Pope Francis’ homily at the vigil mass for Christmas focused on the importance of Jesus’ incarnation as a real and meaningful event. “The grace which was revealed in our world is Jesus, born of the Virgin Mary, true man and true God. He has entered our history; he has shared our journey. He came to free us from darkness and to grant us light,” said the Pope on December 24 at the mass held in St. Peter’s Basilica. “In him was revealed the grace, the mercy, and the tender love of the Father: Jesus is Love incarnate. He is not simply a teacher of wisdom, he is not an ideal for which we strive while knowing that we are hopelessly distant from it. He is the meaning of life and history, who has pitched his tent in our midst.” Happy New Year. May your 2014 be blessed and may God use you to create a better, more peace-filled world.

After a tiring day of work as a construction day laborer, a weary Aurelio was looking forward to seeing his wife, Maria, and their five children in their small, cramped apartment in downtown Los Angeles. But the sight that greeted him when the door opened made his eyes pop with confusion, and later made his heart swell with gratitude: the joyful faces of his entire family surrounded by an avalanche of gifts in their tiny living room, all thanks to Adopt-A-Family. "I was incredulous. I knew they said they were going to help us, but we didn't know they were going to give us so much," Aurelio (last name withheld by request) said later. "We just thank God that it was true," he told The Tidings, newspaper of the Los Angeles Archdiocese. Adopt-A-Family is a Los Angeles archdiocesan outreach program coordinated by the Mission Office that provides gifts of household essentials and longed-for presents to hundreds of struggling local families with children every December. "My kids were so happy to receive so many presents, everything they had asked for," continued Aurelio, a native of Mexico. "I've lived here in the U.S. for almost 15 years and I had never experienced anything like this. We are ending this year on a positive note. Thank you to everyone who made this a happy Christmas for us." This is the best of what Christmas can be. We all need to make a difference in our part of the world. Merry Christmas to you and yours!

Christmas came early for 10-year-old Tora Schneider of Waupaca. On December 14, her Christmas wish to help other children was granted. With the aid of her mother and stepfather, Tora delivered more than 50 wrapped presents to children at Love Life Ministry, located in the basement of a building adjacent to St. Joseph Church in Green Bay. In early December, when Tora wrote her letter to Santa, her request was simple: "All I want for Christmas is for at least 20 kids in need" to receive gifts. So taken aback were her mother, Lora Tankersley, and stepfather, Darick Tankersley, that they did all they could to make Tora's wish come true. "I cried," said Lora. "I was so happy. We have six kids and a foster daughter and for her to be the only one (to make the request), it made my day." It turned out to be a daunting request. It took a few tries to find a place that would accept the gifts Tora wanted to hand out. The family finally learned about Green Bay's Love Life Ministry, which collects and distributes baby items to needy mothers, and contacted Sharon Zambrowicz, one of the ministry's volunteer organizers. "I just thought it was a great idea," said Zambrowicz, a member of St. Joseph Parish. "I'm just glad we were able to accommodate her. I know the families that come here and I picked out the ones that I thought were most needy." This is what Christmas is all about. Put down the credit card today and pray for peace on earth!

