Let us not be afraid to offer our all to this little Child who is our Everything, this Child who has given us everything and everyone we have.

Christmas 2015

Oh Holy night…the night on which our Savior was born. On this Holy night the Virgin gave birth to the One who is called Emmanuel, which means God is with us forever. The little babe born on Christmas night was and is, as the beautiful song, Adeste Fiddles (O come all ye faithful) says, “God from God, Light from Light, He comes forth from the Virgin’s womb, Our True God, begotten not made….”

Jesus, The Second Person of the Blessed Trinity come to earth, sent by the Father, has become one of us. It has been said that in the birth of Jesus, God condescended Himself in order to reach down to man who could not and cannot lift Himself up to God. As St. Augustine put it, “The Son of God became a Son of Man so that the sons of men could become sons of God.” If Jesus would have been came into to this world has a rich powerful King, that would have been condescension enough; but if more than that, Jesus has come into this world as a poor defenseless little babe, born in a stable because their was no room for Him, not even in a Inn.

The first place God in the flesh became present in this world was in a barn filled with food for animals, along with the animals themselves and all the smells that go along with them. He was laid in a manager from which the animals ate their food, a sign that this Child would become the Bread to be eaten by men. In fact, the town of Bethlehem itself means “House of Bread.” Not only did God become one of us, but He is wrapped in swaddling clothes, signifying that He would die in order to be able to give Himself as our food in the Holy Eucharist,-the “Bread of Life,” food for our eternal life. In the Holy Eucharist we can say God is truly Emmanuel-God with us, because the Holy Eucharist is literally Jesus Himself, still on earth, still in the flesh, with us always.

On this night Jesus does not wish to remain laying in a manger. No, at this Holy Christ Mass and every Holy Mass, Jesus wishes to become our food in order to give Himself, and all that He is and all that He has in the totality of His love, to Us. He wishes to enter into the stable of our hearts through Holy Communion in order to be united with us in love. He then wishes to use us to take His light, love and mercy out into our world which is so desperately in need of Jesus and His saving and healing power. But first we must make room for Him in the inn of our souls.

To receive such a gift, in fact the Christmas gifts of all gifts, we must on this altar give Him the gifts of ourself, all that we are and all that we have in the totality of our love. He comes to us this night as a little child so that we won’t be afraid of Him who is the awesome, majestic and almighty God, who made the heavens and the earth and all things in them and who continues to keep all things, including you and me in existence.

Let us not be afraid to offer our all to this little Child who is our Everything, this Child who has given us everything and everyone we have. When we give ourselves completely to Jesus we lose nothing of ourselves but gain everything besides, for we gain God, we possess Him and are possessed by Him. O come let us Adore Him. Let us adore the Child Jesus truly, physically present, Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity in the Holy Eucharist. Let us through faith, see His adorable face in the Holy Eucharist and come before Him in silence so we can hear Him speak. He alone is the answer to all of our hopes and fears through out the years. Jesus I trust in You!!!

Jesus in the Holy Eucharist is the reason for the season, but so to is Mary. Without her Jesus could not have become man; and so, without her we would not have Jesus in the Holy Eucharist-God with us. May we turn to the Virgin and entrust ourself to Her, so that she may present our hearts to Her Son. From Her hands He will truly accept us; and from her, we will receive the grace to live our lives united to Her Divine Child—Jesus, and make Him and His love present to all we meet. Amen.

I wish you all a very Blessed and Merry Christmas! May the Christ Child bless you and your families abundantly, may His Holy Mother wrap you in her mantle of mercy.