December 12, 2024

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As Sisters of Mercy around the world, celebrate our 193rd Anniversary, we find ourselves in a great season of faith and gift-giving shared by those of many faith traditions!  

Christians are in the midst of the season of Advent, also a time of fasting and prayer.  Soon the exchange of gifts on Christmas will symbolize the love and peace we wish to give to one another in imitation of Christ Who was Gift to us.

But today I would like to speak of the beautiful celebration of Hanukkah, or the Feast of Lights.  Those of Jewish faith remember in this feast the reclaiming of the Temple from their ancient enemies. Once the Temple Mount in Jerusalem had been reclaimed, the Temple had to be rededicated. According to tradition, only one jar of sacramental oil was found, enough for one day. Miraculously, the oil burned for eight days, thus the eight days of Hanukkah.

This stirring faith story is one that all of us, whatever our tradition, can hear with joy and comfort.  For indeed, God’s mercy is so generous that it abides with us always — for one day, for eight days, for all of the days that we live.  God is with us — just like the Lights of Hanukkah — and there is nothing that can ever separate us from that Love and Presence.

It is a painful and challenging time for so much of our human family around the world.  Caught in the tangle of wars, geographic displacement, and threats of political tyranny, we may be tempted to lose hope.

But God unfailingly abides with us.  Remember this and rejoice when you see the lights of Hanukkah or Christmas; when you experience the generosity, forgiveness, encouragement and good will of those with whom you work and live.

Thank you for the Light each one of you offers to Creation.  All Sisters of Mercy around the world pray in gratitude for you today.  May that miraculous gift shine in your hearts and in the hearts of your families in this special season. Please pray for us as well.

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For Your Reflection:

• What feelings or reactions do I have after reading this reflection?
• Do my feelings or reactions remind me of any passage or event in scripture, especially in the life of Christ? 
• What actions might I take today because of my response to these readings?

Suggested Scripture: Maccabees 4: 36-61 – The Rededication of the Temple