Felix Nativitas! Merry Christmas! Earlier this evening I attended the Vigil Mass of the Nativity at Our Lady of Grace in Lancaster, SC. The Scripture readings included the following:
- A New Name for Zion in Isaiah 62:1-5
- The Establishment of the Davidic Covenant in Psalm 89:4-29
- St. Paul's Address to the Synogogue at Antioch in Pisidia in Acts 13:16-25
- The Birth of Jesus in Matthew 1:18-25
After the Gospel reading, Father Kirby invited all the young children to come up to the front and sit at where the altar rail would be, facing the congregation. What Jesus said in Matthew 19:14 came to my mind:
Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.
Father Kirby then proceeded to ask the children various questions:
- Who was at the first Christmas? The children answered, "Mary, Jesus' Mother, and Joseph, his foster father."
- Where is Mary? The children pointed to Mary's statue at the Manger scene.
- Where is Joseph? The children pointed again to the Manger scene.
- Who else was there? The children answered, "The Angels and the Shepherds. And the Wise Men are coming too."
- And who else besides people? The children answered, "Sheep and donkeys."
Finally the greatest question came:
Where is Jesus?
The children promptly pointed above the Tabernacle where Jesus Body in the Consecrated Hosts lay:
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| Crucifix above the Tabernacle Our Lady of Grace Lancaster, SC |
- Why did Jesus come? The children answered, "To save us from our sins."
- And why did Jesus do that? The children said, "Because He loves us."
Father then turned to the congregation and said, "There is nothing more I can add in my homily. Jesus came to a darkened world in turmoil to save us from our sins because He loved us. That is the Christmas message."
As a dear orthodox Anglican friend responded on Facebook where I initially discussed this:
- Christ has died.
- Christ is risen.
- Christ will come again.
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