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slave. In the crib He is weakness itself. He humbles
Himself not only before God, but before all creatures.
To teach us obedience, Jesus is born at the time and
in the place ordained by the divine Will. Thus, His
birth becomes an act of perfect submission to God and
to men. To teach us poverty, Jesus is born in a stable ;
He is laid in a manger on a little straw ; His little
limbs, benumbed with cold, are scarcely covered by a
few swaddling clothes.
Our four chief duties to the divine Infant are : to
adore Him ; to thank Him ; to love Him, and to imi
tate Him. We should adore Him, because He is not
only the Son of Mary but also the Son of the eternal
Father, in all things equal to His Father. This child
is both God and man. As God, we should acknowledge
Him as our Master and our Sovereign Lord. The
lower He has humbled Himself by His Incarnation,
the higher we should raise Him by our worship and
our adoration. In fulfilment of this duty, Mary and
Joseph, the angels and the are our models. We should
shepherds of Bethlehem
offer Him our gratitude,
because He has brought us the most precious of bless
ings. He gives Himself to us. By taking pur human
nature He gives us His divinity, by assuming our
poverty, He makes us participators in the treasures
of heaven. These are favours of infinite value. We
must recognize that Jesus is our supreme benefactor
and unceasingly thank Him. We must love Him,
because there is nothing on earth more worthy of love
than the divine Infant of Bethlehem. As God He is
infinitely perfect ; as man He is wholly pleasing to the
Most High ;
the most perfect of human beings, adorned,
from the first moment of His life with all natural and
supernatural qualities beyond anything we can conceive.