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Written by Anne
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Friday, 30 November 2007 |
 It's Christmas again. The shops are filled with people buying gifts
and food. Evocative sounds and smells fill the air bringing back
memories of wonderful past Christmases. The roads and airways are
getting busier. Millions soon will be heading home for the holidays to
catch up with family and friends and recapture the love and comfort of
Christmases they remember.
Two thousand years ago Mary and Joseph were travelers. Roman law decreed that Jews had to return to their ancestral cities to be counted for the Census, a law that inevitably meant reunions of family and old friends, and lots of travelers on the roads and in the towns. But the timing was not so good for Joseph and Mary. Mary was tired and due to give birth, and the inns were full. Instead of being in her own home where everything was undoubtedly cleaned and ready for the new arrival, she found herself in a stranger's stable. And in spite of Joseph and Mary being completely caught up in the obligations and demands of the world, Jesus, the Christ, was born anyway. The rest of Bethlehem continued on as it had been. But those who were listening and waiting for a sign of this momentous new beginning, whether they were kings or shepherds, were led to the baby. And if that birth had only been 2000 years ago far across the world, you and I would be in deep trouble now. The pain that led us into our deadly addictions and denials would have no end. But the birth is in you and me right now. The Christ, the Prince of Peace, is born in our love and nourished by every Holy Instant when we refuse to remain entombed in our grievances. Each instant we move beyond our old ideas of attack and deprivation, the Christ, the Light of the World in us, grows stronger and easier to find. We find Him in the peace and joy we experience each time we free a brother from the bondage of our own judgment. His light grows stronger in us each time we release an enemy from our own dark ideas. His joy shines through every chink of gratitude we allow in our armour of self-containment. He is born now in us.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 30 December 2007 )
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