How do we know Jesus was born on December 25th? Hi, this is Fr. Rocky with another Advent Inspiration. Everyone knows that Christ was born on Christmas Day, December 25th, but how do we know that? That’s an important and fascinating question, and I’ve spent the past twenty years searching for the answer, reading just about everything on the subject. We know for sure that Mary and Joseph knew the day Jesus was born because they were there. I am sure they told Jesus the day he was born just as our parents told us, and the Apostles would have learned that from Mary or Jesus or both. But the first time December 25th shows up in any written record is 350 AD, so either written records were lost for 300 years, or that important information was passed on by word of mouth by the early Christians. It is also very fitting that Jesus Christ was born on the day the Ancient Romans regarded as the Winter Solstice (although by that time the calendar was off by four days) because with the Winter Solstice the days start getting longer and more light comes into the world.

O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree, how lovely are your branches! Hi, this is Fr. Rocky with another Advent Inspiration. Everyone loves a Christmas tree, and no two trees are the same. Growing up in my family we would put up the tree around December 13, the Feast of Santa Lucia and the ancient festival of lights. Sometimes we’d go and cut it down, other times we’d go with our father and buy it from the local Boy Scout Troop, and we’d get extra greens for the nativity scenes both inside and out. We’d get the best one we could find and tall enough to reach the ceiling. The Christmas tree tradition started in northern Europe but is now universal. It’s always some type of evergreen tree, symbolic of the new and eternal life of the Christ child. The lights on the tree represent the light and hope of Christ; the ornaments represent the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit found in the soul united to Christ, and the star on top of the tree represents the Star of David that led the Three Kings from the East to Bethlehem.

Do you have a favorite Christmas carol? Hi, this is Fr. Rocky with another Advent Inspiration. There must be hundreds of Christmas carols, from many countries and in many languages. St. Josemaría’s favorite is in Spanish, and it’s based on a beautiful medieval tradition of providing shelter for the homeless at Christmastime. It’s called “Madre en la puerta hay un niño” which means “Mom, there’s a kid at the door.” A little boy, more beautiful than the shining sun, knocks on the door and says he’s freezing cold because he’s dressed in rags. The mother says, “Let him in and he can warm up by the fire place, because these days there’s no more love in the world.” The mother asks him where he’s from, and he says, “Well, my father’s from heaven and so is my mother, and I’ve come down to earth to suffer!” It turns out, he is the Christ Child! When we provide shelter for the homeless, we are providing a home for Jesus Christ himself.

Thank you for joining us during this Advent Season. As a special thank you, please take a listen to “Our Lady’s Last Christmas”

I think this is really cool, and I didn’t know about it until recently.  It was a treasure in storage for fifty years, but now it’s on display. Hi, this is Fr. Rocky with another Advent Inspiration. It’s the Christmas proclamation, from the Roman Martyrology, and you just might hear it proclaimed before Midnight Mass on Christmas. It goes like this: The Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ The Twenty-fifth Day of December, when ages beyond number had run their course from the creation of the world, when God in the beginning created heaven and earth, and formed man in his own likeness; when century upon century had passed since the Almighty set his bow in the clouds after the Great Flood, as a sign of covenant and peace; in the twenty-first century since Abraham, our father in faith, came out of Ur of the Chaldees; in the thirteenth century since the People of Israel were led by Moses in the Exodus from Egypt; around the thousandth year since David was anointed King; in the sixty-fifth week of the prophecy of Daniel; in the one hundred and ninety-fourth Olympiad; in the year seven hundred and fifty-two since the foundation of the City of Rome; in the forty-second year of the reign of Caesar Octavian Augustus, the whole world being at peace, JESUS CHRIST, eternal God and Son of the eternal Father, desiring to consecrate the world by his most loving presence, was conceived by the Holy Spirit, and when nine months had passed since his conception, was born of the Virgin Mary in Bethlehem of Judah, and was made man: The Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ according to the flesh.

