Wednesday, December 24, 2025

 

 Jesús es la Razón para la Celebración

 

Aquí en los Estados Unidos, la temporada navideña comienza al finalizar la famosa parada que Macy’s patrocina todos los años el jueves de Acción de Gracias. La parada termina con una carroza en la que llegan Santa Claus y Mrs. Claus.

 

Siempre me pregunto, con un poco de tristeza, ¿ pero, es que este es el símbolo de la Navidad? Si estás leyendo este artículo, estoy seguro que para ti el símbolo de la Navidad es otro, la escena del nacimiento; el niño Jesús en el centro, la virgen y San José, pastores y los animales tradicionales.

 

Es que esta escena que representa el gran misterio del amor de Dios por la humanidad, tiene que ser el centro de nuestras vidas, la razón por la cual vivimos.

 

Pero, desafortunadamente,  la navidad del comercio, la navidad del radio y la televisión, la navidad del mundo trata de ignorar lo que realmente celebramos.

 

Pero hay más:  se ha puesto de moda desear “happy holidays” o como lo dicen en español, “felices fiestas”. No, yo quiero desearte y quiero que me desees una  feliz Navidad. Ya lo ha expresado claramente el cieguito de Lares cuando cantó, “ Feliz Navidad, Feliz Navidad, próspero año y felicidad,  ‘I want to wish you a merry Christmas from the bottom of my heart“! 

 

Es la conmemoración del nacimiento del hijo de Dios lo que celebramos. Es que,repito, un misterio tan grande lo que celebramos que algunos pretenden como si eso no lo fuera.

 

¿ Por qué ese afán de presentarnos la navidad de los trineos bellísimos tirados por flamantes cabellos en escenas de invierno, la navidad de Santa Claus, la navidad de los verdes pinos cuadrados de frutas rojas, la navidad de los venados y las escenas de campos pueblos blancos de nieve?

 

:¿ Por qué enfocarnos en  la navidad de las compras,  los regalos, las fiestas y los excesos en la bebida?

 

Todo lo dicho anteriormente no es malo, es bueno.  Estar alegre, es bueno, festejar es bueno celebrar, es bueno, recrearse en escenas bellas, es bueno, también regalar y recibir regalos.   Todo esto es bueno siempre y cuando no nos distraigan del verdadero sentido de la Navidad.  Siempre y cuando no nos olvidemos que el mayor regalo de Navidad nos lo da el Padre, su Hijo que viene al mundo para nosotros.  Creo, Señor,ayuda mi falta de fe..

 

Aquí en los Estados Unidos ya se ha estado consciente de esta problemática y las iglesias han hecho campañas para mantener a Jesús en el centro de la Navidad. Todos hemos oído “slogans” tales como “ Jesus is the reason for the season“ “ Jesús es la razón para la celebración“ y otro conocido es “ Keep Christ in Christmas”, “ mantengamos a Cristo en la Navidad.

 

Me vuelvo a preguntar, “¿por qué Navidad sin Jesús? ¿ por qué nos olvidamos o ignoramos el verdadero sentido de la Navidad?

 

Respetuosamente ofrezco la siguiente opinión. Pienso que tenemos un sentido equivocado de quién es Dios y por qué Dios envió a su hijo a vivir entre nosotros.

 

Si nuestro concepto de Dios es uno negativo, si pensamos que Dios es un juez que está observando nuestra conducta para castigarnos, que es un Dios opresor más bien que libertador, entonces vamos a querer olvidarnos de Él o por lo menos ignorarlo, pretender que no existe.

 

Pero si entendemos la gran verdad que Jesús vino a enseñarnos, que vino a revelarnos: que Dios es un padre amoroso, que él es papito, “Daddy”, que es misericordioso , compasivo y nos perdona,  no castiga, que mandó  a Jesú, su Hijo, al mundo para que pagara nuestras culpas, para librarnos del pecado y de la muerte eterna.   Si creyéramos que Dios nos ama, que nos conoce por nombre, que siempre está a nuestro lado para protegernos, qué quien tiene a Dios, nada más necesita, entonces viviríamos  el gran misterio de la Navidad todos los días de nuestra vida.

