Christmas Day Homily
“For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord.” But first let’s start from the very beginning, in the words of the ‘Sound of Music’, ‘it was a very good place to start.’ In John’s Prologue (which will be read in the morning), it says “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God”.
We start to think of a moment beyond time and space before creation began. The ‘Word’ existed with ‘God’ and it was God. The whole of creation took place through this ‘Word’. Whenever, God the Father wanted something created, he only had to speak it. But who is this ‘Word’?
“The Word became flesh and dwelt amongst us”. It is Jesus Christ who is this living ‘Word’ and now he is here on earth through the Incarnation. So, we can trace Jesus back before time began, with God the Father, who has no beginning or end.
In Luke’s Nativity story, we are familiar with these words: ‘The foxes have their holes, and the birds have their nets, but the Son of man has no-where to lay down.’ If we take a moment to reflect upon this, we can start to understand, that from the moment of Jesus’ birth, he belong outside of the realm, of what we see as most important in worldly terms. However, this is the child who is the truly powerful one, the one on whom everything depends upon for our salvation.
Mary laid her new-born Son in a manger, a space that might be consider to be unworthy, but it could be also seen as a kind of altar.
St Augustine drew out this meaning further, explaining that the manger is a place where animals eat their food. But now, lying in the manger is Jesus, who is the true bread come down from heaven, the true nourishment that we need in our lives. This is the food that gives us true life, eternal life – God himself. In this poverty of Jesus’ birth emerges the miracle in which we are truly saved.
In that same region, there were shepherds out in the fields, keeping watch over their flocks by night. These shepherds became the first witnesses of this great event. They represented the poor of Israel, simple souls whom Jesus would bless, and because from them, all people are granted access to the mystery of God.
The angel of the Lord appears to the shepherds and the glory of the Lord shone around them. At first, they were filled with fear. However, the angel took away their fears and announced to them a great joy. ‘For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord’. They were told to find a child wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. Suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among people of good will.’ This song was sung by all the angels in heaven, in which the glory of great joy was proclaimed. What a sight to behold.
And so, from that moment the angel’s song of praise has never gone silent, it continues to be sung this day, and every Sunday celebration during our Gloria in Mass.
The ’glory’ of God is real, God is glorious, and this is truly a season to be joyful; there is truth, there is goodness, there is beauty. God made flesh, lying in a manger as the ‘bread of heaven.’
May I conclude by wishing you all a very Holy Christmas, and that you continue to reflect upon the full divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the ‘Word made flesh’ during this festive period.
May this Christmas Eucharist strengthen you and nourish you throughout this Holy season. May we become true witnesses of our faith, proclaiming the Good News to all the four corners of the world. That ‘Jesus, born of the Virgin Mary, is Christ the Lord, and Saviour to all the World.’
Rev. Fr Philip Wrigley's Blog 