The Christmas tree is up, Hallmark movies are on, and Christmas music is a constant, but there are more important parts of Christmas. The tree is big and bright, but the Nativity Scene has its own small light. The Advent Calendar has little books that tell the compelling story of a young couple struggling to follow laws and have a baby at the same time. This was not a baby like any other, though. This baby was and is the Son of God. But no pressure, right?
I try to imagine myself in Mary’s place. Young, newly married, pregnant, and forced to travel close to term. Let’s not forget Joseph either. It was up to him to provide for and protect his new family. After the birth and the Magi gifts, they fled to a new country. How must they have felt when they found out what happened to the families with young sons who were left behind?
Their lives were not easy, but no one’s is. I personally know couples who are currently going through IVF to try to have children, I know a couple who recently miscarried a baby, I know a young couple who had premature twins who are struggling to survive and hopefully thrive, and I know a teenager who had an unplanned baby this year. None of this is easy. We often wonder why God allows what He allows. Why does a teenager get pregnant when married couples can’t? Why are some babies born too soon and others never born at all? We know why He warned Joseph to flee to Egypt, but why did He allow all those other boys to be killed?
I’m sorry to say I don’t have answers except that God says, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways.” (Isaiah 55:8-9) We think in terms of our lifetimes. He thinks in terms of eternity. Faith in God does not stop difficult things from happening, but it helps us deal with them. This Advent and Christmas Season, I pray daily for those going through difficult, even heartbreaking, situations. I hope that they look to Saints Mary and Joseph for inspiration and help. I pray that their faith in God carries them through.