All These in Her Heart

Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God Jan. 1, 2012 (Lk 2:16-21)

So they went in haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known the message that had been told them about this child. All who heard it were amazed by what had been told them by the shepherds.

And Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart. Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, just as it had been told to them.

When eight days were completed for his circumcision, he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.

The shepherds were very much blessed on that first Christmas night. An angel announced to them the news of the Savior's birth. A multitude of the heavenly host singing glory to God appeared to them. But most of all, as today's Gospel tells us, the shepherds were graced with the presence of God. They saw the child in the manger. They witnessed how God came to His people, how He became close to them, even becoming one like them. They might not have understood everything that was happening, but surely they knew that God was at work. They recognized that everything that was happening was brought about by God.

Like the shepherds, we must also recognize God working in our lives. This new year, the most important thing we could wish for is God's presence, the very same grace that the shepherds received. Our efforts for change this new year will not be fruitful without God. We must, therefore, pray that God may guide us the whole year through, that He may help us change and that His will may be fulfilled in us.

As we begin the new year, we again look to Mary, the Mother of God. In today's Gospel, we hear how she treasured in her heart everything that happened to them. Like the shepherds, she might not have understood everything, but she kept all of these and reflected on them in her heart. We too must learn to pray and to reflect as Mary did. We should not just go head on in our life journey. Everything happens for a reason ordained by God. But if we fail to pause and reflect, we might miss what God is trying to tell us through the events in our lives. In prayerful reflection, Mary obeyed God's will perfectly. That is also how we ought to live our lives, in order to find peace that comes only from God, even amidst everything that we might face.

Today, as we celebrate the Octave of Christmas, we also hear from the Gospel about how Mary's son was circumcised and named Jesus. Let us always remember the meaning of Jesus' name - God saves. This is our assurance this new year. Jesus, the God who saves, has come to be with us. With Jesus as our Savior, and with Mary as our mother and model of prayer and obedience, we can go on in our life journey in peace and security.

Born Amidst Difficult Situations

Solemnity of the Lord's Birth Dec. 25, 2011 (For Midnight Mass: Lk 2: 1-14)

In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that the whole world should be enrolled. This was the first enrollment, when Quirinius was governor of Syria. So all went to be enrolled, each to his own town.

And Joseph too went up from Galilee from the town of Nazareth to Judea, to the city of David that is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. While they were there, the time came for her to have her child, and she gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

Now there were shepherds in that region living in the fields and keeping the night watch over their flock. The angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were struck with great fear. The angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger."

And suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying: "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests."

Joseph and Mary travels to Bethlehem, seemingly just to obey a human decree, but actually to fulfill what God has decreed long ago down through the Scriptures - that the Messiah will be born in Bethlehem from the line of David, the king - for the child in Mary's womb is the King of kings. And so there they were. The couple traveled while Mary bore the child, to a city that was filled with people who were there for the census, in the darkness of the night, and with no room for them to stay in. Their situation was very difficult. It became even more difficult for them when the time came for Mary to give birth and the only place they could stay in is a manger. Finally, Jesus was born there in the lowly manger.

For a plan that has been established through the ages, what happened in the Christmas story could have been better and more grand, or at least more decent and comfortable for Mary, Joseph and Jesus. But this Christmas story is already God's perfect plan. It is God's perfect timing, even though it didn't seem to be so perfect.

Christmas happened because of God - because Christ was there. It didn't matter that the place was in a manger. Jesus was born and everything became simply glorious and joyful that night. Mary and Joseph must have been rejoicing while gazing at the child Jesus. The angels in heaven sang glorifying God as they shared the good news of great joy to shepherds who were faithfully keeping watch over their sheep. Indeed, the darkness of the night was dispelled by the light of the child that was born for us. All the difficulties the Holy Family faced didn't matter anymore. Jesus' presence was all that mattered.

In our Christmas celebration, we tend to always wish for everything to be fine, if not perfect. We make sure everything is prepared well - decorations, food, gifts, parties and more, depending on what we can afford. If our Christmas celebration depends on these things, we might not always get a merry Christmas. But if our joy is because of Jesus being born anew into our lives, we will be able to celebrate a more meaningful Christmas and we will also be able to share that joy. This is what our Gospel story teaches us. We should stop longing for a perfect Christmas celebration because the first Christmas itself was not perfect. What makes Christmas perfect is God's presence in our lives, even amidst difficult situations.

Many are poor. Many are homeless. Many are separated from their loved ones. Recently, many were devastated by a natural disaster here in our country. These people are often tempted to say that there is no Christmas for them. But God is still present in their lives, even if they feel God has abandoned them. Because Christ was born for us, there will always be Christmas. It doesn't matter if we are saddened by so many unfortunate events. We rejoice during Christmas because we remember how God was born to us amidst difficult situations. And we believe that God will also be born in our lives as well, coming to us in our dark night to bring forth a new day.

As we experience the true joy of Christmas, we are also challenged to be God's instruments in proclaiming the good news of His coming into our lives. We must proclaim that Christmas can never be canceled because Christ is always with us. If there are people who cannot feel Christ's presence, we must be there to be make them experience the love that was Jesus' reason for becoming man. Christmas is for all; Christ was born for all.