Bishop Wester's Christkindlmarkt narration

St. Martin of Tours

St. Martin was a knight in Roman times who served as a soldier. One cold day in November, while deployed in Gaul (modern day France), he was returning home when he encountered a beggar, scantily clad and shivering in the snow. Since St. Martin had already given away the last of his coins, he got off his horse and cut his warm, woolen coat in half with his sword, giving one of the halves to the beggar. It has been reported that later in his journey, he met another beggar whose condition was much like the first. Without hesitation, St. Martin gave this beggar the other half of his cloak. Now himself shivering from the cold, he looked up to see the clouds parting to allow the intense sunlight to warm him. To this day, any unseasonably warm day in the late fall is called "St. Martin's Summer." This later legend of the cloak reminds us once again of the theme of light.  The good deeds of this kindly saint bring light to our world, warming us and showing us the way.

Later in life, Martin was chosen to be the Bishop of Tours, a post he very much tried to avoid. As a matter of fact, he hid in a goose house as the townsfolk, young and old, went looking for him. When nighttime came, they lit their lanterns to continue the search. As they neared the goose house where he was hiding, the geese starting honking, leading the people to Martin, their new bishop.

To this day, children in Germany and other countries celebrate St. Martin Day by making paper lanterns and parading through the town to pay tribute to the great acts of kindness performed by this great saint. They are led by a man on horseback who is dressed as St. Martin. The children sing songs about him and later settle down to a goose dinner (which seems lacking in gratitude for the favor performed by the geese so many years ago!)

Tonight, our little celebration and re-enactment calls our attention to the simple yet heroic acts of kindness we are asked to perform on our "journey home." The great irony is that the more we stop to help each other along the way, the surer we are of reaching our final destiny. Indeed, the journey of kindness and love is itself our destiny. In this light, we can aptly call every Christmas tree a giving tree. St. Martin would approve!

               

Reflection on Light

St. Martin Parade of the Lanterns

In the beginning of creation, God said "Let there be light." That divine command has illuminated our world down through the eons to this present day. Tonight, our children will carry their paper lanterns which will pierce the darkness of our night and culminate in the lighting of the great Christmas tree at the end of our ceremony. This is a fitting time of the year to celebrate the gift of light as we approach the winter solstice when the light will overcome the darkness as the days get longer and longer. We also approach the celebration of Christmas, a celebration which beams brightly with countless points of light to mark the celebration of God's love for his creation. Christmas is truly a season of light.

We are already beginning to see the lights of Christmas making their way into our lives. The St. Martin parade of lanterns and our own beautiful Christmas tree are among the first reminders of the season that we are approaching. We also think of the star which guided the three wise men to the manger in Bethlehem; we look forward to seeing Christmas candles in the windows of our homes and to roasting chestnuts on open fires such as those throughout This Is the Place Park tonight. We will soon gather with our families and friends around lighted fireplaces with Christmas stockings hanging from the mantels. There will be Christmas candles on our dinner tables, night lights strategically placed throughout the house by children so that Santa Claus will be able to leave his gifts safety and flashlights held by Christmas carolers as they make their rounds throughout our neighborhoods. Truly, Christmas is a season of light.

But these lights, wonderful as they are, are merely reflections of a deeper light that shines brightly within our hearts during this sacred and grace-filled season. We get a glimpse of these inner lights as we gaze into the eyes of a child waiting expectantly for Christmas morning; as we call to mind the sacrifices people make at Christmas time, so beautifully captured in O'Henry's short story, “The Gift of the Magi;" as so many churches and other institutions open their doors to the homeless so that they might experience warmth, shelter and a hot meal on a cold snowy night and as we remember that so many years ago on Christmas Eve soldiers stopped shooting long enough to sing Christmas carols one silent night on the battlefield.  This inner light glows ever more brightly in our hearts and reminds us that the takers eat well and the givers sleep well. This inner light is the light of love.

Christmas, the season of light, celebrates God's love for us and our love for God and each other. It is this love that illumines our hearts and enables us, by its light, to see into the eyes of our brothers and sisters – to see beyond ourselves and place the needs of a fellow human being before our own. Flashlights fade as their batteries die, candles slowly extinguish as their wax melts away, even the sun sets as it makes its appointed rounds. Only the light engendered by love can burn brightly day in and day out, never to fade, extinguish or set. 

