“she gave birth to her firstborn son.”
It is finally here! As we have been praying and preparing our souls for the past four weeks, we remember that God became man and was born in the humblest of ways. While the world slept and ignored this night, the holy family, a few shepherds, the magi, and all the angels in heaven rejoiced!
What is Christmas? It is the day on which Jesus, our Redeemer, was born of the Blessed Virgin in a stable in Bethlehem.
Why is Christmas celebrated on December 25th? We do not know the exact date that Jesus Christ was born, but this does not negate the fact that our Redeemer was born, lived, died, and rose from the dead. We cannot get stuck in the nitty gritty specifics of the exact date. However, the reason why we celebrate the birth of our Lord in December is due to the winter solstice. Around December 25th, the daylight is at its shortest, but soon after, the daytime becomes much longer showing a new season of light entering the world [1]. Another reason could be the Christianizing of pagan celebrations during this time. “Many of the present customs in various countries are traceable to the Church’s Christianizing the pagan celebrations associated with the beginning of winter and the new year.” [2]
Is it okay to say “Merry X-Mas”? Yes, it is perfectly fine. Many people think the “X” takes Christ out of Christmas. However, the “X” comes from the Greek letter that means Christ. A famous symbol that shows this is the labarum; it is the letters “P” and “X” with the “X” overlaid on the “P”. This stands for “Pax Christi”, or Jesus Christ.
Why are there so many Masses? The Mass schedule follows the basic Masses; Christmas at Midnight, Christmas at dawn, and Christmas during the day. The priest celebrates these three masses because of Jesus’ “birth from all eternity in the bosom of His Heavenly Father; of His birth in the fullness of time; and of His spiritual birth in the hearts of the faithful who, by lively faith in Him, receive the power to become children of God.(Jn. 1:12)” [3] This custom of priests celebrating three masses came from the practice of a pope in the fourth century who would celebrate midnight Mass in the Liberian Basilica (which is traditionally believed to house the manger of Jesus), the second at St. Anastasia, whose feast falls on December 25, and the third at the Vatican. [4]
Why do we have Midnight Mass? We have midnight Mass because it signifies Christ, who is the true light, being brought into the darkness of the world. “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light” [5] who was born in the middle of the night “because the divine birth is incomprehensible to us.” [6] We celebrate the other Christmas Masses at dawn and during the day to signify dispelling the darkness of ignorance and bringing it back into focus. Jesus came “to shine on those who sit in darkness and death’s shadow, to guide our feet into the way of peace.” [7]
Why did Caesar Augustus request that everyone take a census? Just like in our country, every few years the emperor would take a census. This is to gain basic information from the various regions regarding how many people lived there. During the time of Christ, people were obligated to go back to where the man of the household was from. God had planned this census to take place in order to ensure everyone knew that Jesus was born in the town of his foster father Joseph, which was Bethlehem. It also helped prove that Jesus came from the tribe of Judah and the house of David, which the prophets foretold. “His dominion is vast and forever peaceful, From David’s throne, and over his kingdom, which he confirms and sustains by judgment and justice, both now and forever.” [8] We should appreciate what Mary and Joseph did here by being obedient to the command of a bad emperor, but also to a God who caused the command.
Search: To Obey is to do Your Will
Why does it say “the first born son” of Mary? Does this mean that Mary had other children? No, Mary had only one son, Jesus Christ. Many times in today’s society, when reading Scripture, we read it as it relates to our culture and not the customs and culture 2,000 years ago. There are other times in Scripture where it reads as if Jesus had other brothers and sisters, but that is not so; Mary had only Jesus. The significance of stating that Jesus was the “first born son” is because He had all the rights and privileges that a first-born son would have back then. That is why it is mentioned. [9]
Why Bethlehem? As we see in the first reading at Midnight Mass, the son of Man was to be “one from the house of David” [10] David was the son of Jesse, and when Samuel went to look for David, he found him in the town of Bethlehem. We further read that Bethlehem was prophesied by Micah to be the place, “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.” [11]
Why was Jesus born in poverty? Mary and Joseph had no place to turn, so they went to a barn and swaddled Him and laid Him in a manger. This was “to teach us not by words but by example that which He afterwards so often preached and forcibly taught, namely: the love of poverty, the practice of humility and patience with contempt of the world, and also to confound by His humble birth the foolish wisdom of the world which seeks only honors, pleasures and riches.” [12]
Why was the birth of Jesus hidden from King Herod? King Herod looked to kill Jesus, the coming Savior, because he saw Jesus as a threat to his throne. God brought not haughty, arrogant, and prideful kings and rulers, but simple, poor, pious, faithful shepherds. This fits right along with Mary’s canticle from when she conceived Jesus in her womb; “He has shown might with his arm, dispersed the arrogant of mind and heart. He has thrown down the rulers from their thrones but lifted up the lowly. The hungry he has filled with good things; the rich he has sent away empty.” [13] Let us strive to come to Jesus with humility and realize that we are poor in spirit without Him, so that God may fully reveal Himself to us.
What did it mean when the angels sang “Glory be to God on high”? The angels sang praises at this time because the second person of the Holy Trinity came to earth to save the whole world. Near the beginning of Mass, we sing the “Gloria”, whose words come from the Gospel reading. Many times people are bored by this song or wonder why we sing it week after week. Remember that the angels sang this song, so when we sing it too, we are joining our voices with the angels in praise for God who sent His Son into this world. “Rejoice with the angels over the birth of the Savior, return thanks to God and honor Him alone in all things, that you may have that peace: peace with God, peace with yourself and peace with all men. Learn also from the angels, who rejoiced in the graces which man would receive from the birth of Christ, to rejoice, and thank God for the favors which He gives your neighbor, and by rejoicing participate in them.” [14]
[1] i.e. John 1:5
[2] Modern Catholic Dictionary pg. 104
[3] The Church’s Year pg. 45-46
[4] Modern Catholic Dictionary pgs. 103-104
[5] Is. 9:1
[6] The Church’s Year pg. 46
[7] Luke 1:79
[8] Is. 9:6
[9] NAB Lk 2:7 footnotes
[10] Is. 16:5
[11] Micah 5:2
[12] The Church’s Year pg. 48
[13] Lk. 1:51-53
[14] The Church’s Year pg. 49