 

Amigas y amigos lectores les deseo que la celebración de la Navidad les llene de alegría, de paz y de esperanza y que fortalezca su fe.

 

Feliz Navidad, mil bendiciones en el nuevo año

y feliz día de los santos Reyes.

 

El caballero de Nuestra Señora

 

 

 

Thursday, December 18, 2025

Theo-drama

 At one time my family and I were involved in community theater in our parish.  At first just my family - my wife, my son and my daughter – just did it.  They were in the Sound of Music.  I didn’t get involved, but when I saw them having so much fun, I said I have to get involved!  Why was I sitting home?  So when the next show came around, I said I have to audition.  The next show was the Wizard of Oz, so I went to the auditions.  I think I sang, “Happy birthday” at my audition, and I landed a role as a munchkin in Munchkinland.  So I got to sing “Ding Dong the Witch is Dead” and “We’re Off to see the Wizard”.  It was literally a small role, no pun intended, but being in the show I felt like I was part of something much bigger.  


Once I had the theater bug, more parts came as the group did more shows. One time I played the policeman in the musical Annie.  You know when the policeman says to Annie, who is walking with the dog Sandy, “Who’s dog is that?” I probably had about five lines in the whole show that time we did Annie, but it didn’t matter, I was part of something.  My part, whether it be five lines or fifty lines, all helped move the story from one place to another.  Without my part, the story, the drama, would not be complete.


What a great feeling – the reality that I was part of something big, something outside of myself.  I had indeed found my place.  In that, there was so much excitement.  There was excitement as I prepared for the role. There was excitement as I performed, and when it was done, I stepped back from it and said, “Wow!”


So it is true, not just for theater, but for life itself.  Once we realize that we are being called to a bigger story, once we move outside of our own little stories, outside of our own little plans that we obsess with, that we make into huge stories, those ego-dramas… once we get into the bigger story, that’s when life gets exciting!  What is that bigger story?  It is not the ego-dramas that we are wrapped up in.  It is what theologians call the Theo-drama.  It is God’s story.  Remember “Theo” means God.  The great Swiss Theologian Hans von Balthasar used this term, the Theo-drama.  He taught that the spiritual life is not about shaping God to fit into our little stories, but rather it is about God shaping us for the great and exciting roles in his great story.


Today we reflect on Joseph, who displayed great trust in taking his place in the theodrama.  We also reflect on Saint Paul, who calls himself a slave to Christ Jesus.  He doesn’t mean he was forced into slavery by Jesus, but rather he said yes to his part in the greater story.  He put his whole life into the part. For each of us, what is our role in the great Theo-drama?

- The Servant


Thursday, December 11, 2025

 Third Sunday of Advent

Secon Reading: James 5:7-10

 

Patience.  It’s mentioned four times in this four line passage.  That’s why I chose to reflect on the second reading instead of the gospel this week.  While I was trying my best to reflect upon the gospel, this theme of patience kept coming back to me.  I finally gave in and thought, “Well, that’s where the Holy Spirit wants me to go.” So here we are.

 

When I first read this passage an event that occurred at mass a few weeks ago immediately came to mind.  We were about three quarters of the way through communion when, almost simultaneously, all four ministers of the Eucharist ran out of hosts.   The presider went to the tabernacle and then met the remaining three ministers at the altar to divide up the hosts that had been kept in reserve.  Those on line for communion stood in place until each minister returned to his/her station.

 

In the sanctuary after mass the sacristan apologized profusely for miscounting the number of people in the congregation, to which someone replied, “Don’t worry.  It’s alright.  You gave everyone a Holy Saturday moment:  everyone had the opportunity to wait patiently for the return of the Lord.”   The presider smiled heartily at this theological pronouncement, and all went in peace.

