Thoughts from the Abbey...

Thoughts from the Abbey...

Several years ago I spent a weekend at St. Gregory's Abbey, a Benedictine Monastery near Three Rivers. Ever since I've been on their mailing list, which means I get a quarterly eight page newsletter. Tonight the Christmas edition was in my mailbox.

It's an unremarkable little book - the photos , at least in print, are always a little grainy and grey. But in addition to news about events at the Abbey (I learned that Desmond Tutu visited there last August) there is always a little essay that is thoughtfully written. Today's, on the coming of Christmas, was exceptionally well done.

Here is an excerpt:

It has been said, many times many ways, that it is easy to get so caught up in the details of preparing for Christmas that we can lose sight of what Christmas is about. Christmas is about the Gospel. But quite apart from the normal distractions of the holiday season, if any of the above contradictions ring true—and I believe they do—then a fair question to ask is, “What is the Gospel?” Certainly we know the story. There’s a hay-filled manger with all kinds of animals nearby. There’s the Virgin Mary and the baby Jesus and St. Joseph. There’s the star and three wise men bringing gold, frankincense, and myrrh. There’s an angel and some shepherds. It all makes for a pretty scene adorning a mantle piece—or for those who really splash out, a front yard—and it does remind us of the narrative.

I do not wish to discount the value of knowing the Nativity story, but the question still remains: What is the good news? What is the meaning behind the Christmas story that makes having all those trinkets worthwhile? If here you are hoping for a simple “Jesus saves” kind of answer, dear reader, I am afraid you will be disappointed. The fact is that in merely having to ask, “What is the Gospel?” an even more unsettling question arises: Is there a Gospel? Is there any good news at all? In a world that is dominated by rampant materialism, a notion that all things can be explained by quantitative formulae, and a relativism that denies even the possibility of abiding truth, there is precious little room for a newborn baby who, some claim, is the savior of the world. It is no wonder so many people detest the Christmas season.

If this gets your attention, you really should go and read the rest of the essay.