1st Reading: Isaiah 9:2-7
2nd Reading: Titus 2:11-14
Gospel: Luke 2:1-14
Theme: Joy, Despite the Situation
Every year, with great joy we await Christmas no matter the situation. Children often enjoy the season because of many goods they get but the joy of parents would always come with responsibilities. This year’s own responsibilities are like it has never been experienced because of the situation in the country, even children will feel it. Some of us may have wished this Christmas to have been shifted to know if things would get better, but here we are, this is Christmas. Just like we pointed out during the homily of the fourth Sunday of Advent Year B about things we would have loved to have achieved this year but could not. People find it very difficult to eat now talk more of footing other needs and here is Christmas again with many loads of expenses. Watching the situation we are into, we may be tempted to say, there is nothing to celebrate this year. Continue Reading..........
But before we conclude that we should not celebrate, we have to know that the prophecy by Isaiah we read in the first reading was delivered when Israelites were having almost the exact situation we are having today. Assyrians destroyed and burnt down everything, killed anybody who resisted and took the rest prisoner. The whole Northern Kingdom lived in great terror and it was in this situation that Isaiah gave this hope we heard in the first reading. In the first reading, the Israelites were suffering because of their sins, that did not negate the fact that there were few good men left but all of them were suffering the same thing. That is also the situation we have today.
All of us are suffering today both the good and the bad, Nigeria is respecter of no man. The problem is that we are not even ready to change and embrace the salvation brought to us. Even as we are suffering, Nigerians will always like to take bribe than doing the right thing and this is what the second reading is calling our attention to, we should live like those who have Christ as their King. Christ has already given himself to redeem us, why do we still prefer to live in darkness when the new light is here with us?
Many parents, especially mothers may have suffered many things in search of children, during pregnancy and at the point of birth. But immediately after the delivery, all will tend to forget the pain they passed through. Joseph and Mary did not find the situation surrounding the birth of Christ easy and their situation was not even funny at all for they had to borrow from animals to take care of their newly born son. What a situation. In all these, the angel of the Lord called on the shepherds to rejoice for he gave them great news of joy. It did not end there; the choir of heaven came and began the song of joy even when the shepherds were still in the dark bush under serious cold.
Our situations should not take away the great joy that Christ brought to us. The news of child birth is a news of love, hope, joy, patience, endurance, kindness and our situations should not take these away from us. Each time we remember that Christ is with us, we should have hope that this our situation will still pass. Many whom we are not better than longed to see today and they have gone before us. Christmas is a news of great joy, anyone who is alive to see it should rejoice and no matter what we are passing through, we should not throw away the joy. The worst that will happen is if we continue to live in the dark like people who have not seen the new light that is born to us through words and actions. In any field of life (especially those in the government), please, let us not cover this new light born to us with our evil deeds. May the dawning of Christmas bring blessing to us, our families, businesses, workplaces, community etc. Happy Christmas
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