Advent Reflections I

Happy New Year!  As the first Sunday of Advent, today is the first day in the new liturgical year.  The readings for today (which can be found here: http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/112711.cfm) set the tone of watching and waiting for the rest of this holy season.

I love how Isaiah's lament over Judah's sinfulness in the first reading is answered by Paul's assurance that Christ will keep us firm to the end in the second reading.  This juxtaposition illustrates the relationship between Law and Grace; as St. Augustine said, "The law was therefore given, in order that grace might be sought; grace was given, in order that the law might be fulfilled" (Treatise on the Spirit and the Letter, 34).  Israel failed to remain faithful to the law, but Christ perfectly fulfilled the law - and we are offered the grace to join our lives to his and participate in his perfect obedience.  This requires us to watch vigilantly for the coming of our Lord, as He instructs in the Gospel.  This year there is another application for the command to be vigilant: with the new translation of the Mass beginning today we must all be extra vigilant during Mass in order to not be caught unawares with an "And also with you" instead of an "And with your spirit"! :)

In this season of Advent we meditate on and prepare for the coming of our Lord in three different ways.  The most familiar preparation during Advent is our preparation for Christmas, when we remember and celebrate Christ coming to us in history.  Advent is also a time to take a close look at how we recognize the presence of our Lord as He comes to us each and every Mass in the Eucharist.  Am I truly prepared to receive him?  He is really present - but do I take his presence for granted?  Finally, we begin the new liturgical year with a focus on the end: am I prepared to meet our Lord when He comes again in glory (or when I meet him at death)?

In the midst of all the holiday preparations - and all the end-of-semester business for both Alex and myself - it seems nearly impossible to find time to really prepare to celebrate the joyous mystery of Christmas.  But I am determined that this year (unlike every other year where I say the same thing) I will truly appreciate Advent; on Christmas Eve I will not find myself saying "Christmas?  But I'm not ready!"  Hopefully the fact that we completed most of our Christmas shopping yesterday is a good sign of spiritual preparations to be completed in a timely manner as well :)

Many or all?

I LOVE the new translation of the Roman Missal (although I am less than enthusiastic about some of the musical settings for the new Mass parts, but modern music and the Mass are a diatribe for a different day).  I look forward to everyone becoming more comfortable with the changes so that once again there will be a unified response during Mass, instead of a hesitant mumbling which comes across as "Andalsowithyourspirityou."

As a good friend pointed out today, one of the more drastic and potentially confusing changes seems to be during the Words of Institution.  During the consecration of the chalice the priest now says, “Take this, all of you, and drink from it, for this is the chalice of my Blood, the Blood of the new and eternal covenant, which will be poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins.  Do this in memory of me.”  In the old translation the priest said “It will be shed for you and for all so that sins may be forgiven.”  This change from “for all” to “for many” more literally translates the original Latin, but it may be rather shocking to many Catholics.  Is the Church saying that Christ only died for some?

As St. Paul would say, me genoito! (By no means! or No indeed!)  The Catholic Church teaches, as the Bible clearly states, that Christ died for all (see, for example, 1 Tim 2:6, “[Christ Jesus] gave himself as a ransom for all…” RSV).  However, we must each accept this gift so that Christ’s blood is not simply poured out but is poured out for “the forgiveness of [our] sins.”  He died for all, but not all choose to benefit from his death.  The original Latin of the Mass and this new translation both point to this reality.

The Latin in the Mass refers to Matthew 26:28, "For this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins" (emphasis mine).  The Greek is polloi, literally “the many.”  In this verse Jesus is associating himself with the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53.  The Septuagint uses polloi three times in Isaiah 53:11-12 (only two of which are translated in the RSV): “He shall see the fruit of the travail of his soul and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous; and he shall bear their iniquities.  Therefore I will divide him a portion with the great (literally he will be given many), and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he poured out his soul to death, and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.”  The repetition of many here highlights the contrast between the one righteous servant of God and the many who benefit from his sacrifice; the wording in the Mass preserves this juxtaposition.  We are reminded of the gift we have been given to be numbered among the many.

For more information on Scripture in the Mass, as well as a better understanding of the new translation, I highly recommend Dr. Edward Sri’s A Biblical Walk Through the Mass (http://guidetothemass.com/information/new-translation/3/study-program-bible-biblical-faith).

Playtime!

It's hard to believe our little one is over 10 months old now!  Here's a video of Michael enjoying two of his favorite things: blocks and books.

Too good for breakfast!

What do you do with a zucchini that's almost as big as your 8 1/2 month old?  Why, make muffins, of course!

