Good News, the Word of Life (Christmas Day)

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When I was a lad, if anyone had asked me WHAT CHRISTMAS IS, I would have said that CHRISTMAS IS THAT TIME OF THE YEAR WHEN WE GET SPECIAL SETS OF CLOTHES, SPECIAL CUISINES, SPECIAL SPECTACLES, AND SO ON! This response would have been informed by those special things provided for us by our parents. However, those things have nothing to do with Christmas. What is Christmas??? Maybe, the readings of this Christmas day may help us understand what we celebrate!


The prophecy of Isaiah 52:7-10 was a message that the exiled people of Israel longed to hear when they were languishing in Babylon. As they languished in exile, they longed for GOOD NEWS of their freedom, they longed for PEACE, and they longed for SALVATION. It must have then been a moment of great joy when they heard Isaiah publish the news which they had earnestly desired to hear. There are three words used to describe that news: a message of PEACE (shalom), GOOD TIDINGS OF THE GOOD and SALVATION.


The first point is that they received a message of PEACE. For a Jew, PEACE (shalom) is not just understood as absence of war or troubles. Peace is complete wellbeing which should diffuse to every dimension of life. Yes, such kind of peace may thrive in suffering, but it surely brings about an interior kind of serenity which is unaffected by external pressures. Such kind of peace can only come from God. In Num. 6:26, Moses made reference to that kind of peace when he blessed the people and said, "May God turn His face towards you and give you PEACE". It is the kind of peace that comes when there is a strong conviction that God is fully present in our midst. Jesus has come to reveal the face of God to us, to re-establish God's presence in our midst and to give us that PEACE which the world cannot give. This is Christmas!


The second point is that the news is GOOD TIDINGS OF THE GOOD. The word "GOOD" is a creative word, profusely used in the Book of Genesis 1: God described everything that He created as GOOD. If the coming of the Messiah is being described as  GOOD TIDINGS OF THE GOOD, then what it means is that the Messiah has come to do another work of creation (or recreation). The God who created the word by the power of His Word decided to recreate the world by the power of His Word. For our recreation, the WORD OF GOD was made flesh and has dwelt amongst us in the person of Christ. St John says that "In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God, the Word was God" (John 1:1). The letter to the Hebrews says, "In many and various ways God spoke of old to our fathers by the prophets; but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, through Whom He created the ages" (Heb. 1:1ff). What we celebrate at Christmas is the entrance of this Word of God into the world in the person of Christ. The Word of God has come as light in order to disperse the darkness which envelopes the world. 


The third point is that as the Word enters into the world, SALVATION is pronounced. And this salvation must be understood as LIBÉRATION. Before the coming of the word, humanity was trapped by the bondage of sin. But the entrance of the Word brings about liberation from the bondage of sin and unbelief. At Christmas, we celebrate the begin of our SALVATION.


Prayer:

As we celebrate this Christmas, may we experience the all-round liberation, salvation and recreation that has been brought about by the Eternal Word of God, and may our encounter with the Word of Life convert us into veritable instruments of PEACE, JOY, LOVE and GOODNESS in the world!


Happy Christmas!



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