Hi, this is Fr. Rocky with another Advent Inspiration. It is already December 23 and tomorrow is Christmas Eve.  Let’s remember that Christmas is all about celebrating the birth of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ some two thousand years ago in Bethlehem.  After all of the gifts and decorations and parties and food and treats and travels and activities these days, let’s remember our religion is all about a person, Jesus Christ. It’s amazing when you think about it.  God took on human nature and came to us, to teach us and to redeem us.  And yet it’s true, whether you or I believe it or not. I hope in these Christmas holidays you find some time for quiet reflection in front of the nativity scene in your home or your parish Church, or quietly in your room and in your imagination.  What comes to mind now are the words of St. Josemaria:  “May you seek Christ.  May you find Christ.  May you love Christ.”

Hi, this is Fr. Rocky with another Advent Inspiration. I bet most of you are traveling for Christmas - or have family and friends who’re braving the busy roads for it!  I know I’m excited to see who strolls in when, who frosts the best Christmas cookies and who has the wackiest sweater on. But what I’m really excited for is the time with my family, preparing for Christmas Day. All that we do in these days is surrounded by the endless joy of Christ’s birth. In this way, we get to imitate the Holy Family - and let’s be sure to use Mary and Joseph’s example to really welcome Christ as a family. Time spent together, praying, laughing, and celebrating - that’s the best way to keep Christ at the center of Christmas.

Hi, this is Fr. Rocky with another Advent Inspiration. Why do so many people go to Mass on Christmas?  Because no one wants to miss the opportunity to share in the Good News that a Savior has been born for us to save us from our sins. That’s really good news and gives everyone hope. Christmas is the only celebration of the year that has four different sets of prayers and readings for the four different Masses: Christmas Eve Vigil Mass in the early evening; Midnight Mass, or Mass of the Angels; Mass at Dawn, or Mass of the Shepherds; and Mass during the Day, or Mass of the King. Last Christmas I celebrated Christmas Mass in the cave of the Shepherds in Bethlehem on Christmas Morning. We sang “Joy to the World” and “O Come All Ye Faithful”, and the Gloria from the Missa de Angelis. Unforgettable.

Do you remember when the Apollo 11 astronauts returned to earth? I know, that was 50 years ago, but everyone’s still talking about it. That celebration lasted for weeks, with ticker-tape parades all over the country. Hi, this is Fr. Rocky with another Advent Inspiration. Sending three men into the heavens and bringing them back to earth was really something, but sending God to earth as a man and then back to heaven was even bigger! That’s why we celebrate Christmas every year for at least two weeks, from Christmas Day, December 25, until the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord on the Sunday after Epiphany.  And those Twelve Days of Christmas when your true love gave something to you?  Go ahead and count them: they are the 12 days from Christmas to Epiphany, January 6. So how do we celebrate?  Easy.  Parties, good food, fine wine, singing, movies, games, sledding, tobogganing, fireworks, air horns, visiting relatives, and visiting Jesus in the most Blessed Sacrament at your local Church for twelve days just to say thank you! And ... is it possible to over-celebrate? Yes. If you put on more than twelve pounds in those twelve days, you overdid it. But don't worry, Lent will be here soon enough.

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to people of goodwill.” You won’t hear those words at Mass during Advent, but you can’t miss them on Christmas! Hi, this is Fr. Rocky with another Advent Inspiration. The “Gloria” is omitted at Mass during the Advent season because we are in a penitential season of preparation. Like it says in the Old Testament, “There’s a time for weeping and a time for rejoicing.” We rejoice on Christmas Day by singing what the choirs of angels sang the night our dear Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem. And the Shepherds heard them sing and never forgot it. When you go to Mass on Christmas, pay close attention to the words of the Gloria and put your heart into it – it’s the easiest way I know of to fulfill the First Commandment, which is the most important Commandment, and that is to love the Lord your God with all of your heart, mind, and soul. I think the most beautiful and sublime score for the Gloria comes from the Gregorian Chant “Missa cum Jubilo”. It is so stunningly beautiful, that the greatest composer of all time, Mozart, wished he could have taken credit for it. But he couldn’t. No one knows who composed it. Maybe the angels did?

So when should you open the Christmas gifts? Christmas Eve?  Christmas Day?  Before Christmas Mass or after Christmas Mass? Hi, this is Fr. Rocky with another Advent Inspiration. Families have traditions, and Christmas traditions are among the most enduring.  Growing up in my family, we opened the bonanza of Christmas gifts on Christmas morning, but only after we had gone to Mass and had Christmas breakfast, which was extraordinary with bacon and eggs and ham and strudel and grapefruit and coffee and champagne and Milk Duds. So, if you open the gifts after Mass, if you’re a kid, your prayers at Mass will be prayers of petition: please, please, please, but if you open your gifts before Mass, your prayers at Mass will be prayers of thanksgiving: thank you, thank you, thank you! It works both ways.

