“The Lord is Among You” (Christmas Day)

Merry Christmas… God is with you! In this reflection on the mystery of Incarnation, we can safely say that when we greet our brother or sister in Christ a “Merry Christmas!” it can actually mean too that we recognize God's presence in him or her. It's saying, Merry Christmas… God is with you!

Emmanuel… God-with-us. This is at the heart of Christmas celebration. Christmas is not just a birthday celebration of our Lord, it is a fulfillment of God's promise of long ago that God will be with us. As today's gospel (Mt. 1: 18-25) reminds us: “All this happened in order to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: The virgin will conceive and bear a son, and he will be called Emmanuel which means: God-with-us. ” 

Let us dwell on this great “Emmanuel mystery” and ask two significant questions: What did it require to fulfill this great promise? And how does this fulfillment concretely influence our present Christian living? 

Divine-Human Cooperation. God-with-us obviously involves two parties: God, on the one hand, human, on the other. It's helpful to look back into the nine-day simbang-gabi experience. There, no one can miss the fact so clearly proclaimed by our liturgy from day-one to day-nine that God initiates the plan of salvation. The fulfillment of his plan however does not take place as quickly as a snap of God's fingers or perhaps as easily as aiming a magic wand. God works through human beings warts and all. We encountered different personalities through out the "Simbang Gabi:" Zechariah, Elizabeth, John, Joseph, Mary. All have been called by God to take part in the carrying out of his plan. All have some initial feeling of fear or doubt or lack of understanding. But with God's grace, often in terms of the angel's assurance, all have trusted in God and more significantly, have committed to God's will by their "yes." The God-with-us mystery then is made possible by the cooperation of God and human beings. 

This offers us some insight into how God works in fulfilling his promise in our own lives. God is always a faithful God, one who never fails to fulfill his promise. But we need to open our minds and hearts to be able to listen to him. We may not understand what's going on in our lives, but we are invited to trust in His fidelity. More importantly, we need to take a leap of faith and commit wholeheartedly to God by our daily “yes.” It's only then that we truly cooperate with God who wills nothing but our good and the fulfillment of that goodness in each of our own lives. 

Am I ready to listen to God's will, trust in his fidelity, and commit to the task He's entrusting me with? 

Transforming Power of Christmas: The real spirit of Christmas does not wholly rest on the festivities we prepare and the many creative activities we organize to celebrate merrily the season. The real spirit of Christmas rests profoundly on the recognition of God being with us. As such, the spirit of Christmas transforms. When God is with us, everything is seen differently… everything changes… everything gains a deeper meaning. 

A story to illustrate: There was a famous monastery which had fallen on very hard times. Formerly its many buildings had been filled with young monks and its big church had resounded with the singing of the chant, but now it was deserted. People no longer came there to be nourished by prayer. A handful of old monks shuffled through the cloisters and praised God with heavy hearts. One day the Abbot decided to visit the wise rabbi who lived in a little hut on the edge of the monastery woods. The abbot opened his heart to him and asked for his advice about how to revitalize the spirituality and life of the monastery. The rabbi, after listening intently, said, “You and your brothers are serving God with heavy hearts. You have come to ask my advice. I will tell you one thing. ” The rabbi whispered to the Abbot and instructed him to pass it on to his brothers. As the Abbot reached home, he whispered the teaching on a brother who in turn passed on the same teaching to another. And on and on… Because of the teaching, they began to treat one another with utmost reverence and love once again. They lived with one another as men who had finally found something. Visitors began to find themselves deeply moved by the life of these monks. Before long, people once again came from far and wide to be nourished by the prayer life of the monks and young men came to become part of the community. 

What was the teaching whispered by the wise rabbi? "The Lord is among you." 

My dear friends, if only we've truly recognized God among us, if only we've seen God in each of us, we would have treated one another with reverence and loving care. This is the challenge of the true spirit of Christmas beyond the external preparations and celebrations of the festivities. Christmas is an invitation to transform our families and communities from one that cannot care less to one that is sensitive to every need especially of the weaker members. To have the spirit of Christmas is to allow the Emmanuel mystery, the truth that God is with us, to open our eyes of faith to see the presence of God among us and let this vision spur us into respecting the dignity of each and everyone. 

Hence, more than just a season of merry-making, Christmas is a season of celebration of the fulfillment of God's promises in our lives and a challenge towards real transformation of our families and communities into one that is a witness to the presence of God who dwells among us!