Jesus said to the Jews:
“John was a burning and shining lamp,
and for a while you were content to rejoice in his light.”
~ John 5:35
Last night was the school Christmas party at Saint Clare. We were among the hundreds of parents, grandparents and siblings who came to watch the presentations of the different classes. I was amused at the many smart phones trained on the young kids as they sang their hearts out rendering traditional Christmas carols: hundreds of phones but taking the same scene and performance. There will be hundreds of different videos that will be posted today on social media: same event but seen with different eyes and focused on one special child.
As we were walking into the church, where the performances were held, I was touched how these parents and families are affirming that good is stronger than evil, that love is more powerful than hatred, that the light will eventually overcome the darkness. Everyone of these parents, making the effort and the expense to send their children to Saint Clare, wants their child to grow up to be happy and loving, to be a successful and valuable member of the community. No one among them would wish for their children to failures or druggies or delinquents. They only want what Christmas brings to us for their children: love, peace, hope and joy.
For as long as families celebrate Christmas, remembering the reason for the season, there will always be people who will believe and work for love, peace, hope and joy. There will always be a light that will shine in the darkness. There will always be good people working to make our world just a little bit better. There will always be love to heal the wounds that hatred and anger give rise to.