Gospel for Saturday, December 25: Luke 2: 1-14
Lord’s Christmas
1In those days a decree by Caesar Augustus ordered that a census be taken of the entire land. 2This first census was taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3Everyone was going to get a census, each in their own town. 4Joseph, too, went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea to the city of David called Bethlehem: for he belonged to the house and family of David. 5He was to be enumerated together with Mary, his bride, who was pregnant. 6While they were in that place, the days of childbirth were fulfilled for her. 7She gave birth to her firstborn son, wrapped him in swaddling clothes and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the lodging. 8There were some shepherds in that region who, sleeping in the open, kept vigil all night by guarding their flocks. 9An angel of the Lord came to them, and the glory of the Lord enveloped them with light. They were seized with great fear, 10But the angel said to them: “Fear not: behold, I announce to you great joy, which shall be to all the people: 11Today, in the city of David, a Savior has been born to you, who is Christ the Lord. 12This is the sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.” 13And immediately there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly army, praising God and saying: 14“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men, whom he loves.”
Luke 2: 1-14
Dear Sisters and Brothers of the Misericordie, I am Carlo Miglietta, doctor, biblical scholar, layman, husband, father and grandfather (www.buonabibbiaatutti.it).
Also today I share with you a short meditation thought on the Gospel, with special reference to the theme of mercy.
Already last year we reflected on the biblical texts of Christmas. This year I propose to you some passages from the wonderful reflection that Pope Francis wanted to make on them starting from the contemplation of a great Christian tradition, that of the nativity scene.
Best wishes to everyone for a very Holy Christmas! Jesus who is born will bring an endless celebration into your hearts!
FROM THE APOSTOLIC LETTER
ADMIRABLE SIGNUM
OF THE HOLY FATHER FRANCIS
ON THE MEANING AND VALUE OF THE NATIVITY SCENE
- The nativity scene… is like a living Gospel, which overflows from the pages of Sacred Scripture. As we contemplate the Christmas scene, we are invited to set out spiritually on a journey, attracted by the humility of He who became man to meet every man. And we discover that He loves us so much as to unite with us, so that we too can unite with Him…
- Jesus is placed in a manger (Lk 2:7), which in Latin is called praesepium, hence crib. Entering this world, the Son of God finds a place where animals go to eat. The hay becomes the first bed for Him who will reveal himself as “the bread that came down from heaven” (Jn6,41)…
- I now like to review the various signs of the nativity scene to grasp the meaning they carry. First, let’s represent the context of the starry sky in the darkness and silence of the night… Let’s think about how many times the night surrounds our life. Well, even in those moments, God does not leave us alone, but he makes himself present to answer the decisive questions that concern the meaning of our existence: who am I? Where am I from? Why was I born in this time? Why do I love? Why do I suffer? Why will I die? To answer these questions, God became man. His closeness brings light where there is darkness and enlightens those who go through the darkness of suffering (see Luke 1:79).
- The landscapes that are part of the nativity scene also deserve a word and often represent the ruins of ancient houses and buildings, which in some cases replace the Bethlehem cave and become the home of the Holy Family… Those ruins are above all the visible sign of fallen humanity, of everything that is falling into ruin, that is corrupt and saddened. This scenario says that Jesus is the new thing in the midst of an old world, and he has come to heal and rebuild, to restore our lives and the world to their original splendor.
- How much emotion should accompany us as we place the mountains, the streams, the sheep and the shepherds in the nativity scene! In this way we remember, as the prophets had predicted, that all creation participates in the celebration of the coming of the Messiah. The angels and the comet star are the sign that we too are called to set out to reach the cave and adore the Lord… The shepherds become the first witnesses of the essential, that is, of the salvation that is given. It is the humblest and poorest who know how to welcome the event of the Incarnation…
- We usually place many symbolic figurines in our nativity scenes. First of all, those of beggars and people who know no other abundance other than that of the heart. They too are close to Baby Jesus in their own right, without anyone being able to evict them or take them away from a cradle so improvised that the poor around it don’t clash at all. The poor, indeed, are the privileged of this mystery and, often, those who are best able to recognize the presence of God among us… Herod’s palace is in the background, closed, deaf to the announcement of joy. By being born in the nativity scene, God himself begins the only true revolution that gives hope and dignity to the disinherited, the marginalized: the revolution of love, the revolution of tenderness. From the nativity scene, Jesus proclaims, with gentle power, the appeal to share with the least as a path towards a more human and fraternal world, where no one is excluded and marginalized.Often children – but also adults! – they love to add other figurines to the nativity scene… From the shepherd to the blacksmith, from the baker to the musicians, from the women carrying jugs of water to the children playing…: all this represents daily holiness, the joy of doing ordinary things in an extraordinary way every day, when Jesus shares his divine life with us.
- Little by little the nativity scene leads us to the cave, where we find the statues of Mary and Joseph. Mary is a mother who contemplates her child and shows him to those who come to visit him… To the announcement of her angel who asked her to become the mother of God, Mary responded with full and total obedience. Her words: «Behold, the servant of the Lord: let it be done to me according to your word» (Lk1,38), are for all of us the testimony of how to abandon ourselves in faith to the will of God…Saint Joseph plays a very important role in the lives of Jesus and Mary. He is the guardian who never tires of protecting his family…: as a just man he has always entrusted himself to the will of God and put it into practice.
- The heart of the nativity scene begins to beat when, at Christmas, we place the figurine of Baby Jesus there… God’s way of acting almost stuns us, because it seems impossible that He would renounce his glory to become man like us. What a surprise to see God adopting the same behaviors as us: he sleeps, takes milk from his mother, cries and plays like all children! As always, God is disconcerting, he is unpredictable, continually outside our patterns…
- In front of the nativity scene, your mind goes back to when you were a child and impatiently awaited the time to start building it. These memories lead us to become increasingly aware of the great gift that has been given to us by transmitting the faith to us; and at the same time they make us feel the duty and joy of sharing the same experience with our children and grandchildren… The nativity scene tells of the love of God, the God who became a child to tell us how close he is to every human being, in whatever condition you find…”.
Happy Mercy to all!
Anyone who would like to read a more complete exegesis of the text, or some insights, please ask me at migliettacarlo@gmail.com.