Think about this for a moment. I mean really think about it. God loves you and me so much that he sent his Son into our world to save us. Jesus was born in a lowly manger of a humble woman named Mary. In that humility, he gave each of us the opportunity to share completely in God’s presence now and, through the Resurrection, ultimately share in his life forever in Heaven.
We know this, but it’s easy to forget – even unconsciously – in our secular world. All the decorations, shopping sprees, crowded malls, parties, gatherings and long to-do lists seem to overshadow the birth of Jesus.
With Christmas fast approaching, let’s resolve to prioritize its true meaning. To use some popular slogans, we must remember “the reason for the season” and to “keep Christ in Christmas.”
As enjoyable and even good as all the trappings of the season are, none is more important than the greatest gift of Jesus coming into our lives. We should celebrate well his birth in Bethlehem two thousand years ago, and we should be mindful of his coming into our own lives today through his loving presence and the sacraments.
I’ve said before that everything I learned about God I learned in Advent and Christmas. It’s an oversimplification, but it’s true. I say that because of my youth and growing up with my 12 brothers and sisters in Bethesda.
My parents kept us focused on Jesus, even amid all the other activities. We prepared in the weeks leading up to Christmas with an Advent wreath, which was at the center of our meal every night. We kids vied for the chance to light the candles or say the prayer.
We also did what we called Kris Kringle. We picked names, but the idea wasn’t to go out and buy a gift. It was to do kind things and acts of love for that family member all throughout the season. Each time we did that, we placed a little piece of paper into the empty manger. When baby Jesus was put in the manger on Christmas Day, he rested comfortably on a large bed of “straw” that we all helped make for him.
We celebrated on Christmas Day with a birthday cake for Jesus – a great way for kids and adults to remember what Christmas is truly about.
Those memories have not faded for me. They still bring me back to the true meaning of Christmas.
I loved everything else about Christmas, too. I loved getting presents, and I grew to love giving presents. I clearly remember my father saying every Christmas amid the chaos of opening presents, “Isn’t this fun?” I loved just being together and celebrating as a family. All those things pointed to Jesus—to his presence in our lives and our love for him.
Let’s all focus on that this last part of Advent and in the Christmas season. You might want to have your own birthday cake for Jesus if you don’t already. You might spend an extra 15 minutes in prayer each day thanking God and reflecting upon how much God loves us and his gift of salvation through Jesus.
You could read the Gospel accounts of Jesus’s birth, which are easily found in the first two chapters of Matthew and Luke. We need to hear and experience the story of Jesus’s birth over and over again, knowing that God speaks to us every time.
Let’s work hard to prevent the world from taking over our lives and the lives of our children, lest we forget why we do what we do. Let’s keep Jesus where he belongs – at the center of Christmas in the manger two thousand years ago and in our own hearts today.
We need only seek him as the shepherds did. When we do, we, too, will glorify and praise God for all we have heard and seen, as described in Luke 2:20.
It’s all about Jesus and the wonder of a God who loves us so much.
(Msgr. John Enzler serves as the mission advocate of Catholic Charities of The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington and is a chaplain at his alma mater, St. John’s College High School in Washington. He writes the Faith in Action column for the archdiocese’s Catholic Standard and Spanish-language El Pregonero newspapers and websites.)
