Shared Reflections From Gerard Hughes SJ
‘Do not wander far from the crib of Jesus’ (Blessed Nicolas).
‘Of what use is it that Christ was born so long ago in a stable if he is not born today in your heart?’ (Origen).
What can I do to enable this to happen?
Well, perhaps I need to begin by no longer reading the Gospels as history books: events which happened two thousand years ago, which I remember, and hopefully, learn something from.
As Jack McArdle SS CC writes in ‘Stepping Stones to Bethlehem’, “… there is another dimension that must be taken into account.
What happened all those years ago has not really happened for me,
until it actually happens within my heart.
Incarnation and redemption is something that is ongoing.
The events of then, have to happen all over again, within the hearts of each one of us.”
What part can I play in bringing that about?
Well if the Gospel is now and for me, then I am every person in the Gospel.
Like Mary, I am asked by God on a daily basis to become an instrument in making his Son present in the world.
Instead of waiting for an angel to appear in front of me, I could try really listening to what the Holy Spirit is saying to me every morning.
Like the magi, I can come to Christ and offer the only gift I have; myself.
Like theirs, my journey to Bethlehem may have been long and tedious, but I’m here now. What does Christ want me to take away from this meeting that I can share in order to bring others to him?
And I have, should I choose to avail of it, the help of the Christian community to do this. It may put the gospel into clearer focus if I think of it as something that is unfolding in my life and in the life of the Christian community to which I belong …
I too can have wise people and shepherds of one kind or another crossing my path in search of evidence that Jesus is alive and well and living among us.
My vocation is to be an ambassador for Christ and to represent him wherever I go. The people I meet may never buy the book, and I may be the only gospel they may ever read.’
Mother Mary, guide me as to how I can thoughtfully and sincerely respond to Jesus’ invitation. Stay close to me so that I remain faithful to my calling and act responsibly for the privilege that is entrusted to me.
From Sr Marie Pitcher IJ :
‘Each year we hear again the ancient yet timeless story. Each year we retell the astonishing entrance that God made into our broken world and we are moved in the depths of our being by the constant surprise of God’s immense love. Something brand-new had happened; something original and fresh and pristine had been revealed; nothing would ever be the same again.
God made the crucial choice to break the silence of the ages, to give himself away in a Word. The most important Word that God has ever spoken, took flesh in the womb of a teenage girl and like all human flesh, was born as a fragile bundle of new life. The mystery of God’s love was made flesh as a child.
The length, breath, depth and height of God’s love was somehow expressed in this little one. God was choosing to visit his people, not through the dreams and words of the prophets but in human flesh and bone. The God who abided in the highest heaven chose to live among us.’ (Marie Pitcher IJS Christmas 2017.)
From Sr.Tiziana:
‘For Nicolas Barré, the Incarnation is a permanent state, without interruption; God makes a gift of His Son to humanity. This Son, who is God’s gift, always gives himself to God the Father in our humanity. It is a ‘memorial’ which did not happen just once but happens every day.
Let’s listen to Him…’ (Tiziana IJ)