Christmas Continues

As a Catholic Christian, I wonder about the limited and selective understanding of the birth of Emmanuel within our commercialized society. The capitalism of the United States of America has fostered the commonly expressed idea that the day is for children. This reveals a cultural and spiritual detachment from the lived experiences of Maryam and Yosef in Bethlehem under Roman occupation two thousand years ago with the birth of Yeshua in the context of their Jewish faith. After all, Christmas, celebrating God’s presence with us, is fundamentally an expression of faith.

Following the life, death and resurrection of Yeshua, his students struggled to grasp and discern their experiences of him, his teachings and his practices. How were they to speak of their countless unique and ineffable epiphanies? How did they speak of their formation and transformations? The Jewish followers who identified him as the Messiah could use the prophecies of Torah but what about the Gentile followers who recognized him as the Christ? Because of the prophets, the Jewish people yearned for the arrival of the Messiah, but they had different preconceived expectations. Without prophecy, might his Gentile followers unknowingly been waiting or yearning for the Christ?

Marian Accinno Loftin, the dear mother of a childhood friend passed this week. When my mother passed, we asked her to serve as lector for the Mass of Christian Burial. After leaving the cemetery, we returned home to find Marian leaving something for us in the mailbox. Seeing her here in that moment was an experience of grace, pure grace from God.

Marian was of Italian ancestry and lived in a white body. She and her husband, Jim, were salt of the earth people from our parish who lived their faith. They were also proud alumni of the University of Alabama (UA). Their oldest daughter, Valerie, and I made our First Holy Communion together at Saint Columba Catholic Church in 1967. Each of us held a special admiration for both parents of the other and our parents had great respect for each other. They recognized the Christ in each other, the Christ of God who compels us to transcend the barriers imposed by society. The Loftins were a family who genuinely welcomed us when we converted. Today, Valerie reminded me that my mother served as lector for her father’s Mass of Christian Burial.

Years ago, Marian was having a computer challenge and asked me to type something for her. In reading her words, I was very surprised to learn of her having been in a class with Autherine Lucy, the first student in a Black body to enroll at the University of Alabama in 1956. Marian also acknowledged seeing the escalating violence of white supremacists that led the university to suspend Autherine Lucy from attending classes over “concern for her safety.” How often do we hear of history without considering the context and experiences of those we know? Do we allow ourselves to be formed or transformed by these experiences?

A treasured memory of Marian’s was the two women meeting for the first time. It was in 1992 at the UA President’s Mansion. Jim, a UA trustee, and Marian sat with Autherine Lucy Foster and her family. Autherine had earned her graduate degree from the College of Education. Over the years, the women continued to cross paths at university events. As a member of the College of Education Advisory Board, Marian nominated Autherine for the Educators Hall of Fame. At the reception in 2016, the two women were alone for a moment. Marian wrote:

Autherine told me she had a question she had wanted to ask for many years. She said she thought I would answer it honestly. I assured her I would be truthful. She looked serious and soulful and said, “I want you to tell me about the students. Did they hate me for coming?” At this point we were both holding hands. I could only think, “How could anyone hate her?” What I said was the absolute truth. “There were many emotions out there. I can only speak for my friends and myself. We were glad you were here. It was time.”

Speaking at the reception, Autherine said, “I asked my friend tonight about what the students were thinking when I came to the University. I trusted her to answer a question I have often wanted to ask, ‘Did they hate me?’ She told me, ‘No, we were waiting for you.’”

“Waiting for you.”
Autherine Lucy heard those words.
Those were not my words.
They came from a Higher Source.
We were “waiting for her.”
We just did not know it.
Amen.

The Jewish people lived for millennia experiencing and witnessing cruelty, injustice and violence as they waited for the prophecy to be fulfilled. Two thousand years ago, it was time as a young woman in a Brown body and living under an oppressive regime birthed her son in Bethlehem. Like today, it was a time of cruelty, injustice and violence. God then guided the family to leave their homeland for the safety of their child. This is a mere glimpse of their lived experiences and of the first Christmas in the context of time and space.

The Incarnation continues. Do we experience the Incarnation of the Most High God here and now even amidst the cruelty, injustice and violence? For what are we waiting? For what are we yearning? Is there a way to see the Incarnation beyond our preconceived ideas? How do we give birth to the Christ in our lives? How do we accompany the Christ in others? Do we choose not to recognize the Christ in some? Are we willing to expand or move deeper into what we know, or into the Mystery? How do we respond to God yearning for us?

Grounded in faith, we are compelled to awaken and say, “It is time.” On this Feast of Christmas Day, may we embrace what God offers in our midst. May we invite the Holy Spirit to bring forth the Incarnation in and through our lives. Amen. Ase’. May it be so.