My mother-in-law gave us a giant zucchini from her garden.  Maybe it's really not that big for a good ol' home-grown zucchini, but I'm used to the dinky little ones you buy at a grocery story - and this one was seriously huge by those standards.  How convenient that my mom has an amazing zucchini muffin recipe!  So last night after getting Michael to bed I was so excited to start making some muffins.  I had already decided to blog about the zucchini adventure, because I had thought up a perfect photo of a plate of muffins and the huge zucchini - very artsy (yes, Alex and I are still hooked on the Food Network - so what?).  I was able to enjoy the thought of this perfect photo for all of a minute before I realized - as I'm sure you already have - that I needed to use the zucchini to make the muffins, thus destroying my perfect photo.  Boo!  And yet, you see the photo above!  No, I did not go back to my mother-in-law and ask for another ginormous zucchini just so I could take a picture (although I thought about it).  What this photo doesn't show you is the chunk (2 cups worth, to be exact) that I took out of the back of the zucchini to make my muffins - all the while leaving the majority intact for the photo op.  I was quite proud of my problem solving skills :)

I had forgotten how good these muffins are - I don't remember the last time I had them.  But they are way too good to just have them for breakfast.  In fact, they're practically dessert.  The half batch I made last night (only one egg in the fridge - sad day!) is already gone (Michael and I shared the last one for a treat after lunch).  On the agenda for today: go to the store and get more eggs, then bake more muffins tonight.  (Of course, that depends on the cooperation of a certain little boy who absolutely refused to take a nap this morning - despite being ridiculously tired.  To be more precise, he was perfectly happy to fall asleep in my arms, but refused to stay asleep or go back to sleep once I put him down in his crib.  The jury is still out on where exactly he gets his stubbornness ;))  After shredding the entire zucchini (by hand - new on my wishlist: a food processor) I ended up with enough for six more batches of muffins - hip hip hooray!  This plethora of shredded zucchini goodness is now safely in my freezer in two cup portions (the measurement for one batch of muffins) to be pulled out whenever we need a quick muffin fix.

So, for your culinary edification and delight, here's the recipe (courtesy of my mom, with the disclaimer that she says she probably got it from someone else, but doesn't remember from whom):

2 c unpeeled, shredded zucchini
2 eggs
1/2 c oil
1 t vanilla
1 c sugar
2 c flour (white or wheat - I do half and half)
1 1/2 t cinnamon
1/2 t nutmeg
1/4 t cloves
1/2 t soda
1/2 t baking powder
1 c oatmeal


Beat eggs, oil, vanilla and sugar.  Mix flour, spices, soda and baking powder together in a separate bowl.  Blend zucchini into egg mixture alternately with flour mixture.  Do not over blend.  Fold in oatmeal.  Spoon into muffin pans lined with baking cups.  Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes or until slightly brown.  Makes approximately 2 dozen muffins.


Enjoy!  They go particularly well with a glass of iced chai or a cup of Harney & Sons Hot Cinnamon Sunset tea (decaf, for the sake of the little insomniac and the sanity of his parents)  :)

Dakota Adventure #2

After being home for almost a month I'm finally getting around to this post about our second road trip of the summer.  I'm actually fairly pleased with myself that it's only been a month...

In mid-July we headed north for a two week Dakota Adventure consisting of family, fun, regressing to waking up every 90 minutes at night, weddings, and more family.  We had an absolute blast (minus the sleepless nights, but after another two weeks at home we're pretty much back to "normal" - for us).  We spent the first week in Lead, SD with my family - including my parents, who were spending a week in the Hills as well - and the second week in Mottt, ND with Alex's grandparents.

First, South Dakota.

We spent a lot of time playing and relaxing in Great Grandma and Grandpa Rappana's backyard.  Michael was leery of the grass for all of one evening, then he wanted to explore it... and eat it.  Grandma and Grandpa got in some good playtime keeping Michael entertained on his blanket.

There were also many ladder ball tournaments - maybe Michael will join in next year.

We had our very first taste of watermelon - and we loved it.

We hiked Harney Peak with Grandma and Grandpa.  Michael was a trooper - he cooperated by sleeping for almost all of the ~4 hour hike.  Daddy was a trooper too - he carried Michael for the whole hike, with a blanket draped over his sleeping passenger to keep the sun off him (Michael was not a fan of his hat).  

Above: Superhero Daddy.  Below: Sleepy little hiker.

We thoroughly enjoyed our week with Great Grandma Maxine...

...and Great Grandpa Chuck - as well as the rest of the Rappana clan :)

In addition to quality time with the Rappana side, Michael got to meet many of his relatives on the Mattox side at the reception for my cousin Zarah's wedding.  He was his usual cheerful self despite the hot weather and it being so close to bedtime.  Alex and I have no idea how the two of us ended up with a baby who is quite the little social butterfly... is it a case of two negatives equaling a positive?

Of course Zarah and Jeff were the stars of the show, but another very special guest was Great Grandpa Jim Sayre, all the way from New Mexico.  Michael was quite fascinated with both his hat and his beard.

After our lovely week in Lead we headed up to Mott.  The Cranes were gathering to celebrate Alex's cousin Molly's wedding.  The three of us arrived several days before the rest of the crowd, and we got to spend some quiet days visiting with Great Grandma and Grandpa Crane.

A major event of this week was Michael getting his first taste of steak (steak not processed by Mama, that is).  Michael sucked this chunk of meat dry, and he has been quite the little carnivore ever since!

Snuggling with Great Grandma Shirley.

Watching the news with Great Grandpa Charles.

Four generations of handsome Crane men!

...And several of the beautiful Crane cousins trying enthusiastically to get Michael to smile for the above generational picture.

Michael enjoyed the festivities at the reception.  No, he did not drink the beer, he just chewed on the rim of the glass - I promise; he did, however, stay up waaaaaaaaaaaay past his bedtime!

It was an amazing trip, and we were glad to get home at the end of it.  We are so thankful for our family!!!