Cycle B - Year II:  

25 December 2023: The Nativity of the Lord (Mass during the day) 

(Liturgical color: White)

Readings:

First Reading:        Isaiah 52:7-10

Second Reading:   Hebrews 1:1-6

Gospel:  Please read  John 1:1-18 (1:1-5, 9-14) 

God's Word becomes flesh!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LORD JESUS, KING OF THE WHOLE UNIVERSE AND SAVIOR OF THE HUMAN RACE!  Jesus is the Incarnate Word who reveals God the Father to us!

Let us joyfully join the Psalmist in singing to the whole Christian world: "All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God" (Ps 98)  

The Christmas event has been foretold in the old days by the prophet Isaiah: "A child is born to us, and a son is given to us; his scepter of power rests upon his shoulder, and his name will be called Messenger of great counsel." (Is 9:5) Christmas is the fulfillment of God's saving plan in the world.

Come, and let us proclaim to the whole world: "Glory to God in the highest! For this day the Almighty gives His greatest Gift to us all, the Gift of His beloved Son."        

All our preparations during our Advent journey, and the nine-day Novena Masses or Misa de Aguinaldo culminate in the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ. The whole world rejoices with joy that our Messiah is born today! We are overwhelmed with joy and hope that light up our darkness.

The evangelist St. John, in the introduction to his Gospel, summarizes for his audience everything that he wanted to say about Jesus of Nazareth.  John expresses the divinity of Christ. Jesus was there in the very beginning (that is to say, the beginning before anything else has been begun); in that time Jesus was with God and He was God; nothing was made without Him because it was all created through Him; and in Him is life for all men. For Jesus is God's creative, life-giving  and light-giving Word that has come to earth in human form. Indeed, our Lord Jesus Christ is truly Man while remaining truly God.

It is only through Jesus Christ that we can behold the glory of God. Jesus became the partaker of our humanity so that we could also be partakers of His divinity. At Christmas we do not only hear God's words of joy and peace; we experience the presence of God in our midst, Emmanuel. It is our experience of God's presence among us through Jesus Christ that is life-giving.

We reflect on the significance and importance of the Christmas event in our lives.  We continue to proclaim anew the wonder of the Incarnation: "The Son of God assumed a human nature in order to accomplish our salvation in it. The Son of God.... worked with human hands; He thought with a human mind; He acted with a human will; and with a human heart He loved. Born of the Virgin Mary, He was truly been made one of us in all things except sin." (Gaudium et Spes)  

As we go to Mass (today is a holy day of obligations for all Catholics!), let us reflect more deeply the meaning of the birth of Christ for us today in our particular situation. Let us welcome Him in our lives through the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, and prepare for His second coming at the end of time by living authentic Christian life.

Christmas is the perfect time to celebrate the love of God. For Jesus is God's perfect Gift, indescribable Gift to humanity. It is amazing that as we receive God's Gift of His Son, we are also able to share our Savior with others on Christmas Day through our witnessing of love and charity to others, especially those who need them most during these difficult times in our history.

My heart is filled with joy as I greet everyone of my family and friends, my readers and followers in social media... A BLESSED AND MERRY CHRISTMAS 2023!

Thank you for a moment with God.

Ad Jesum per Mariam!