Preparing for Christmas 2007

Retail stores survived another Black Friday. & thus begins another Christmas shopping seasons. Having worked in retail for 10 yrs I understand the importance of this time for the bottom line & survival of a store. However as bad as it was back in my day, it has just gotten worse. Christmas has become a spending frenzy that glorifies greed, selfishness, who has the most toys (esp for adults) & ignores the real reason for the holiday, the Birth of Christ. The fact that it has become this makes me wonder if saying "Happy Holidays" is all that bad.

Now, before you get upset, I am not opposed to the idea of gift giving. There is nothing wrong with it, if it remains a part of the whole & is done as a reminder of the 1st Christmas & the gifts given by the Magi. But, gift giving is not the centerpiece of the holiday, Christ IS!!!!!

What I am going to suggest is that you consider cutting back on the # of gifts or the size of the gifts & use some of that money to support some good causes that could use the financial support. (I also am planning a post with some gift suggestions also.) & if, like me, you don't go overboard in the 1st place, that you look for somewhere else to cut back so you can give a little extra.

As I am writing this, Sunday Night Live with Fr. Groeschel has just begun on EWTN. The guest is Fr. Michael Shields who's work in Magadan I have often talked about on this blog. (& another will be coming up soon as I just got the latest newsletter.) I wasn't planning on starting with them, but it has become a perfect lead-in to my 1st 2 suggestions for where to give. (Follow the links to their websites for info on how to give either via internet or the mail.)

EWTN doesn't have a huge bankroll it can draw on. & it gets no funds from the USCCB either. It runs on faith & the regular donations of its viewers. & there are times when it runs short of funds. The service it provides to the Catholic Church is irreplacable.

The Mission to Magadan is sponsored by the Archdiocese of Anchorage AK. Magadan is the site of 1 of Stalin's gulags. The Mission strives to bring the Gospel & God's love & healing to those who are suffering in the area. They also run Nativity Inn, "a sanctuary for expectant mothers who do not have the financial resources to continue a pregnancy without the Church’s help". a place where expectant mothers can go to receive the support they need Cash donations cannot be sent directly to Magadan. They have to go through the Anchorage Archdiocese (here). Donations to Nativity Inn specifically can be made through PayPal on the Inn webpage.

That leads me to a very important group of organizations that always need your support. (Guess what Fr. Groeschel is talking about as I am starting this section?) That group is the Pro-Life Orginizations. You could start by supporting your local Right to Life Group. DBQ Co. Right to Life could use the help if you don't have a group in your area. Also your local Birthright or Crisis Pregnancy Center could always use support, financial as well as specific goods (check with the group for specifics). & how about donating your time to work at the local office?

On the national/international level I will mention only 3 that I see as the leaders. However all of the Pro-Life & Post-abortion Healing organizations I have listed in the column on the right would welcome help. The 3 I want to hilite are American Life League, Human Life International, & Priests For Life.

There are plenty of people out their who are in need of food & clothing. Most areas have a food bank that could always use donations, food as well as as cash. Then many organizations have giving trees. Many of these set up a site in a local department store or mall. These provide opportunities to buy a present for a child or senior citizen who would otherwise be forgotten. Many parishes also have a similar program for those in their parish.

On the national & international level there are several orginizations that help provide food, clothing & job training for those in need. Catholic Relief Services & Catholic Charities - USA have plenty of worthy programs that need support. & each Catholic diocese also has an office for work within the diocese. Aid to the Church in Need "is an international Catholic charity under the authority of the Holy Father working to serve the persecuted and suffering Church in more than 120 countries around the world." Cross International Catholic Outreach is "part of the Cross International Alliance – an ecumenical Christian effort founded to help the poor worldwide." Heifer International helps people to become independent by providing animals to raise & the training needed so that they can "obtain a sustainable source of food and income."

Normally I would add Habitat for Humanity in this list. But it has become clear to me that they are more concerned about being politcally correct rather that remembering their Christian roots & mission. I say that because the cards they sent out to raise funds avoided any mention of the holiday or the reason for it, Christ. Maybe they better go back & study Mother Teresa's way of helping the poor & proclaiming Christ & see that the 2 are not incompatable. Speaking of the Missionaries of Charity, check out the MC Priests website for contact info to support them. Fr. Groeschel is a member of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal. They do a lot of work with the poor & deserve support. As does The Society of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart - The Josephites.

I've also mentioned the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration of Our Lady of Solitude Monastery and Chapel in another post. They are a daughter foundation of Mother Angelica's Our Lady of the Angels Monastery. They are building their new monastery in Arizona & are in great need of financial support to do so.

Many of the other Catholic organizations I have listed on the right also depend on donations to fund their work. & that includes many of the canonization causes listed there.

I would be remiss if I didn't promote the American Bible Society & their work at getting God's Word out to the world. 1 of the ways they do that is through their Bible-A-Month Club . Another is their Bibles for the Military program. The Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Foundation also has a military outreach. They provide copies of Archbishop Sheen's Wartime Prayer Book to the troops.

These are just a few suggestions that I offer to you to consider supporting. & not only during the Christmas season but throughout the year. They are great opportunities to obey Jesus' call to help the "least of His brothers" as well as help return the focus of Christmas where it belongs, on Christ.

Added 26 Nov 2007 3:28 AM

I forgot 1 group in the above opportunities to provide gifts for those in need. Prison Fellowship has a program called Angel Tree. The program supplies gifts for children of prison inmates who otherwise wouldn't get any. While the inmates may have broken the law, most of them who are parents still love & care for their children & desire that they have a happy Christmas. But they obviously don't have the money. This group provides an excellent opportunity to witness to both the prisoners & their families.