At the time of Jesus’ birth, there were dictators and massacres. God chose to be on the side of the weak, close and in solidarity. Christmas thus becomes a cry of hope, a song of gratitude, a call to closeness.
By Philippe Van den Heede, Professor of Biblical Theology at Sophia University Institute.
At the beginning of his Gospel (Mt 1-2), Matthew tells us a story that is anything but peaceful: it speaks of a dictator, of occupation, of massacres, of exile, of migrants, of refugees? So many words that unfortunately often make the headlines in our newspapers. But these words are also part of the Christmas story: Herod, the Roman occupation, the massacre of the innocents, the flight to Egypt, where the holy family finds refuge. Jesus is born into a harsh and brutal world like our own: that of the children of exile and refugees. Christmas also contains their cry.
Giotto, “Massacre of the Innocents”, Scrovegni Chapel – Padua
Thus, from the very beginning of his narrative, Matthew makes us understand that in Jesus God chooses to be on the side of the weak, close to and in solidarity with the most vulnerable. And this is precisely the extraordinary aspect of the Christmas story: the long-awaited Messiah does not arrive with pomp and circumstance, like a hero whose future victory is already celebrated in advance. On the contrary, God makes himself small in Jesus, so small that the question is: “Who made you so small?” “Love!” It is out of love that God reaches out to humanity in its state of extreme weakness and frailty: as a child, Jesus is a refugee; as a man, he dies helplessly on the cross. Here is the revelation of God’s love in Jesus, who, as his name – Yeshua‛ – suggests, saves us by coming to meet us where we are: far from God. This is the message of the angel to Joseph: “She [Maria] will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (Mt 1:21).
Thus, in the midst of all the injustices and dramas of our world, Christmas becomes a cry of hope. The birth of a child is always in itself a sign of hope, a promise of life and an opening to the future; but the birth of this child that Mary gives to the world is the promise of an incredible and unprecedented closeness of God among us: He is Emmanuel, God with us (Mt 2:23). God does not remain distant; he does not remain indifferent. He descends into our reality and walks with us.
The other nativity story, that of Luke (Lk 1-2), takes us to a particular place in Beit Sahour, near Bethlehem, the so-called shepherds’ field. There the angels appeared and sang: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to his people” (Luke 2:14). Christmas is also a song! A song to the glory of God for this child who was born and in whom dwells a universal hope: that of peace.
The key word of Christmas is peace, and Christ himself is our peace. Therefore, Christmas, which is at the same time a cry, a cry of hope and a song, is also a call. At the beginning of his Sermon on the Mount, the true Magna Charta of the Kingdom of God, Jesus still calls us to be true peacemakers of this peace, without being discouraged or giving up: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God!” (Mt 5:9). This peace manifests itself in simple everyday gestures such as hospitality or the ability to welcome those who pass by. In fact, everything begins with being a neighbour: letting the stranger come to me and discovering in him my neighbour; approaching the other and becoming his neighbour, like the Good Samaritan (Lk 10:36-37). In fact, Christmas is the strength from which peacemakers draw and the guarantee of the hope that makes us live: in a word, it is the belief that love will triumph.
