The Nativity of the Lord – Cycle C
Reflecting on Psalm 98:1, 2-3, 3-4, 5-6
Peace, health, and love be with you, dear friends. Today marks our fourteenth Christmas Day together in this space. I am overwhelmed with gratitude.
I am overwhelmed, too, with awareness of the times during this past year when all the ends of the earth realized the saving power of God. I’m thinking especially today of the overthrow of brutal Bashar-al-Assad of Syria. The new regime promises a more moderate image and has vowed to rebuild a Syria inclusive of the religions and ethnic groups that constitute the country.
Time will tell, of course, but today, thousands of prisoners have been released from his notorious prisons, and jubilant rallies of hope fill Damascus. What a Christmas present for the six million Syrian refugees who risked their lives to get to safety. May they find safe transport home, to a country of peace. Prisoners are released, and those who were lost return. It is the saving power of God, we pray. Time will tell.
But, closer to home, how has the saving power of God manifested in your life this year? Have you experienced relief from illness in any way? Has there been any breakthrough in a difficult relationship? Have you found a parish community that is welcoming and thriving? Have you discovered a deeper peace within yourself? On this Feast of the Nativity, meditate on that creche. Where in your life has it seemed like Guardian Angels were present to you?
Where has your encounter with humble people, like the shepherds, caused you to ponder deeply God’s presence in the lowly of heart?
Give yourself that gift this year. Find yourself in that Christmas scene. And give glory to God in the highest.
For what encounters with God’s saving presence are you most grateful?
Kathy McGovern ©2024