CATHOLICS were reminded to associate the true definition of Christmas with the prophecy of the coming of Jesus Christ and not on material things, the regent of the College of Fine Arts and Designs said on the last day of the anticipated Simbang Gabi on Friday, Dec. 23.
In his homily, Fr. Edgardo Alaurin, O.P. told attendees at the Santisimo Rosario Parish Church that Christmas is, in a theological perspective, interpreted as the “protoevangelium” or the first Gospel that revealed the promise of God to deliver a savior to mankind.
“[D]espite the fact that our first parents sinned and were dismissed from paradise, there is a […] promise of a savior,” he said. “And the fulfillment of that promise is the incarnation of the son of God.”
That, Alaurin underscored, should be the real meaning of the season more than anything else.
“Alam ko nasisiyahan kayo. May natatanggap kayong regalo, may nakakakilala sa inyo. But let’s go back to […] the very first Christmas. It was a very simple Nativity scene. Christmas is the fulfillment of the promise of God given to our first parents,” he said.
The regent reminded Catholics to remain grateful to God despite the challenges brought by the Covid-19 pandemic to their faith.
“I think prayer is one reason why we have survived, especially in our family. We have more things valuable to us and one of [those] is family,” Alaurin said. Allyssa Mae C. Cruz
