¡§For a child is born to us, a son is given us!¡¨ (Is. 9:6)
Christmas! It¡¦s a season to be jolly for many; for some, it¡¦s the time of last minute shopping and gift-giving, of parties and reunions, of food and festivities. But, Christmas is more than this, for at the heart of our celebration is the birth of a Child: the coming of Jesus in our midst. He is the cause of our joy, the reason for our rejoicing.
¡§Silent Night, Holy Night¡K all is calm.¡¨ Christmas carols are still ringing in our ears! Then on December 28, 2009, Monday, Fr. Otfried Chan, CRBC Secretary General, led all the staff into a meaningful and joyful Christmas celebration! Priests, secretaries, clerks, janitor and everyone present gathered together in the CRBC Chapel at 5:00 PM for a liturgical celebration.
The assembly started by singing ¡§O Come, All Ye Faithful¡¨ with all their hearts. Then Fr. Chan read the good news for the poor and shared with us his reflection based on the prophecy of Isaiah:
¡§For a child is born to us, a son is given us; upon his shoulder dominion rests. They name him Wonder-Counselor, God-Hero, Father-Forever, Prince of Peace.¡¨ (Is 9:6)
Jesus has come to give the good news to the poor. And what is the good news? That they will not stay poor forever. Jesus has come to bring us graces and blessings, by following His example and working hard for God¡¦s kingdom.
* Jesus is a ¡§Wonder-Counselor¡¨
A counselor is someone who patiently teaches, defends, and helps the leaders and the people. Jesus Christ is our counselor, for He is full of wisdom and full of truth. Truly, after His ascension, He sends us another counselor, the Holy to guide and lead us throughout our life. When we have Jesus Christ in our heart, He will help us to transform ourselves from within. He will help us to become better people, happier, wiser and more blessed.
* Jesus is the ¡§Mighty God¡¨
Jesus is not another God, He is God. The Acts of the Apostles (10:38) tells us how God has anointed Jesus with the Power from on high. We have lately experienced God¡¦s mighty power during our preparation and celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Church in Taiwan. We have been given so much help from God, and we will experience more divine intervention, if we trust Him ever more.
The life Jesus gives is not temporary or momentary only. The life Jesus offers us is eternal. Indeed, to live the life of Jesus Christ is to live forever in God¡¦s presence. As Jesus tells us in the gospels, He loves us with an everlasting love, never forsaking us, even though we sometimes fall or commit sin. God loves so much that He has given us His only Son, so that we have everlasting life! Jesus gives everlasting life!
In our world today, there is a raging storm of confrontations, wars, conflicts and slanderous matters, because so many people¡¦s hearts are broken or full of bitterness and hatred. It is known that one of the reasons of terrorism is that people cannot forgive for they bear grudges and hatred against past faults. This is the root of conflicts and wars, the lack of peace in one¡¦s heart. We will have peace in our heart not only when we forgive, but also when we are forgiven. Jesus comes to our life not only to bring us forgiveness, but also to give us the grace to forgive and to reconcile. Jesus, the Prince of Peace, has come to bring us peace and reconciliation.
After the spiritual reflection, Fr. Chan distributed a candle to each participant. Then, in the midst of darkness, with only the lights of our candles illuminating the crib where the baby Jesus was laid, we sang ¡§Silent Night¡¨.
As we looked forward to the New Year, Fr. Chan devised a simple game for all. Each participant drew a card with the name of a saint, his/her feast day and a short introduction of the saint¡¦s life. Thus, each one has a particular saint to be our close companion and model for the year 2010. The liturgical celebration ended with a hymn ¡§Gloria in Excelsis Deo¡¨, a song glorifying the birth of Christ.
A sumptuous banquet followed in the conference room. This Christmas celebration was also a thanksgiving party for Sr. Clara Wu, a religious from the Society of Helpers (SH). Sr. Clara has been with the Commission for Sacred Liturgy for 21 years and has contributed so much to the Church in Taiwan.
Our celebration was blessed with the presence of Most Rev. Martin Su, Bishop of Taichung and President of the Episcopal Commission for Sacred Liturgy, Fr. Andrew Chao, the out-going Executive Secretary of the Commission, and Fr. Charles Pan, the in-coming Executive Secretary.
We give thanks to God that the Year 2009 ended well and now we look forward to the Year 2010 with much expectation, more surprises and abundant blessings.
