Jesus of Bethlehem - our King

As we enter our last week of preparation for the solemn feast of the Incarnation, it is fitting that we come to our reflection on Jesus of Bethlehem.  We have already reflected on Jesus of Bethany – our friend, and Jesus of Nazareth – our brother, as well as Jesus as Divine Physician.  How lovely then that we come now to a further consideration of Christ as King.

This past November 22 (October 25 in the Extraordinary Form) we celebrated the annual feast of Christ, King of the Universe.  In that celebration we see Christ very much enthroned in heaven; we have visions of Him in power and majesty.  In this we can find ourselves, if we are taking this all as seriously as it deserves, very much overwhelmed; our submission, our obedience could very easily take on an aspect of subjugation – lacking in free will.

As we celebrate the solemn feast of the Incarnation, we are presented with a king Who presents Himself to us clothed in our own flesh – an infant.  In this, He presents Himself as one who desires to gain our submission, not on overwhelming power and majesty, but on love; He wants our submission to Him motivated by love and affection, not fear and subjugation.

Our consideration of Christ as friend, brother, and even divine physician, over these past three weeks have prepared us to understand the kind of king our Lord, Jesus Christ, King of the Universe really is.  In this we come to understand why He hasn’t come among us after the pattern of the old testament experience, but rather, has patiently waited for us, enticed us, loved us into His own Most Sacred Heart, so that we would in turn open up our own hearts to Him who first loved us.

This Christmas will be for us all, I hope, a new beginning of experiencing the Babe in the manger, not as some merely emotional experience, but as a truly heart felt encounter with our God, Who has taken on our humanity so as to impart to us the full dignity of our friendship and our brotherhood to so great a King, by imparting to us His divinity.

Whether we accept that gift is up to us.  But in it, we will find the true meaning of Christmas and will never again be heard to say, “Christmas doesn’t have any meaning for me anymore”.  I pray that we will all open our hearts and receive so wonderful a gift of grace.

So, celebrate, Celebrate, CELEBRATE!  And on the last day of Christmas, the Feast of Epiphany, we will renew our consecration to the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus.  I will then be available for the solemn enthronement, or renewal of consecration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus in the homes of our parishes.