4 minute read
GOD WITH US - Fr. Steve Mattson
Despite the fact that we’re still under a bit of a “shut-down” in the state, I’m very grateful that we were able to have public Masses to celebrate the birth of Jesus. He has come. He is born. Alleluia! In my internet-less rectory, I’ve found myself listening to more music, and I recently listened to the entirety of Handel’s Messiah. It is a masterpiece, showcasing in song the entire salvific life of Jesus the Messiah. We often hear a few pieces from the oratorio around this time of year, especially the Hallelujah Chorus -- a regular finale of Christmas concerts for choirs, which also sometimes serves as a postlude to the celebration of Midnight Mass.
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Handel’s Messiah is a marvelous meditation on the prophetic words concerning Christ and their fulfillment in the Paschal Mystery, culminating in the Resurrection. If you haven’t taken the time, you might consider listening to it in its entirety. One nice thing is that work was originally written in English, and the libretto is masterful. The first part focuses, as one would expect, on the coming of Jesus as a child: laid a manger in Bethlehem one December long, long ago. This year, despite the challenges, we are invited once again to welcome the little baby Jesus, the Son of God, who willed to come among us as a little baby to reveal to us the love of the Father. Born of Mary, Jesus came in the fullness of time, to manifest love, to confirm our faith, and to give us hope, even in the messiness of coronatide.
Covid has not been our only concern, either individually or collectively. Politically and culturally, we are living in what is obviously a very divided nation. Add to that what Ralph Martin calls A Church in Crisis in his new book of the same name, and things can begin to look quite bleak. The challenges we are facing make us pause, and (hopefully, at least) invite us to pray. Given those challenges -- or perhaps all the more so because of them -- as we celebrate Christmas, let us be sure to remind ourselves and each other that the Lord is near. He is Emmanuel, God with us, the Prince of Peace, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Jesus. Our “Little Lord Jesus” invites us to come without fear to the manger where He lies: as real, vulnerable, and needy as any newborn.
Jesus, the Word-Made-Flesh, came among us as one like us: not to intimidate or condemn, but to win our hearts to love; He invites us to come to Him, to see Him, to hold Him, and to wonder at His presence. Jesus, the Eternal Son, came into the world—and is here now—for you, for me, for us all. He came in love. Out of love. For love. And that’s what He wants for us: love.
Through our baptism, we are given the gift to participate in the Trinitarian life of love. Empowered by the Spirit, we are called by Love to be love in the world—right now, in this year of Covid—by shining as lights for the world to see and to wonder at our life together. It’s all about love. Receiving love, and giving love away. Loving well is the surest measure of a full, good life, come what may. May 2021 be a year marked by love of God and neighbor for us all. May we each know the love of God and share that love with others.
The way that we can love well this year is to draw strength from time spent with the One who is love. Let us be nourished daily by the Word of God and regularly receive the sustenance of love: the Blessed Sacrament. The more we come to Him, spending regular time with Him in prayerful meditation, contemplation, and adoration, the more we will be able to emulate His life, and so serve as witnesses to others of what it means to be Christian in the twenty-first century.
As we pause this Christmas like little children, amidst all the “grown-up concerns” of the moment, let us aim to do the simple things well. Let us draw near to Jesus, the very approachable, even irresistible, baby in the manger, and open our hearts to his love: that will make all the difference. If we do that, those with eyes to see will know that God is, in fact, with us, because they will recognize Him in us. Merry Christmas!
