Sixth Sermon for Christmas Eve: On the Manner in Which Each of Us Should Make Himself a Bethlehem of Juda, So That Christ May be Born in His Soul

“ Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is born in Bethlehem of Juda.” — From the Mariyrology.

We have heard, my brethren, the announcement, full of sweetness and ‘‘ worthy of all acceptation,” that, “ Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is born in Bethlehem of Juda.” My very soul has melted at the sound of these words, and my spirit is burning in my bosom, eager with its usual ardour of desire to communicate to you its own joy and exultation. Jesus means Saviour. What is so necessary to the lost as a saviour ? What so welcome to the miserable ? To the despairing what so useful? For where could we find salvation, where was there for us the faintest hope of salvation under “the law of sin,” in “ the malice of this day,” in “ the place of affliction,” unless it were born to us new and unexpected? Thou perhaps, O my brother, desirest to be restored to health, yet fearest the sharpness of the remedy, conscious of the desperate nature of thy disease and of the tenderness of thy flesh. But take courage. Christ is truly a Physician “ sweet and mild, and plenteous in mercy,” because He it is Who has been “ anointed with the oil of gladness above His fellows,” above those, that is to say, who have received of the fulness of His anointing, although not the tulness itself. But lest thou shouldst imagine, from having heard Him called sweet, that He will not be sufficiently powerful, He is further declared to be the Son of God. For the Son of God is equal to His Father and, like the Father, can do whatsoever He wills.

Or perhaps, on being told about the utility of salvation and the sweetness of the saving unction, thou mayest still feel unsatisfied, anxious, let me suppose, concerning Christ’s fittingness to be thy Saviour. As the paralytic lying on his bed, or as the poor man left half-dead on the way from Jerusalem to Jericho, thou art glad to see the Saviour beside thee. Thy gladness increases on discovering that He is not a harsh Physician and uses no bitter remedies, for otherwise the short-lived pain of the cure might appear to thee more intolerable than the continuance of the malady. It is thus, my brethren, it is thus that many even in our own time foolishly flee away from their Physician and miserably perish, because although they know Jesus, they know not Christ,* and so, after the manner of men, estimate the sharpness of the remedies prepared for them from the multitude and malignity of their maladies. But now, if thou art certain as to the presence of the Saviour, and knowest Him to be Christ, Who makes use not of cauterants but of unguents, and heals by anointing rather than by burning, —if thou art certain of this much, there remains still, as I imagine, one more doubt which might possibly trouble a creature of noble origin, lest perchance the Person that He is also called Christ, or the Anointed. Cf. Sermon XXXVIII on the Canticle of Canticles.—(Translator.)

of the Saviour should seem not sufficiently worthy of thee. God forbid that any such thought should ever enter thy mind. But at all events, I do not suppose that thou hast so great an ambition and passion for glory, and art so desirous of honour, as that thou wouldst disdain to receive this grace of salvation, if it were offered thee by one of thy fellow-mortals. And were it offered thee by an angel, or an archangel, or by a saviour belonging to one of the higher angelic orders, thy fastidiousness would have still less reason to complain. As the case is, therefore, thou oughtest to receive the Saviour given thee with a devotion all the greater “as He hath inherited a more excellent name than they,” and is called Jesus Christ, the Son of God. And see if the Angel who spoke to the shepherds and announced to them the “ good tidings ” of great joy, did not more clearly insinuate these three characteristics of our salvation, viz., its utility, its sweetness, and its dignity, when he said, “This day is born to you a Saviour, Who is Christ the Lord, in the city of David.” Let us, therefore, my brethren, rejoice in this nativity, let us exult with gladness on this festival which the utility of salvation, the sweetness of the unction, and the Majesty of the Son of God so splendidly conspire to commend to us, that nothing is wanting to it of all that our hearts can desire. For it embraces in itself all manner of good, the useful, the delectable, and the honourable. Let us rejoice, I say, revolving in our minds and repeating to each other the sweet words, “ Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is born in Bethlehem of Juda.”

