Meditations before the Nativity Scene
At the Vigil before the Midnight Christmas Mass, we visited the four nativity scenes set up by the parish of St. Teresa, listening to these meditations and singing. Let me offer you these thoughts, together with my wishes: Merry Christmas!
Christmas 2025 almost concludes the Jubilee of Hope. During this year, we have been invited to make pilgrimages and to pass through the Holy Door as a symbol of our decision to follow Jesus Christ. Our year has been enriched by many pilgrimages: to the Carmelite Monastery in Stanley; to St. Andrew's Church in Hang Hao; to Lantau; to Rome, and to Italy; and to China.
People in Hong Kong are accustomed to traveling, for whatever reason. But a pilgrimage is a special journey: it is not a vacation, to empty our minds and hearts of everyday worries, but to find the meaning of everyday life. And this meaning is a Person who loves us, who was born for us, died for us, and rose again for us. In this Christmas celebration, we visit the nativity scenes we have set up. This visit is a pilgrimage to meet the Child Jesus, receive His life and give Him our lives.
Mary and Joseph
Dear Mary and Joseph, you are the first Christian pilgrims. In the Nativity scene, we see you kneeling and amazed before the Child. But that is a moment of pause. Before this, you set out from Nazareth to Bethlehem, not with a safe caravan, but the two of you, alone and defenseless, with Mary at risk of giving birth during the journey. You crossed green Galilee, ambiguous and hostile Samaria, the cold mountains of Judea, until you reached Bethlehem. But even here, risks and hardships did not end: there was no room for you in the inn, and you had to spend the night in a stable. What sustained you? Certainly, the Angel's announcement so many months earlier and the certainty of your mission: to give birth to and guard the Savior of the world. Thus, the stable became the first cathedral in history, and you became the first Christian family who, in obedience to God and mutual love, found the strength to walk and face every danger, from the flight into Egypt to the cross: certain that God is Emmanuel, God-with-us, who draws life even from death. Therefore, tonight, we also pray for the victims of Tai Po and for the survivors. Together with God made man and, in our service, may they find justice and peace.
The Shepherds
Dear Shepherds, you too are among the first pilgrims to the stable in Bethlehem. You could not help but move, after the glory of the angels poured out upon you and announced the birth of the Savior. Some of you may have asked: Why us? We are not rich and powerful; we are slaves or labourers, spending long hours with the flock in any climate, hot or cold. Perhaps God has fallen in love with your poverty. On this very night of Christmas, God imitates you. Saint Paul says that Jesus Christ, though rich, became poor for us, so that we might become rich in His life, in His dignity. This is why the Church is made up of the poor and the rich who live as brothers and sisters and help one another.
Some of you did not wake up at the angel's announcement; others refused to go to Bethlehem. For you, after seeing the Child, the time of mission has come so that the joy you felt may also be for them, for those who remain still and asleep, sad and without light, because they do not know that God has loved them too.
The Magi
Dear Three Kings, dear Melchior, Gaspar, and Balthazar, you are pilgrims from the most distant land. Your journey began in the East, in Iran, thousands of kilometers from Bethlehem. You have crossed deserts and mountains, friendly and indifferent peoples, cultures and ways of life different from your own, comforted only by the vision of the star. In the sky you studied every night, among the many lights, that special light appeared that led you to Judea. Your desire to worship the King of Kings led you to encounter the tyrant Herod. Under the pretext of helping you, he wanted to kill the Child. After him, other tyrants will try to kill the Child, but in vain, because He who is Life is stronger than death. Warned in a dream by the angel, you returned to your lands, spreading the good news of the Savior. You are the first Christians of the East and we are linked to you in a special way: we too live in this part of the world and above all we continue your work of proclaiming the King of Peace.
Jesus
Dear Jesus, you are the pilgrim par excellence! You came from the most distant land, Heaven. You descended from Heaven to dwell with us. You left your splendid divine light to share our gray days, our colorful ones, our dark ones in which You are the only light. You, infinitely Great, You whom the universe cannot contain, became small in this fragile and defenseless child's flesh. You stripped yourself of your power and conquered all.
You are the pilgrim who travels every path of our existence. Even pain and death, with You, become a victory for Life and Love. Tonight, in this church, you are reborn again and give yourself to us in that small thing, the small piece of bread of the Eucharist. Remain with us and take us with you: we want to be pilgrims with you, close to every man and woman; dwell in our homes, offices, schools, governments because You are the only Hope that does not disappoint.
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