The Incomparable Joy of Christ’s Birth

by Fr. John Granato  |  12/21/2025  |  Words from Fr. John

My Dear Friends,

In a few days we will be celebrating the birthday of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Birthdays of loved ones are always an occasion of joy, but when it comes to our Lord's birth, the joy is incomparable. God became man and entered into his creation as a little baby. The vulnerability of a baby does something to people. New born babies are helpless and in need of protection and care. There is no way a baby can survive outside the womb unless the baby has someone who will feed him or her and protect him or her from the surrounding environment.

The baby is relying on the love of an adult to protect and nourish him. Our Lord came into this world in the loving arms of Joseph and Mary. One can only imagine the joy in the heart of the Blessed Mother as she held her baby for the first time after caring for him for nine months. Our Blessed Mother, of course, knew in her heart that this baby was God incarnate, the Messiah. St. Joseph would also have known this truth, since Mary would have shared with him what the Angel Gabriel said to her at the Annunciation.

He will be called Son of the Most High and will be given the throne of David his father and rule over the house of Jacob forever. On this Thursday, when we come to offer our thanks for this greatest of all Christmas gifts (God's very life as man) at the celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass (whether the vigil on Wednesday or Thursday morning itself), let us remember the true meaning of Christmas. God became man so that we, his creation, could receive his divine grace and that we would be divinized.

After being nourished for nine months, he is revealed to the shepherds and the nations as he begins his ministry as Messiah. Of course, this ministry will be hidden for thirty years as he grows into adulthood as a carpenter in the town of Nazareth, but once he reveals himself again and proclaims the good news, his ministry will be the foundation of setting up his Church, which is his bride. Have a blessed and holy and joyful Christmas.

God bless!