St. John Chrysostom on the Nativity of Christ

                                    FROM A HOMILY BY ST JOHN CHRYSOSTOM 

Strange and wonderful is the mystery I behold. In my ears rings the sound of shepherds, not piping a lonely melody but chanting a heavenly hymn. Angels carol, archangels celebrate with song and dance, the cherubim sing hymns, the seraphim give praise, all of them keeping festival as they contemplate God on earth and our nature in heaven. By divine decree he who dwells on high is now here below; by God’s love those who dwell below are raised on high.

Bethlehem today is like heaven: instead of stars it has welcomed angels praising God. Everyone is leaping for joy, so I too want to leap for joy; I want to dance, I want to join the festival; but as I dance I do not pluck the lyre, nor carry pipes, nor kindle torches. Instead of musical instruments I bear Christ’s swaddling clothes, for they are my hope, my life, my salvation; they are my pipe and my lyre. Carrying them I come that endowed with eloquence by their virtue I may say with the angels, Glory to God in the highest; and with the shepherds, Peace on earth for men on whom his favour rests.

Today he who was inexpressibly begotten by the Father is marvellously brought forth by a virgin for my sake. In his nature he was begotten by the Father before all ages in a manner known only to the One who engendered him; outside his nature he is today brought forth anew in a manner known only to the Holy Spirit’s grace. His birth on high was real; his birth here below is real. He was truly begotten as God from God and he is truly brought forth by the Virgin as man. In heaven he is the Father’s only Son, Unique from the Unique; on earth he is the Virgin’s only Son, unique from her who is also unique.

I know a virgin bore a son today and I believe that God begot a son before time was, but the manner in which this happened I have learned to venerate in silence and I have been taught not inquisitively to inquire by busy reasoning. Where God is concerned we should not regard the order of nature, but believe in the power of the One at work therein.

(English translation of an excerpt from St. John Chrysostom’s Oratio in natalem Christi diem)

But Now You Will Be Speechless

Jan van Eyck, ‘The Prophet Zacharias’, 1432. St. Bavo Cathedral, Ghent, Belgium.

Here is an excerpt from a sermon for the Feast of the Nativity by Johannes Tauler (1300-1361), one of the most important of the medieval Rhineland mystics. It is appropriate too for today’s scripture reading (Luke 1: 5-25), which describes how Zacharias, who would become the father of John the Baptist, was struck speechless by the Archangel Gabriel for doubting that the  latter’s words to him were true.  The translation given here is by Eric College and Sr. Jane, O.P.

                                               But Now You Will Be Speechless

Today we Christians celebrate a threefold birth…The first and most sublime of these three births which we celebrate today is the birth, within the Godhead, of the only Son of the Heavenly Father, divinely begotten by him and distinct from him in person only. The second is his human birth, when Mary became his mother without any loss of her virgin purity. The third is the spiritual birth; every day and at every hour God is born into the souls of all the just, through grace and love…

For the third birth there must be nothing left in us but a pure intention toward God; no will to be or became or obtain anything for ourselves. We must exist only to make a place for him, the highest innermost place, where he may do his work; there, when we are no longer putting ourselves in his way, he can be born in us… St. Augustine said: “Empty yourself, so that you may be filled; go out, so that you can go in.” And in another place, he said: “Noble soul, noble creature, why do you seek outside yourself for something which in its most constant, truest and purest form is within you? You share God’s own nature: what business can you have with created things?” If a man would prepare an empty place in the depths of his soul there can be no doubt that God must fill it at once. If there were a void on earth the heaven would fall. God will not allow anything to be void. That would  be contrary to his nature and his just ordinance.

You must be silent. Then God will be born in you, utter his word in you and you shall hear it; but be very sure that if you speak, the word will have to be silent. The way to serve the word is to keep silent and listen. If you go out, he will most surely come in; as much as you go out for him, he will come in to you; no more, no less.