Who are you in the Nativity?

 Merry Christmas! Today is a very special feast day, Christmas. We put our little fat baby Jesus in His seashell manger last night and gazed on Him with joy and love.

The Three Kings are on their way!

Today I have been thinking about what the nativity means. Father Kevin Hart, one of our parish priests, spoke about it as well. The feast of Christmas began in the 3rd century with the Romans introducing it eight days after a pagan winter solstice feast to signify that the lunar phase was getting smaller and the solar days were getting longer. The sun would rise as the Son of God did rise. In the words of Saint Augustine, ""Hence it is that He was born on the day which is the shortest in our earthly reckoning and from which subsequent days begin to increase in length. He, therefore, who bent low and lifted us up chose the shortest day, yet the one whence light begins to increase."

The Nativity as we know it wasn't born until 1223 AD thanks to St. Francis of Assisi. He came from a rich family and gave up all of his earthy possessions to follow life in the simple prayerful footsteps of Christ. During his time in life the world he lived in was forgetting what Jesus birth was like. People lived short lives, infested by disease, riddled with poverty on one extreme or greed from the wealthy. The Catholic church was also in need of a booster shot of faith, if you will. St Francis thought that the only way people could live the Christmas message and understand it, was if they were in it and saw themselves as central in the story. He told a fellow monk, "I want to do something that will recall the memory of that Child who was born in Bethlehem, to see with bodily eyes the inconveniences of his infancy, how he lay in the manger, and how the ox and ass stood by."

So in a cave, he asked towns people to take turns being Mary, St Joseph, lending their babies to be little Jesus, some shepherds, an angel and of course a donkey and ox. 

As the days passed, because this lasted a few days, people fell in love seeing their role in the Christmas story. They saw that the Nativity isn't just a historical place where a baby was born, an angel sang and then comes New Year's Day. They saw that the Nativity is each day, that it is you, that it is me, and that we are a part of it. Each one of us is a part of the birth of Jesus, that's why He came. That's why each day He reaches out to us with a heart burning with love for us inviting us to love Him. 

Father Hart asked today,  "Who are you in the Nativity?" And I ask myself, who am I and who do I want to be? 

1. Mary: Pure and holy. Undefiled. Radiant mother and fiercely trusting in the Divine. Full of faith. In the world and not of the world. Beautiful, graceful and constantly ready to say "Yes" to God's will.

2. Baby Jesus: radiating the love of the Father, even in silence, even in poverty, even in the vulnerable body of a baby. Willing to come as creator of the world and lay in a animal bowl where animals slobbered and slurped, for love of souls. Humble.

3. Saint Joseph: oh my favorite sinner and saint! Freaked out by angels, believed in his dreams, obedient to God in the most difficult things asked of him. Brave. Unwaveringly protective of Jesus.

4. Donkey: not easily startled (like horses), curious, independent thinker and stubborn (hard to convince), pays close attention to the sound of other donkeys as far as 60  miles away (addicted to Donkey-social media, listens to too much Donkey news)

5. Cow: Intelligent animal, shy and doesn't like or trust the unknown. Likes constant routine and familiar surroundings. (I think I am a donkey and a cow so far...) Can be aggressive if new routines are introduced.

6. Sheep: Complicated digestive system (4 stomach compartments!) Herd animal, gentle and shy. Flocking prey instinct keeps them closer to other sheep (or people of the same mentality). Afraid of getting hurt.

7. Shepherd: in Jesus birth time they would be consisdered low of little intelligence. Jesus came as the Good Shepherd, He came to reach the unreachable, and Jesus despises smugness and pride. A shepherd guides sheep. Do you guide people? To whom? To what? Why? Do people follow?

8. Star: the guiding star! Alone and unique in the Universe signaling the arrival of the Savior. a bright light for others in darkness sharing good news of life. Are you a star? I would love to be a Jesus birth star.

9. Angel: Praising God and proclaiming the birth of Jesus to all who could hear. Joyful praiser, sincere, prayer warrior, gratitude giver, and no doubt pays attention at mass without distractions getting flutters of joy at each mass. 

10. Manger...an inanimate object but I think the manger is central as well. It could be each one of our hearts that can either hold the Christ child after having held only animal food or can return to being a slab of stone to feed mortal desires and not the life that never dies. 

In conclusion, we are each in the Nativity each day because He came for us. 

If today is hard, He came for you.

If you are hurting, He came for you.

If you find that today doesn't look anything like you thought, He came for you.

If you have worries, doubts, fears or struggles (all of us) He came for you.

If you find you are full of joy and excitement, He came for you.

May a little of all? He came for you. He came for all of us.

Let us see that Truth, see who we are in the daily Nativity and rejoice!