December 24, 2009 at Saint Mark Church in Norman, OK
Isaiah 9: 1-6 + Psalm 96 + Titus 3: 4-7 + Luke 2: 1-20 Fr. Boyer
Homily for the children
Delivered on Christmas morning after Mass because of Christmas Eve Blizzard cancelling all Masses
Just a little while ago there was a church like our church planning to have a Christmas pageant telling the story we just heard about the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. All of the children lined up to get a part in the play. The teacher started out by asking who wanted to be Mary and every one of the girls raised their hands and jumped up and down to get attention. They all wanted to be Mary and wear the beautiful blue dress and hold the baby. Then the teacher asked who wanted to be Joseph, and all the boys waved their hands in the air and they pushed and shoved to get in front of the teacher.
Then it was time for the shepherds and the wise men, and everyone left wanted those parts because of the neat robes and they got to talk and carry the beautiful gifts. Then the angels got chosen and there was great excitement because they get to sing the best songs and the wings were fun wear and everyone would clap for them. Finally the teacher asked who wanted to be the donkey. The room got very quiet and no one raised their hand. After all, who would want to be a donkey? You don’t get to say anything there is no song, no body claps for you and you just sit there and stare at Mary and Joseph and their baby.
The teacher was very sad because no one would raise their hand to be the donkey, and so that year there was no donkey in the play. In fact, that year there just was no Christmas at all. If there is no donkey, nothing would happen in Bethlehem because Mary and Joseph could never get there in time. They would have walked. If there is no donkey, no one could carry Mary, Joseph, and their baby away to Egypt to save them from King Herod who wanted to kill all the baby boys. If there was no donkey Jesus could not have come into Jerusalem to celebrate Passover and his last supper giving us his body and blood.
In fact, without the donkey, there might not be any story to tell at all. The problem with being a donkey is that you never get much attention because everyone is looking at the angels and Mary and Joseph and those shepherds and wise men dressed up pretty and nice.
When you look at every Nativity scene, I want you to learn to look at the donkey and remember how important the donkey is to our story. When you grow up I want you to remember that sometimes in God’s plan it is better to be a donkey than to be an angel or the star of the show.
The donkey never got to say anything or look very pretty, but the donkey got to carry Jesus, Mary and Joseph to safety. The donkey had the best view of everything in that stable, and without someone willing to play the part of the donkey, there’s no story to tell. I don’t want you to grow up thinking you all have to be star of the show. I don’t want you to grow up pushing and shoving thinking that the best parts in life are the pretty parts or the famous parts. Even if you don’t end up playing the part of the donkey, always remember, recognize, and be grateful that someone plays the part of the donkey for us all.