25 DECEMBER – THE NATIVITY OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST

From In Lumine Fidei

All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!

Epistle – Hebrews 1:1‒12

God, who, at sundry times and in divers manners, spoke in times past to the fathers by the prophets, last of all, in these days has spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the world. Who being the brightness of His glory, and the figure of His substance, and upholding all things by the word of His power, making purgation of sins, sits on the right hand of the majesty on high. Being made so much better than the angels, as He has inherited a more excellent name than they. For to which of the angels has He said at any time, “You are my Son, today have I begotten you?” And again, “I will be to him a Father, and he will be to me a Son?” And again, when He brings in the first begotten into the world, He says: “And let all the angels of God adore him.” And to the angels indeed He says: “He that makes his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.” But to the Son: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever: a sceptre of justice is the sceptre of your kingdom. You have loved justice, and hated iniquity: therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your fellows.” And: You in the beginning, O Lord, found the earth: and the works of your hands are the heavens. They will perish, but you will continue: and they will all grow old as a garment. And as a vesture will you change them, and they will be changed: but you are the self-same, and your years will not fail.

Thanks be to God.

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

The great Apostle in this magnificent opening of his Epistle to his former brethren of the Synagogue lays great stress on the Eternal Generation of our Lord Jesus Christ. While our eyes are fixed on the sweet infant in His crib, Saint Paul bids us raise our thoughts up to that infinite Light, from the midst of which the Eternal Father thus speaks to this child of Mary: “You are my Son. Today have I begotten you:” this today is the Day of eternity, a Day which has neither morning nor evening, neither rising nor setting. If the Human Nature which He has vouchsafed to assume places Him below the Angels, He is infinitely above them by His own essence by which He is the Son of God. He is God, He is Lord, and no change can come upon Him. He may be wrapped in swathing-bands, or nailed to a cross, or put to a most ignominious death — all this is only in his human nature. In His Divinity He remains impassible and immortal, for He was born of the Father from all eternity.

Gospel – John i. 1‒14

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him: and without Him was made nothing that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shined in darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. This man came for a witness, to give testimony of the light, that all men might believe through him. He was not the light, but was to give testimony of the light. That was the true light, which enlightens every man that comes into this world. He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not. He came to His own, and His own received Him not. But as many as received Him, He gave them power to be made the sons of God, to them that believe in His name. Who are born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, the glory as it were of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

Praise be to you, O Christ.

Dom Prosper Guéranger:

O Eternal Son of God! In presence of the crib, where for the love of us you vouchsafe this day to show yourself to your creatures — we confess your eternity, your omnipotence, your divinity, and most profoundly do we adore you. You were in the beginning. You were in God, and yourself was God. Everything was made by you, and we are the work of your hands. Light, infinite and eternal! O Sun of Justice! Enlighten us, for we are but darkness. Too long have we loved our darkness, and you we have not comprehended: forgive us our blindness and our errors. You have been long knocking at the door of our hearts, and we have refused to let you in. Today, thanks to the wonderful ways of your love, we have received you: for who could refuse to receive you, sweet gentle infant Jesus! But, leave us not — abide with us, and perfect the new birth which you have begun in us. We wish, henceforth, to be neither of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God, by you and in you. You have been made Flesh, Word Eternal, in order that we may become sons of God. We beseech you, support our weak human nature and fit us for this our sublime destiny. You are born of God your Father. You are born of Mary. You are born in our hearts. Be thrice glorified for this your triple birth, Jesus, so merciful in your Divinity, and so divine in your self-sought humiliations!

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The great day is over, and the night is coming upon us when sleep will refresh us after the holy fatigues of last night. Before retiring to rest, let us give the holy Martyrs a thought, whose memory is offered to our veneration by the Church, in her Martyrology of this 25th of December. Diocletian and his colleagues in the Empire had recently published the famous edict of persecution which waged against the Church the fiercest war she has ever sustained. The edict was torn down from the Emperor’s palace at Nicomedia by one of the Christians who paid for this holy daring by a glorious martyrdom. The faithful of the same city were ready for the combat, and feared not to brave the Emperor’s power by continuing to frequent their Church, which was condemned to be pulled down. Christmas Day came and several thousands of them had assembled there in order to celebrate, for the last time within those walls, the Nativity of our Saviour. Being informed of it, the Emperor became furious, and sent one of the officers of his court to order the Church doors to be fastened and a fire to be kindled on each side of the building. This being done, the clang of trumpets was heard and then a herald’s voice proclaiming to the faithful, in the Emperor’s name, that they who wished to save their lives would be permitted to leave the Basilica on the condition of their offering incense on an altar of Jupiter which had been placed near the door. But that otherwise all were to be left a prey to the flames. One of the Christians thus answered in the name of the whole assembly: “We are all of us Christians. We honour Christ as the one only God and King, and we are all ready to lay down our lives for Him on this Day.” Whereupon the soldiers were commanded to set fire to the church. In a very short time it was one immense mass of flames, whence was offered to the Son of God — who deigned to begin, on this same day, the human life He had assumed — the generous holocaust of these thousands of lives, laid down as witness to His having come into this world. Thus was glorified in the year 303 our Emmanuel who had come from Heaven to dwell among us. Let us, after the example of the Church herself, join our homage to the babe of Bethlehem with that offered Him by these courageous Christians whose fame the Liturgy will perpetuate even to the end of time.

Once more let us visit, in spirit, the dear cave where Mary and Joseph are loving, and nursing, and adoring, the Divine Infant. Let us, too, adore Him and ask His blessing. Saint Bonaventure, with an unction worthy of his seraphic soul, thus expresses the sentiments which a Christian should have on this day when admitted to the crib of Jesus: “Do thou, also, kneel down — you have delayed too long. Adore the Lord your God, and then reverence His Mother, and salute, with much respect, the saintly old man Joseph. After this, kiss the feet of the infant Jesus, laid as He is on His little bed, and ask our Lady to give Him to you or permit you to take Him up. Take Him into your arms, press Him to your heart and look well at His lovely face, and reverently kiss Him, and show Him confidently the delight you take in Him. You may venture on all this because it is for sinners that He came, that He might save them: it was with sinners that He so humbly conversed, and at last gave Himself to sinners that He might be their food. I say, then, that His gentle love will permit you to treat Him as affectionately as you please, and will not call it too much freedom, but will set it down to your love.”