We remember that Adam, having disobeyed God, was driven out of the Garden of Paradise, and that, as punishment for this grave fault, neither he nor his descendants could enter Heaven. A victim was needed to repair the offense committed against God. Then the Son of God Himself, filled with love for humanity, offered Himself to bear the punishment we had deserved, in order to restore to us the friendship of His Father.
Jesus Christ came down to earth and became man by taking a body and a soul like ours: this is the mystery of the Incarnation.
Yet in becoming man, Jesus Christ did not cease to be God. He remained one single Person – the Son of God – while possessing two natures: a human nature and a divine nature. Through His human nature, He suffered and merited; through His divine nature, He gave infinite value to His sufferings and thus satisfied the justice of God the Father, offended by our sins. This is what we call the mystery of the God-Man.
Jesus was born a little more than twenty centuries ago in Bethlehem, a small town in Judea, in the Holy Land. He came into the world on December 25, at midnight. Though the Savior was about to be born, no one in Bethlehem was willing to receive Mary and Joseph; every door remained closed to them.
How beautiful this little Child was, how lovable—no human tongue could ever express it. His Mother, the Virgin Mary, having found shelter only in an abandoned stable, laid Him upon the straw of a manger. Having wrapped Him in swaddling clothes according to the custom of mothers, Mary knelt in adoration before Him who was at once her Son and her God.
The angels of heaven came to pay homage to the divine Child. They announced the good news to humble shepherds nearby and told them how to find the Child-God:
“Do not be afraid, for I bring you good news of great joy for all the people. For today, in the city of David, a Savior is born to you, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a newborn wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.”
And they sang a hymn of joy:
“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will!”
The shepherds hastened to the grotto and, their hearts filled with faith, knelt before the Messiah at last given to the world.
After some time, the Magi –three powerful kings from the East– arrived, guided by a miraculous star, and offered precious gifts to the Child Jesus. In the humble Infant of the manger, they recognized God made man to redeem us.
Herod, king of the Jews, having learned from the Magi of the birth of an extraordinary Child, feared for his throne. In his cruelty, he ordered that all the young children of Bethlehem and its surroundings, two years old and under, be put to death. This dreadful slaughter is known in history as the Massacre of the Holy Innocents.
Warned by an angel of Herod’s evil plan, Saint Joseph, together with his most holy Spouse, the Virgin Mary, fled with the Child Jesus into Egypt. A few years later, they returned and settled in Nazareth, in Galilee. There, in the company of Mary and Joseph, Jesus grew in age and wisdom and, for many years, gave the example of the most perfect virtues: humility, obedience to His parents, piety, gentleness, and love of work.
One day, when Jesus was twelve years old, the Holy Family went to Jerusalem for the feast of Passover. On their return journey, Mary and Joseph lost their beloved Jesus. They searched everywhere –among the caravans and among their relatives and friends– but in vain: Jesus could not be found.
Great was Their sorrow, for to be with Jesus is already a foretaste of Paradise; to be without Him is a profound suffering. Filled with anxiety, the Blessed Virgin and Saint Joseph searched in every direction for the divine Child. At last, after three days, they found Him in the Temple, where He both answered the questions of the Doctors and taught them the Law with divine wisdom.