THE BEST gifts this holiday season are those that provide peace of mind that no material thing can fully provide, clerics told the faithful in Masses before and on Christmas Day.
For UST Facilities Management Office (FMO) Director Fr. Dexter Austria, O.P., that gift is sincere forgiveness.
“Kapag pinakawalan po natin ang [puso’t] isipan natin at tayo’y marunong magpatawad sa iba, doon natin makikita ‘yong sinasabi nila na gift of peace,” Austria said in his homily during Christmas Mass at Santisimo Rosario Parish Church on Monday, Dec. 25. “Doon natin makikita na ‘yon pala ang regalo sa akin ng Diyos.”
In this way, the FMO director said, the faithful give a second chance to those who had wronged them.
“Alam niyo po, mahirap [ang magpatawad] pero puwedeng gawin, posibleng gawin,” Austria said. “‘Yan ang ginawa sa ating ng ating Panginoon – God is giving us a second chance, and we should also give a second chance to other people as well.”
Austria reminded Catholics that, above all, Christmas is about Jesus Christ, who is the source of grace and blessings.
“‘Wag nating kalimutan na ang pinakaunang biyaya at ang pinakaimportanteng biyaya na binigay ng Diyos ay ang Panginoong Hesus dahil ang lahat na ibinigay sa atin, natanggap natin, ay simbolismo lamang kung ano ang biyaya na ibinigay sa atin,” he said.
One with the longing
Jesus’s birth is a gift to those who feel lonely or despaired, Manila Archbishop Jose Cardinal Advincula said during Christmas Eve Mass at Manila Cathedral.
“Kung pakiramdam mo, hindi ka pinapahalagahan ng ibang tao, palagi kang rejected, parang wala kang puwang sa mundo, tandaan mo, si Hesus din, walang tumanggap, walang nagpatuloy,” he said in his homily on Sunday, Dec. 24. “Dahil may Pasko, may katiyakan tayong karamay natin ang Diyos, kalakbay natin ang Diyos, at hindi tayo nag-iisa.”
Advincula added that the infant Jesus is a clear reminder of God’s love and humility for His people.
“Sa mundo na pataasan at pagalingan ang kalakaran, dumating ang Diyos at nagpakababa,” the archbishop said. “Sa mundo na puro palakasan at agawan ng kapangyarihan, dumating ang Diyos bilang isang maliit at mahinang sanggol.”
“At sa mundo kung saan ang mga mabababa, maliliit, mahihina at dukha ay madalas na napag-iiwanan at nakakalimutan, dumating ang Diyos para sabihin, ‘Kasama ninyo ako, kaisa ninyo ako,’” he added.
During the homily, Advincula highlighted the 800th anniversary of the first Christmas crèche, traditionally known in the Philippines as belen, organized by St. Francis of Assisi at a cave in Greccio, Italy. The cardinal explained this was spearheaded by St. Francis so people would know that the nativity of Jesus is not fictional.
“Ginawa ito ni San Francisco upang makita, maamoy, marinig at maramdaman ng mga tao ang naamoy, narinig at naramdaman ni Maria, Jose at mga pastol noong isinilang si Hesus,” he said. “Gusto ni San Francisco na maunawaan ng mga tao na totoo ang kwento ng Pasko.”
“Gusto [rin] ni San Francisco na makita ng mga tao ang kanilang sarili bilang bahagi ng pangyayaring ito, at na si Jesus ay muling dumadating sa kanilang piling,” he added.
According to the book “The Life of St. Francis of Assisi” authored by St. Bonaventure, a doctor of the Church, Francis obtained permission from Pope Honorious III to set up a manger with hay and two animals – an ox and an ass – where he preached about the “babe of Bethlehem.” The word “babe” should have been “Jesus” but Francis got too emotional at the time.
In Bethlehem, locals pared down traditional Christmas celebrations, which include an infant Jesus depicted to be in the middle of the rubble, because of the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Gaza due to the war between Israel and Hamas.
Bridge
Fr. Jesus Jay Miranda, O.P., prior of the Priory of St. Thomas Aquinas, emphasized that Jesus’s coming is an invitation for the people to be with Him.
“Longing to be with God as a family, we should always remember that it was God who first longed to be with his people,” he said in his homily during the Christmas Eve Mass at the Santisimo Rosario Parish Church on Sunday, Dec. 24. “God wanting to be with His people gathers them and stays with them.”
The UST convent prior said Jesus becomes a bridge to people who are torn because of the ramifications of technology.
“Sa panahon natin ngayon, we thought technology can bring all people and bridge all forms of distances, but actually po hindi, at sa tingin ko kayo mismo magsasabi that technology even became an obstruction of the real in-person encounter with one another, diba?” Miranda said. “Because it is only the real presence of the other person that we can feel warmth, love and care. Kaya wala pong kapalit ika nga ang paggawa natin sa ehemplo na ginawa ng Diyos: Makiisa sa tao.”
Miranda said Christmas should also be an opportunity for Catholics to forgive each other in the name of unity.
“Hindi kaya ito ‘yong pagkakataon na mag-reach out sa tao? Sa ating kapwa?” he said. “Is not Christmas, after all, a season of reconciliation with God [and] reconciling Himself with His people?”
