A Saviour is Born to Us
Christmas Eve Mass at Sts Chastan and Imbert was celebrated by the Asst. Parish Priest Rev. Fr. Louis Loi. The church was filled with many who have returned home for Christmas and friends and relatives visiting during the season. The church atmosphere was festive with lights and the Christmas wreath. Rev. Fr. Loi brought in the statue of baby Jesus and laid it in the crib.
In his homily, Fr. Loi instead of preaching guided the congregation through a simple meditation exercise using their 5 senses to experience the birth of Christ. He first asked the congregation to see the slides that portrayed the birth of Christ in the manger. Then he asked everyone to close their eyes and breathe gently. As they were practicing their breathing, he asked them to cast aside everything that was troubling them- their struggles and fears. He asked them to imagine being in the fields with shepherds and entering the stable. He prompted the congregation to imagine the odour of animals and the stable. Then, imagine Joseph placing the baby Jesus into ‘your arms’ and the newborn gazing into ‘your eyes’. At that moment, he asked them to feel the healing power of Jesus flowing through them. He then assured the congregation that Jesus loves us as we are. Even if we are broken, this crack allows Jesus to enter and experience His love. Then slowly placing Jesus back in the manger, everyone opened their eyes feeling a sense of peace and joy.
On Christmas morn, the mass was celebrated by the Parish Priest Rev. Fr. Dominic Santhiyagu. He addressed the congregation with the following question “What is Christmas?” He said that for many it may be partying or BBQ but for us Christians it is a day when a savior is born to us, Christ the Lord.
He said Christmas is a time for giving and we have to be thankful for the many gifts we have received. One of it is the gift of life through our parents and the grace of God. Since God made us in his image and likeness (Gen1:27) we are to love ourselves and take care of our well-being. The second is the gift of faith that needs to be nurtured. Many make it a point to come for mass only during festive seasons, faith needs to be nurtured through consistency in prayer and mass. We need to be connected with God all the time. We also need to be grateful for the gift of vocation, in whatever the state of life we are now. He said, Jesus fell three times carrying his cross, so we as human can fall multiple times but are called to pursue in our vocation. The fourth gift is a gift of family. His reminisced the times he used to receive incessant calls from his mum during festive seasons until he came home but now he does not since she has passed on. He said that we should appreciate our parents and stay united as a family especially among siblings. For him, his family is the parishioners of NBVM and SCIC and he values everyone one of them. Finally is the gift of giving, the Word became flesh (Jn1:14) and we have Christmas because God so loved the world that he gave us his only son (Jn3: 16). He said that when we give, God will multiply our gifts. “So what will you give Jesus?” he prodded. He encouraged the congregation to pray for the strength to give freely.
After mass, all the migrants were invited for lunch with the Parish Priest.