A Christmas Reflection on Love
Resisting the pull of scrolling through mind-numbing videos on Instagram, TikTok, or facebook is not easy. Most of the time, I manage to hold my ground. But, last week, I gave in, and, it might surprise you to hear, I’m glad I did. Because one video in particular, stayed with me and got me thinking about the message of Christmas. At first, even this video seemed like another time-waster. A mother is prompting her adorably cute three-year-old to finish well-known proverbs. Cue hilarity – “the grass is not always greener… because of the mud” and “two wrongs don’t make a… rock”. Hilarious. But then came the last one and it caught me off guard. The mother began “children should be seen…” and rather than “and not heard”, the three-year-old, without hesitation, changed the proverb to “children should be seen… and loved”. Children should be seen and loved. Spoken with innocence and a beaming smile, this tired, old saying was turned into something profound.
And this beautiful sentiment kept coming back to me as I reflected on Christmas this week. I love Christmas – always have, always will. But as I paused to think about it, I asked myself – why do I love it so much? What makes Christmas so special? Sure, there are carols that fill the air with joy, and Christmas songs that get stuck on repeat in our heads, and jolly old Santa with his sack of surprises, and colourful decorations, and sparkling lights, and delicious food, and so on. But at the very heart of it all is a manger – and in that manger is a tiny newborn baby. In the well-loved carol ‘Away in a Manger’, we’re told “no crying he makes”. But the message of Christmas isn’t that this baby should be seen and not heard. The message of Christmas is that this baby should be seen and loved.
Like every newborn, the baby Jesus is vulnerable, fragile, and utterly dependent. And that, in itself, stirs something deep within us. This helpless babe draws feelings of love from the very depths of our hearts. When he was young, my son would sneak his Star Wars figures into our nativity scene. Each evening, I’d remove Darth Vader from beside the manger and I’d smile. But I remember that it also got me thinking – how would we explain the strange, wondrous Christmas story to visitors from another planet. How could we possibly explain an all-powerful and all-knowing God choosing to come to earth as a tiny, vulnerable babe in a manger?
Well, in Christina Rossetti’s poem, which I make sure I read each Christmas, we have a beautiful summary of the reason for the season. After all, the whole magnificent story of Christmas can be summed up in one little word – love.
Love came down at Christmas,
Love all lovely, Love Divine,
Love was born at Christmas,
Star and Angels gave the sign.
—
Worship we the Godhead,
Love Incarnate, Love Divine,
Worship we our Jesus,
But wherewith for sacred sign?
—
Love shall be our token,
Love be yours and love be mine,
Love to God and all men,
Love for plea and gift and sign.
At its heart, Christmas is a celebration centred on love. Because we Christians allow our love for this baby, and our love for the selfless and compassionate adult that the baby grows to be, and our love for the God that is incarnate in the Christ child, to inspire us to share that love with others. So, Christmas reminds us of our call to love children who aren’t cared for and nurtured, to love people with no home who are shivering on the streets, to love those who are weighed down by loneliness as they watch others gather in festive joy, to love families who are struggling to heat their homes and put food on their tables, to love those who are incarcerated in prisons or deportation centres, to love those who are battling the dark clouds of depression and anxiety at a time when the world seems to be rejoicing, to love people who are gripped by addiction, to love those whose hearts are aching and raw with grief, and to love those who are facing the heavy burden and uncertainty of illness and injury.
Love came down at Christmas,
Love all lovely, Love Divine,
Love was born at Christmas,
Star and Angels gave the sign.
So, this Christmas and beyond, whether in grand gestures or in the smallest of acts, Christians commit to shine God’s love in the darkest corners and to bring hope to those who need it most. It may be as simple as visiting a neighbour who’s struggling, or offering practical support like cooking a meal or helping with errands for those in need, or giving time, money, or resources to a charity and foodbank, or simply phoning or texting a friend or colleague who might be finding this season particularly difficult. When we open our hearts to share the love of Jesus in this way, we live out the miracle of the incarnation. In every kind word, in every compassionate act, in every loving gesture, we proclaim Emmanuel, God with us, and we bring the wonder, joy, and hope of the Christmas message to life.
