The Vulnerable Word

The Nativity of the Lord - Day

Isaiah 52:7-10 / Psalm  98:1, 2-3, 3-4, 5-6 / Hebrews 1:1-6 / John 1:1-18

The Vulnerable Word

What’s wrong with the picture painted by John’s Prologue? There are no images of shepherds watching over their flocks by night, no stories of Magi visiting the infant Messiah, no holy family in the manger with animals, no choir of angels. Where are all the clues that we are celebrating Christmas?

These familiar images of Christmas over the years have reminded us of what Christmas is about: the babe who lies wrapped in swaddling clothes in the manger even now reveals the glory of God to us. But we find none of these familiar trappings in our Christmas Day readings. Shepherds and mangers and the census in the City of David are for Midnight Mass. For Christmas Day the Church holds before our eyes and ears the Word become flesh. Not a story of Christmas, but a reflection on the incarnation of God as we celebrate the Creator becoming part of creation: “In times past God spoke in fragmentary and varied ways to our ancestors through the prophets; in this final age he has spoken to us through his Son...” (Hebrews 1:1)

Maybe the Word became flesh because talk is cheap and we must put our lives on the line for what we believe. Too many times those who have said “My word is my bond,” have broken their bond, fractured their words. Broken promises lead us to conclude that “talk is cheap.” But the Word of God was not merely spoken through the prophets; in Jesus Christ, born this day, born for us, the Word has become flesh and dwelt among us.

Words are powerful. Fighting words provoke conflict; peaceful words make fences obsolete.  Complementary words have the power to lift our drooping spirits; critical words have the potential to destroy our self-image. Words from the heart express our feelings and make us vulnerable to one another; we let our guard down and let others in. This is the type of Word that became flesh in Jesus Christ, a word of vulnerability.

Today is the feast of the vulnerability of God. In Jesus God spoke to us, hoping for a hearing — hoping for a response. The Word of God echoes down the corridors of human history to our own ears and hearts today. “If today you hear the [Word of God,] harden not your hearts.” (Ps. 95:7) God has spoken to you, become vulnerable to you, taken a chance of being heard or rejected by you. Will you let his Word echo down the corridors of your life? Will you let Jesus echo in your heart this Christmas Day?  Will you let God fill your heart with love and reassure you that the child born for us today has made us all children of God?

·         Think of the last argument or fight you had: What were the words you said? How did they affect you and the person or people you argued with?

·         Think of the last time you said good things to or about someone: What were the words you said? How did they affect you and the person you were talking to? What are the last good words you heard someone say about you? How did they affect you and the person who said them?

·         In the last 24 hours, what words have stayed with you? Why? If you could change something you said in the last 24 hours, how would it be different?