Two Days After Christmas
It’s two days after Christmas. The celebrations are over. The presents have been put up. Another Christmas in the books. Christmas 2024 will now take its place among all the Christmases passed. I wonder what Mary was thinking two days after the first Christmas. It’s been quite a ride. How could she possibly have imagined a year ago that she would be a new mother. Let’s recap the last nine months of Mary’s life. It all started with the appearance of the angel Gabriel who announces to her that even though she was an unmarried virgin she was going to have a child. And not just any child, but the promised Messiah who would save the world from their sins. I can imagine her saying to Gabriel, “You’ve got to be kidding me?” And then, some time later, Joseph tells pregnant Mary the distressing news that Rome has called for a census and they will have to take an impromptu trip from their home in Nazareth to Bethlehem. I can imagine her saying to Joseph, “You’ve got to be kidding me?” And t...