Christmas Thanks to a Young Mother

We began to celebrate the Christmas season over the past week, the celebration of the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Providing for humanity to be saved by God taking on a human role, however, required first a perfect vessel to deliver that physical birth to the earth.

In his gospel, Saint Luke tells us the story of how the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary saying "Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee! Blessed art thou among women!" Gabriel was sent by God Himself to the teenage virgin who had been chosen as being worthy of body, mind, and spirit to bear the Lord in her womb, give birth to the infant, and be responsible for raising Him as a child.

At the point at which Mary is presented with the idea of becoming the Mother of God, she has a choice. Mary's body wasn't taken over by God, she was not forced to take on this responsibility. She was not herself bred for this sole purpose. She was a normal, young, human woman.

One thing that we know about human beings in their relationship to God is that we have been given a 'free will', the ability to make our own choices and decisions. We have the choice to accept or reject God and His plan for the world and for us as individuals. Mary was given this same choice, and she chose to say "Yes" to God.

This is not at all the same idea of 'choice' involving a pregnancy that has become a hot political and social topic in todays world. In todays arguments, the 'choice' is not between becoming pregnant or not, in having a child or not. Today the alleged 'choice' is between killing a baby that is already in a mothers womb, or of delivering that baby fully and allowing it a chance at a full life.

But what a brief look at the difference between Mary's very real choice and that of women today in the abortion debate does highlight is the idea of consequence. If a woman today chooses to continue her pregnancy, she is allowing the natural process to go forward, and allowing another human being an opportunity at a full life. If she chooses to kill the baby, the baby is dead and has no chance at life.

What would the consequences have been for humanity had Mary said "No" to God? Could anyone have blamed her? She was, after all, just a teenager, already engaged to be married to an older man. How would she explain the pregancy to her fiancee', to her family, to her community? Would anyone, even the most ardent of believers in the idea that God would one day send a Savior, believe her story?

At the point that she made her choice, Mary did not know that God would send his angel to Joseph in order to ease his own mind. In fact, she had no idea exactly what God's ultimate plan would be for the baby as He grew into adulthood and beyond. Would God have moved on to another young woman? Would God have delayed his plan for mankind's salvation for years, decades, generations?

All of that is pure speculation, of course. But considering the idea that Mary had a choice, and that Mary said that "Yes" to God, provides us with an example. During this Christmas season more than any other, God is calling us all to say "Yes" to Him and to His Son, Jesus Christ. Every one of us now has the same choice as given to Mary.

Over the next few weeks most of us will be pretty active in preparing for the Christmas holiday. We will be shopping for toys, games, and gifts for family members and friends. We will be decorating our homes. We will be buying food and cleaning our houses in preparation for parties, guests, family gatherings. We will be taking pictures and wrapping presents and attending parties at which we will drink too much.

How much time will you take over these next few weeks to consider the reason that all of this is happening? How much time will you be taking to think about the birth of Mary's baby, your Savior, Jesus Christ? Will you give him an hour every Sunday? Will you give him an hour or so on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day? Are you willing to give Him even that little bit? Is that even enough?

Maybe all of those gift, decoration, and party considerations should really be secondary considerations for us. Perhaps we should be thinking about Mary's initial decision to choose to accept Jesus into her life, and about Jesus' ultimate gift to all of us in his death for our sins.

I hope and pray that during this Christmas season while doing all of the fun things in today's commercial world, we truly keep with us at all times that 'reason for the season', the welcoming in to the world of the infant baby Jesus, and give thanks to a young mother who made the right choice two thousand years ago.

On a Wheel and a Prayer

With St. Christopher riding shotgun, faithful motorists hope to have a safer journey.

With the fluctuating price of gas this past year and the growing economic crisis, the most common prayer uttered from behind the wheel these days is probably a plea for relief from the expense of filling up. While many families are suffering from job losses and other financial woes, I remember another, more serious supplication shared by my family at the beginning of any family road trip.

After my father would pack the trunk of our Volkswagon Beetle (later a VW Rabbit-no spacious minivan or SUV for this family of four!), we would take our places in the car: Dad behind the wheel; Mom riding shotgun, map in hand; and my sister and I in the cramped back seat. As we pulled out of our suburban Milwaukee neighborhood and headed toward the freeway, my parents would remind us to pray for a safe trip. Then they would lead us in an Our Father and a Hail Mary, punctuated by, "St. Christopher, be our guide," a nod to the patron saint of travel.

Then, and only then, did the radio go on, the car bingo games come out, and the pestering of "How long till we get there?" begin.

I later learned that the church had dropped St. Christopher's July 25 feast day from the liturgical calendar in 1969 out of concern that his story was based primarily in legend, although local and personal veneration is still allowed. It seems the tale of an 18-foot giant, perhaps with the face of a dog, portaging people across a dangerous river and later martyred, didn't pass the histor­icity test.

But the image of St. Christopher (literally "Christ-bearer") carrying people to safety still resonates, even in a century in which travel is so much safer that many of us don't even think about the danger involved in leaving our homes. The brisk sale of St. Christopher medals and statues attest to the desire for some totem to the gods to protect us while traveling. A bobblehead dashboard Jesus, who promises to be your "co-pilot through the valley of gridlock," is a more modern, kitschy version. Even Icon brand motorcycle jackets-most likely not purchased primarily by devout Catholics-often feature a St. Christopher medallion in an inside pocket.

I don't have a Jesus or St. Christopher statue in my car, but for years I have carried a St. Christopher medal in my passport wallet for overseas trips. Better safe than sorry.

Now that Hummers are out and hybrids are in, Americans may be spending less time on the road, whether out of economic necessity or concern for the earth. Unfortunately I am not one of them.

After five years of somewhat sanctimonious non-car ownership and reliance on public transportation, I purchased a used Toyota Camry, which I now drive a total of almost 100 miles round-trip, two or three times a week, to my job. I have become an über-commuter, joining the average American who spends more than an entire work week in his or her car each year.

Although it's easy to go on auto-pilot while driving the same route every day, I am occasionally graced with even more time to contemplate my new driving habits while I'm stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic caused by summertime construction or a lane-closing accident.

The latter reminds me of the sobering reality that I am maneuvering a several-thousand-pound machine. With some 6 million car accidents a year in the United States and a car-related fatality every 13 minutes, getting in the car is still one of the more dangerous things people do each day.

And in times of danger, we Catholics turn to our faith and to prayer. In the 1950s a Catholic priest founded the Sacred Heart Auto League to encourage "prayerful and careful" driving. Membership is free, but for a small donation you can receive a dashboard statue or visor clip to remind you to keep it under the speed limit and to be courteous to the guy who cuts you off.

A few years ago the Vatican also encouraged Catholics to take the high road with its "10 Commandments of Driving" in "Guidelines for the Pastoral Care of the Road."

While the media had a field day with this quirky story, it's hard to argue with the church's advice to avoid road rage, help victims of accidents, and avoid drinking and driving. And though some may have chuckled at the recommendation to start each trip with a sign of the cross, it didn't seem odd to those of us who ask for God's guidance before putting the keys in the ignition.

I still do. Sometimes it's just a quick, "God, let me be safe" or "Be with me on this trip." Like many Catholics, I also pray when an ambulance passes by or when I see a disabled car or an accident. Both my sister and I and our families still start each long road trip with an Our Father and a Hail Mary.

St. Christopher, be our guide.

WRITTEN by Heidi Schlumpf at USCatholic.org on May 24th, 2009