Jesus is the child born to us, as Isaiah prophesied, the Son given to us.  His birth means the birth of all of us humans. 

At Jesus’ birth, a great light shines and the grace of God, his goodness, his love, appears.  It is because God, out of mercy, calls us to a new birth.

He wants us to leave the dark world of injustice, poverty, war, to which pride gives birth.  And does also greed for power and control.

God wants also, of course, that we love like his Son, to the end.  To the point of giving up our bodies and shedding our blood.  For Jesus will then give his life for us sinners, which will make clear that God loves us.

And so, Jesus’ birth from Mary’s womb also means his death and then his birth from the tomb.  “Let us go to Bethlehem” implies “Let us climb the mountain of the Lord” of an antiphon (Reflexiones para la medianoche).  So, no wonder that the Greek word katáluma means “inn” and also “guest room,” the one for the Passover meal.

No, there is no doubt that the child in the manger seems to be nothing (SV.EN VI:170).  And he, as an adult, still seems to be nothing on the cross.   Yet that is why, in the end, he gets the title “Lord.”

And since God first loves us so, we can love also.  Hence, we can pass from death to life, from darkness to light.  That is, a new birth is ours, so that we may be holy and heirs of eternal life.

Lord Jesus, through you, the Father speaks to us fully and definitively so as to grant us new birth.  Make sure we always listen to you and keep your words and reflect on them in our hearts.  We shall thus know you and the Father better, and bear better, through the Holy Spirit’s power, the Good News.  And grant us who contemplate the scene of your birth the grace to accept the call to personal growth.

25 December 2025
Nativity of the Lord
Night:  Is 9, 1-6; Tit 2, 11-14; Lk 2, 1-14 // Dawn:  Is 62, 11-12; Tit 3, 4-7; Lk 2, 15-20 // Day:  Is 52, 7-10; Heb 1, 1-6; Jn 1, 1-18