Readings of the day: Isaiah 9:1-6; Psalm 96:1-2, 2-3, 11-12, 13; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14
[An
angel enters the church, looking for his halo.] Halo? Has anybody seen my
halo? [Somebody from the congregation
gives the angel a fibre-optic Mohawk hairpiece.] Cool hairdo! But it’s not
the halo I’m looking for.
[Another
parishioner finds the halo and gives it to the angel, who says to the
parishioner with his halo:] Great! You’re the best! How about I ask God to
take some time off of purgatory for you?
…Oh, no! My halo is bent and tarnished!
That was a long fall from heaven. And my wings: Has anybody seen my wings? [The angel gasps.] I have no wings! How
will I get back up to heaven without my wings? This is the last time I try skydiving! But wait: All is not lost. I see a full
house of people here tonight, and lots of children. How wonderful! Let’s have
all the children come up…
The sign outside says, “St. Kateri, St.
Margaret Mary.” It’s close enough to heaven, I guess. Whoa! I’m exhausted. I
need to sit down! Thank you to whomever left this chair here at the front of
the church. [The angel sits in the chair.]
That’s much better! Now, just before I
jumped from heaven, which was clearly a bad idea, God was speaking to us angels
about this great plan that God had for all of us; for the earth; for the whole
universe.
[God,
voiced by choir member:] I warned you
not to jump from heaven. I’ll send you a new halo and wings once St. Joseph is
finished building them. He’s a bit busy with a baby in Bethlehem right now, so
he’ll be a while. You also have a big bill waiting for you from A Wing and a
Prayer Angel Outfitters when you get back to heaven!
[Angel:]
Yes, I know. Sorry, God. Anyway, God had this great plan to save the world. And
it involved this child. Now, I have a question for all the children here at St.
Kateri: Who is this child God sent to save the world?
[Once
the children answer, “Jesus” or “Christ the Lord,” etc…] That’s right! Well
done! Note to self: These St. Kateri children are very smart. I need to ask
them harder questions… One: No more jumping from heaven, and two: Ask the
children harder questions.
And so God had this great plan to save
the world: Send a child named Jesus to earth. Now is Jesus an angel? Is Jesus a
big strong hero, like a Ninja Turtle or Superman? [No.] Hmm… Is Jesus… the Son of God? [Yes.] Good… I was just making sure we knew this.
All the angels in heaven were thinking,
before God said to us that he would send his own Son, that maybe God would send
one of us angels to save the world. But did God send an angel? [No.] Then we thought he might send one
of the child saints from heaven. There are quite a few children who are saints
up there in heaven: St. Agnes, with her little lamb; St. Joan of Arc, who saved
France (the English are still mad about that); St. Stanislaus (I hear there’s a
church near here named after him. He’s a great kid, all the way from Poland).
There are the Holy Innocents. And all of us might be saints someday…
But did God choose any of these children
to save the world? No, he chose to send his own Son, Jesus. Did God send Jesus
as a grown-up? [No.] So how did God
send Jesus? God sent Jesus to us as a little baby all bundled up and lying in a
manger.
Now, can anybody here see any problems
with God sending the Savior of our world as a little baby in a manger? I can.
Animals like horses, cattle, and oxen eat hay out of mangers. And so wouldn’t
you think that a manger might be a bit stinky? But [the angel sighs] Mary and Joseph tried and tried to find an inn to
have their baby in Bethlehem. But could they find room at the inn? [No.] “So, a manger it will have to be,”
Mary and Joseph said. And Jesus was born this morning in a manger, seven
pounds, eight ounces. The Blessed Mother and baby are doing fine. And, you
know, being born in a manger isn’t too bad. At least, so I hear, the baby Jesus
is nice and warm.
And so this is how God saved the world,
by sending us his infant Son, Jesus Christ, “in swaddling clothes and lying in
a manger.”
[God:]
Hello, this is God. You have to love those St. Kateri children!
[Angel:]
Yes indeed. Aren’t they wonderful? …And so
into the story of how you saved the world!
[God:]
Listen: Your new wings are ready. St. Joseph did some incredibly fast cribside
carpentry while the Virgin Mary was cuddling our Son to sleep tonight. And, get
this: St. Joseph will give you your new wings absolutely free as a special
Christmas offer… Some assembly required. Flight lessons and battery pack not
included. I only have one request: That you proclaim to the people of St.
Kateri my message of Christmas joy. It’s the one at the end of the Gospel
reading for the Mass tonight. You have the script. Ask the children to say it
with you to the people of St. Kateri Parish. See you in heaven soon. Bye.
[Angel:]
Great! Thank you, God! Thank you, St. Joseph! I promise never to jump out of
heaven again. I’ve got free wings! No, not the Buffalo wings that are famous
from around here; no, real angel
wings!
Now, children, I need your help. But
first, I need to find my script... Oh, no! Where’s my script? Has anybody seen
my script? [A child gives the script to
the angel.] Thank you so much!
Hmm… So here’s the Christmas message
that God wants us to say to the people of St. Kateri. Are you ready to say it
nice and loud? Repeat after me: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth
peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
And that is the story of how God saved
the world through Jesus, his Son.
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