Christmas Vigil Mass (Afternoon)

Isaiah 62: 1-5 deserves to be read and re-read every day of Christmas! It gives us a reason (many reasons, and there are many, many more!) to be Christians. It tells us what is so great about recognizing there is something “going on” between ourselves and God and deciding to get involved in it. It tells us what we get out of participating in the life of the Church. 

Isaiah leaves no doubt about what our relationship with Christ is: “The Lord delights in you and makes your land his spouse…. As a bridegroom rejoices in his bride, so shall your God rejoice in you.” The Church is the “bride of Christ” (John 3:29; Ephesians 5:25-32; Revelation 19:7-9; 21:2-10; 22: 17). And all of us (male and female alike) are “brides in the Bride.” What this means is that we are all committed to seek perfect union of mind, will, and heart with Jesus as Spouse, just as married couples are committed to seek perfect union of mind, will, and heart with each other. When Paul speaks of marriage, he says, “This is a great mystery, and I am applying it to Christ and the Church” (Ephesians 5:32). 

This may sound daunting, but look at what it gives! “You shall be called by a new name” — you will have a whole new sense of your identity. “No longer” shall you see yourself as “Forsaken” or “Desolate,” “but you shall be called [and know yourselves as] ‘My Delight’ and… ‘Espoused.’” Think for a minute about what this says. Is this a relationship with God worth entering into? Once we appreciate what this means, our response will be, “Forever I will sing the goodness of the Lord!” 

“Have no fear…”  

Matthew 1: 1-25 answers the hesitancy we have about entering into a relationship of spousal love with Jesus Christ. It tells us how Joseph felt when he learned that God had chosen his fiancée to make her the mother of his own Son. 

Contrary to legend, Joseph was not suspicious of Mary when she told him she was pregnant. He believed what he told her about the angel’s message. But like any devout Jew — or any one of us! — When he learned that God had chosen Mary for his own spouse, he bowed down in reverence and began to back out of the picture. Who was he to interfere in the mystery of God’s relationship with Mary? We would do the same! 

But the angel came to Joseph and said, “Have no fear about taking Mary as your wife. It is by the Holy Spirit that she has conceived this child.” But you, Joseph, “are to name him” with the name God has chosen. You are chosen by God to fulfill the role of earthly father to Jesus. And you are to be the earthly spouse of Mary in every way but sexual. She is to be your wife and you her husband — and you are to be a father to the Son of the Most High. 

Was this a scary, daunting call? Yes. Did it call for sacrifice? Yes. Was the sacrifice worth the privilege of playing such a role in the redemption of the world? When Joseph was assured that God wanted him to do this and that God would be his strength, wasn’t his response, “Forever I will sing the goodness of the Lord!”? Is that our response to the call we have received to seek the perfect union of mind, will, and heart with Jesus Christ? 

The strength of the call 

In Acts 13: 16-25 Paul is presenting Jesus as the culmination of Israel’s long history of being chosen, guided, supported, and empowered by God. It should give us confidence to embrace the relationship with God to which Jesus calls us. 

Paul reminds the Jews that God “chose our fathers. He made these people great… led them out of Egypt… raised up David… ‘a man after my own heart, who will fulfill my every wish.’”  

Then, “according to his promise,” he brought forth from David’s descendants, Jesus, a savior for Israel. John the Baptizer, who announced him, was thought by some to be the Messiah himself. But John said, “What you suppose me to be, I am not. Rather, look for the one who comes after me. I am not worthy to unfasten the sandals on his feet.” 

It is possible that Christianity itself is not “what we suppose it to be.” If we don’t feel like shouting every day, “Forever I will sing the goodness of the Lord!” it means we haven’t really understood or appreciated the Good News. This is not a matter of emotions, but of deep, interior understanding, awareness, and joy; joy even on those days when we would have preferred not to get out of bed! If, when we feel depressed and discouraged, naming ourselves “Forsaken” and “Desolate,” we remember what Jesus has done for us, think about all he is doing and willing to do for us in our lives right now, and decide to believe in this — to believe in him — and act as if we believed, then we will come to appreciate the Good News. We will appreciate the “grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,” the favor of “sharing in the life of God.” The privilege of being chosen to continue and carry out Christ’s mission on earth. And yes, even the opportunities we have to show our love for him, and to show his love for the world, by putting out when it costs us. We will appreciate what it means to be a Christian, what it means to take part in the life and life-giving labor of the Church. What it means to know Jesus Christ. 

This is what Christmas is all about: a celebration to help us celebrate with more appreciation all year. It is the celebration of Jesus as Savior of the world and Savior of our lives in the world. Savior of our family and social lives, of our business and professional lives — the Savior of life itself. Then it will be natural for us to say, “Forever I will sing the goodness of the Lord!” 

Prayer Prompt: What would you say to someone who asked you what Christmas means to you? Does your daily life— your visible attitudes, values and priorities, the stance you express in action toward the Church and the world — say the same thing?  Every day during the Christmas season (until the Sunday after the Epiphany), consciously and deliberately think of one thing Christianity gives you. Set a time to do this. 

— Fr. David M. Knight

View today’s Mass readings, Lectionary #13, on the USCCB website here

Fr. David M. Knight (1931-2021) was a priest of the Diocese of Memphis in Tennessee, a prolific writer, and a highly sought after confessor, spiritual director, and retreat master. He authored more than 40 books and hundreds of articles that focus primarily on lay spirituality and life-long spiritual growth.