Do you know what a manger is? Hi, this is Fr. Rocky with another Advent Inspiration. When Christ was born, he was wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger. But what is a manger? A manger is a wooden implement you’d find in a barn where hay is placed so the cows can eat it. The word “manger” is closely related to the Italian verb “to eat”, mangiare. That Jesus Christ was placed in a manger is a foreshadowing that one day we would actually eat Jesus Christ. And that is what we do whenever we receive Holy Communion: we eat the Body and Blood of Christ. Now, we’re not cannibals. To understand this, think of the young mother holding her tender child and kissing the child saying, “Oh, I love you so much I could just eat you up.” Well, that’s what we do with Jesus Christ. Remember to be well prepared when you receive Holy Communion. You should be in a state of grace, having kept the one hour fast from food and beverage, and be a practicing Catholic.

Does your family have Christmas traditions? Hi, this is Fr. Rocky with another Advent Inspiration. I think every family should have its own Christmas traditions, passed down from generation to generation. It’s one way of fulfilling the Fourth Commandment, “To honor your mother and father.” I have some friends who still keep alive a family tradition after many generations.  Every year on Christmas Eve they invite friends and family over to their house for a wonderful party, and everyone brings along a favorite dish. It’s a great moment to reconnect with friends and family you haven’t seen in a year and catch up on the news. But the highlight is when everyone gathers in the living room around the piano to sing Christmas carols, and the all-time favorite in this family is Silent Night, because their ancestors came from Germany and Silent Night was composed originally in German. We sing all the verses in English, and then do our best in German, as we reflect in wonder and awe of what it must have been like to leave Germany 170 years ago to start a new life in America. After all these generations, are we keeping the faith?

St. Emeric’s Church on the near west side of Cleveland would leave the beautiful Christmas decorations up until February 2, a full forty days after Christmas. Hi, this is Fr. Rocky, with another Advent Inspiration. The Christmas decorations inside of St. Emeric’s Catholic Church were so beautiful, so ornate, so elaborate, I figured “Well if it took so much time to put them up, you might as well leave them up for a long time.” But then I discovered that some people – especially from Eastern European countries -- stretch out the Christmas season all the way to February 2, the Feast of the Presentation of the Christ Child in the Temple, also known as Candlemas, because your holy candles can be blessed that day. For Catholics, the official Christmas season starts at sundown on Christmas Eve and lasts until the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, which is on the Sunday after Epiphany.  Epiphany is when the Three Kings came to adore the Christ Child, and that is “Twelve Days of Christmas.”

What do you call it?  The Nativity scene?  The manger? Or the crèche? Hi, this is Fr. Rocky with another Advent Inspiration. No matter what you call it, you have to have one inside the house and outdoors on your front lawn to remind all passersby what Christmas is all about. When you go to your Church on Christmas day, you will most likely see a magnificent Nativity scene with Jesus, Mary and Joseph, the shepherds, a cow, an ox, a donkey, a sheep, some shepherds, angels and even Wise Men. In Italy, the churches compete to see who can create the most magnificent Nativity scene, and some are quite elaborate. Yes, it takes time to unpack the pieces and put it up, but all the while your imagination and your heart enter into the scene and you wonder what it must have been like in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago when the Christ child was born. We would always leave the manger empty, until Christmas Eve, and then we would put the Christ Child there.

How much stuff can you put in a Christmas stocking? Hi, this is Fr. Rocky with another Advent Inspiration. We used to hang the red and white stockings above the chimney with care on Christmas Eve and on Christmas morning they were overflowing with treats! The amount of goodies you can put in a Christmas stocking is directly proportional to the size and strength of the stocking and the strength of the rope that stretched from one side of the fireplace mantle to the other. In later years, we substituted rope for steel cable. The stockings would be filled with “fruits for the fruity and nuts for the nutty” and if we heard that line from my father once, we heard it a thousand times. But it never got old.  But there was more: Circus peanuts, gold coins filled with chocolate, a crisp dollar bill in an envelope from my gramma, a wooden paddle with a rubber ball on the end of a rubber band, Jujubes and Juicy Fruits, Bazooka gum, a whistle and a squirt gun and a pack of cards, a pair of socks and a handkerchief, all put there by Santa’s elves we were told. But we knew better.  Those good gifts came from Jesus Christ, because it was His birthday.

