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TRÁI TIM
MẸ: NƠI CON NƯƠNG NÁU - ĐƯỜNG ĐẾN VỚI CHÚA |
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"Chúa Giêsu muốn dùng con để làm
cho Mẹ được nhận biết và yêu mến" |
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December 26, 2008
–
Friday -
Christmas Octave
DAILY LITURGICAL/THEME MEDITATION:
"The one who endures to the end will
be saved"
UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENT(S):
Latin Patriarch's Midnight
Mass Homily
SAINT OF THE DAY
St. Stephen
GENERAL
MARIOLOGY
Mary and the Fathers of the Church
DIVINE MERCY
On Humility, Humiliation
Reflect Upon The Passion Of Jesus
TEACHING/TESTIMONY/CONVICTION:
Pope's Christmas Eve Homily
Monthly Index
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DAILY LITURGICAL MEDITATION |
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Friday (12/26) "The one who endures to the
end will be saved"
Scripture: Matthew 10:17-22
17 Beware of men; for they will deliver you up to councils, and flog
you in their synagogues, 18 and you will be dragged before governors and
kings for my sake, to bear testimony before them and the Gentiles. 19
When they deliver you up, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what
you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you in that
hour; 20 for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father
speaking through you. 21 Brother will deliver up brother to death, and
the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have
them put to death; 22 and you will be hated by all for my name's sake.
But he who endures to the end will be saved.
Meditation: What is the connection between Bethlehem and
Calvary – the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ and his passion and death
on a cross? The very reason the Son of God took on flesh and became a
man for our sake was to redeem us from slavery to sin and death and to
give us new life as the adopted children of God. The way to glory in the
kingdom of God is through the cross. If we want to share in Jesus'
glory, then we, too, must take up our cross each day and follow in his
footsteps. Jesus never hesitated to tell his disciples what they might
expect if they followed him. Here Jesus says to his disciples: This is
my task for you at its grimmest and worst; do you accept it? This is not
the world's way of offering a job. After the defeat at Dunkirk,
Churchill offered his country blood, toil, sweat, and tears. This is not
the message we prefer to hear when the Lord commissions us in his
service. Nonetheless, our privilege is to follow in the footsteps of the
Master who laid down his life for us. The Lord gives us sufficient grace
to follow him and to bear our cross with courage and hope. Do you know
the joy and victory of the cross of Jesus Christ?
"Lord Jesus, your coming in the flesh to ransom us from slavery to
sin gives us cause for great rejoicing even in the midst of trials and
pain. Help me to patiently and joyfully accept the hardships,
adversities, and persecution which come my way in serving you.
Strengthen my faith and give me courage that I may not shrink back from
doing your will".
Psalm 31:3-8,17-21
3 Yea, thou art my rock and my fortress; for thy name's sake lead me
and guide me,
4 take me out of the net which is hidden for me, for thou art my refuge.
5 Into thy hand I commit my spirit; thou hast redeemed me, O LORD,
faithful God.
6 Thou hatest those who pay regard to vain idols; but I trust in the
LORD.
7 I will rejoice and be glad for thy steadfast love, because thou hast
seen my affliction, thou hast taken heed of my adversities,
8 and hast not delivered me into the hand of the enemy; thou hast set my
feet in a broad place.
17 Let me not be put to shame, O LORD, for I call on thee; let the
wicked be put to shame, let them go dumbfounded to Sheol.
18 Let the lying lips be dumb, which speak insolently against the
righteous in pride and contempt.
19 O how abundant is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for those who
fear thee, and wrought for those who take refuge in thee, in the sight
of the sons of men!
20 In the covert of thy presence thou hidest them from the plots of
men; thou holdest them safe under thy shelter from the strife of
tongues.
21 Blessed be the LORD, for he has wondrously shown his steadfast love
to me when I was beset as in a besieged city.
