Gospel Reflection 2021/2022

Jesus Christ in the eyes of the world.

‘2000 years after He walked the earth, Jesus of Nazareth remains one of those MOST TALKED-ABOUT AND INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE who has ever lived.’

[Marge Martinez, RCIA Catechist and Presenter]

The scholarly National Geographic, a widely-read American monthly journal of all time, acknowledged that Jesus Christ is ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS NAMES in the history of humankind.

On the same note, Time Magazine reported on 10 Dec 2013 that Jesus Christ tops the list of the WORLD’S 100 MOST SIGNIFICANT FIGURES IN HISTORY. The result was the conclusion drawn from a data-driven research which used ranking algorithms to assess the public opinions from around the world.

Even the Gregorian calendar that we are using till this very day is Christocentric (Christ-centred). Jesus is THE ONLY PERSON WHO HAS SPLIT TIME AND HISTORY EVER: His birth divided time and history into BC (Before Christ) and AD (Anno Domini which means ‘in the Year of the Lord’).

Jesus Christ from the heart of the Church.

In the world today, Jesus has more than 2 billion followers of whom more than 50% are Catholics.

For us Christians, Jesus is not just another holy man, another guru, another healer, or another prophet of God.

He is our Lord Jesus Christ:

• ‘LORD’ is the title of power and authority.

• ‘JESUS’ (Hebrew: Yeshua) means ‘God saves’ because ‘He is the One who is to save His people from their sins’. [Mt 1: 21]

• ‘CHRIST’ (Greek: Christos) means ‘the Anointed One’.

As the disciples of Jesus, we firmly believe that Jesus is the Second Person of the Most Holy Trinity, the Only Begotten Son of the Father and the Eternal-Word-made-flesh:

all the oracles of the prophets long foretold Him; the Virgin Mother longed for Him, the throng of angels heralded His birth, the shepherds came and adored Him; the star of Bethlehem led the way to Him; the wise men sought after Him and did Him homage; and John the Baptist sang of His coming and proclaimed His presence when He came…’

[adapted from Preface II of Advent]

Jesus Christ in our hearts.

As the secular world is celebrating a commercial Christmas without Christ, we Christians must – all the more – put Christ at the centre of Christmas.

• • We do not need Christmas shopping or Christmas gifts because ‘he who has God lacks nothing’ [St Teresa of Avila] and Jesus is the greatest Christmas gift we can ever have.

• • We do not need feasting and partying because the Bread of Heaven has come down to feed us with His precious Body and His precious Blood.

• • We do not need to ‘deck the halls’ with Christmas ornaments. Instead, we need to deck our hearts with prayers and acts of charity.

• • We do not need the glittering lights or the flickering candles because upon us, Jesus Christ, ‘the great Light has shone’ [cf. Is 9: 2].

Indeed, Jesus is ‘the Light of the world’ [Jn 8: 12]: nothing can outshine Jesus; and nothing will ever outshine Jesus. All we need for Christmas is Jesus.

He is ‘the light that shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it’ [Jn 1: 5]. Nothing can extinguish the light of Christ or turn off the light of Christmas: definitely not the rainwaters, floodwaters, pandemic, disasters, or calamities… not even evil, sin or death.

Christmas is ‘an invitation to adore the Son of God’ [Pope Francis, General Audience, 23 Dec 2021] and to anchor ourselves to Him. As we celebrate the Nativity of our Lord, let us joyfully make room in our hearts for Christ to enter, dwell and reign. And from our hearts, may Christ transform the world.

Let our fervent prayer be:

“Maranatha! Come, Lord Jesus!”