Pope Francis cautioned Christians not to be overly-critical of those who preach the Gospel, emphasizing that focusing too much on personal precepts keeps us from being happy. Reflecting on the day’s Gospel reading in which Jesus compares the generation to children who are always unhappy or dissatisfied, the Pope stated that “The people of God have a certain allergy to the preachers of the Word: they persecuted the prophets, (even) killed them.” Following the day’s readings, Pope Francis explored the meaning of the Gospel passage, taken from Matthew, explaining that the unhappiness of the people in that generation was because they were “not open to the Word of God.” Their refusal to listen, he noted, had nothing to do with the message, but the messenger, adding that “They reject John the Baptist,” who came “neither eating nor drinking,” saying that he was “a man possessed.” They rejected Jesus, the Pope observed, referring to him as “a glutton, a drunkard, a friend of publicans and sinners,” going on to say that the people always had a reason to criticize the preacher. “The people of that time preferred to take refuge in a more elaborate religion,” the Pope emphasized, “in the moral precepts, such as the group of Pharisees; in political compromise, as the Sadducees; in social revolution, as the zealots; in gnostic spirituality, such as Essenes. They were (happy) with their clean, well-polished system. The preacher, however, was not (so pleased),” the pontiff explained, recalling that Jesus reminded them of how their ancestors had treated the prophets in the same way. These people, noted the Pope, claim to accept the truth, “but the preacher, preaching, no. They prefer a life caged in their precepts, in their compromises, in their revolutionary plans or in their (disembodied) spirituality. These Christians are closed, they are trapped, sad,” observed the Pope, “these Christians are not free. Why? Because they are afraid of the freedom of the Holy Spirit, which comes through preaching.” Stating that “This, then, is the scandal of preaching,” the pontiff recalled the words of Saint Paul in which the apostle referred to “the scandal of preaching that ends in the scandal of the Cross,” adding that “that God should speak to us through men with limits, sinful men, scandalizes. And what scandalizes even more,” stated the Pope, “is that that God should speak to us and save us by way of a man who says he is the Son of God but ends (his life) as a criminal. That scandalizes. These sad Christians,” the pontiff observed, “do not believe in the Holy Spirit, do not believe in the freedom that comes from preaching, which admonishes you, teaches you – slaps you, as well – but it is the very freedom that makes the Church grow.” In seeing “these children who are afraid to dance, to cry, (who are) afraid of everything, who ask for certainty in all things,” Pope Francis reflected, “I think of these sad Christians, who always criticize the preachers of the Truth, because they are afraid to open the door to the Holy Spirit.” Concluding his homily, the Pope urged the Mass attendees to “pray for them,” and to “pray also for ourselves, that we do not become sad Christians, cutting off the freedom of the Holy Spirit to come to us through the scandal of preaching.”

On this morning's episode of “Today Show” Time Magazine announced their choice of Pope Francis for the 2013 “Person of the Year,” stating that he is changing the “tone and perception” of the Church. Reacting to the news, Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi issued a comment, calling it “unsurprising considering the resonance and very widespread attention given to the election of Pope Francis and the beginning of his pontificate. It is a positive sign that one of the most prestigious acknowledgements in the field of the international press has been attributed to one who proclaims spiritual, religious and moral values in the world,” he said, and “who speaks effectively in favor of peace and greater justice.” The Pope, Fr. Lombardi stressed, “does not seek fame and success, since he carries out his service for the proclamation of the Gospel and the love of God for all.” However, noted the spokesman, “If this attracts men and women and gives them hope, the Pope is content. If this nomination as 'Person of the Year' means that many have understood this message, at least implicitly, he will certainly be glad.” According to Today News, the recipient of the annual award is chosen by Time’s editorial staff as an individual that has “had the most impact on the world and the news – for better or worse – over the past year.” Previous pontiffs who have received the award, which was first given to Charles Lindbergh in 1927 with the title “Man of the Year,” are Popes John the XXIII in 1962, and Blessed John Paul II in 1994. I couldn't agree more with this choice. Pope Francis is allowing God to use him as an effective instrument to blunt some of the secularism that has invaded our lives more and more in recent times.

While rereading Rick Warren's The Purpose of Christmas, I was reminded how easy it is to forget the reason for the season. Despite the bumper stickers, I still find myself being sucked into the giant "Black Friday-Cyber Monday" vortex. But Rick reminds us that this has happened before. It must have been so bad that God invaded the earth (as Rick says humorously). It's funny but memorable and thought provoking which is what good teachers do. Yes Jesus was sent to let us know how much God loves us. It didn't make any difference that God kept telling his people that they were loved. We don't even have to work for it. God loves us because God is love. But just to give us one more jolt that we could never forget, God sent his son Jesus to save us from our sins. Now Jesus was a lot like other invaders. He spoke a different language that focused on love, forgiveness, and peace. He called us to be meek and love God like little children. He asked his chosen twelve followers to give up their homes, families, jobs; really everything that they had come to hold dear. Jesus offered them eternal life and he enrolled them in a management training program that would forever change their lives.  Jesus was the ultimate CEO and like any good leader who builds something and wants it to last, he planned for his succession. Jesus knew that the apostles would have to continue to build his church on earth once he returned to Heaven. But make no mistake, Jesus did come to conquer. He only wanted the entire world. And to prove that he was serious, he gave his life. He stretched out his arms, showing the breadth of his love, and allowed himself to be nailed to the cross. So the baby Jesus that we celebrate on Christmas day grew into the savior of the world. His gift to us is eternal life but we do have to give something in return. He wants our lives. He wants to use us to further his invasion. Because his time on earth was only the beginning and we are called to continue the battle until he comes again to complete the war. So as we continue to prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus, the day that forever changed the world, let us truly focus on the reason for the season. Make this advent preparation time worthy of the effort that Jesus gave. Take the time to demonstrate to the world that Christians, followers of Jesus Christ, are here to change the world. Be meek, peace-makers. Reach out to those less fortunate. Bring some joy into a life that may be filled with loneliness. Invade your part of the world with the ferociousness of a prayer warrior worthy to be called a disciple of Christ. Come Emmanuel and change the world.

