9781644135945

The Christmas Cycle
Wednesday
“The Lord hath built up Sion.” The Lord has built a new city, in which He is to appear in His
majesty. The old Jerusalem has fallen, but a new city has risen on the ruins of the old, and its
inhabitants are the nations of the Gentiles. To the inhabitants of the new city He has given new
life and strength, as He gave them to the leprous man and to the centurion of the Gospel. “I
shall not die, but live, and shall declare the works of the Lord” (Offertory).
This new life is a participation in the life of the Divinity. Our life as Christians is not merely
a matter of calling on Christ as our Redeemer in our necessities. Much less does it consist in
honoring Him as a mere man who by the power of His example has taught the world to live a
life of virtue and holiness. Christ was more than a teacher of a new and excellent philosophy;
He was the author of an entirely new life, a life that was to share in the divine life. This life is
to begin for men even while they are still on earth; they are to will what God wills; they are to
understand as God understands; they are to enjoy the blessedness of the Father and the Son and
the Holy Spirit in the world to come. “Behold what manner of charity the Father hath bestowed
upon us, that we should be called and should be the sons of God” (1 Jn 3:1).
This new life is a life in union with God. “If any one love Me, he will keep My word, and My
Father will love him, and We will come to him and will make Our abode with him” ( Jn 14:23).
After this union is effected by Christ, human life is charged with a new sensibility and a new felicity,
and is born to an inexhaustible fullness of life. A Christian comes to know himself, no longer
as a mere man, but as a child of God. His mind is occupied with the thought of the goodness
of God, and his soul is enthralled by the charm of His love. Man now converses with God as a
child with its father. God in turn enlightens the intellect of His child and fortifies the will of His
beloved one with His own divine strength. In all His dealings with the soul, God is most wise. At
times He fills it with an ineffable sweetness; at times He leaves it to wander in spiritual dryness;
but He is always there. He guides the faltering soul through the darkness as a skillful pilot guides
his boat through the surf. We have only to follow the direction of the pilot to arrive safely at port.
“The Lord hath built up Sion.” The liturgy is here referring to the new race that is born by baptism,
which has been filled and permeated with the spirit of Christ. This new race can be brought
forth only from the divine life. Christ alone can give it to us, and He gives it gladly. All power is
given Him by the Father, and He gives this life to all who confide in Him.
“He that eateth of this bread shall live forever” ( Jn 6:59). The sacraments are the divinely
instituted means by which the soul obtains the new life of grace. The Christian soul should feel
deep gratitude for this wonderful gift of God. Let us rejoice, then, with the holy liturgy, for “The
right hand of the Lord hath wrought strength; the right hand of the Lord hath exalted me; I shall
not die, but live, and shall declare the works of the Lord” (Offertory). Let us be confident. We
have been engrafted on the vine from which the divine life flows. We may be sure, then, with
the Apostle of the Gentiles, “I can do all things in Him that strengtheneth me” (Phil 4:13). But
without Him we can do nothing.
Prayer
Almighty and eternal God, graciously look upon our infirmity and stretch forth the right hand
of Thy majesty to protect us. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
129