I Had a Dream, Joseph. I Don T Understand It, but I Think It Was About a Birthday Celebration

Birthday Presents for Jesus??

Dear Friend,

As Christmas approaches I’d like to share with you a simple story I came across some years ago called “Mary’s Dream”:

Mary’s Dream

“ I had a dream, Joseph. I don’t understand it, but I think it was about a birthday celebration for our son.

The people in my dream had been preparing for about six weeks. They had decorated the house and bought new clothes. They’d gone shopping many times and bought many elaborate gifts.

It was peculiar, though, because the Presents weren’t for our son. They wrapped them in beautiful paper and stacked them under a tree. Yes, a tree, Joseph, right inside their homes! They’d decorated the tree with sparkling ornaments. There was a figure like an angel on the top of the tree.

Everyone was laughing and happy. They gave the gifts to each other Joseph, not to our son. I don’t think they even knew him. They never mentioned his name.

I had the strangest feeling that, if our Jesus had gone to this celebration, he would have been intruding. How sad for someone not to be wanted at his own birthday party! I’m glad it was only a dream. How terrible, Joseph, if it had been real!” (Author Unknown) I shared the story with my parishioners at the time and some were so moved by it that they resolved to compile a birthday “Presents for Jesus” Christmas list for themselves and to share with others. My hope and theirs is that you will read the list of suggestions that follow and give one or more of the suggested presents to Jesus this Christmas along with your other gifts. Or you may think of another present that He would enjoy. I’m sure that if you chose any one of the presents listed, or gave something similar, Jesus would be delighted. And I’m also sure, given the delight Jesus enjoys in receiving His birthday gifts, Mary and Joseph would also smile with satisfaction knowing her dream was in fact unreal.

God Bless

Father John Archbold OMI Suggested “Presents for Jesus”

Gifts Donations Give a MAMI Gift Card to someone who Make a donation to a Church building or would appreciate that supporting the restoration fund. missionary work of the Oblates is a more worthwhile gift than another pair Provide a meal for the homeless by a of socks. donation to the parish or diocesan Care Centre. Give a Christian book as a Christmas gift (e.g. “The Real MacKillop”, “The Donate quality pre-loved household items Salvado Memoirs”, “Living Biblically” by (e.g. beds and bases, tables and chairs, Archbishop Hickey). wardrobes or chest of drawers) to Vinnies. Give a gift subscription for a Catholic newspaper or magazine. Gift your spouse a weekend retreat at a Personal Retreat House or Monastery. Send a Christmas card to someone you If asked “What would you like for may have deliberately or inadvertently Christmas?” include one or two hurt, together with a note or letter of “Presents for Jesus” in your wish list. apology. Gift an engaged or married couple an It is said that “world peace begins at the “Engaged” or a “Marriage” Encounter dinner table” – could you be a better weekend. advocate for world peace? Purchase a Caritas “Global Gifts” card to Reconcile with a family member or former support families in developing or close friend. disaster effected countries. Could you “write off” someone’s debt to When you select your traditional Christmas you as a gift to Jesus? presents, think of them as birthday Is this time to reconnect with a God Child? presents for Jesus and the recipient as His representative. And tell the recipient what you have done. Outreach Prayers and Reflection Send Christmas cards with Christian Promise Jesus that every day or every themes, messages or images, not ones week you will go to the telephone with pictures of a man in a funny red directory, look up “Catholic Church”, suit. find a different organisation or Invite an irregular church going friend or institution and ask the Lord to bless it, family member to join you for a the people working in it, and the people Christmas Day mass. they serve. Pray for all those preparing to enter the Some 80 students at a Catholic high school Church, particularly those in the RCIA have committed through their RE program. teachers to say a rosary for Our Lady’s Pray for Anglican Catholics who are birthday. Could your school do responding to the Coetibus something similar? Anglicanorum. Pray for the missionaries in East Africa as Invite someone who may be on their own they try to cope with the scourge of to join you for a Christmas meal. HIV. Don’t hide your Christianity at Christmas Thank God for the Canonisation of Mary (e.g. write Christmas not “Xmas”; send MacKillop. Christmas cards not “Season’s Greetings” ones). Promises and Commitments Teenagers and Young People If your Lenten promise lapsed or was Assist your teachers in any “anti-bullying” forgotten, renew it for the month of efforts your school might implement. January. Invite someone outside your circle of Commit to make special time for prayer or friends to join your group in a social or reflection (eg a weekday mass, join a sporting activity. meditation group). Can you commit to being part of the next If your “planned giving” commitments have World Youth Day? fallen behind, put the “catch-up” amount in a Christmas card and submit it as your “Present for Jesus”. Time and Talents If your “Present to Jesus” is by way of a Give some of your time and talents to a promise or commitment, write it in a care centre, whether as regular Christmas card addressed “To Jesus contributor; giving a day’s voluntary from your name” and put it under the work; or just popping in on a weekday, Christmas tree to remind all at gift perhaps with a friend, and volunteering opening time of the true meaning of to wash up. Christmas. Afterwards, put the card, Volunteer to give some time to work in a opened or unopened, somewhere Vinnies shop. where you will see it each day to remind you of you resolved to do. Mow a neighbour’s lawn who may not be able to do it themselves. Make a meal for someone in need. Family Organise a fund raiser for, sponsor, or part Make the nativity scene the focus of all sponsor, a young person’s visit to Christmas decorating themes (ie the World Youth Day. roof, dining table etc). Resolve to volunteer for some ministry in As a “Family Gift” make a donation to the the parish and discover that it is a Parish to cover the yearly or monthly present for you as well as for Jesus. cost of some small item of church Country folk could offer a few days “home expenditure (e.g. altar candles, altar stay” for city folk in need of respite wine, communion hosts, a month’s time. electricity bill, printing cost of one week’s printing of the Parish Newsletter Volunteer as a helper at the Christmas day or this Mary’s Dream handout). lunch organised in many cities for the less fortunate who do not have a home Get the family together and make-over a or a family to go to at Christmas. sick or elderly neighbour’s garden. Organise a variation of the original “boxing As a family decide to withdraw something day” tradition and have parishioners from the Christmas Day celebration bring in duplicate or otherwise table and donate the funds saved to unneeded Christmas presents or gift the Care Centre. cards for re-distribution to the needy.

