I wish you all a Merry Christmas. You know, way
back when, in the 1600s in Massachusetts, in
the Massachusetts Bay Company, where the Puritans
were, you know, they famously forbade the celebration,
well, of any holiday, including Christmas. I
don't want to go into the reasons why, but I
think it's kind of ironic that Thanksgiving got
away from them, as did Christmas. I'm so grateful
that we have in the church 40 days to prepare
for Christmas, spiritually to prepare, materially
to prepare, in every way to prepare a fast. And
then Christmas comes, and we have these 12 days
from Christmas to theophany to celebrate. It
doesn't just end. It warms the soul, this celebration.
It keeps the message of salvation and God's love
in front of us. But brothers and sisters, these
12 days of Christmas, to honor them, to focus
on them, to celebrate them, the various saints
and events, it takes an intentional spiritual
act to do it. It can get away from us very quickly,
and pretty soon it's all over. And as Father
Michael... related in a sermon that he gave once,
talking to his neighbor, who said, I'll have
Christmas, but when it's over, it's a downer.
And Father Michael tried to tell this man, you
need to learn how to celebrate. But we all need
to learn how to celebrate because we all have
a little of that Puritan in us. Well, today,
on this seventh day of Christmas, this leave
-taking of Christmas, We celebrate the memory
of the righteous King David, who was the prophet
and psalmist. We celebrate the righteous Joseph
the Betrothed, whose icon is right here. And
James, the son of Joseph, called the brother
of God. Let's consider briefly just the righteous
Joseph. Tradition tells us that this man, was
chosen by God. He was chosen in a gathering of
elders. He would rather not have taken on this
responsibility. He said no at first, but he was
chosen. And he would be the guardian of the Virgin
Mary and eventually the guardian and protector
of the infant Jesus Christ. This was a man who
was a widower. Apparently he had four sons and
three daughters already. There's a whole family
tree that's incredibly interesting there. For
example, Salome is one of his daughters. So by
the time he became the guardian of the Theotokos,
by the time the birth of Jesus Christ happened,
he was already quite old. Some say 80. The Gospel
says just a little about him. But what it says
is very important. There's a lot in that little.
For example, when the virgin was found to be
with child, the gospel tells us that Joseph had
doubts. In other words, he was assailed, assailed
with what the Holy Father's called logismi, that
is intrusive, persistent. thoughts prompted by
the devil. If you look at the icon in the center
of the church, there's a little old man, a little
like shepherd guy, talking to him. This is what
I'm talking about. Thoughts prompted by the devil.
But an angel comes to Joseph. An angel comes
to Joseph. How can that happen? This isn't common,
is it? Because this man's heart was pure. Because
this man was all about sacrifice and love of
God and neighbor. His spiritual eye was clear.
And he was instructed to take the child and his
mother into Egypt to avoid the wrath of Herod.
Here we see a man, 75, 80. in obedience to the
word of God, embarking on a very difficult journey
at a very difficult time, long journey, by foot,
aided by his son James, the brother of the Lord,
the stepbrother. What's the lesson or the lessons
we might learn briefly? Well, first, it occurs
to me that we should use St. Joseph, those of
us that are fathers, For remaining faithful in
what? Not just the obvious things. Faithful in
sacrifice for and with our wife and our children.
They are gifts from God to us, gentlemen. They're
gifts. We didn't earn it. We may have wooed a
little bit and fallen in love, but it came by
the grace and love. and providence of God. And
we ask a blessing and we move forward. And we
have to live in that blessing and in the grace
of the Holy Spirit that was given to unite us
to our wife, to make two one flesh. You'll be
exhausted, but you will gain the crown in the
kingdom of heaven. And that will happen after
faithful and steadfast labor. God inspired. God
-first labor, protecting the faith of the family.
How? Not by authoritative means, gentlemen. That
will not work. That's Herod's way. He was afraid
because wise men came from the east and said,
this star, it tells us congratulations that a
king has been born. And Herod was afraid and
all Judea with him. And he instituted his...
terrible, terrible massacre. Back in those days,
you know, you didn't hide the massacres. You
celebrated them. It won't work to be authoritative.
