By The Rev. Canon Philip Hobson
As many of you know, for some years now I have been involved as a narrator in The Christmas Story, a grand community-based Christmas pageant, that is performed numerous times over the three weekends before Christmas at the Church of the Holy Trinity in downtown Toronto. This year marks the 88th anniversary of these performances. There are wonderful carols sung by the choir, splendid costumes, great organ music – it is indeed a grand spectacle. And yet, there is something very distinctive about certain performances.
While a doll is used to represent the Christ child in many of the performances, at others we are blessed to have a real baby take up that role. And that is where my words at the beginning of this reflection come true. The baby does make all the difference. The pageant seems to come to life. The focus of every member of the audience is on the little child as the baby sometimes reaches out to touch the gifts presented to them by the wise men. I sometimes wonder what is going on in the mind of that child as throughout the singing of O come all ye faithful, successive groups of people, shepherds, wise men, pages and others, kneel down before him and adore.
And while this is indeed only a performance yet I think those words, The baby makes all the difference, hold true for the great mystery of our salvation which we celebrate this day. We have just heard in the Gospel those amazing words which are almost beyond our comprehension, The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth. At the heart of the mystery of our redemption and the redemption of all God’s Creation, is the birth of a little child in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago. Yes, God has acted in the past to save his people. Yes, God has come to them in the words of the prophets, in the Torah, in the Shekinah dwelling in the Temple. But now God has acted in a totally new way. God has sent his only Son to be born for us as that tiny child in a manger in Bethlehem. God has come to us in the person of Jesus Christ, a fellow human being. Words are wonderful, deeds are great, but, oh, to have someone to walk with us, to talk with us, to know our challenges and trials, someone who understands us from the inside out, what a difference that makes.
And so at the heart of the great mystery of the Incarnation there is an incredible paradox for the One through whom all things were made, without Whom nothing continues in existence, that Holy One has come to us as a tiny, defenseless child. Surely this is an ultimate sign of God’s amazing love for us that God in Christ would become so completely vulnerable for us. The child of Bethlehem depends on his mother, Mary, for his very life, he depends on his earthly parents, Mary and Joseph for his upbringing and growth in the faith.
And yet, that vulnerability is not a temporary condition but is of the essence of the Word made flesh, for the wood of the manger will become the wood of the cross on which Christ stretches out his arms in complete vulnerability to embrace all of us in his arms of love. Jesus, born in a manger, a feeding trough for animals, will become for us our heavenly food as in this Eucharist he offers us himself, his body, his blood, to us, to bring us new life. And just as Jesus as a child once depended on Mary and Joseph, now he depends on us to be his hands and feet in the world, to be his ambassadors of love, to bear his life, his light to a world that is often so dark with violence and fear, with hopelessness and despair. We are called to be beacons of hope pointing people to the One who has come amongst us to bring life in all its abundance.
Today we celebrate the wonder of God’s love for us, incarnated in the person of Jesus Christ, the Babe of Bethlehem. Christ has become human for us, that we might know the fullness of our own humanity, and that we might share in the glory of the divine life. The baby really does make all the difference.
I close with words that I received as Diocesan Ecumenical Officer in a message sent by Metropolitan Soterios, the Greek Orthodox Metropolitan of Toronto, to the faithful:
Beloved in the Lord, rejoice in Christmas. Be reborn. Live the mystery of salvation.
Amen.