Octave of Christmas

These are wonderful days following the beautiful Solemnity of Christmas. On December 26, the Church remembers Saint Stephen, the First Martyr. You might find it interesting that the Church celebrates the first martyr after Christmas, but one commentary says this, "Bethlehem is the prelude to Calvary. We may not merely stand adoring at the crib; we must also follow to the cross" (Magnificat, 390). That is why the Liturgical Year goes in cycles, because we celebrate these great events of our salvation. Saint John the Evangelist is remembered on December 27. "Saint John is the evangelist of the incarnation. He proclaims the glory of the Word coming forth from God to take on human flesh and dwell in our midst" (Magnificat, 399). On December 28, the Church remembers the Holy Innocents, all those infants that were killed because of Herod's fury to find the Christ-child. As this commentary states, "The peace of Bethlehem was shattered by the cries of the slaughtered children and the weeping of their mothers. The peace of the world was shattered by the single cry from the cross. Yet through that death and mourning, peace was reborn, indestructible now, in the resurrection of the slain Christ" (Magnificat, 417). Hope springs eternal because of God's great love for us, sending His only Son to be the Savior of the world. The Octave of Christmas continues until we celebrate the Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God. Since Christmas fell on Sunday this year, the Feast of the Holy Family will be celebrated on Friday, December 30. On a personal note, I will write my next blog for the Holy Family because that will be blog number 400, so what a great feast to write about and example to follow. Have a blessed Christmas week!!!