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UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENTS |
Latin
Patriarch's Midnight
Mass Homily
"This New Child Is
the Fruit of the Love of
the Eternal Father"
BETHLEHEM, West
Bank, DEC. 25, 2008
( Zenit.org).-
Here is the homily
delivered by Latin
Patriarch Fouad Twal
of Jerusalem during
Midnight Mass at the
Church of the
Nativity in
Bethlehem.
* * *
"The people walking
in darkness have
seen a great light"
(Is 9:2)
Dear brothers and
sisters,
Dear friends,
In my name and the
name of the
inhabitants of
Bethlehem, I greet
our guests and the
pilgrims in the Holy
Land. I greet Mr.
President of the
Palestinian
Authority and the
delegation
accompanying him and
I wish all a happy
feast and a new year
of peace, stability
and security.
Shadows covered the
universe and all
peoples of the earth
were slaves of evil
and sin. This
country was burdened
under the yoke of
the Roman Empire and
the people were
waiting for a Savior
who would restore
royal rule and make
them free. On that
night, the will of
God entered human
history through the
Incarnation of Jesus
Christ, Son of God
and of the Virgin
Mary. The fullness
of time had come.
Salvation had begun…
A decree was issued
by Caesar Augustus,
ordering a census of
all the inhabitants
of the Roman Empire,
each one in his own
country of origin.
In the town of Beit
Sahour, shepherds
were guarding their
flocks. The night is
dark and cold,
without a moon. The
universe can wait no
longer… then
suddenly a light
shines out, and the
host of angels sing:
"Glory to God in the
highest heaven and
on earth peace among
those whom He
favors…" (Lk 2:14)
and they announce to
the shepherds: "To
you is born this day
a Savior" (Lk 2:11).
On that night,
Christ divides
history into two
parts: since then,
there is a before
Him and an after
Him. That which was
impossible before
Him, becomes
possible. We
celebrate today that
blessed night that
changed the course
of history, hearts
full of joy. We who
come from different
countries, some
nearby and others
far off, like the
shepherds, we
surround the Child
in the Grotto this
night in order to
adore Him and thank
Him for having
illuminated our
history through His
Incarnation.
Welcome to this
divine Child!
Welcome to the
Christmas message
and the joy of
Christmas and the
Christmas presents
which bring back the
smile to the faces
of both the little
and the big. This
new Child is the
fruit of the love of
the Eternal Father
for humankind, a
love which desires
for us more than we
desire for
ourselves. It wants
a peace that we have
lost, a loss to
which we have
resigned ourselves;
mutual love which no
longer exists to the
point that it has
disappeared even
from our vocabulary;
respect and dignity,
so often battered by
maltreatment, by
insults and the
spilling of blood.
Indeed, welcome to
this Child who
reminds us of our
own childhood,
sweetness and
gentleness in a
world that values
hardness, having
contempt for
weakness and fear,
taking pleasure in
hatred and
disrespect.
On this night, the
silence of the
grotto will be even
louder than the
voice of the canons
and submachine guns.
The silence of the
grotto gives life to
those whose voice
has been suffocated
by tears and who
have sought refuge
in silence and
impotence.
Around the star that
marks the place of
the Nativity of
Jesus, a few meters
from here, history
has inscribed its
word: "Here Christ
is born". Indeed,
here in Bethlehem
Christ is born, here
the angels sang out
"Glory to God in the
highest heaven" and
they proclaimed to
us "To you is born
this day a Savior".
This is the reason
for our great joy.
So, like the
shepherds, we too go
to visit the place
of His birth. The
Immanuel is with us.
He pitched His tent
among us. We must
belong to Him, obey
Him and adore Him.
The birth of Jesus
gave rise to new
life for the pastors
and the magi, whose
hearts He opened,
whose way and
conscience He
clarified: "This
will be a sign for
you – you will find
a child wrapped in
bands of cloth and
lying in a manger" (Lk
2:12). By visiting
Bethlehem and the
crèche and adoring
the Child, the
pastors have become
the prototype of
those who stand
watch and wait the
return of their
master.
