Beyond tinsel

Catholic Herald offers this inspiration:

Where do we seek peace in our restless lives? Do we surrender our hopes to the promises and power of a purely secular world, or do we turn to the child born at Bethlehem?

Through the birth of his Son the Father spoke, as he had never spoken before, to the heart of a broken world. His Word was spoken not to the powerful of this world, but to forgotten shepherds, to those who had no place at the courts of Herod and Caesar. Through the Holy Spirit those words had been first whispered in Mary’s gentle soul, and her humble response made our poverty God’s dwelling place.

The full wonder of this mystery was unfolded at the beginning of John’s Gospel. Here, the Apostle reached beyond time, to a beginning when the Word was with the Father, infinitely beyond any human hope or expectation.

This is the Word that called creation into being, whose glory is reflected in the wonder and beauty of our universe. This is the Word that speaks to all that we are and all that we hope to become. This is the Light that our deepest darkness could never overpower. This is the Power that enables us to proclaim what we could never speak of ourselves: that in him we are the children of God.

The celebration of Mary as the Mother of God continues the unfolding of this mystery. Mary treasured these things in heart, devoting herself to the life entrusted to her. She never ceased to wonder that, in the birth of her Son, Moses’s ancient blessing had found its fulfilment. In Christ the Father blesses and keeps us, lets his face shine upon us, uncovers his face to us and brings us peace. Let us, with Mary, treasure this blessing in our hearts.