The most epic event in human history is the birth of Jesus Christ. In His mercy and infinite love for each one of us God kept the promise He made to Adam and Eve upon evicting them from Paradise because of their grievous sin. The word was made flesh! He sent a redeemer, the Messiah…..His only Son to humble Himself and become one of us, both God and man, to teach us how to live and save us from our sins through the cross.
He went through many of the same hardships,
discomforts, and struggles that each one of us has to endure in our human
condition. We all must suffer He did too,
but much, much more so. Civilization had to wait some 4000 years, but
the promised day arrived. God is with us
in a much more intimate way.
The God-Man, was born to be a savior, the
King of the Universe, a priest to sacrifice Himself for us, and a prophet that speaks
for God His Father. This figure who was
destined to change the world, was born in a cold stable of poor parents with only
the breath of the animals to keep Him warm.
There was no room in the inn. Joseph and Mary improvised a bed in a manger (a feeding trough for the animals) and
straw.
Nobody
in the world took notice, certainly not the elite in power, certainly not the
most powerful Roman emperor, but God did reveal this epic news to a group of
poor Jewish shepherds, looked down upon by society and some learned Magi from a
pagan land. They knew this was an epic
event, that a special new king was born, but had no idea of the earth shaking implications.
Why did God choose to first tell a group of poor smelly ignorant
shepherds this epic news? As
described in the Gospel of Luke: “Now there were shepherds in the region living
in the fields and keeping the night watch over their flocks. The Angel of the Lord appeared to them and
the glory of the Lord shown around them, and they were struck with great
fear. The angel said to them: ‘Do not be
afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for
all the people. For today in the city of
David a savior has been born for you who is Christ and Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will
find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger’ And suddenly
there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angels, praising God and
saying ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to people of good will’. We repeat this joyful exclamation as part of
the “Gloria” at most Masses on Sundays.
God vividly demonstrated that even the lowest members of
society have the same dignity. created for eternity according to the image and
likeness of God Himself. It showed that
Christ chose to identify Himself with the poor and loves them the same as
everyone else.
Furthermore, God did not forget that the Jews will always be His chosen people regardless how much they may stray away from Him. The shepherds were Jews; Christ is a Jew; Mary and Joseph are Jews. After all, He first came for the Jews. Salvation came to us through the Jews and they deserve all of our respect and gratitude for that. It is no coincidence that St. Pope John Paul II was a great friend of the Jews despite the prejudice around him.
The Magi (the Three Wise
Men) follow the star to the new born Christ the King. May we never lose sight of the star; that is
to always follow our God, Christ the King and the teachings of His Church.
Why did God choose a group of pagan Magi to be part of the
Christmas narrative?
They were educated and men of learning.
However, they were deep into astrology.
They observed something very different in the cosmos, an apparent star,
much larger than any star they previously observed. They interpreted that as indicating that an
epic event had occurred. A new and
powerful King was born! They felt a
compulsion to follow that star and pay homage to the new born king.
Who were the Magi or Wise Men? Where did they come from? It is commonly thought that the Magi came
from north of Palestine, probably present day Iran. Most likely they came from the east, one of
the neighboring kingdoms, as pointed out in the Gospel of Matthew. North and east
are Islamic lands. Either scenario
presents to us a common bond with our Muslem brothers.
Judaism,
Islam, and Christianity all profess to have Abraham as their father. Islam even honors Mary as the most perfect
woman that God has created. It’s in the
Quran! All three religions believe in
the one true God although not in the same way.
Muslims believe in Christ as a prophet, but not as God. With so much in common why can’t we treat
each other as brothers?
What was this star of Bethlehem? According to Church tradition, the Star of
Bethlehem was a divine sign announcing the incarnation There are different theories. One says that the star was a super nova, and
overgrown star so to speak. According to
another theory, it was the conjunction of Jupiter, Mars, and Saturn in 7 BC. That would be very bright. Others simply believe that it was a
miraculous light that did not behave as a celestial body and disappeared when
the Magi found the house where the Holy Family stayed.
According
to the most recent theory as postulated by a NASA planetary scientist, Dr. Mark
Matneh published in a recent paper for the Journal of the British Astronomical Association,
it was not a star, but a comet. See https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/new-research-the-star-of-bethlehem-was-not-a-star/ar-AA1Sj785?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=HCTS&cvid=693ee1f50e954469b045d0b0adc58116&ei=11.
He examined the description of an
ancient comet recorded by Chinese observers in 5 BC as passing through our
solar system. According to his analysis,
the timing aligns with historical estimates that place Jesus’ birth between 6BC
and 5BC. Furthermore, the scientist
claims that the path of the comet closely follows the narrative described in
Chapter 2 of the Gospel of Matthew. In
any event God allowed this epic event, the birth of Christ, God becoming man,
to coincide with some cosmic event.
The most important message that God sent through the Magi was that his Son came not only for the Jews, but for all of humanity!.....believer and unbeliever, the rich and the poor, the educated and the uneducated. And Christ gave each one of us the mission “to teach all nations”….to spread the work among all the nations. Each one of us has a part, be it in little or big ways…….by prayer, by example, witness, word, or deed.
According to St. John Chrysostom, the Magi brought gold for Christ the King, frankincense to honor Him as God, and myrrh for Christ as man at his burial. This brings up an interesting question; how did the Magi know all this? Inspiration? Revelation? This inspired the following quote from St. Alfonsus Liguori.
Christ’s
mission is ongoing through us. He has given us everything we need to achieve
salvation. The Church He founded
continues in us. The Mass, the
Eucharist, and the other sacraments nurture us and give us strength and graces to
continue our journey to eternity. The
pastoral work of the Church continues as God calls young men to the priesthood
and all of us to the apostolate in some form through serving each other in our
families, in our jobs, in our parishes, in our communities, and charitable
works. The Church’s moral teaching fosters social justice and
facilitates a civilized and orderly society.
Christ
promised that He would always be with us and “the gates of hell shall not
prevail against His Church”. Over the
centuries they have not prevailed despite intense persecution, wars, internal
corruption at times, and one crisis after another.
When
governments would neglect education, the Church was there with schools,
colleges, and universities. When
governments neglected health care, the Church was there with hospitals and
clinics. When babies were abandoned and
left to die, the Church rescued them and provided orphanages. When the needs of the poor were neglected,
the Church stepped in with Catholic charities in each diocese or religious
orders to carry the burden in their missionary work. What motivates the charitable work of the
Church and His followers is Christ Himself: “Whatever you do to the least of
mine, you do unto me.”
Every time that the Church is in crisis,
God raises up great men and women, i.e., saints to guide us.
The
Church promoted beauty and art through the centuries in magnificent churches, sacred
music, and works of art for all to enjoy and experience. In all of its endeavors the Church has
promoted the true, the good, and the beautiful, constantly giving us a taste of
Heaven. “Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam”……”All
for the glory of God” as St. Ignatius Loyola promoted in the Jesuit order he
founded. May we always follow our God,
Christ the King and His teachings. Hail
Christ the King! Viva Cristo Rey!
