December 2017 Issue

This is a time of year when the chill of the air is balanced out by the warmth of fond memories and earnest hopes for the future. The joy and promise of Jesus’ birth are shining lights for us to hold on to as the days grow short and the nights long. It should be a happy time.

Father James Martin, SJ, is a best-selling author of books about Catholic spirituality. In 2016, after a horrific massacre at a gay nightclub, the Pulse nightclub, in Orlando, Florida, he spoke out on the silence about the massacre on the part of Church leaders.

Imagine waking up to no presents on Christmas morning. That, unfortunately, is the reality for most children in impoverished countries like Haiti. For Jim Cavnar, president of Cross Catholic Outreach, that reality wasn’t acceptable, so he created a program to change it.

“Sleigh bells ring. Are you listening?” Nope. “I want a hippopotamus for Christmas.” That’s impractical. “Said the little lamb to the shepherd boy: ‘Do you hear what I hear?’” Talking lambs?