ICC Mass Homily 12/25/23: Christmas is About God’s Presence
By Romo Redempt Jawa, CSsR
Bible readings for the Mass: Isaiah 52:7-10, Hebrews 1:1-6, and John 1:1-18
My dear brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ,
Apakah kita sudah mempunyai dan merasakan Damai Natal?
One day in my first year in Chicago in 2021, I felt a bit stressed with my studies and some work from my leader/provincial. I was not in a good mood, and I felt like I was missing my Redemptorist confreres and community life since I did not live in a religious community. So I pushed myself on that day to do an exercise. I went out for a walk. I brought ten dollars in my pocket to buy ice cream when I was tired of walking.
After walking for some time, I stopped by the shopping center to buy ice cream. As I walked to the store, a man was sitting at the front, holding a note saying, “I am hungry.” I stopped and asked him, “Do you need food?”
The man replied, “Yes, I am hungry.”
“I have ten dollars,” I said. “I planned to get some ice cream because I am not having a good day. But we can go to that McDonald’s and buy some food for you first. If there is any change, I will buy ice cream.”
He agreed, and then we went to McDonald’s. I asked him to pick any food he liked with the ten dollars. So he ordered food and only spent five dollars and fifty cents. I asked him, “Are you sure that’s all you need?”
He said, “That is more than enough. You also are not having a good day. So you can use the change to buy some ice for yourself.”
“Thank you so much,” he continued. “I hope you have a better day for the rest of the day.” With that, he left me.
Saudara/Saudariku yang terkasih,
Christmas is about God’s presence because He is Immanuel. God is always with us. Therefore, Prophet Isaiah in the first reading invites us to rejoice… bersorak-sorailah karena Tuhan telah mendatangi umatnya, menghibur dan menebus umatNya, segala ujung bumi akan melihat keselamatanNya.
Christmas is about God’s presence because He is Immanuel. God is always with us.
God’s presence is always about giving his life for us, as today, we celebrate God’s presence in the human form: Sabda menjadi manusia. He wants to be close to us, not to control us. He knows us and gives his life for us, not only for some dollars, not for some time only, or not even the only time we need him. He totally loves and cares for us every time, being born in the manger and giving his life again and again in the Eucharist.
Christmas is about God’s presence. God is the source of our Christmas celebrations.
For us, in turn, Christmas is about our presence in God and one another. Are we willing to be with Jesus in the Crib? Are we willing to be with others: our families, friends, or even strangers in good and bad times?
I was speechless when the hungry man, even though he needed money to buy food, was still concerned and cared for me, wishing me a better day.
When Vivi and Rubi informed me that I will stay at Oom Jolly and Tante Maria’s house, saya bilang ke Vivi dan Rubi, “Apakah itu tidak lebih merepotkan Oom Jolly and Tante Maria as we know their condition?”
Rubi and Vivi memberitahu, “Oom Jolly and Tante Maria sangat senang kalo Romo bisa hadir dan tinggal di rumah mereka walaupun mereka tidak bisa memberi yang terbaik.”
Ketika sampai di rumah Oom Jolly and Tante Maria yesterday, mereka malah langsung memberi kunci rumah walaupun saya tidak kemana-mana. Saya yang malah mengalami sukacita dengan kehadiran mereka dalam Natal saya.
Saudara/saudariku yang terkasih,
Semoga kehadiran kita dalam kehidupan sesama boleh menghadirkan sukacita, damai dan terang Natal. MERRY CHRISTMAS and God bless you all.
AMEN.
Image credit: Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
Thank you Rubi for this, to inform us to see and read homily.
There are a lot new things I didn’t see before. Thank you.
Thank you for you and your team.
Happy new year for you, your family and all your teams make all happens, and also Romo.
Thanks for your kind comments and for reading the post, Cicil! Sorry for the late reply 🙏