SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT (B)

And this is what he proclaimed: “One mightier than I is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals." 

Mk 1:1-8

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Do you know that they celebrate Christmas in Japan like we do here in the Philippines? Is there any difference? 

Yes, there is. Their Christmas is just a holiday. In the Philippines it is both a holiday and a holy day. What makes Christmas a holy day? We celebrate it with faith. The Japanese celebrate Christmas without thinking of Christ. We celebrate Christmas because of Christ. We celebrate the birth of Christ, the Savior of the world.

There are only three birthdays that we celebrate in the Liturgy: the birth of John the Baptist on June 24, the birth of Mary on September 8 and the birth of Christ on December 25. And the reason why celebrate their birth is their important role in the plan of salvation. John the Baptist prepared Israel for the appearance of the Messiah. Mary, of course, is the one through whom the Messiah was born into the world. Jesus Christ is the Messiah.

When we celebrate our own birthdays, one of the things we need to do is to think about is the role that God has given us in this world. That role is what gives meaning to our life on earth. That role answers the question: Why was I born into this world? So let us ask ourselves: Do I know what that role is? How well have I been fulfilling it?

Are there deeper reasons for celebrating the birth of Jesus? Yes, there are.

In the first place, when we celebrate Christmas, we are also celebrating the love of God for us. In St. John’s Gospel, we read: “For God so loved the world that he sent his only Son so that those who believe in him may not perish but have everlasting life.” It was because God loved us that he did not abandon us to our sins. It was because he loved us that he sent us a Savior.

Secondly, when we celebrate Christmas, we are also celebrating the “pagmamalasakit “ of Jesus Christ for us. The Second Person of the Blessed Trinity agreed to become a human being so that he may suffer and die on the cross to pay the price of our redemption. In Romans 5:7-8 St. Paul declares: “Indeed, only with difficulty does one die for a just person, though perhaps for a good person one might even find courage to die. But God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.” Christ died for us – that is the “pagmamalasakit” of Christ that I am talking about.

There may be more reasons for celebrating Christmas, but I end with a third reason. When we celebrate Christmas, we celebrate the fulfillment of a promise made by God right after Adam and Eve sinned. He promised not to abandon them but to send a Savior. This was the promise: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; it will strike at your head, while you strike at its heel” (Gn 3: 15). Christmas then is a celebration of God’s keeping his promise. Our God then is a God who is true to his word. He is a God who has “palabra de honor”.

We have found at least three reasons for celebrating Christmas. How then should we prepare for  Christmas so that it does not become just a holiday but a holy day above all else? Again when we say holy day, we mean to say that our celebration is inspired by faith. And faith tells us that Christmas is about the birth of our Savior. So how do we prepare for the celebration of the birth of the Savior?

The First Reading and the Gospel answer that question: “A voice cries out: In the desert prepare the way of the LORD! Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God! Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill shall be made low; the rugged land shall be made a plain, the rough country, a broad valley.” 

What does this mean? It means remove anything and everything that is an obstacle to meet the Lord. There is really only one thing that can hinder us from meeting the Lord. Sin. But removing sin is a process. (We call this process “conversion”.) It is a process because it is not just about going to confession. Removing sin is also about removing the bad habits, correcting the bad attitudes and avoiding the people, places and things that cause us to sin. And all of these are not easily done. It takes time and effort. And that is why to prepare ourselves for Christmas, we are given four weeks. 

For some of us four weeks may not be enough. But at least come Christmas day, we can offer to the Lord together with the Four Wise Men, all the time and effort we have spent in removing our bad habits, in correcting our bad attitudes and in avoiding the people, places and things that cause us to sin.

Christmas is a holiday. But it is more than a holiday. It is a holy day. And it will become a holy day when our celebration is inspired by faith and centered on Christ. That is why our Christmas greeting should not only be “Merry Christmas” but a “Blessed Christmas”.