Matthew, Chapter 17, Verse 5
While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud cast a shadow over
them, then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my beloved
Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.”
Christmas
is ultimately about faithfulness. The faithfulness we celebrate is not ours but
God’s. Despite Adam and Eve’s bad choice in the garden of Eden, Cain’s murder
of his brother Abel, and the sins of Noah’s generation, God did not forget. Even,
though mankind sinned greatly at Babel, Sodom and Gomorrah, and Jacob’s sons
against Joseph when they sold him into slavery, God remembered. After the
Exodus, the Jews grumbled against Moses over the forty years he led them
through the desert. Under the Judges, Israel thought not of God but only longed
for a King. Though Saul became filled with his power and even the beloved David
strayed from God’s law, the Lord God renewed his oath to David and his
descendants. Though eventually both kingdoms of Israel would betray God, live
for themselves and worship the idols of foreigners, God remained true. While
many forgot Him in their exile, and after their return took up the ways of
their neighbors, God remembered what he had uttered to Adam and Eve. While the
Maccabees and their descendants (including Herod) tried to raise up a new
nation of Israel that thought only of power and independence, God did not
forget. On a cold night in Bethlehem, through a young virgin aided by her courageous
spouse, a child was born. The Word of God himself took on our flesh. In that
moment God kept his promises to all generations who had come before the child,
and all who would come after. God would redeem mankind from its sins. Once
again man would be given the possibility to live according to God’s plan. Human
beings would know their true dignity. In human life the Spirit of God would
dwell anew. Christmas is ultimately about faithfulness, because it is about
love. Though we turned away from God as a people, he never stopped loving us
nor did his love for us ever despair. Because he has loved us in his Son, we can
love Him and one another. As we prepare for this Christmas night, let us
embrace faithfulness born of God’s love. Let us be faithful to our families and
spouses, true friends. May we always honor the Word of God who has come to
dwell in us. Let us never dishonor this child by lies, or jealousy, anger, or
greed. Let us pray to be faithful as God has been faithful to us. Then may we
know the truth of Christmas night: Peace, Joy, Hope and Love.[1]
Our Lord
Jesus himself clearly taught us the first principles of Catholic morality: “You
shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and
with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is
like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments
depend all the law and the prophets.” (Mt 22:37-40) Love, or charity, is
the great commandment of the Lord. Love of God and love of neighbor are the
source & summary of Catholic morality. “All the law and the prophets” flow
from this starting point. This means that what love requires is the
essence of all moral rules, all of the Ten Commandments, and all aspects of
morality spoken of by the prophets and even by Christ himself. The only things
needed are those things which love makes necessary. It is also important
to say that love does, indeed, require many things! In fact, it takes only a
few simple steps of logic to deduce the Ten Commandments and most of the rest
of Catholic morality from this starting point. Those moral precepts describe
the minimum that love requires.
“What do
you mean the minimum?”
Catholic
morality’s basic moral code describes the minimum necessary to live in
union with Christ. If we fall below that level, then the life of Christ cannot
live within us. That’s the meaning of mortal sin: an action
which shows God that we refuse his offer to become “children of God” (John
1:12) and “partakers of the divine nature” (2 Pet 1:4). So if that’s the
minimum, then what’s the maximum that love requires? Again, Jesus
provides the answer: A new commandment I give to you, that you love one
another; even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all
men will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
(John 13:34-35) The maximum, then, is to
completely give ourselves for others, even as Christ did for us. To put
it more simply: there is no maximum! We’ll always find that we can give
more.
Love
demands we care about human rights but we must begin with the protection of the
unborn.
Human
Rights Day commemorates the day on which the United Nations issued the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR),
a document drafted by representatives from all regions of the world, which
outlined fundamental human rights to be universally protected. The Declaration
contains 30 articles that touch on rights to freedom, justice, peace, dignity,
education and health care,
amongst other rights. On December 10, 1948, the United Nations proclaimed
the UDHR in an effort to help define equal rights that all humans on the planet
deserve and can help the world achieve lasting freedom, justice and peace.
Human Rights Day was officially declared by the United Nations in 1950.
It is celebrated on December 10th each year and is marked by speeches and
activities designed to bring attention to the issues surrounding the most
pressing Human Rights issues worldwide.
Human
Rights Day Facts & Quotes
·
The United Nations Declaration of
Human Rights was one of their first declarations and came about after the
atrocities perpetrated upon humans during World War II were brought to light.
·
Over the past decade, armed conflict
has killed 2 million children,
disabled another 4-5 million, left 12 million homeless and orphaned another
million.
·
Whenever I hear anyone arguing for slavery, I feel a strong impulse to see it tried on him personally.- Abraham Lincoln
·
America did not invent human rights. In a very real sense... human rights invented America.- Jimmy Carter
·
I have cherished the ideal a democratic and free society... it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.- Nelson Mandela, President of South Africa, who was imprisoned from 1964-1990.
Human
Rights Day Top Events and Things to Do
·
Educate yourself on current human rights
fights such as genocide by terrorist groups, slavery and trafficking and child
labor around the world.
·
Get involved with a local human
rights organization.
·
Hold a candlelight vigil for those
who have had their human rights violated.
·
Watch a documentary about human
rights issues and violations. Some recommendations: Invisible Children
(2006), Girl Rising(2013) and Nefarious (2011).
·
Attend an Amnesty International Human Rights
Event near you to support the battle to uphold human rights
throughout the world.
The U.S. is not the only country to recognize the importance
of religious liberty. The UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights--a
foundational document for international law, created by representatives from
all over the world--recognizes this basic human right in Article 18: “Everyone has
the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom
to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community
with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in
teaching, practice, worship and observance”. Clearly, the framers of this
document relied on human reason and saw the need for governments to recognize this
civil right.[4]
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