 

In looking back on this I realized that it was truly an Advent moment as well.  They say that patience is a virtue.  It is also, and more importantly, a grace.  It is, mostly, a mystery.  A friend recently remarked how we are always told that everything happens “in God’s time,” but that this provides very little comfort because we only know “our time.’ We look at our lives, and we look around the world, and we see so much that is wrong.  So much that fosters hurt, pain, sadness, fear, illness, discord, etc.  We look at our lives and at salvation history and we know that God always comes through.  Somehow, God always has the last word.  Yet, it is perplexing that it doesn’t happen as quickly as we want it to.

 

In today’s second reading we get a deeper understanding of the holiness of waiting.  The very act of waiting is sacred.  The very exercise of patience loving.  This reading makes me think back even further when my dad often told me: don’t hang onto anger; don’t seek revenge; don’t worry about getting even; don’t worry about what you don’t have. Be patient. Everything in life evens out.  That’s God’s way.

 

That’s God’s way.

 

Help me be patient Lord.

 

“Call Me Ishmae

Friday, December 5, 2025

Are you prepared?

 This week’s Gospel, Matthew 3:1–12, reminds us that John the Baptist boldly proclaims that the Messiah is coming. He urges everyone to repent and prepare for Jesus’ arrival. The question we must ask ourselves is: How have you prepared for Jesus? When John preached, he made it clear that Jesus was far greater than he was. John baptized with water, but Jesus would bring fire to the soul. This was a powerful indication that Jesus was coming to change the world as they knew it. In many ways, John’s message of repentance applies directly to our lives each and every day.

When John spoke to the people of Judea, his message was simple and direct: Repent and prepare, because Jesus is coming. He called the people to change their ways, to acknowledge their sinful behavior, and to grow closer to the Lord. Repentance is not about what you say—it is about who you become. Many people, like the Pharisees, assume that words alone are enough. We often think that saying the right thing is enough to convince the world that we have changed. But John knew better. He made it clear that we are called to change from within. That is the power of Jesus—He brings transformation from the inside out.

When you truly repent in the name of Jesus, you change. You become a brand-new version of yourself. The beauty of repentance is that it doesn’t matter where you are starting from—you are always made new. You always get a Day One. Your past does not define your future. You simply get a fresh start. That is exactly why the people of Judea were coming to John—they wanted a brand-new beginning.

Have you ever wanted a fresh start? Have you ever wanted another chance? Throughout my life, I can honestly say that Jesus has been gracious enough to give me many new beginnings. I know it is not because of anything I have done, but because of His love and His grace. I am a firm believer in the power of true repentance. True repentance requires us to reflect honestly on the sinful nature that exists within all of us—to examine it without ego or pride—and to let go of everything that stands in the way of a deeper relationship with the Lord. It is in those moments that we experience His transformative power. Without repentance, we will face judgment. Scripture makes it clear that the only way to the Kingdom is to repent and prepare for the Lord. The faithful will be gathered to Him, and the unbelievers will be separated like wheat.

So what does it really look like to be faithful? I believe there is a major misconception that faithful people live easier lives. In truth, I believe that when you follow Christ, you are tested more than ever. As a believer, there is a special place in your heart reserved for the Lord—a place that keeps you morally grounded, spiritually awake, and more sensitive to the broken nature of the world. That awareness comes at a cost. It is the cost of knowing deeply what is right and what is wrong. The closer you walk with the Lord, the more clearly you see what is wrong with the world. It is much easier to remain ignorant of the enemy’s work.

As believers, we are called to rise above our sinful nature and to model the behavior that Christ calls us to live by. And as we continue to prepare for the return of the Messiah, we are reminded again of our call: to repent, to renew our faith, and to live in a way that allows us to be counted among the faithful.