The good news of Christmas
is that God himself pushed into the
dysfunctional and ambiguous family of man.
--Bishop Robert Barron
That is where God is, in littleness. This is the message: God does not rise up in grandeur, but lowers himself into littleness. Littleness is the path that he chose to draw near to us, to touch our hearts, to save us and to bring us back to what really matters.
Brothers and sisters, standing before the crib, we contemplate what is central, beyond all the lights and decorations, which are beautiful. We contemplate the child. In his littleness, God is completely present. Let us acknowledge this: “Baby Jesus, you are God, the God who becomes a child.” Let us be amazed by this scandalous truth. The One who embraces the universe needs to be held in another’s arms. The One who created the sun needs to be warmed. Tenderness incarnate needs to be coddled. Infinite love has a miniscule heart that beats softly. The eternal Word is an “infant”, a speechless child. The Bread of life needs to be nourished. The Creator of the world has no home. Today, all is turned upside down: God comes into the world in littleness. His grandeur appears in littleness.
--Pope Francis, December 24, 2021
Image source: Georges de la Tour, Le Nouveau-Né (ca. 1645-1648), with an analysis of this painting: https://churchofthevine.org/youth/2020/12/28/the-light-of-the-world
Quotation source 1
Quotation source 2 (and full text of Pope Francis’ beautiful homily)
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