Young Children Parish Initiatives Read a short version of the true Christmas Coordinate a letter drop in the suburbs of story before opening the Christmas the parish inviting all to a Christmas presents. mass. Include in their Christmas present Volunteer to coordinate or help with a “give “allowance” a specific sum that they a lift” scheme to drive parishioners to should spend on a birthday “Present for Mass who are unable to drive Jesus” of their choice. themselves. Some Contacts and Resources

Benedictine Community of New Norcia Phone: 9654 8018 Email: [email protected] Website: www.newnorcia.wa.edu.au

Caritas Australia: GPO Box 9830 Sydney NSW 2001 Phone: 1800 024 413 Email: [email protected] Website: www.caritas.org.au

Catholic Homes Inc: Castledare Place, Wilson 6107 Phone: 9356 4280 Email: [email protected] Website: www.catholichomes.com

Central Catholic Bookshop: 322 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne 3000 Phone: 03 9639 0844 Website: www.catholicbookshop.com.au

Fremantle Catholic Community: (including all parish matters), 47 Adelaide St Fremantle 6160 Phone: 9335 2268 Email: [email protected]

Life Link: 61 Fitzgerald St Northbridge WA 6003 Phone: 9427 0311 Email: [email protected] Website: www.lifelink.com.au

Marriage Encounter: 82 Bibra Drive Bibra Lake 6161 Phone: 9417 8750

Oblate Office of Mission (MAMI): PO Box 384 Camberwell Vic 3124 Email: [email protected] Website www.oblates.com.au/mami

The Record: 21 Victoria Square, Perth 6000 Phone: 9220 5900 Website: www.therecord.com.au

Redemptorist Monastery Retreat House Phone: 9328 6600 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.themonastery.org.au

St Patrick’s Community Support Centre: 12 Queen Victoria Street, Fremantle WA Phone: 9430 4159 Email: [email protected] Website www.stpats.com.au

St Vicent de Paul Society: PO Box 473 Belmont WA 6984 Phone 9475 5400, or 9444 5622 to arrange a furniture pick-up. Email: [email protected] Website: www.vinnies.org.au or enquire through your local Vinnies shop.

The Mary’s Dream campaign is an initiative of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate Australia. For information see www.oblates.com.au/marysdream