We have to be humble. Now, don't talk to my wife
about my own attitudes, please. I'm telling you
what I know from those. that are truly blessed
in this area. Be humble, gentlemen. You're protecting
the faith first in your own heart. You may be
assailed by Logi's me, by thoughts from the evil
one, intrusive thoughts. You have to learn to
discern. Like that bumper sticker, that famous
bumper sticker I'm always telling you about that
says, don't believe everything you think. It's
not always true. especially in the spiritual
life. Learn how to discern so that your conscience,
which is not, Father Victor Sokolov once said
to me when I said to him, the light and ever
memorable, I said, well, Father, he was just
following his conscience. And he said, your conscience
can be wrong. Jeremiah the prophet says about
the heart that it can be very duplicitous. You
don't follow your heart. That's not in the scriptures.
Let your conscience be purified by your fasting,
your prayers, your attendance at church, your
love for God and neighbor and works of charity,
your humility. Secondly, dear seniors in our
parish, I'm in there, in that group now. St.
Joseph was called upon at an advanced age to
care for what would be the church, Christ and
his mother. Those of you that are seniors, elderly,
thinking maybe you've done it, now you can rest
on your laurels. No, now is the time for the
final push to gain spiritual wisdom and spiritual
reading and prayers, especially in attending
church services. participation in the life of
the parish, and care for the church. Encouragement
to the young and the catechumens because you've
been around for a while. And again, rejection
of those intrusive thoughts to nourish and nurture
holy thoughts. Trusting in the Savior that we
can all do that. And finally, The fact is that
serving our Lord and God and Savior, let's say
just being faithful to Christ, and we heard all
about that in the epistle last Sunday, that's
going to mean that he is Lord and master of my
life. And I am not. It's Christ who lives in
me. I live, yet not I. I live by faith in the
Son of God who loved me. Faith is going to disrupt
your life, not just the outward things, not just,
well, there's these services I should go to.
Don't think I should go to. Think, there's these
services for my benefit, for me to show faith
and love in God, for me to be nourished spiritually.
There's disruption. spiritually too, because
there's a reorientation always, and that's what
repentance means, to reorient. And we can ask
ourselves a few questions. Are you satisfied
with your spiritual state? Please don't say yes.
Are you satisfied with your repentance shown
in confession? Do you feel Your faith is being
nourished. Are you satisfied with your ability
to pray? Two things can happen at the same time.
You'll be spiritually disrupted, but you can
also have the peace and joy and love of God because
you answer Christ in that disruption. Are you
eager? Are you called inside by your conscience?
To serve God. Starting with receiving Holy Communion
in a way of gratitude and glory to God. Do you
have that? If you don't, pray that God grants
you that gift. Are you faithful in charity? In
spiritual reading? In serving God through others?
You know, all those ways. that we continually
talk about. Let's ask this righteous saint to
intercede for us, for he is now among the council
of the saints, and God is glorified in the saints.
Let me end with this wonderful prayer to him.
Having heard in the scriptures of the Lord who
said, Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear
a son, Emmanuel. Thou didst believe what was
told thee by the angel, O righteous Joseph, and
like a sealed book wherein the word was inscribed
by the finger of the Father, thou didst take
Mary into thine own house, and like a servant
didst wait upon her with fear and zeal, wherefore
we cry to thee, Rejoice, for thou didst set thy
heart to understand the law of God. Rejoice,
for thou didst open thy mind to receive the mysteries
of God. Rejoice, for before all was thou vouchsafed
to know the great mystery of piety that God has
appeared on earth as man. Rejoice, for thou didst
perceive his coming to be for the salvation of
all people from their sins. Rejoice, for without
doubting thou didst believe what was revealed
to thee. Rejoice, for thy faith was accounted
unto thee as righteousness. Rejoice, O righteous
Joseph. the ready speedy helper and intercessor
for our souls. Christ is born.