Chapter 42
"A Powerful Christmas Eve Homily"
The interview with Prime Minister Thatcher had sent a clear message that anyone affiliated with Team Rocket was a wanted person in the eyes of the law. Now, with Christmas Eve mass underway, the effects of that interview were still very much fresh and it was reflected in Father Keegan's homily.
We had done the traditional Catholic mass: the greeting, the first reading, the psalm, the reading from the letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians, the Alleluia and then the Gospel reading which was taken from the book of Matthew. But, the homily that he had originally planned was going to be changed to better reflect what was spoken.
"For the past three days," he began. "During the time where were preparing to welcome the birth of Jesus Christ, to walk in the footsteps of the shepherds going to the Inn to see the babe lying in the manager, to rejoice and cry 'Glory to God in the Highest,' our resolve as Christians and our very way of life was tested in more ways than one. When Pan Am Flight 103 came down on this town three nights ago, that was the moment our test has begun. Beelzebub, the soldier of Satan, had a task to divert our attention from celebrating the birth of Jesus. The fact is that the Devil takes on many forms, every day of our lives."
As Father Keegans spoke, I carefully took notes to include in a later report.
"But there is a weapon that we can use against the devil," he said. "That weapon is demonstrating what it means to be a Christian. When the bodies from Pan Am 103 were found, we brought them back to the families and friends of the victims. We took in strangers from 21 different countries and cared for them when they had no one else to turn to. I've always said to past congregations at this mass, that Christmas is not about presents, the decorations, the music performed by Bing Crosby or Dean Martin or even Nat 'King' Cole, snow, or the world famous Fruitcake made in the village bakery. It's about bringing peace on Earth and goodwill towards men. And by God, we have tried to bring goodwill towards men. By doing all of this, we are beating back the devil whose soldiers are in the form of Team Rocket!"
A hushed silence fell on the church upon the mere mention of Team Rocket's name.
"We are honored tonight to have the Prime Minister with us celebrating the birth of Christ," he continued. "This is represented by the fact that she would much rather be back in London celebrating the Birth of Christ, but is instead, from the goodness of her heart, is with us to not only help our village, but send a message that the Devil and his soldiers will be defeated! The devil may destroy physical forms, but he cannot destroy our spiritual souls! Just over my right shoulder is the cockpit of Pan Am Flight 103. The cockpit is a symbol of a physical form, something that can be rebuilt to live another day. But with the fall of the physicality, comes the rise of the spirituality. Tonight, we are born with Christ, we rise with the angel Gabriel to spread the message of Jesus' birth by being there for our fellow man. We choose to make the sacrifice needed to stand against the Devil and his fallen angels and there is no better time to make that stand…than now."
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Feeling inspired, I couldn't help but feel like that we were not only celebrating the birth of Jesus, but also the rebirth of those who died three nights earlier. During the homily, I saw Raymond Alden sitting a couple of pews over and if there was ever a time to get a parental perspective on this tragedy, it was going to be after the Christmas Eve Mass. Whether he would be ready to talk remained to be seen.
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