With the conversion
of the shepherds,
the process of faith
in God become flesh
began. Coming to
adore the Child,
they also traced out
the route that
pilgrims would take
towards this holy
place.
God made Bethlehem
His home and His
meeting place with
men.
Bethlehem, city of
peace, of divine
love and of
reconciliation. The
one who could heal
the sick and
resurrect the dead
is also able to
gather people in
peace and security.
The one who taught
love, justice,
equality, is also
able to make of the
poor grotto a school
of reconciliation,
where leaders and
those responsible
for the destinies of
peoples are taught
what good, what
justice and what
stability mean.
Peace is a right for
all men. It is also
the solution for all
conflicts and
differences. War
does not produce
peace, prisons do
not guarantee
stability. The
highest of walls do
not assure security.
Neither the
aggressor nor the
aggressed enjoy
peace. Peace is a
gift of God and only
God can give that
peace: "My peace I
give to you" Jesus
says. "I do not give
to you as the world
gives" (Jn 14:27).
Oh Child of
Bethlehem, our wait
has been long and we
are worn out by our
situation, we are
tired of ourselves
too. We seek after
everything except
You, we cling to
everything except
You, we listen to
everything except to
You… We are taken in
by beautiful
speeches and
promises. The cry of
the widows and the
children is mixed
with the noise of
canons and
submachine guns, we
tear the heart and
shatter the silence
of the grotto and of
the crèche.
We have a great need
for calm, for
silence! We have a
great need for
peace! Of that we
are sure! However,
more than anything
else, we need
childhood and
innocence. You, the
poor one, despite
Your smallness, Your
weakness and Your
poverty, You alone
are able to give us
what we lack. O
Child of Bethlehem,
come so that the
feast might be more
a feast!
Welcome to You, who
teaches us that love
is a continuing
martyrdom, and that
the martyr for love,
for peace and for
justice never dies.
Welcome to You, who
reminds us that
richness is in
giving and in
reconciliation, that
greatness resides in
humility and
gentleness.
Welcome to You who
reminds us by your
birth and by your
death that only love
constructs, and that
its power is
mightier than all
because it becomes
food for the hungry,
clothing for the
naked and an
extended hand to all
men, healing and
reconciling, beyond
all divisions,
barriers and hatred.
On this blessed
night, we launch an
appeal for pardon to
all nations, all
individuals and
families. May God
who forgives us our
sins, give us the
courage, the power
and the love to
pardon those who
have trespassed
against us.
Peace to Bethlehem
and all the
inhabitants of the
Holy Land.
Peace to all
pilgrims and
visitors.
Peace to all who
seek peace.
+ Fouad Twal
Latin Patriarch of
Jerusalem
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DAILY LITURGICAL SAINT |
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December 26, 2008
St. Stephen
(d. 36 A.D.?)
All we know of Stephen is found in Acts of the Apostles, chapters six
and seven. It is enough to tell us what kind of man he was:
At that time, as the number of disciples continued to grow, the
Hellenist (Greek-speaking) Christians complained about the
Hebrew-speaking Christians, saying that their widows were being
neglected in the daily distribution. So the Twelve called together the
community of the disciples and said, “It is not right for us to neglect
the word of God to serve at table. Brothers, select from among you seven
reputable men, filled with the Spirit and wisdom, whom we shall appoint
to this task, whereas we shall devote ourselves to prayer and to the
ministry of the word.” The proposal was acceptable to the whole
community, so they chose Stephen, a man filled with faith and the Holy
Spirit.... (Acts 6:1-5)
Acts says that Stephen was a man filled with grace and power, who worked
great wonders among the people. Certain Jews, members of the Synagogue
of Roman Freedmen, debated with Stephen but proved no match for the
wisdom and spirit with which he spoke. They persuaded others to make the
charge of blasphemy against him. He was seized and carried before the
Sanhedrin.