It's a funny thing, light. It is certainly real and yet impossible to be grasped. In and of itself it is as thin as the air and its main purpose is to make us aware of what already exists.  Just as the children, carrying their lanterns, go looking for St. Martin, so do the lights of Christmas go looking within our hearts to illuminate the love and mercy and compassion that is already there.  Christmas is a time to celebrate the light of love and to allow that light to shine ever more brightly in our lives not just now but throughout the entire year. The children will find St. Martin and the Christmas lights will capture our heart's if we open them widely enough. Tonight's celebration reminds us that each of us is called to let our light shine brightly so that we might all walk together on the journey of love.

  ODE TO JOY            

In 1941, the year the United States entered World War II, Mr. Van B. Hooper created a line drawing for the Christmas edition of  the “Louis Allis Messenger” depicting a young boy carrying his brother with the caption, "He ain't heavy, mister, he's m' brother." Father Flannagan of Boys Town received permission and used this caption and picture as the motto of his charitable organization. Actually, there is evidence that this quote has been used originally by others throughout the world and in different generations. It seems to touch something very deep in our hearts, namely, that human beings are created with a natural instinct to take care of each other, to see each other as brothers and sisters. Grammatically, the quote is known as a paraprosdokian, that is, a form of speech in which the second phrase explains and interprets the first. No doubt Schiller had this in mind when he wrote his famous ode "To Joy," put to music by many but none so famously as Beethoven. In it, the German poet tries to capture the joy that results from people living as one. This joy is understood only in the light of the fact that we are brothers and sisters, sharing a common journey and a common destiny. This unity is not only the result of the gift of freedom which the ode lauds but also the free decision of each of us to love one another.           

Sadly, Schiller's ode falls on many deaf ears in our world today. We are astounded by the number of wars, civil and international, that afflict our planet. It is a lamentable sign of our times that we are accustomed to war, seemingly inured to its devastating consequences for so many who suffer its effects. Probably many of us here tonight have a relative or friend who copes with the effects of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. But war is only the tip of the iceberg. Crime, greed, prejudice, lust for power, selfishness, indifference and carelessness all contribute to the fragmentation we often experience in our lives.           

But God's grace and God's love are greater than all of these sins put together. We are all created in the image of God and therefore it is of our very nature to be loving, to build community, to gather people together as one. God is love and love always triumphs over sin. But what hurts love perhaps as much as sin is for good people to do nothing. Each of us must do our part to make our world a better place, a place where people can live as brothers and sisters. We must all decide to love one another if we wish to experience the joy that only love can bring.           

Schiller wrote that "Every man becomes a brother where thy gentle wings abide." That image of "gentle wings" is a great reminder of what this coming Christmas is all about. Might and power are not the tools of love. Rather, gentleness, kindness and compassion are the "wings" that transport God's love to us and our love to each other. It is in the quiet of a Christmas night that we can begin to hear the words God speaks to us, words that repair our broken relationships and bind up the wounds that divide us. Knowing that God loves us as we are, that we are his precious children, gives us the insight and strength to reach out to others just as God has reached out to us. There is far more that unites us than that divides us. To realize this is to experience the joy that inspired Schiller, the joy that God intends for all his children, living together as one.           

Here in Utah, we are greatly blessed by people who live together in unity, united in the conviction that we are indeed brothers and sisters, diverse yet united. Our pioneers, whose memories are enshrined in this park, speak to us of this unity. From different walks of life, different cultures, different religious beliefs, and different motivations, they came to his state and forged a unity that grows ever stronger with each passing year. They came here by ox cart, wagon, horseback and their own feet in order to sink roots that continue to nurture a spirit of unity that promotes the common good and celebrates the freedom that allows us all to live in peace and mutual respect. Today, we arrive by plane, car and train but our ideals are the same and our desire to live as one no less real. "He ain't heavy, he's m'brother (or sister)" could easily be our motto here in Utah.  It is certainly a cause for great joy, where God's gentle wings abide.