experiences. Hear our prayer for You live forever and ever.   Amen.

Rev. A. J. Geraci

St. Paul Catholic Church

Yellow Springs, OH

It is believed that it happened in 1223. In that year, in a town called Gubbio, something wrong was happening, something terribly wrong. When the citizens of Gubbio awoke in early December of 1223, lo and behold, there was nothing left of the night travelers. And there was not one victim, but many victims around the town of Gubbio. Those who ventured out at night were suddenly and viciously reduced to a bag of bones.

Well, the town of Gubbio, was filled with  merchants and businessmen. “This must stop,” said the mayor of Gubbio, “we cannot afford to have our businesses interrupted by some phantom monster reducing our citizens to a pile of bones during the night.” So the mayor of Gubbio, the town council, and a group of businessmen decided that they should keep watch over the town during those cold, cold  nights  of  early  December  in  1223.  So  the mayor appointed special guards. But all the guards proved to be failures. The phantom still attacked; and where it attacked, there was only a bag of bones of what was a human being.

Well, the town council, the mayor, and all the businessmen were in quite a quandry over what to do. Until, until a little woman in the corner of the council chamber spoke up. She was an old, old woman, a merchant woman, wise in her business but also holy. She had a “spiritual” connection to things. And so this old, old, wise woman told the proud mayor, the town council, and the business representatives that they should watch at the entrance of the city. “Look for the orange/yellow eyes. The eyes will appear across the field, a distance from the city,” she said. “Watch carefully.” So the mayor and the town council all took up positions on the city wall at the front gate. And, lo and behold, sure enough, at midnight from the forest beyond  came  the  terrible  looking    orange/yellow  eyes.   Out   of   the woods, across the field, up to the wall, up and over the city wall, into Gubbio went the eyes; and the shadow of the phantom disappeared into its streets.

The next morning all gathered at the town hall. And once again the town police reported to the mayor, the town council, and the business representatives that sure enough there was a bag of bones of some poor person who had been destroyed by this phantom.

“Phantom?” cried the old, wise woman, “it is no phantom. In your history it has happened before, it is the wolf of the night,” she said, “it is the wolf of Gubbio.”

All of the town council, the mayor, and the business people looked at her in amazement, with eyes wide open! “What shall we do?” questioned the mayor of Gubbio.

The wise old woman said that they must talk to the wolf and persuade it from devouring the citizens of Gubbio.

“How can we do that?” questioned the mayor. “Go  over  to  the  town  of  Perugia,”  she  said, “there in the town of Perugia is a man who can talk to animals. Get the man and bring him to Gubbio and have him talk to the wolf so that the wolf will not devour the citizens of Gubbio.”

The proud mayor, the town council and a delegation of businessmen decided they would visit Perugia to find the man who could talk to animals.

When the delegation arrived at Perugia, they asked, “Where is the man was who speaks to animals?” The citizens of Perugia knew about the man who spoke to animals and pointed him out. “There he is, that little man laying brick on the wall of the old church.”

So the proud mayor of Gubbio persuaded the little, unassuming man to travel to Gubbio and to talk to the wolf.

That same evening, deep in December, on the darkest night, December 21, 1223, the little man was asked to go across the field into the woods and talk to the wolf.

The little man did as they requested.

It was midnight and the little man walked across the field and into the woods. It was so dark that the poor little man could see nothing. So the little man closed his eyes, stretched out his hands and walked forward. Then, suddenly, the little man could sense with his hands the presence of the large, black wolf with orange/yellow eyes. The wolf was snarling and angry and ready to pounce on the little man.

But the little man spoke, “Brother wolf; brother wolf, the people of Gubbio have sent me to talk to you;   to   remind   you   not  to  kill;   to  keep   God’s commandments and to be a good loving creature of God.”

The wolf snarled and blinked. Then the wolf spoke, “They have taken my land and I am hungry. They have taken my hills and pasture and so I have no food. They have fenced in the stream and so I have no water to drink. No food, no water, and no place to live except to hide in these woods. I am forced to visit the city and eat what I can find.” “I will speak to the mayor and to the people. I will tell them to feed you,” said the little man. “But you must promise not to break the commandments. You must promise never to kill again in the city of Gubbio.” “Yes,” said the wolf, “I promise.” The little man returned to the city of Gubbio. It was early in the morning. The proud mayor was anxiously waiting the return of the little man. “What do you have to say?” questioned the proud mayor. “Feed your wolf,” said the little man. “What? What does that mean?” questioned the proud mayor.

The little man told the proud mayor that the wolf promised never to kill a human being; but that you must promise to feed him. “Feed your wolf each night,” said the little man.

“Feed the wolf, our wolf? That is not our wolf and I’ll not feed it,” cried the proud mayor. But that night in December, the darkest time of the year, other citizens had other ideas. Beginning with the wise old woman and continuing with many more wise people, they fed the wolf, the wolf of Gubbio. Yes, late in the evening, close to midnight, one door opened in a house with the light of a candle. A hand reached out of the door holding a dish of food. Then another door and then another. That night at midnight, the phantom wolf with eyes of yellow/orange, that night, a wolf was tamed and fed, and at the break of morning, there was not a bag of bones to be seen in all of Gubbio, and every citizen was safe.

A few days later, so the legend goes, on the 24^th of December, in the region of Assisi, in the town of Greccio, right before the stroke of midnight, the first live nativity scene was on display. It was a fascinating sight. There were real people portraying the persons of St. Joseph and the Blessed Virgin Mary; and there were sheep, an ox, a donkey, shepherds, and, oh yes, the little man from Perugia was there. His name was Francis; Francis of Assisi. But that’s not all: Out of the woods and up over the city walls came a phantom, with yellow/orange eyes. It was the wolf. But this time it crept close to Francis. They knew each other. Then the wolf went toward the Nativity Scene, the first live one since Christ was born. The wolf came close to one of the shepherds, and the shepherd put his arm around the wolf and the wolf bowed its head in adoration of the Christ Child, Jesus. St. Francis was there and made it happen. And in nativity scenes all over the world, from that time onward, we will see a shepherd with a dog. But citizens of Gubbio will say differently. “That is not the shepherd’s dog, it is the Wolf of Gubbio.”

The point of our story is to say that Francis was chosen to teach the citizens of Gubbio to bring a holy balance to nature. The field, the forest, the land and the stream were all selfishly commandeered by humans.

The citizens of Gubbio had to make up for their selfish sins instead of blaming the phantom wolf. But long before Francis, there was Christ, foretold by prophets, announced by John the Baptist, and born of the Virgin Mary. Jesus tamed the wolf of impaired human behavior, the wolf of evil begetting evil inside each of us. These evils are the sins of pride, selfishness, and greed, at the expense of all other creatures. The cycle of taking and hurting seemed to continue without end by the citizens of this world, until, until at the right moment, the Son of God became flesh. In him there was no sin, no guile, no greed,   and   no   selfishness.   Rather,   there   was balance, and beauty, truth, wisdom, understanding, care and unreserved love; in Him was the active concern of giving of one’s self without unwarranted taking. In the Christ Child was the balance and proportion of all nature and all humanity.

So we pray:  Lord Jesus, You came to restore balance and unity to all creation. Lord Jesus, curb our inclinations to hurt each other. Let us not cause others to become evil because of our evil. Teach us to live with each other, to seek the common good and to love unselfishly just as You unselfishly loved us. We ask this in Your name for you live forever and ever.   Amen.

Rev. A. J. Geraci

St. Paul Church

Yellow Springs, OH