In his speech, Stephen recalled God’s guidance through Israel’s history,
as well as Israel’s idolatry and disobedience. He then claimed that his
persecutors were showing this same spirit. “[Y]ou always oppose the holy
Spirit; you are just like your ancestors” (Acts 7:51b).
His speech brought anger from the crowd. “But [Stephen], filled with the
holy Spirit, looked up intently to heaven and saw the glory of God and
Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and he said, ‘Behold, I see the
heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God....’
They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him....As they were
stoning Stephen, he called out, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit....Lord,
do not hold this sin against them’” (Acts 7:55-56, 58a, 59, 60b).
Comment:
Stephen died as Jesus did: falsely accused, brought to unjust
condemnation because he spoke the truth fearlessly. He died with his
eyes trustfully fixed on God, and with a prayer of forgiveness on his
lips. A “happy” death is one that finds us in the same spirit, whether
our dying is as quiet as Joseph’s or as violent as Stephen’s: dying with
courage, total trust and forgiving love.
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GENERAL
MARIOLOGY |
Mary and the
Fathers of the Church
By
Fr. Luigi Gambero, S.M.
The
following article is an excerpt from the recently published Marian
anthology, Mariology: A Guide
for Priests, Deacons, Seminarians, and Consecrated Persons, Seat of
Wisdom Books, A Division of Queenship, 2008. Fifteen international
Mariology experts contributed to the text. The book features a foreword
by Archbishop Raymond L. Burke and has 17 chapters divided into four
parts: 1. Mary in Scripture and the Early Church; 2. Marian Dogma; 3.
Marian Doctrine; and 4. Marian Liturgy and Devotion. The book is now
available from Queenship Publications. To obtain a copy, visit
queenship.org.
Visit
books.google.com and search on "Mariology: A Guide" to view the book
in its entirety, or simply
click here.
Asst. Ed.
Our purpose is
to elucidate the doctrine on the Blessed Virgin Mary in the ancient
Christian tradition, that is in the time of the Fathers of the Church.
We are convinced that from the beginning of our Christian history, Mary
occupied a unique place beside Jesus in the evangelical kerygma
of the Church; and from then on Christians have always paid special
attention to her person and her role in the salvific plan of God. Mary
is a "witness" of Jesus, as many Protestant theologians like to call
her. Clearly she is that; but we ought to add: Mary is a very particular
witness, whose presence and participation beside Jesus helps in an
absolutely unique way to make his divine person more understandable. We
cannot speak of the incarnate Word without referring explicitly or
implicitly to his Mother. This is what we learn from the Fathers of the
Church and the other ancient Christian writers.
Looking at the
early history of Christian faith, we get the impression that the
doctrine on Mary is like a river with mysterious springs. After a brief
start, however not yet completely explored, little by little it appears
majestic and overwhelming. Though this mysterious beginning still
continues to pose questions to patristic scholars, we today have at our
disposal numerous studies about the historical beginning of Marian
doctrine (1).
To understand
the importance of patristics in studying Marian doctrine we need to
recognize its role in theology in general. Studying the Fathers of the
Church means coming in touch with men who acted in order to establish a
link between the apostolic tradition and the subsequent Christian
generations. They transmitted to these latter that deposit of faith
which the apostles themselves received from the Lord Jesus. St.
Athanasius of Alexandria (+373) defines this process very well with a
clear-cut statement: "The doctrine of faith is the one that the Lord
taught, the apostles preached and the Fathers have kept" (2).
These men were
able to draw the truths directly from the wells of the Word of God,
thanks to a special mentality and capability of understanding, empowered
by the light and the grace of the Holy Spirit. For this reason they
provided good foundations to Christian tradition and a strong support to
the Church, especially at the occasion of the councils when solemn
declarations were issued regarding dogmatic truths.
This fact was
confirmed also by John Paul II, who said: "(The Fathers) were the first
theologians since they were able to investigate the mystery of Christ
having recourse to notions borrowed from the thinking of their time.