Remember the Art Linkletter show, "Kids Say the Darndest Things"? Hi, this is Fr. Rocky with another Advent Inspiration. And this is from an email from a listener named Pat in Woodridge, IL. Pat writes, "At Christmastime two years ago I asked one of my co-workers what his young 5-year-old son Christopher wanted from Santa. 'Well he wants an electric guitar, but that's a little bit expensive. But when I told him that he said, 'I know it is Dad. But I'm not asking Santa for it. That's too much for him. I'm asking Jesus for it because all things are possible with God!'" Pat said, "Whenever I hear Father Rocky talk about that saying above the altar in your chapel, I think of Christopher - who, by the way, got his electric guitar for Christmas."

Jolly Old St. Nicholas, lean your ear this way! Hi, this is Fr. Rocky with another Advent Inspiration. December 6th is the Feast of St. Nicholas. You know who he is, don’t you? That’s St. Nicholas of Bari, a small town on the Adriatic Coast of Italy. Some of his relics are in a Church there, but he served as a Bishop in Armenia and was very generous with the poor, secretly giving away money and food for the needy, and most people never knew where it came from. Today we call him Santa Claus, and when we are generous with the poor, we are really living the Christmas spirit. When I was a kid, we left our shoes outside our bedroom before we went to bed the night before St. Nicholas Day and when we awoke, we’d find our shoes stuffed with goodies, including chocolate marshmallows, Hershey Kisses, and a yo-yo.  We knew it wasn’t Christmas yet, but this was a warm-up to the actual day, and we just couldn’t wait. One year, when we woke up on St. Nicholas Day, we looked outside and it had snowed five inches the night before.  It was the first snow of the season and we were really excited!

Somebody asked me, “Father, what’s your favorite Christmas cookie?” Hmmm … what’s my favorite Christmas cookie? Now, that’s a hard one because there’s so many to choose from. And the very thought of it reminds me of the kitchen in the home I grew up in with my mother wearing an apron and putting tin tray after tin tray of Christmas cookies into the oven. And that rich, sweet smell was all over the house – especially upstairs because heat rises! She started baking those cookies on December 6, the Feast of St. Nicholas, and kept at it until Christmas Eve. But by the time Christmas Day arrived, they were all gone. The 8 Hoffman children had eaten them all! I suppose we should have called them “Advent Cookies” because they didn’t make it to Christmas. So what’s my favorite Christmas cookie?  The one I just ate. I wonder what Fr. Simon’s favorite Christmas cookie is? And what’s yours?

What’s the best Christmas gift you ever got? I’m a very lucky guy, and I have received many wonderful Christmas gifts over the years, but the ones that brought me the most joy weren’t the ones I got, but the ones I gave. I think you know what I mean. Think about it for a moment. Is there someone in your life – a relative, a parent, a brother, a sister, a child, a neighbor, a co-worker, a spouse – who is missing you? Who is lonely? Can you call them? Can you visit them? Can you send them a Christmas card? Can you forgive them? Can you overcome your fear, stop grinding the axe and bury the hatchet? Just remember those golden words, “For it is in giving that we receive.” This Christmas, go ahead and splurge and give of your time, your heart, and your affection, just like Jesus did when he came to earth to save us from our sins and to save us from ourselves 2,000 years ago. And you will have a very Merry Christmas!

Send a Christmas card, get a Christmas card. Or is it the other way around? Get a Christmas card, send a Christmas card? Everyone loves to get a Christmas card, especially these days when so much communication is electronic. But a real card, in your own handwriting, with a stamp you licked yourself, and a short message of affection can bring so much joy to folks who might otherwise feel forgotten at Christmastime. Well, that’s a real Christian thing to do. Personally, I like all Christmas cards. But my favorites, I have to admit, say “Merry Christmas” on the inside and have some reference to the birth of Christ. Now don’t get me wrong, I like Frosty, Rudolph, Suzie, and Donner and Blitzen, but they didn’t save the world or die on a cross for you and me. Remember, if you’re not ashamed of Jesus, He won’t be ashamed of you either!

