A Happy and Joyful Christmas!
In chapter 6 of his Rule for Monks Saint Benedict writes that “there are times when good words are to be left unsaid out of esteem for silence.” Given the abundance of noise that accompanies the Christmas season, it dawned on me that the sparing use of words might be the wisest counsel on this wonderful day. So I hope it will suffice to wish you a peaceful Christmas season. May the Lord be with you as he speaks gently yet persistently through the noise and din of the season!
Notes
+It’s never a good idea to limit the act of thanksgiving to one day out of the year, and this last week offered a reminder to be grateful for all the airport delays that I’ve not experienced during the past year. While I and my fellow passengers complained about some minor airport difficulties on our way home last week, our Brother Paul would have gladly traded places. On the way to a speaking engagement in Nassau, The Bahamas, he had a connecting flight in Atlanta, on the night when the lights went out in that part of Georgia. That night he slept on the floor, with thousands of other stranded passengers.
+On December 21st, after evening prayer, I took part in a gathering of monks from our floor in the monastery. Our custom is that the residents of each floor decorate their own tree, and it’s an opportunity to share some time in that interlude between the end of the semester and the liturgies of Christmas.
+On December 23rd I acceded to the inevitable and retrieved my winter coat from storage. It’s been relatively benign in Minnesota — until now. Not so today, Christmas Day, when the forecast includes some heroic temperatures. My lightweight coat is simply not up to dealing with that.
+On December 24th we celebrated evening prayer in the Great Hall, the former Abbey church, while the last of the Christmas preparations were being made in the church. At 9:30 pm we gathered once again for a concert of sacred music, followed by the Christmas Eve Mass at 10:00 pm. The music was exceptional, and it included the participation of The Saint John’s Boys Choir. Joining us were some 1,100 friends and neighbors who had driven short and long distances to celebrate with us.
+The photo at the top of the post is a work by Brother Frank Kacmarcik, a now-deceased oblate of Saint John’s Abbey.