When it was necessary, they did not hesitate to remodel these notions in
order to give them a universal content" (3).
The historical
period in which the Fathers lived was closer to the time of the apostles
and they may lead us to discover the apostolic origins of our Marian
doctrine and devotion. In particular, the Fathers and ancient Christian
writers show in their attitude towards Mary a special attention to three
Mariological truths: Mary as a mother, Mary as a virgin, and Mary in her
"intentional" relationship with Eve. These three doctrinal points were
very much emphasized by the Fathers.
The two main
patristic dimensions of Marian doctrine, namely the Christological and
the ecclesiological, were fully reflected by Vatican II in chapter 8 of
Lumen Gentium, in which Mary is shown in the context of the
mysteries of Christ and the Church. This way of treating the Marian
topic clearly recalls the tradition of the Church Fathers, who already
in their day felt obliged to find solutions to the problems rising from
the theological reflection on these two mysteries.
A Vatican
document issued by the Congregation for Catholic Education, November 10,
1989, reminds us again of the importance of the Church Fathers:
In the flow of living Tradition that
continues from the beginning of Christianity over the centuries up to
our own time, they occupy an entirely special place which makes them
stand out compared with other protagonists of the history of the Church.
They laid down the first basic structures of the Church together with
doctrinal and pastoral positions that remain valid for all times (4).
According to
this traditional concept, we consider as Fathers those Christian
writers combining four qualifications: orthodoxy in their doctrine,
holiness in their life, approval by the Church, and antiquity.
Following the
holy Fathers of the Church, we are sure that we can meet the authentic
apostolic tradition, which is not a past event, but is a living
phenomenon which never dies out. We read in the document quoted from the
Congregation for Catholic Education:
Tradition, to which the Fathers are
witnesses, is a living Tradition that demonstrates unity in variety and
continuity in progress… Tradition, therefore, as it was known and lived
by the Fathers, is not like a monolithic, immovable and sclerotic block,
but a multiform organism pulsating with life (5).
Pope Benedict
XVI believed it was important to again recall the doctrine on Tradition.
He did it during two audiences in April 2006. Let me quote a passage
from one of his talks:
Tradition is not a simple transmission of
things or words, a collection of dead things. Tradition is like a living
river that connects us with the origins; a river in which the origins
are ever present. It is the great river which leads us to eternity.
Therefore, in this living river the Word of God (in Matthew’s Gospel)
becomes always something real again, namely: "I am with you always,
until the end of the world" (Mt 28:20) (6).
(to be
continued)
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DIVINE MERCY
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On Humility, Humiliation
Reflect Upon The Passion Of Jesus
He who wants to learn true humility
should reflect upon the Passion of Jesus (Diary, 267).
Satan defeats only the proud and the cowardly, because the humble are
strong. Nothing will confuse or frighten a humble soul (Diary,
450).
O Jesus, my heart stops beating when I think of all You are doing for
me! I am amazed at You, Lord, that You would stoop so low to my wretched
soul! What inconceivable means You take to convince me! (Diary,
460).
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CATHOLIC TEACHING/CONVICTION/TESTIMONY |
Pope's Christmas Eve Homily
"God Dwells on High, Yet He Stoops Down to
Us!"
VATICAN CITY, DEC. 25, 2008 ( Zenit.org).-
Here is a Vatican translation of the homily
Benedict XVI gave at Christmas Eve Mass at
the Vatican.
* * *
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
"Who is like the Lord our God, who is seated
on high, who looks far down upon the heavens
and the earth?" This is what Israel sings in
one of the Psalms (113 [112], 5ff.),
praising God's grandeur as well as his
loving closeness to humanity. God dwells on
high, yet he stoops down to us! God is
infinitely great, and far, far above us.
This is our first experience of him. The
distance seems infinite. The Creator of the
universe, the one who guides all things, is
very far from us: or so he seems at the
beginning. But then comes the surprising
realization: The One who has no equal, who
"is seated on high", looks down upon us. He
stoops down. He sees us, and he sees me.
