Cardinal Tobin:
Christmas is a season of joy and hope
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Vol. 7. No. 9
My dear sisters and brothers in Christ,
During this season of joy and hope, we are once again reminded that God is closer to us than we dare admit. The all-powerful, all-knowing God who created the universe has become one of us and one with us in the Incarnation of Jesus, the Word made flesh. God’s most profound intervention in human history—and in the lives of each of us—demonstrates beyond any doubt how much God cares for us.
The fact that Jesus is born so humbly, in a stable surrounded by his loving family, social outcasts (shepherds), and domestic animals, is a scandal by any human standard. We are conditioned to seek God among the wealthy and powerful— the “important people” who govern our society, drive our economy, and control influential institutions such as the media, businesses, schools, healthcare agencies, and, yes, the Church.
But God surprises us. He inverts our values, showing us that the first will be last, the lowly will be raised up, the rich will be sent away empty, and the poor will inherit the Earth and all its treasures.
During a homily given during the celebration of Vespers on the Vigil of the Patronal Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary of Pompeii (see selection below), Pope Leo XIV reflected on God’s desire to involve us in the mystery of our salvation. Quoting Saint Augustine, the Holy Father says, “God created us without us, but he will not save us without us. Thus, we are called to cooperate with him by living out a life of grace as his sons and daughters, making our own contribution to the plan of salvation.” Through the work of the Holy Spirit, the all-powerful Creator of Heaven and Earth invites us to be co-responsible stewards of our redemption and sanctification in Christ.
God’s ways are not our ways. High is low. Rich is poor. Power is service. These are God’s ways, not ours. Most amazing of all the divine paradoxes is that the omnipotent God comes to us in the absolute vulnerability of a newborn infant, who can do nothing for himself and depends completely on the loving care of his mother and foster father.
In his Urbi et Orbi message on Christmas Day in 2010 (see selection below), Pope Benedict XVI asked, “How can the eternal and almighty Word become a frail and mortal man?” and he concluded, “There is only one answer: Love.” Sacred Scripture proclaims to us “the great love story of God for his people which culminated in Jesus Christ.”
Jesus, who is both divine and human, can be held in his parents’ arms, nursed by his mother, and protected from the elements by a simple stable. His life can be threatened by a jealous and cruel despot who slaughters the innocent. After narrowly escaping and being forced to flee to another country as a homeless refugee, he can return to his native land to “grow in wisdom, age and grace” in a community that nurtures and supports him and his family in accordance with the ancient faith of Israel.
This is a strange story that has become so familiar over the years that we risk losing sight of its power. The Christmas story is much more than the quiet, domestic tale we have made of it. Yes, there is plenty of warmth, beauty, and hope here. In the dead of winter, when days are short and nights are long, it is comforting to embrace the Christmas story. And during tense and uncertain times like ours, it’s helpful to remember that God does not abandon us or keep us at arm’s length.
But the fact of God’s close intimacy places uncomfortable demands on us. Are we living out the Christmas paradox in our daily lives? What are we doing to care for the poor and homeless? How are we working to change cultural, political, and economic systems that are unjust and oppressive? Do we welcome strangers, especially those who have been cast out of their homeland? Do we insist that society’s most vulnerable members, including the unborn, the elderly, and the infirm, are protected and cared for in the same way that Mary and Joseph cared for the newborn child entrusted to their care?
Christmas is a season of joy and hope. It’s a time to give and share all that we have received from God’s abundance. The material gifts we exchange at Christmas symbolize the much deeper sharing God invites us to embrace. We are called to follow God’s example by gratefully giving ourselves out of love for God and for the human family.
¡Feliz Navidad!
Sincerely yours in Christ the Redeemer,
Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R.
Archbishop of Newark
Urbi et Orbi Message of Pope Benedict XVI
Christmas 2010
“Verbum caro factum est” – “The Word became flesh” (Jn 1:14).
“The Word became flesh”. Before this revelation we once more wonder: how can this be? The Word and the flesh are mutually opposed realities; how can the eternal and almighty Word become a frail and mortal man? There is only one answer: Love. Those who love desire to share with the beloved, they want to be one with the beloved, and Sacred Scripture shows us the great love story of God for his people which culminated in Jesus Christ.
God in fact does not change: he is faithful to himself. He who created the world is the same one who called Abraham and revealed his name to Moses: “I am who I am … the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob … a God merciful and gracious, abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness (cf. Ex 3:14-15; 34:6). God does not change; he is Love, ever and always. In himself he is communion, unity in Trinity, and all his words and works are directed to communion. The Incarnation is the culmination of creation. When Jesus, the Son of God incarnate, was formed in the womb of Mary by the will of the Father and the working of the Holy Spirit, creation reached its high point. The ordering principle of the universe, the Logos, began to exist in the world, in a certain time and space.
“The Word became flesh”. The light of this truth is revealed to those who receive it in faith, for it is a mystery of love. Only those who are open to love are enveloped in the light of Christmas. So it was on that night in Bethlehem, and so it is today. The Incarnation of the Son of God is an event which occurred within history, while at the same time transcending history. In the night of the world a new light was kindled, one which lets itself be seen by the simple eyes of faith, by the meek and humble hearts of those who await the Saviour. If the truth were a mere mathematical formula, in some sense it would impose itself by its own power. But if Truth is Love, it calls for faith, for the “yes” of our hearts.
A selection from the 2010 Christmas message of Pope Benedict XVI “to the City and the World“
A Message from Pope Leo XIV:
In the one Christ we are one
Providentially, we are gathered together during this Jubilee Year, which is focused on the theological virtue of Hope. In a particular way, Mary embodied that virtue through her trust that God would fulfil his promises. This hope, in turn, gave her the strength and courage to spend her life willingly for the sake of the Gospel and abandon herself entirely to God’s will. It has often been said that the Incarnation first took place in Mary’s heart, before it took place in her womb. This emphasizes her daily fidelity to God.
Of course, Mary did not know precisely how or when God would save his people, yet she lived in abandonment to God’s will, trusting that he would save his people according to his design. God never delays, we are the ones who have to learn to trust, even if it requires patience and perseverance. God’s timing is always perfect. Thus, we heard in the Scripture passage from Saint Paul, “when the appointed time came, God sent his Son to redeem the subjects of the law”.
God always comes to save and liberate us. The Israelites were born under the law but also with the fragility, weakness and concupiscence of our fallen human condition. God’s plan has now been brought to fulfilment in the mission of the Lord Jesus. Moreover, he did not come simply to redeem us from slavery to sin, but to free our hearts to say ‘yes’ to him, just as Our Blessed Mother did.
Now through the gift of baptism, we are born under the law of grace as children of God. In the words of the Canticle, God our Father “chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world … he destined us in love to be his sons and daughters through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will.” The purpose of his will is to bring us to eternal life. In this regard, Saint Augustine wrote that, “God created us without us, but he will not save us without us.” Thus, we are called to cooperate with him by living out a life of grace as his sons and daughters, making our own contribution to the plan of salvation. This is true even though we do not know what the future holds. Nevertheless, like Mary, we can always be trustful and grateful for his work of salvation.
A selection from the homily of Pope Leo XIV during the celebration of Vespers on the Vigil of the Patronal Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary of Pompeii
My Prayer for You
Please join me in praying this Nativity Prayer of St. Augustine:
Let the just rejoice, for their justifier is born.
Let the sick and infirm rejoice, for their savior is born.
Let the captives rejoice, for their Redeemer is born.
Let free men and women rejoice, for their Liberator is born.
Let All Christians rejoice, for Jesus Christ is born.
Amen