Fertile Myrtle

Opening our hearts to the blessing of babies

Isaiah 7:10-14 

The LORD spoke to Ahaz, saying: Ask for a sign from the LORD, your God; let it be deep as the netherworld, or high as the sky! But Ahaz answered, “I will not ask! I will not tempt the LORD!” Then Isaiah said: Listen, O house of David! Is it not enough for you to weary people, must you also weary my God? Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel.

          A beautiful baby is a curious creature. Sometimes it brings out the best in us, and at other times, it elicits the worst from us. I’ll never forget my brother’s description of his feelings when he held his first-born son for the first time in the delivery room. At first he felt unbelievable joy and gratitude (that was the best feeling). But a moment later, he was overwhelmed by fear and responsibility, and a deep sense of helplessness to meet that challenge (that was the worst feeling). That’s what one friend described as “induced maturity” – where you suddenly grow up and mature into a responsible man. You instantly become less lazy and self-centered and instead try to be more patient and persevering. That’s how babies make us better.

          Babies also have this two-fold effect on priests: bringing out the best the worst in “men of the cloth.” For instance, babies can inspire a vocation to the priesthood. When I was pastor in Springdale, I would visit my brother on my day off. By that point they had 4 small children. It wouldn’t take long for me to realize that God knew exactly what he was doing calling me to be a priest! I always left his home at peace in my priestly vocation because I was heading back to my peaceful rectory! But sometimes babies bring out the worst in priests, especially when they start crying in Mass. Some babies are born with a remarkable sense of timing; they know precisely when the priest is about to begin his homily, and it’s just then they choose to cry and carry on. I know one priest who would actually stop his homily and wait for the baby to stop crying before he continued. Babies can bring out the best and the worst even in us poor priests.

          The Scriptures show us that the birth of Jesus was no exception to this pattern: a baby forced people to choose between faith or fear, between joy and jealousy. In the first reading King Ahaz has given up on God and doesn’t even hope for an answer to his prayers. As he says sardonically: “I will not tempt the Lord.” That sounded pious enough, but he was only a pious fraud; he had no faith. Isaiah tells him a baby will be born to a Virgin so that the king might experience a little “induced maturity,” and have more faith and less fear. The Baby could bring out the best in Ahaz. In the gospel St. Joseph hears that his fiancée, Mary, is pregnant and he is filled with fear. But thanks to the angel, his fear is turned into faith. The Baby would bring out the best in Joseph. Of course, we all recall ruefully how King Herod ordered the murder of all male children under 2 years old, to try to eclipse the star of the new-born King. The Baby brought out the worst in Herod. The Christ-Child, even though his life had barely begun – indeed, while his birth was only an ancient prophesy – served as a sign of contradiction, bringing out the best and bringing out the worst in people. Babies tend to do that: they teach us a lot about ourselves.

          My friends, let me ask you to ponder this question today: how do you react to the news of a baby? Does it bring out the best in you or the worst in you? Consider these examples. Some couples, who have waited for years in the hopes of having a baby, are ecstatic with joy when they finally get pregnant. On the other hand, I know one woman, who calls herself “Fertile Myrtle” (because she gets pregnant if her husband just looks at her too long) and she’s terrified she’ll get pregnant again. Teenagers and unmarried couples who engage in sex always fear the prospect of pregnancy: a baby would be bad news! Some tragically turn to abortion as their only way to deal with the shame and to save face. Some people point to over-population as a world crisis and blame too many babies, laying the blame at the tiny toes of babies, and seeing them as “little threats to the rain forest.” On the other hand, Mother Teresa once beautifully said, “Saying there are too many babies is like saying there are too many flowers.”

          I suppose some will see my concerns as casting aspersions down from an ivory tower, since I have never had any babies of my own. They complain: “They don’t know nothin bout birthin no babies!” Nevertheless, the 19th century novelist, Goethe, insightfully indicated to those who “praise experience exclusively,” that “experience is only half of experience” (quoted in For the Love of Wisdom, Josef Pieper, 16). In other words, we can know the truth of things not only by living them (experiencing them), but also through faith. Faith allows us to learn things under the shining light of the Gospel, the Good News about a Baby born in Bethlehem.

          Folks, in exactly one week, we will celebrate the birthday of the most beautiful Baby to ever grace the human race, namely, the Baby Jesus. But in Luke 2:34, Simeon prophesies that not all would celebrate his birth, predicting, “Behold, this child is destined for the rise and fall of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted.” Baby Jesus would bring out the best and the worst in people: some would rise to new heights of grace, while others would tumble into disgrace. As we prepare to celebrate the birthday of the King of Kings, let us open our hearts to the blessing of every baby that crosses our path, even if your name happens to be “Fertile Myrtle.”

          Praised be Jesus Christ!