Q U I C K S C A N

What is the relationship between St. Francis and the Christmas crib?
How did God become touchable through the Incarnation?
How does the “littleness” of God shout his greatness?

Readers reflect on Friar Jack’s musings

by Friar Jim Van Vurst, O.F.M.

What is the relationship between St. Francis and the Christmas crib?

It was near the end of his life that Francis had the marvelous idea. He told his friend John Velita of the little town of Greccio, “I should like to celebrate the coming feast of Christmas with you. And I should like to commemorate his birth in Bethlehem in a way that can bring before me as much as possible a way of seeing his poorness and suffering. That is why I want to set up a manger scene with ox and ax to keep the infant company. We will bring hay to this cave on the mountainside.”

It was 1223, and the beginning of the Christmas crib and manger scene, a tradition that is present in so many homes around the world every Christmas season.

One of the great mysteries of our faith—and one that occupied the mind and heart of Francis—is how it was possible that almighty God, infinite and all good, could come down upon this earth and become human like us. This small infant could be picked up by any of God’s creatures. How could one hold God in his or her hand?

How did God become touchable through the Incarnation?

That’s why we call this the mystery of the Incarnation—God becoming flesh. There are many ways God could have come to our planet. He could have descended as a man, a king, a ruler or a general and just appeared in the midst of humanity. That would have attracted attention and raised questions: Who is this man? Where did he come from? Imagine the reaction to Jesus’ miracles, impressive proof that he was the Messiah, the new King David—the ruler who would cast out any last remnant of the Roman Empire. That would make sense to many of us.

But then we know that love does strange and unpredictable things. Why come in power when you can come in weakness? Surprise! God chose the latter. With no wealth, no power, no entourage and no army, God came as an infant, born of a teenage girl with a new husband.

When God chose from eternity to become human, he chose to come as the opposite of what humans imagined him to be. Why? It seems that everything Jesus would reveal when he grew into his public ministry would be confounding to so many people: Be a peacemaker and thirst after justice (Mt 5). Love God and love all your brothers and sisters as you love yourself (Lk 10:27ff). Forgive one another, even your enemies (Lk 6:27). If you eat my flesh you shall never die because I am the bread of life (Jn 6).

So often people had come to think of almighty God as a warlord and a conqueror. But Jesus was meek and humble of heart. He befriended sinners, embraced lepers, healed the sick and suffering and gave life to the dead.

It’s no wonder Francis of Assisi wanted his people to see Jesus as he really appeared on this earth: weak and dependent. And what a perfect way to show the people—with a manger scene. The people made their way to the cave for midnight Mass, carrying their torches and singing hymns. We take our crib scenes for granted since we are so familiar with them. But imagine gazing on such a scene for the first time and what it must have meant to those townspeople.

How does the “littleness” of God shout his greatness?

The Psalms tell us that the “heavens declare the glory of God” (19:2). There is no doubt about that. Photos of galaxies and the billions of stars that make them up do take our breath away. But God becoming flesh does even more. God became tiny, fragile, vulnerable and needy, and Jesus even left footprints on this earth. And on every person he touched—and there were many, including lepers—he left his own fingerprint.

We can’t grasp the meaning of all that, though every once in a while we get a glimpse of the mystery. Imagine, then, that this God who became flesh, died, rose from the dead and returned to heaven did not abandon us. We hold this God-made-man in our hands each time we receive the Eucharist. This Christmas we are reminded again of our personal relationship with the Word of God made flesh. When we say, “Amen,” we are saying, “Yes, I believe.” On earth it doesn’t get better than this!

For more information, read “St. Francis and the Crib” in our Christmas Web feature at AmericanCatholic.org.

The quote in the first paragraph is from St. Francis of Assisi: A Biography, by Omer Englebert.

Friar Jack’s Inbox

Readers respond to Friar Jack’s musings on “Iraq: Looking for Hope Amid Ashes.”

Dear Friar Jack: Thank you for your follow-up regarding the war in Iraq. My son Tim, a Navy corpsman serving with the Marines, is in harm’s way daily. Yes, there are positive aspects to this horrible war, and I think that they do outweigh the negatives. It doesn’t make it any easier, especially for those of us who have sons, daughters and siblings in harm’s way every day, but it helps to remember why they are there. Many of them joined because of 9/11. Others joined for other reasons. But either way, what matters is that they are there, serving our country, doing what they need to do to help protect our country. We have a moral obligation to protect, to defend and to help those in need. No, our leaders are not always right, but at least we are doing something. Some good is coming of what we are doing. I only hope and pray that this is the right course. I pray for ‘our boys’ nightly and pray for peace for this world and courage for our boys to do their work—whatever that may be—to accomplish this peace. I love your articles. Keep up the good work, and God bless. Michael

Dear Michael: Be assured that my prayers and those of many of our readers are being raised up before God for the safety of your son and all those men and women who are risking their lives out of love for their country and for the sake of a more peaceful world. May the God of love watch over, protect and be with them all!
Friar Jack

Dear Friar Jack: Thank you so much for your comments on Iraq. It is exactly what I have been saying to my brothers and sisters in my parish. I have also made present that our beloved Pope John Paul II tried to dissuade President Bush from attacking Iraq and defined it as an unjust war. So many of my fellow Catholics seem to think I am somehow disloyal in the way I feel. I am certainly not, but I think we would have done much better to try to win hearts and minds of Muslims in peace, following the example of St. Francis. Pace e bene, Bettie

Dear Friar Jack: Thanks for your article about the war in Iraq. Many people are very sad about the loss of life, especially during the holiday season. We believe that war never resolves conflict and that Jesus showed us the courageous way to make peace: to love every individual regardless of misgivings and to lead by example. Peace and love, Ellen and Tom

Dear Bettie, Ellen and Tom and many others: I want to thank all of you who took the time to respond—whether pro or con—to my thoughts on the Iraq war. More than 50 emails came in to Friar Jack! As you might suspect, not all of them were positive—to say the least. It’s clear that this war is a volatile and contentious issue.

“…Friar Jack has stuck his nose into politics,” said one responder to my column. “A priest and his Church are not supposed to get involved in politics….Liberal priests and nuns have been the downfall of our great Church….”

Since more than one writer chided me for being “political” or “anti- Bush,” I don’t want to miss this opportunity to clarify my intentions.

Almost anything you or I say might have political implications. The primary goal of my comments on the Iraq war, however, was to try to apply the teachings of the gospel and the values of Christ to the decisions and actions of those who led us into the war. To speak from the standpoint of partisan politics is one thing. To raise questions about the morality of political or military decisions made on this country’s behalf—or to view these decisions through the prism of Catholic social teaching—is quite another thing. My intentions were certainly the latter.

Thanks again for sharing your concerns on these issues. Remember that today, December 15, is the date of the elections in Iraq for a parliament that will name a permanent government. For the moment, at least, we can all rise above the debate of who is right and who is wrong regarding the war. We need to lift up our prayers for peace, for the election of a stable government in Iraq and for the rebuilding of that society and to continue our efforts for a more unified and peaceful human family. Friar Jack

Send your feedback to friarjack@americancatholic.org.

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