December 25, 2006
Prayer Before The Manger Scene
The Holy Family.
"No one,whether shepherd or wise man, can approach God here below except by kneeling before the manger at Bethlehem and adoring him hidden in the weakness of a new born child"
Pope Benedict XVI, quoting from the catechesm of the Roman Catholic Church 563
Lord Jesus, as I kneel before your manger in adoration... let my first Christmas word be: "thank you". Thank you,Gift of the Father, for comming to save me from my sins.
Without you, I do not know how to even be human. The characteristics of your human body express the Divine Person of God's Son. And in that wonderous expressions, Lord You reveal me to myself. Thank you for that saving revelation in your sacred humanity. As in the Christmas liturgy proclams,"in Christ man restores to man the gift of everlasting life" Thank you for comming as one like myself to save me from myself.
You come as a baby because babies are irresistable and adorable,You come as a baby because you want our first impression of God incarnate to be that of one who does not judge. How I long to be united with you in every way. May I never be attracted to the alluerments and charms of the world. May I love you always,at every moment,with all of my heart, soul , mind and strength.
May the tenderness, the dependency, and the mercy that you reveal in your infancy become the hallmarks of my life.
Newborn Saviour; the very silence of your incarnation proclaims that the answer to the misery, the strife and the meaninglessness of life cannot be found within us. You alone are The Answer. As I kneel before you, Eternal King, I surrender to you all of my selfishness, self absorption, self indulgence self righteousness self assertion and self exaltation. Even as I adore you on this night of your birth, rid me of the nagging desire to be adored.
Word became flesh and You made Your dwelling among us. Yet, You do not live your life for yourself, but for us. And you enable us to live in you all that yourself lived. Help me to embrace this truth with all of my mind and heart.Coma and live your life in me. Empty me of my willfulness, my petulence, my hardness, my cynicism, my contemptuousness. Fill me with your truth, your strength, your fortitude, your purity,your gentleness,your generosity,your wisdom, your heart and your grace.
O Emmanuel, may the assurance of your unfailing Presence be for me the source of unending peace. May I never fear my weakness, my inadequacy or my imperfection. Rather, as I gaze with faith hope and love upon your incarnate littleness, for God is with us. Endow my life with a holy wonder that leads me ever more deeply into the mystery of Redemption and the meaning of my vocation and my destiny.
Longed for Messiah, it has been said that in the act of reverancing your birth we are also celebrating our own new birth. From this night on may my life be a dedicated life of faith marked reliance, receptivity, and resolition. May I make of my life a total gift of self. May my humble worship of your nativity manifest how much I seek the Fathers kingship and his way of holiness. The beauty of your holy face bears the promise that your Father will provide for us in all things. This Christmas I renew my trust in God's goodness, compassion and providence. I long for the day when you yourself will teach us to pray..."Our Father..."
May your Presence, Prince of Peace, bless the world with peace, the poor with care, the disparing with hope and confidence, the grieving with comfort and gladness, the opperessed with freedom and deliverence, the suffering with solace and relief. Loving Jesus, you are the only real joy of every human heart. I place my trust in you.
Oh, Divine Fruit of Mary's womb, may I love you in union with the holy Mother of God. May my life be filled with the obedience of St. Joseph and the missionary fervor of the shepards so that the witness of my life may shine like the star that led the Magi to you manger. I ask this with great confidence in your holy name, Amen
the Manger Scene in my home