After a shipwreck off the coast of Nigeria, a 29-year-old man survived three days at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean while constantly reciting a psalm his wife mentioned to him during their last conversation. Harrison Okene was a Nigerian cook on the tugboat Jascon 4, which was one of three vessels pulling an oil tanker. It capsized and sank about 32 kilometers off the coast of Nigeria in late May with its 12 crewmembers aboard. Although the shipwreck occurred in May, a video of the dramatic rescue surfaced this week and was published by the Associated Press on YouTube. The video shows Okene being found alive by divers who were inspecting the shipwreck. Okene was in the bathroom when the boat sank 100 feet to the ocean floor. He was trapped in an air pocket, where he remained for three days reciting a passage from Psalm 54: “Oh God, by your name save me...The Lord sustains my life.” The video captures the moment in which a diver saw the cook's hand and thought it belonged to a dead body. When the hand grasped at him, he shouted, “He's alive, he's alive,” to his fellow rescue workers, who were watching on monitors on the surface. Okene said he thought only a miracle would lead to his rescue and during the long wait, he began “reminiscing on the verses I read before I slept. I read the Bible from Psalm 54 to 92. My wife had sent me the verses to read that night when she called me before I went to bed.” In an interview with Nigerian newspaper The Nation, Okene recalled that he began to invoke the name of God and that he was in a daze because the surroundings went completely dark. Wow #jesussaves.

Pope Francis reflected on the season of Christmas, explaining that it is a time to encounter the Lord in faith, and allow him to renew our lives. The Pope said, Christmas, “isn’t just a temporal celebration or the memory of a beautiful (event); Christmas is more…Christmas is an encounter!” As we progress through the season of Advent, “we go by this road to meet the Lord,” the Pope stated, “we walk to meet him,” to “encounter him with the heart, with life; encounter him alive, as He is; encounter him with faith.” Turning to the day's Gospel reading in which the centurion comes to Jesus asking him to heal his servant only by “saying the word,” Pope Francis noted that “it is not easy to live with faith,” emphasizing how in the Gospel the Lord “marveled at this centurion: he marveled at the faith that he had. He had walked to meet the Lord, but he did so with faith. For this reason he not only encountered the Lord, but he felt the joy of being met by the Lord. And this,” the pontiff pointed out, “is precisely the encounter that we want: the encounter of faith.” When it is only us who seek an encounter with Christ, continued the Pope, “we are – in quotation marks, let's say – the masters of this meeting,” but on the contrary, when we allow him to encounter us “and it is he himself who enters us…it is he that re-makes us all over again.” This renewal is the fruit of letting Christ encounter us, the Pope explained, “because this is the coming, this is what it means when Christ comes: to make everything new.” Jesus, he said, re-makes “the heart, the soul, life, hope,” and “our path,” adding that “We are on a journey of faith, with the faith of that centurion, to meet the Lord and mainly to let him encounter us!” The pontiff then stressed the importance of having an open heart in order for this encounter to take place, explaining that it is also crucial to be open to what the Lord wants to tell us, noting that “what he wants to tell me,” is often not “what I want him to tell me!” However, the Pope observed, “He is the Lord,” and what he tells us is meant for each of us personally, because “the Lord does not look at everyone together, like a mass. No, no! He looks everyone in the face, in the eyes, because love is not abstract: love is concrete!” Concluding his reflections, Pope Francis emphasized that this love is “from person to person: the Lord, a person, looks at me, a person. Letting ourselves be encountered by God means just this,” he stated, “to let ourselves be loved by the Lord!”