You wanted to choose simple people: they were shepherds (Lk 2:8-20). You, Beloved Child, love simplicity. You can enter more easily into a simple heart.
And You also make us simple. It is not necessary to know everything at once. It is more important to let Your love burn in us and to hasten like shepherds to pass on the Good News.
“Glory sing the cherubs in the fields of Bethlehem…”
You are not only the joy of Israel and of all mankind; you are also the joy of the angels, our friends in heaven.
How you must have rejoiced, beloved angels, when you recognised in God’s light His immense Wisdom in choosing this way of salvation!
Now you are here, Divine Child!
What moved You to come to us, to such a hostile world?
The reason can only lie in Your immeasurable love for our Heavenly Father, and in Your infinite love for us men.
Who can understand it?
“A child will be born to us; they will call him ‘Mighty God’” (cf. Is 9:5).
“In him all the nations of the earth will be blessed” (cf. Gen 22:18).
In reality, even without knowing it, all men await Him,
because we have been created for Him.
In reality, even without knowing it, all men seek Him,
With the Child of Bethlehem, a new era begins: the hour of grace.
Everyone is called, everyone is invited to welcome it.
God makes it easy for us to come to Him.
The tenderness of the Child proclaims: “Do not be afraid! I am here!”
So, why should I continue to be afraid?
The Heavenly Father sends His Son and tells us:
“I am so close to you…”
What is the Lord trying to tell us by choosing not to be born in a royal palace, surrounded by material riches, but in a poor grotto in Bethlehem?
The words of Jesus come to mind: “My kingdom is not of this world” (Jn 18:36).
The first to receive the Good News proclaimed by the angels were simple shepherds (cf. Lk 2:8–14).
It is a different kingdom from the kingdoms of this world that Satan offered Jesus (cf. Mt 4:8–9).
No one is excluded from this Kingdom; all that is required is to accept the message of faith.
It is not the Kingdom of the rich or the learned; it is not the Kingdom of the rulers of this world; it is not a Kingdom of vanities and human honors.
During the first three weeks of Advent, we have prepared for the Coming of the Lord from three different perspectives:
For Christian life to be complete, these three aspects must go hand in hand and remain in our awareness. Without the historical reality of Redemption, our faith would be a myth; without its internalization, it would lack depth; and without the prospect of Christ’s Return, it would lose its focus on the goal and its dynamism would diminish.
Before entering the final stage leading up to the tender feast of the Nativity of Jesus, we must address other events that will take place before the Second Coming of Christ at the End of Time. Yesterday we spoke about the painful apostasy, and today we must also refer to the appearance of false prophets.
“As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, ‘Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the close of the age?’ And Jesus answered them, ‘Take heed that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray.’” (Mt 24:3–5)
What is a false prophet?
Preaching the Gospel, with particular reference to the conversion (or enlightenment) of the Jews, is a fundamental contribution to lovingly preparing for the Second Coming of the Lord. This requires us to do our utmost, for fruitful evangelization means living in accordance with the message we proclaim. Who would want to stand before the Lord one day and have Him say that, although they transmitted the right words, those words lacked inner strength because of the great discrepancy between their speech and the witness of their lives?
In the first meditations of this week, we spoke of how our lamps should be lit like those of the wise virgins (cf. Mt 25:1–13), which is achieved through good works and by putting our talents at the service of the Kingdom of God (cf. Mt 25:14–30).
In last Sunday’s meditation, I mentioned the serious signs that herald the nearness of the Lord’s Return. One of them is the decline of faith—the great apostasy. Read More
Another sign that will precede the Lord’s Return is the conversion of the Jews. Specifically, this means that many Jews will accept the Gospel and recognize Jesus as the Messiah.
One may wonder why the conversion of the People of Israel is so important that it is mentioned as one of the signs preceding the Second Coming of Christ. Let us try to understand this: it is not that God has rejected Israel, even if only a “holy remnant” of Israelites believed in the Messiah and took on the great task of proclaiming him to all peoples, thus fulfilling God’s will. But we must never forget that it was thanks to the proclamation of the apostles, who came from the Jewish people, that faith in the Messiah of Israel reached us. Therefore, not all the people hardened their hearts and rejected the Messiah; there were those who gave their lives to follow the Lord. Let us think of St. Paul, who tirelessly proclaimed the Gospel.
Let us listen to one of his letters to see how much he loved his brothers “according to the flesh”:
