Birthdays and Deathdays

Preparing for our birthday into heaven

09/08/2017

Romans 8:28-30 Brothers and sisters: We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. For those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, so that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined he also called; and those he called he also justified; and those he justified he also glorified.

            Sometimes knowing a little biology and a little mathematics can make you a better Catholic. A few weeks ago at the first PTO meeting at school, we had a quiz bowl competition called “Pupils versus Parents and Priest.” One of the questions was: “When is the birthday of Immaculate Conception School?” I quickly hit my buzzer and answered “December 8, 1930.” But I was wrong. The students answered: “September 8, 1930.” And they were correct. It was a trick question, but they were more right than me.  December 8 is when Mary was conceived in the womb of her mother, St. Anne, called “Immaculate Conception.” And how long is someone typically in the womb before they are born? That’s normally nine months (a little biology). So, what date is nine months after December 8? Let’s count (a little math): January (one), February (two), March (three), April (four), May (five), June (six), July (seven), August (eight), and September (nine)! So, nine months after Mary was conceived on December 8, she was born on September 8. Apparently, I am not smarter than a fifth grader, and that’s why the Pupils team beat the Parents and Priest team in quiz bowl.

               Today we celebrate the Birthday of the Blessed Virgin Mary. But that is also a very curious Catholic custom. Why? Well, there are only three holy people whose birthdays we celebrate, namely, Jesus on December 25, Mary on September 8, and St. John the Baptist on June 24. We celebrate their birthdays because they were purified of sin in the womb, so they were born saintly. Mary was purified in the moment of her conception because that conception was “immaculate.”  St. John the Baptist was purified in the womb when Jesus visited him while their mothers were pregnant. Remember how Elizabeth said, “The baby in my womb leaped for joy at the sound of your voice” (Luke 1:41), because John was filled with the Holy Spirit? And of course, Jesus birthday because he is the Holy One of God.

                But all other saints, apostles, and martyrs celebrate not their birthday, but their deathday. Why? Well, because that’s the critical moment of salvation for them and for us: the state of our souls at the moment of death is ultimately what counts. That’s why Captain Kirk said in the movie “Star Trek,” “How we deal with death is at least as important as how we deal with life.” My theology comes from movies.  In other words, it is by dying in the Lord, and dying for the Lord, that the saints glorified God. Their deathday, in a sense, was eternally more consequential than their birthday. Ironically, a saint’s feast day - the day they died - in Latin is called “dies natalis,” which literally means “birthday,” because that’s the day they are “born into heaven.” A little biology – understanding birth and death – can help you be a better Catholic.

                In the first reading today, St. Paul writes to the Romans that Jesus is “the firstborn among many brothers.” Now, since Jesus is the firstborn, there will undoubtedly be a second born and third born and so on, which is what Christians are: Jesus’ little brothers and sisters. But does our “birth” refer to our birthday on earth or our birthday in heaven, which is really our deathday on earth? Well, if you’re Mary and St. John the Baptist, it means your birthday on earth – because  they were purified and perfected in the womb – but for the other saints and for us, it means their deathday on earth, or their “dies natalis,” their birthday into heaven. In other words, this world is our womb and it takes us not 9 months but 90 years to be purified and perfected before we’re born into heaven. Our deathday literally becomes our birthday, our dies natalis, when we are born into heaven.

                My friends, there is one very plain and practical application of today’s celebration, namely, that there’s hope for all of us who trudge along in this “valley of tears,” these 90 years in the womb of the world. That is, we can still change and live for God instead of for ourselves. Think of someone who needs to change their life: a dictator cruelly oppressing his people, a boss who cares more about his work than his workers, a friend who has betrayed you, a son or daughter who has left the Church, an ex-spouse who has divorced you, or maybe even yourself (we can lose hope even for ourselves). There’s always hope for us while we walk on this earth, while we’re being formed and fashioned in the womb of the world. Why? Well, because we haven’t died yet and we can still change. Or, maybe it’s more accurate to say that we haven’t been born yet.

Praised be Jesus Christ!