CHRISTMAS
ADORATION OF THE SHEPHERDS
(text only, to print)
Today we celebrate the birth of Jesus. Two thousand years ago, Jesus was
born in Bethlehem of Judea, and we have come to this church to celebrate His
anniversary. Let us say to him will all our heart: "Happy birthday, Jesus".
As those shepherds went to Bethlehem, today we too want to go to
Bethlehem and following the indications of the angels, we go to a cave where we
find Mary, Joseph and the baby Jesus laying in a manger.
This little baby is the Word full of life, is God who has taken flesh and
lives among us. He is the Light shining in the
darkness; the Messiah, the Lord, the Prince of Peace, the new Man, the Saviour,
the Son of God, the second person of the Most Holy Trinity, and He is also the
son of Mary.
The invisible God becomes visible in this infant, and He is the great proof
of the love of God for us, as
REFLECTION ON THE ADORATION OF THE SHEPHERDS
On this Christmas night, we put our glance on the
shepherds. Saint Luke says:
Now there
were shepherds in that region living in the fields and keeping the night watch
over their flock. The angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the
Lord shone around them, and they were struck with great fear. The angel said to
them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great
joy that will be for all the people. For today in the city of
WHY DID GOD CHOSE THE SHEPHERDS?
We can ask ourselves: Why, if there were as many people in Bethlehem (it
was crowded, and for that reason Joseph and Mary did not find a place in the
inn (Lk 2:7), why did God chose the shepherds to be
the first witnesses of the birth of the Son of God?
Our answers could be:
Because they were simple and humble people.
As God looked upon the lowliness of His handmaid (Lk
Because they were good Israelite who
waited for the coming of the Messiah. As every good Israelite, they knew that
God had chosen a people, the People of Israel, to prepare the coming of the Messiah.
Simeon, who was in the temple of Jerusalem, when Mary and Joseph went to
present the boy Jesus and for the purification of Mary, will say: Now, Master, you may let your servant go in
peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you
prepared in sight of all the peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and glory for your people Israel (Lk 2:29-32).
Because they were looking after their flocks and were thus fulfilling
their duty, as good shepherds.
On knowing the great news of the birth of Jesus, the shepherds went quickly
to
With great generosity they left the flocks and, in spite
of being at night, they said:
Let us go,
then, to
With joy. We
can easily imagine the joy those shepherds had, while going to
They went there, and they presented their gifts to the new born. They
showed their faith in that child, they worshipped him as God, they accompanied Mary
and Joseph, who were alone, and surely they left something of their own,
although the gospel doesn’t tell us.
In return they received the smile of Mary and Joseph, as good parents,
and also the glance of that baby who was the Son of God, and they enjoyed the
contemplation of the great mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God.
We cannot imagine those shepherds being like the lifeless clay figures
of the crèche. They were men full of joy and euphoria and, without doubt, they kissed the baby Jesus with
much reverence, and asked to be able to take Him in their arms. In the same way
that we do when a mother shows her first son to us; we take him in our arms, we
caress him, we kiss him and we give him back to the mother.
Then the
shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and
seen, just as it had been told to them (Lk 2:20). They made
known the message that had been told them about this child. All who heard it
were amazed by what had been told them by the shepherds (Lk
As the angel called the shepherds, he also calls us to go to the
In that Infant, God has become one of us, and this is the greatest thing
than nobody could even dream of. A God made man, an incarnated God. And the Word became flesh and made his
dwelling among us, and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father's only Son,
full of grace and truth (Jhn
Here, looking at you, Jesus, laying in the manger, accompanied by the love
of Mary and Joseph, we want to place in your hands our dreams, our sufferings,
our fears, our desire of faithfulness. We want to place in your hands the
entire world, the loved ones and those whom we do not know, those who are near
and those who are far, and mainly those who suffer the most; and also those who
do not know You, so that they may come to know You.
Jesus, our brother, son of Mary, Son of God, warms us with the fire of
your love, and give everybody the Peace and the joy
that the angels sang: Glory to God in
the highest and peace on earth to men of good will (Lk
Mary kept all these things,
reflecting on them in her heart (Lk
I WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OF YOU AND TO YOUR FAMILIES!