“And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.”
We have become so familiar with these words because we pray them several times a day as we pray the Angelus. As you all know, there are many different translations of the Scriptures. I have several different versions sitting on my bookshelves. Each translation of the Scriptures offers us different perspectives and different interpretations of the original language. One translation of this line that I really like goes like this: “Jesus, the Word of God, became one of us and pitched his tent among us.” I like this perspective because it reminds us that the first dwelling place of God among the children of Israel was a tent. Not until King Solomon built the first Temple in Jerusalem did God live in a building. God chose to live as the people lived, as a tent dweller. To me this makes it very clear that God really became one of us. While it may seem at times that it is difficult to relate to God on a personal level, when I think of God pitching a tent among us, it becomes a little easier for me to see what the mystery of the Incarnation is all about.
There is a story of a parish liturgy committee which tried to present the mystery of the Incarnation in a novel way. They decided that in the Christmas crèche that was on display in their church, they would not put a statue of a human baby in the manger. Instead, they placed a spot light in the manger. At the right moment in the liturgy, the spot light was turned on so that a bright beam of light shot out of the stable and up to the ceiling of the church. They got the idea as they read the Prologue of the Gospel of St. John in preparation for Christmas. St. John writes: “What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race; the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”
You might remember that the Gospel of St. John uses imagery of light and darkness throughout the story that he tells of Jesus. Nicodemus comes to Jesus in the middle of the night. The Samaritan woman converses with Jesus when the sun is at its highest. Judas escapes from the upper room into the darkness. The women come to the tomb while it is still dark.
We use the same kind of imagery in our own conversation. When we don’t know the answer to a question, we might refer to “being in the dark.” When we feel distant from God, we name the experience “the dark night of the soul.” I am sure that all of you can come up with your own examples of such expressions.
Darkness has a very special meaning in my life. In 1995, I underwent surgery to remove the right inner ear which had become infected. The surgery left me completely deaf on the right side. After the surgery, the doctor counseled me about how I could accommodate the loss of my inner ear with regard to balance. He warned me about being in the dark. My eyes would become my primary balance organ now that the inner ear was gone. However, he told me that if I couldn’t see, I would simply fall. To illustrate this, he asked me to close my eyes and to place one foot in front of the other. As soon as I did so, I started to tip over. Of course, he caught me as I started to tumble. So now, I keep night lights all over my living space so that I won’t be caught in total darkness.
Just as darkness literally causes me to fall, spiritual darkness causes all of us to tumble into sin. However, if we aim the eyes of our faith at the light who is Jesus, we will never have to fear falling into sin. Jesus, the light, shines in the darkness of our world. No matter how the forces of darkness try, they will never be able to extinguish the light of faith.
Every glad tiding we sing when we feed the hungry or practice any of the works of mercy, keeps the light burning brightly. Every care that we take to protect the environment which God created for our use makes the light burn all the brighter. Every time we practice random acts of kindness, we dispel the darkness through the light of Jesus. Every time we turn away from those who would drag us into uncharitable speech or thoughts, we continue to shine the light which is Jesus. Yes, the world can be a place of darkness. However, as long as we place our faith in Jesus, we can make the light brighter. Just as the Virgin brought Jesus into the world to be its light, we, who believe, continue to bring the light of Jesus to the world through the simple, ordinary acts we perform throughout our day.
May the Light of Christ fill your hearts with peace and joy today and throughout the coming year! Glorify the Lord with me, for he has done marvelous things!