Vigil Mass—The Nativity of the Lord (Christmas)
Isaiah 62:1-5; Psalm 89:4-5, 16-17, 27, 29; Acts 13:16-17, 22-25; Matthew 1:18-25

Totally Keeping Christ Within

Christmas EVE!
How magical it is!
Lights – Candles – Christmas songs/Melodies – Gifts – Families Gathering – Real Happiness! Passion!

Do you aware of the simplest meaning of Christmas!

It is to keep Christ in your heart!
It is to make your heart merciful and merry Christ-mas!

How sad we are if we only see the candles, the lights, hear the music, the songs from the carols, all the prayers and celebrations we have, if we cannot bring Christ into our hearts! If we cannot experience the story of salvation as the reality to change, to transform our lives!

I believe you are not part of people who are “taking “Christ” out of Christmas!”

Christmas is a time to refresh our minds and heart to re-experience God’s intervention into the history of mankind, the history of ours; to restore to the consciousness of life that we have true peace and joy in the forgiveness of sin and freedom from its bondage; to renew in the mind and memory, that Christ as our Savior, is always BE WITH us. Emmanuel. He will never abandon us, especially the ones who welcome HIS LORDSHIP in our lives.

Keep your Christ in your heart, totally!

The message of the angel: “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary, your wife, into your home” is a free invitation to bravely open the heart’s door to cooperate with God’s plan. Joseph here became a key to letting human history be reversed by the only One who can reverse it. He did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary and the unborn baby into his home.

Remember, the Gospel has described Joseph as: “He was a just man.”
He was an ordinary person. He was just like Mary. Ordinary!

He was the one who was thinking to spare Mary; he betroths, and yet, was anxious about his reputation of hers. He was looking for the meaning of love and of justice. He was a man who had lots of compassion, forgiveness, and mercy in his heart, a real, genuine, and true gentleman who did not wish to embarrass or punish Mary when he discovered that she was pregnant. He was not hasty to judge or to react with hurt and anger. He totally expressed his love for Mary.

Joseph is an ordinary person. He is just like Mary. Ordinary, who kept his God in his heart totally! Which enabled him to let God penetrate his heart through his dream.

Now, the ordinary person received extraordinary messages!

Only by his total faith was he able to respond to it totally!

Remember: He was a just man! Like Mary, Joseph is a model of faith for us.

Today is Christmas EVE!
How magical it is!

Some of you have come alone tonight; others are with large families. Some of you made plans to be here, and some decided to come on a last-minute impulse. Some of you have had arguments with other family members about something. Some of you have been dragged here against your will. Some of you are mourning the loss of loved ones in the past… many, many of whom you and I remember well and miss very, very much tonight.

For those of you young, tonight is full of hope and anticipation; most of your Christmases are still in front of you. Older people are filled with memories of the Christmases past that will never come again. Some of you look forward to going home to heart, presents, and tree; others dread going home.

Remember, this is a magical night for whoever and whatever condition you are in.
This is learning to keep your re-born Christ in your heart totally! Don’t ever lose him again! Keep him in the most depth of your heart. Let your Christ incarnate tonight in your lives totally! Even when you are in a deep sleep this night.

Let us all celebrate this Christmas, not in a sentimental way. We are visiting Joseph and Mary and their newborn and becoming a part of their family. We do not sing a song or two but join the choir. We do not say a prayer or two but become persons of prayer. We do not exchange gifts, we more than share the gifts with the poor, but we advocate for the poor. We courageously enter the messy, painful, and dangerous, totally absorbing.

Today is Christmas EVE!
How magical it is!

Yeah, when our God enters human history, “in the flesh.”
And we keep our Christ totally in our hearts.

Merry Christ-mas!

Amen

DR. Kusnadi