SOLEMNITY OF CHRISTMAS 2023, B
TO BE “CHRISTIFIED”
LK 2: 1-14
MESSAGE
What we celebrate today is not just an event, but a great occasion and a historical moment. Christmas beckons us to look back 2000 years to the time when “the fullness of time” arrived. God, out of love, chose to immerse Himself in history by becoming a human being in the person of His Only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Beyond time and history, God decided to experience being a part of our story, becoming our brother and friend. In doing so, He truly understood what it means to be human, teaching us the essence of humanity in the eyes of our Father-Creator. It is a remarkable event, and as the song says, the “weary world rejoices” (O Holy Night).
However, what unfolds today is not just a nostalgic reflection on the past. Christmas, the event, sparks the process of “Christification.” Don’t be startled by the term “Christification”: it simply means that, when Jesus embraced our humanity, He connected Himself so deeply to us and our world that He left an indelible mark of His presence. We are transformed to be like Christ. The world carries His footprints, bears His scent, and receives His message of love. This is God’s purpose in the Incarnation—to mold the world in the likeness of His Son, to see the world in union with Him, and to shape each human being into another Christ in their unique way. We are “Christified” —made like Jesus— because of Christmas. Yet, it’s an ongoing process. Sin interferes, human weakness blurs His image in us, and selfishness and greed repel the offered grace. As we celebrate the event, let us open our hearts to the ongoing process of being “Christified” this Christmas and every day.
REFLECT
Before Jesus in the manger, let us express gratitude for this feast of love. Let us also reflect on our lives to gauge how sincerely we have embraced becoming like Him, how much we have allowed Christification, or where we still resist it in certain aspects of our lives. As we remember our loved ones, let us pray that their hearts too may open to the grace of being Christified.
“we pray for peace in the Philippines and in the world…”