God's looking down is much more than simply
seeing from above. God's looking is active.
The fact that he sees me, that he looks at
me, transforms me and the world around me.
The Psalm tells us this in the following
verse: "He raises the poor from the dust."
In looking down, he raises me up, he takes
me gently by the hand and helps me to rise
from depths towards the heights. "God stoops
down". This is a prophetic word. That night
in Bethlehem, it took on a completely new
meaning. God's stooping down became real in
a way previously inconceivable. He stoops
down: he himself comes down as a child to
the lowly stable, the symbol of all
humanity's neediness and forsakenness. God
truly comes down. He becomes a child and
puts himself in the state of complete
dependence typical of a newborn child. The
Creator who holds all things in his hands,
on whom we all depend, makes himself small
and in need of human love. God is in the
stable. In the Old Testament the Temple was
considered almost as God's footstool; the
sacred ark was the place in which he was
mysteriously present in the midst of men and
women. Above the temple, hidden, stood the
cloud of God's glory. Now it stands above
the stable. God is in the cloud of the
poverty of a homeless child: an impenetrable
cloud, and yet a cloud of glory!
How, indeed, could his love for humanity,
his solicitude for us, have appeared greater
and more pure? The cloud of hiddenness, the
cloud of the poverty of a child totally in
need of love, is at the same time the cloud
of glory. For nothing can be more sublime,
nothing greater than the love which thus
stoops down, descends, becomes dependent.
The glory of the true God becomes visible
when the eyes of our hearts are opened
before the stable of Bethlehem.
Saint Luke's account of the Christmas story,
which we have just heard in the Gospel,
tells us that God first raised the veil of
his hiddenness to people of very lowly
status, people who were looked down upon by
society at large: to shepherds looking after
their flocks in the fields around Bethlehem.
Luke tells us that they were "keeping
watch". This phrase reminds us of a central
theme of Jesus's message, which insistently
bids us to keep watch, even to the Agony in
the Garden: the command to stay awake, to
recognize the Lord's coming, and to be
prepared. Here too the expression seems to
imply more than simply being physically
awake during the night hour. The shepherds
were truly "watchful" people, with a lively
sense of God and of his closeness. They were
waiting for God, and were not resigned to
his apparent remoteness from their everyday
lives. To a watchful heart, the news of
great joy can be proclaimed: for you this
night the Saviour is born. Only a watchful
heart is able to believe the message. Only a
watchful heart can instil the courage to set
out to find God in the form of a baby in a
stable. Let us ask the Lord to help us, too,
to become a "watchful" people.
Saint Luke tells us, moreover, that the
shepherds themselves were "surrounded" by
the glory of God, by the cloud of light.
They found themselves caught up in the glory
that shone around them. Enveloped by the
holy cloud, they heard the angels' song of
praise: "Glory to God in the highest heavens
and peace on earth to people of his good
will". And who are these people of his good
will if not the poor, the watchful, the
expectant, those who hope in God's goodness
and seek him, looking to him from afar?
The Fathers of the Church offer a remarkable
commentary on the song that the angels sang
to greet the Redeemer. Until that moment --
the Fathers say -- the angels had known God
in the grandeur of the universe, in the
reason and the beauty of the cosmos that
come from him and are a reflection of him.
They had heard, so to speak, creation's
silent song of praise and had transformed it
into celestial music. But now something new
had happened, something that astounded them.
The One of whom the universe speaks, the God
who sustains all things and bears them in
his hands: he himself had entered into human
history, he had become someone who acts and
suffers within history. From the joyful
amazement that this unimaginable event
called forth, from God's new and further way
of making himself known -- say the Fathers
-- a new song was born, one verse of which
the Christmas Gospel has preserved for us:
"Glory to God in the highest heavens and
peace to his people on earth". We might say
that, following the structure of Hebrew
poetry, the two halves of this double verse
say essentially the same thing, but from a
different perspective. God's glory is in the
highest heavens, but his high state is now
found in the stable: what was lowly has now
become sublime. God's glory is on the earth,
it is the glory of humility and love. And
even more: the glory of God is peace.
