God-is-with-us
From the Old Testament prophecy in the book of Isaiah, we learn that the Christ to be born will be called, Immanuel - a name in Hebrew which means, God-is-with-us.
As we hear also the Gospel passage, we learn that God's message to Mary through the angel Gabriel, is a message of joy for sinful humanity: she, by her simple "yes", would conceive by the power of the Holy Spirit (in the purity of her being Immaculate Conception) the Word of God made flesh, Jesus.
What does the name of our Lord mean for us today? Many of us who are very politically involved know by experience, that the inordinate desire for power and influence can dangerously risk our focus on God. We know that if we cling to such securities, we will soon realize at the end how we have lost sight of what is essential. The gospel reminds us that the Way to saving our soul is to follow the simplicity of Jesus - a man who entered our human history by incarnating Himself as a baby. His birth came about quietly; without fanfare or ostentatious display - something totally counterculture to what we usually are familiar with.
It is awesome to realize that God's wisdom of simplicity overpowers our desire for sophistication and complexity. By emptying Himself and taking the form of a little Babe in a manger, God teaches us to seek the Divine even in ordinary, commonplace realities. It is truly a mystery of faith to see with a contemplative eye how the Creator of the Universe entered at a specific time of our human history and taught us the Christian values of humility, obedience, and purity.
God-is-with-us. The Lord takes on our human flesh to make it known that He is on our side. If the Lord's incarnation helps us to understand that God is really on our side, do we also extend this act of solidarity with others? Sometimes we can get so engrossed with the daily grind of day-to-day living that we forget this truth of our Christian faith. The Lord has set an example for us. He showed us how much we are loved by literally being with us - taking upon Himself the same conditions we are always faced with: pain, suffering, toil, and death. When we remember this truth, it would be easier for us to bear any suffering that may come our way. Let us thus be grateful to God our Father, for revealing His love to us through His Son, Jesus. And let our gratitude be expressed by following Christ in the many ways we can.
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