How many Christmas ornaments can you put on a tree? The number of Christmas ornaments you can put on a tree is directly proportional to the size of the tree, the number of the branches, the size of the ornaments, the time you have available, and your determination. If you’ve been paying attention, that’s a five-variable formula, so the possibilities are huge. It also depends on how many ornaments you have. Personally, I like all of the ornaments, and the tinsel, and the garlands, and the lights, and the candy canes. But the ornaments I like best commemorate some great occasion. Like Billy and Kerry’s wedding in 2008, or the year the Cubs won the World Series, or the Canonization of St. John Paul II, or the one my sister made by hand when she was a child, or the one of the manger in Bethlehem made out of olive wood that I bought in the Holy Land one Christmas.

Have you noticed that the seasons of Advent and Lent have something in common? That’s right, Advent and Lent have something in common. Both are seasons of spiritual preparation for a big event: Advent prepares us for the birth of Christ on Christmas, and Lent prepares us for the Death and Resurrection of Christ on Easter. Just like if you run a marathon, you have to get in shape weeks before, we have to get in shape spiritually for these two momentous feast days. It’s not yet the time for celebration; it’s a time of preparation. That’s why the vestments used at Mass during Advent and Lent are violet in color, and not white; that’s why we don’t sing or recite the Gloria at Mass during Advent and Lent, and the music in the liturgy is sober and simple, and altars are not decorated with flowers, and everyone is encouraged to fast and go to Confession and do some penance in preparation for Christmas.   

It’s now a tradition. One of the reasons we love Advent and Christmas is the family traditions, and each family has its own.  The advent wreathe, the  Christmas Tree, lights in the windows and on the house, a turkey for Thanksgiving and Roast Beef for Christmas, and seven different fish on Christmas Eve. Here at Relevant Radio we are a growing family, and it’s become a tradition now to offer you and your family Charles Dicken’s “A Christmas Carol” produced by The Merry Beggars, every single evening during Advent.  It’s a story about the joy we experience when we decide to give and not count the cost.  Just as Jesus did. Scrooge starts out grumpy and nasty. By the end he's filled with joy - laughing and singing and dancing! You can listen to it for free, every night, at themerrybeggars.com, or on the Relevant Radio App, or wherever you get your podcasts.

How many candles are on an Advent Wreath? There are four candles on an Advent Wreath, one for each Sunday in Advent.  Usually three of the candles are purple and one is rose, and that’s the one for the Third Week of Advent, known as “Gaudete Sunday” - which is the Latin word for "rejoice." On the Third Sunday of Advent, the priest can wear rose-colored vestments at Mass. Growing up in my family, we placed the Advent Wreath on the dining room table and would light the candles during dinner each evening. By the time we reached the fourth week of Advent and all four candles were glowing, we knew Christmas was almost here! The evergreen leaves that make up the wreath symbolize eternal life by sanctifying grace, and the light of the candles represents the light of Christ Who brings hope to all who approach Him. On Christmas Day a fifth candle, a large white one, can be placed in the center and burns brightly during the entire Christmas Octave, and that’s why we call it the Christ light.

If you want to have a very Merry Christmas, it starts right now by making it a great Advent! St. John the Baptist prepared people for the coming of Christ by calling them to conversion and repentance. Christ is coming again, this year on Christmas Day.  So if you want to have a very Merry Christmas, it begins right now in Advent with personal conversion and repentance. If you go to Confession before Christmas – and make it a really good Confession by not hiding any sins and being truly sorry – then you will have a very Merry Christmas because the Sacrament of Confession is the Sacrament of Joy. I know it from personal experience. There is nothing better in the world than to be in the state of grace! If you need any help going to Confession, just go to the Relevant Radio® App, and you’ll find the Confession Helper under the drop-down menu on the right side. And if you can’t remember any of your sins, just ask the people you live or work with, and they’ll tell you. I pray that you have a blessed Advent. Thanks for joining us on this journey.

Would you like daily, one-minute Advent Inspirations from Father Rocky, delivered right to your inbox each day of Advent? Sign up for free at relevantradio.com/advent! You can also listen on the Relevant Radio app and relevantradio.com. May the Lord bless you this Advent!