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Merry Christmas! Our Advent preparations have been completed, and
we are now invited by our Lord to enter into the glorious
celebration of His birth!
How well do you understand the awe-inspiring mystery of Christmas?
How fully do you comprehend the significance of God becoming a
human, born of a virgin? Though many are quite familiar with the
beautiful and humble story of the birth of the Savior of the World,
that familiarity can have the surprising negative effect of keeping
our intellect from deeply probing the depths of the meaning of what
we celebrate.
Notice the last line of the Gospel passage quoted above: “And Mary
kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.” What a
beautiful line to ponder this Christmas day. Mother Mary was the
one person who would have understood the mystery of the birth of
her Son, the Son of God, the Savior of the World, far more deeply
than anyone else. It was to her that the Archangel Gabriel
appeared, announcing her pregnancy and His birth. It was her who
carried her Son, the Son of God, in her Immaculate womb for nine
months. It was to her that Elizabeth, her cousin, cried out, “Most
blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb”
(Luke 1:42). It was Mary who was the Immaculate Conception, the one
who was preserved from all sin throughout her life. And it was her
who gave birth to this Child, carried Him in her arms and nursed
Him at her breast. Our Blessed Mother, more than any other,
understood the incredible event that had taken place in her
life.
But, again, the Gospel above says that “Mary kept all these things,
reflecting on them in her heart.” One thing this tells us is that
even Mary, the Mother of Jesus and the Mother of God, needed time
to ponder, reflect and savor this most holy mystery. She never
doubted, but her faith continually deepened, and her heart pondered
the unfathomable and incomprehensible mystery of the
Incarnation.
Another thing this tells us is that there is no end to the depth of
the “pondering” to which we must commit ourselves if we want to
enter more deeply into the mystery of the birth of the Son of God.
Reading the story, setting up a nativity scene, sharing Christmas
cards, attending Mass and the like are central to a holy
celebration of Christmas. But “pondering” and “reflecting,”
especially during prayer and especially at the Christmas Mass, will
have the effect of drawing us ever deeper into this Mystery of our
Faith.
Reflect, today, with our Blessed Mother. Ponder the Incarnation.
Place yourself into the scene that first Christmas. Hear the sounds
of the town. Smell the smells of the stable. Watch as the shepherds
come forth in adoration. And enter the mystery more fully,
acknowledging that the more you know about the mystery of
Christmas, the more you know how little you actually know and
understand. But that humble realization is the first step to a
deeper understanding of what we celebrate this day.
Lord, I gaze at the wonder of Your birth. You Who are God, the
Second Person of the Most Holy Trinity, God from God and Light from
Light, became one of us, a humble child, born of a virgin and laid
in a manger. Help me to ponder this glorious event, to reflect upon
the mystery with awe and to more fully grasp the meaning of what
You have done for us. I thank You, dear Lord, for this glorious
celebration of Your birth into the world. Jesus, I trust in
You.
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Featured image above: Shepherds at the Manger, via
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