Dear sisters and brothers in Christ,
In the midst of much chaos in the world, we want to take a little quite time to listen to the Gospel of Luke when the Angel of the Lord shared this extraordinary news with shepherds in the fields of Bethlehem: “For today in the city of David a Savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord.” (Lk.2:11) It is notable that he uses the words “for you” to describe the birth of Jesus for us. Indeed, this was God’s greatest gift to us because when Jesus was incarnate and became man the pathway to our reconciliation with God and eternal life with Him was laid; this is why gift giving is central to the Christmas tradition.
By now we know that the story of how Jesus came to be born is characterized by humility, simplicity, anonymity, amazement and even danger. Who knew that this boy child, wrapped in swaddling clothes and spending his first hours in a place reserved for the animals, would become our great Teacher and Redeemer! You could make the case that even then God was showing us that He reveals Himself most profoundly in impoverished settings and with people in the margins of society.
As we celebrate Christmas in the modern world, how do we reconcile this truth with the endless presents and displays of material wealth that are all around us during this season? We remind ourselves, through prayer and reflection on the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ birth, that He is the reason for all this festivity. What is the gift that we receive in Jesus? The personification of God’s love for us, the promise of eternal salvation and freedom from the chains of sin. Pretty hard to beat that, isn’t it?
Dear friends, the other way that we can get in touch with the true meaning of Christmas is to model God’s generosity to us in our own actions. Yes, this can be through forgiving someone who might have offended us and accepting forgiveness when someone forgives us. We can exchange gifts with each other, or better yet, through sharing from our bounty with those who are most in need and have no way to repay us. As we search today for the presence of our Lord in our hearts and in the hearts of those around us, we can surely find Him in the faces of the poor, the sick, the incarcerated, the immigrant and others on the margins of our communities.
It is my hope and prayer that this Christmas season is a time of joy and gratitude, hope and love for you and your loved ones. Enjoy the time together, delicious food and, yes, the gift giving as a sign of God’s love for one another. But above all, remember the original and greatest gift of all times at Christmas, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Merry Christmas!