The leftovers have been put in the fridge, the company has gone home, the football games are over, and we plop down on the sofa with a sigh of relief. Another holiday has passed. But this is the good one. We simply get together with family and friends to eat and enjoy each others company. There are no gifts, no flowers, and no special cards. But wait just a minute! It's almost midnight! "Why is that important?" you ask.

Haven't you heard? All the outlet stores will open at midnight and remain open throughout the night. Yes, this really did happen. By 11:00 PM on Thanksgiving night, traffic on U.S. 30, a four-lane highway East of Lancaster, PA was backed up for several miles. The malls were jammed. One of the store owners was interviewed on television, and said that by doing this they get the equivalent of another shopping day between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Seven days a week are evidently not enough. Now we need eight days.

We live in a world where one-third of the population does not get enough food to eat. Jesus preached more about helping the poor and the hungry than anything else. Yet we celebrate his birth with a buying frenzy that is unparalleled in history. Greed and crass materialism have become rampant in our society. When will our desire for more become satiated?

Some time after the Annunciation, Mary uttered the prayer known as the Magnificat. In it are these words: He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. My friends; we are the rich and the powerful. We are the ones that will be brought down and sent empty away. In God's kingdom, the lowly will be raised up and the hungry will be filled with good things. There is no place for greed in God's kingdom. If we want to participate in that kingdom, we better learn how now. Tomorrow may be too late.

Harried clerks, working for little more than minimum wage, are forced to work all night long so that the rest of us can save a few measly dollars. In turn we can buy more stuff that neither we nor our family and friends need. Meanwhile millions around the world are dying of hunger, disease, and starvation. Are we nuts?