Joy to the World!

It’s Christmas! We come together as a people of faith from all walks of life, from different backgrounds and cultures, to hear the Good News.  Advent waiting has turned into Christmas joy. Isaiah’s prophecy is fulfilled: A child is born to us, a Son given to us. He is the Prince of Peace, and his dominion is vast (see Isaiah 9:5-6).
 
Once Jesus was born, people began to flock to him—from the poorest shepherds who heard the news from angels, to the richest of wise men and kings who followed a star to be with him. We follow in those same footsteps. Instead of coming to the manger, we come to our sacred meeting place here at Saint Hubert, because here we find the Christ Child eager to be held. Here we hold his very presence in the palm of our hands in Communion with Him. We take His being into the very being of our own lives.
We don’t just come to see Him, but to be with Him.
 
In the past two and a half years, we’ve experienced Christmases like none other in recent history. Because of the pandemic, many of us had to stay apart from this sacred place. In 2020 not all of us had a “reservation at the inn,” so we couldn’t be here. But through the hard realities we faced, we found ways to connect and stay together. And so, as we gather this year, after all we experienced, we can’t help but feel the joy of being together.
 
Like Joseph and Mary experienced, the Christ child was born in the midst of uncertainty at a time and place no one expected. Joy was experienced because Jesus was born, not because the world was perfect or the conditions around them were ideal.
 
Jesus comes to us as we are, where we are. He comes to us in what may be the lowest of low times or the times of our greatest highs.  He comes into the hearts of those who want to be with Him; to experience the kind of peace only He can give. He comes to those who need to feel loved. And nothing is meant to get in the way of that.
 
We’re blessed because we’re able to come to our parish home—to experience the joy of Christmas. And if only for an hour or so, we have the ability to find the peace that comes in being with the Christ Child, who draws us together. We’ve prepared a place for him to enter into our lives.
 
Joy to the world, the Lord is come!
Let earth receive her King.
Let every heart prepare him room.
And heaven and nature sing!
 
On behalf of the parish staff, Deacons Steve, Allen and Larry, and myself, Merry Christmas! May this time you have with family and friends be filled with the joy that comes with having Christ in our lives.
 
       —Fr. Mike