One of the key underlying themes of Christmas is that God became man. Why? Because, even as man was made by God in His own image, due to man’s sins, he moved away from God. In due time, God wanted to reclaim the human race from its sins. Man’s original life was that of a sinless being, in the image of God. In fact, in the Bible, Ephesians Chapter 1, verses 4 and 5, we are reminded that “long ago, even before he made the world, God chose us to be his very own through what Christ would do for us; he decided then to make us holy in his eyes without a single fault.” Man then became sinful because he was disobedient. In the process, he moved away from God and nature. During the early days, before man became sinful, there was no ecological imbalance either.In the fullness of time, more than 2000 years ago, Jesus Christ was born in this world with God’s objective to reclaim the human race. Again in the Bible, in Galatians Chapter 4, verse 4, we read, “When the right time came, the time God decided on, He sent his son, born of a woman, born as a Jew, to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as His very own.”It was in this background that Jesus Christ was born to a virgin, Mother Mary, so that we His children can rightfully call him, “Abba, Father.” When he was born, Jesus was named Immanuel, which means, “God is with us.” In the birth of Christ, the word became flesh. In St John Chapter 1, verse 14, we learn, “Christ became a human being and lived here on earth amongst us and was full of loving forgiveness and truth.”The joy of Christmas is reflected in the message that through Christ’s birth, God will be with us through all of life’s circumstances and will finally redeem us. At the time of his birth, the first people to hear the message of birth were the shepherds, who were told by the Angel, “Fear not!” When Jesus was born, we read that he was swaddled in old clothes. This reflects the humility of Christ who even as He was God, humbled himself to be born in very ordinary circumstances.That is the true message of Christmas: “love, kindness and humility.” Before Jesus was born, Archangel Gabriel told Virgin Mary, “Peace be with you.” That is the message of Christmas today.The writer is Vicar, St Mary’s Orthodox Cathedral, Hauz Khas, New Delhi