Wherever he is, there is peace. He is
present wherever human beings do not
attempt, apart from him, and even violently,
to turn earth into heaven. He is with those
of watchful hearts; with the humble and
those who meet him at the level of his own
"height", the height of humility and love.
To these people he gives his peace, so that
through them, peace can enter this world.
The medieval theologian William of Saint
Thierry once said that God -- from the time
of Adam -- saw that his grandeur provoked
resistance in man, that we felt limited in
our own being and threatened in our freedom.
Therefore God chose a new way. He became a
child. He made himself dependent and weak,
in need of our love. Now, this God who has
become a child says to us: you can no longer
fear me, you can only love me.
With these thoughts, we draw near this night
to the child of Bethlehem -- to the God who
for our sake chose to become a child. In
every child we see something of the Child of
Bethlehem. Every child asks for our love.
This night, then, let us think especially of
those children who are denied the love of
their parents. Let us think of those street
children who do not have the blessing of a
family home, of those children who are
brutally exploited as soldiers and made
instruments of violence, instead of
messengers of reconciliation and peace. Let
us think of those children who are victims
of the industry of pornography and every
other appalling form of abuse, and thus are
traumatized in the depths of their soul. The
Child of Bethlehem summons us once again to
do everything in our power to put an end to
the suffering of these children; to do
everything possible to make the light of
Bethlehem touch the heart of every man and
woman. Only through the conversion of
hearts, only through a change in the depths
of our hearts can the cause of all this evil
be overcome, only thus can the power of the
evil one be defeated. Only if people change
will the world change; and in order to
change, people need the light that comes
from God, the light which so unexpectedly
entered into our night.
And speaking of the Child of Bethlehem, let
us think also of the place named Bethlehem,
of the land in which Jesus lived, and which
he loved so deeply. And let us pray that
peace will be established there, that hatred
and violence will cease. Let us pray for
mutual understanding, that hearts will be
opened, so that borders can be opened. Let
us pray that peace will descend there, the
peace of which the angels sang that night.
In Psalm 96 [95], Israel, and the Church,
praises God's grandeur manifested in
creation. All creatures are called to join
in this song of praise, and so the Psalm
also contains the invitation: "Let all the
trees of the wood sing for joy before the
Lord, for he comes" (v. 12ff.). The Church
reads this Psalm as a prophecy and also as a
task. The coming of God to Bethlehem took
place in silence. Only the shepherds keeping
watch were, for a moment, surrounded by the
light-filled radiance of his presence and
could listen to something of that new song,
born of the wonder and joy of the angels at
God's coming. This silent coming of God's
glory continues throughout the centuries.
Wherever there is faith, wherever his word
is proclaimed and heard, there God gathers
people together and gives himself to them in
his Body; he makes them his Body. God
"comes". And in this way our hearts are
awakened. The new song of the angels becomes
the song of all those who, throughout the
centuries, sing ever anew of God's coming as
a child -- and rejoice deep in their hearts.
And the trees of the wood go out to him and
exult. The tree in Saint Peter's Square
speaks of him, it wants to reflect his
splendour and to say: Yes, he has come, and
the trees of the wood acclaim him. The trees
in the cities and in our homes should be
something more than a festive custom: they
point to the One who is the reason for our
joy -- the God who for our sake became a
child. In the end, this song of praise, at
the deepest level, speaks of him who is the
very tree of new-found life. Through faith
in him we receive life. In the Sacrament of
the Eucharist he gives himself to us; he
gives us a life that reaches into eternity.
At this hour we join in creation's song of
praise, and our praise is at the same time a
prayer: Yes, Lord, help us to see something
of the splendour of your glory. And grant
peace on earth. Make us men and women of
your peace. Amen.
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