And let no undevout soul, no ungrateful and irre- - ligious soul, make answer to this and say to me,

“ This is nothing new. These tidings were announced long ages since. What thou hast been speaking of is an event of ancient date. Jesus Christ was born long ago.” Yes, long ago and earlier still. This expression, “long ago and earlier still,” will not surprise him who recalls the words of Moses, “ The Lord shall reign for ever and beyond.” Christ, therefore, was born not only before our time, but before all time. But this divine nativity “hath made darkness its covert,” or perhaps I should rather say that it “ dwelleth in light inaccessible.” It lies concealed in the Bosom of the Father, as in a dark and mist-covered mountain. In order, therefore, that this, His eternal birth, might become known to us in some degree, He willed to have also a temporal generation. He was born in time of the flesh, and born in the flesh : for “the Word was made flesh.” Yet it should be nothing surprising that even to this day the Church still announces, “ Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is born in Bethlehem of Juda,” since of the Same, long before His birth, it was said by the Prophet, “ A Child is born to us.” Long ago these tidings began to be heard and none of the saints has ever wearied of listening. For “ Jesus Christ (is) yesterday, and today, and the same for ever.” Hence the first man, Adam, the father of all the living, when proclaiming that great mystery, which the Apostle afterwards more clearly enunciated in reference to Christ and His Church, said, “ Wherefore a man shall leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and they shall be two in one flesh.” Hence Abraham also, the father of all the faithful, ‘‘ rejoiced that he might see (this) day : he saw it and was glad.” For why should

2A he have commanded his servant, when making him “swear by the God of heaven and earth,” to “ put his hand under his thigh,” unless he foresaw that of his seed the same God of heaven and earth was to be born?* God also revealed this secret counsel to the “man according to His own Heart,” who said, “The Lord hath sworn truth to David and He will not make it void: of the fruit of thy womb I will set upon thy throne.” Therefore was Christ born in Bethlehem of Juda, as the Angel testifies, in order that the word of the Lord might be fulfilled and to redeem the promises made to the fathers. For Bethlehem of Juda is the city of David. To the other patriarchs and prophets likewise, “at sundry times and in divers manners,” the Lord made the same announcement. Heaven forbid the thought that it was ever received with indifference by those true lovers of God. Do you think Moses was indifferent when he said, “ I beseech Thee, Lord, send Whom Thou wilt send”? Or the Prophet Isaias, when he exclaimed, “ Oh, that Thou wouldst rend the heavens and wouldst come down,” and made use of many other similar expressions? But “that which was from the beginning ” the holy apostles heard and saw “and handled with their hands of the Word of life,” for to them in particular it was said, “ Blessed are the eyes that see the things which you see.” Finally, for us also, the faithful children of the Church, the same blessedness has been preserved, sealed up, so to speak, in the treasury of faith, according to the words of Christ Himself, “ Blessed are they that have not seen and have believed.” This, my brethren, is our portion in the Word of life. And assuredly it is nothing contemptible, since it communicates to us spiritual life and gives us the victory over the world. For it is written, “the just man liveth by faith,” and “this is the victory which overcometh the world, our faith.” Faith may be regarded as an image of eternity, comprehending, as it does, in its most ample bosom, all things past, present, and to come, so that nothing escapes it, nothing is lost to it, nothing lies beyond its range.

With good reason, therefore, did your hearts leap for joy, when the voice of this announcement sounded in your ears ; with good reason did you return thanks to God and prostrate yourselves on the floor in humble adoration,* lying together “ under the shadow of His shoulders” and “ hoping under His wings.” Did not every one of you, on hearing the good tidings of the Saviour’s nativity, repeat in his heart the words of the psalm, “ It is good for me to adhere to my God, to put my hope in the Lord God”? Or rather these other words of the same Prophet, “ Be thou, O my soul, subject to God”? But unhappy he,—if there beany such,—whose prostration has been an act of hypocrisy, whose heart was elated whilst his body was humbled. For as we read in Ecclesiastes, “ There is one that humbleth himself wickedly, and his interior is full of deceit.” Whosoever does not consider well his: own necessities, whosoever does not feel his own defects, does not tremble at the dangers which surround him, does not devoutly run for help to the new-born Saviour, does not lovingly subject himself to God, nor gratefully sing with the Psalmist, “ Lord, Thou hast been our refuge ” ; such a man’s adoration is not acceptable, his prostration is not sincere, his humiliation has no value, his faith can give him neither victory nor life. Yet wherefore is it said, “ Blessed are they that have not seen and have believed ” ? For surely to believe in Christ is, at least in some sense, to see Him? But consider carefully when and to whom these words were spoken. They were addressed to the Apostle Thomas whom the Lord was reproving for that he believed only because he had seen. But it is not the same thing to see and therefore to believe as to see by believing. For with respect to our father Abraham, how can he be said to have seen the day of the Lord except by believing ? And how also are we to understand those other words which we sang in the office of last night, “‘Sanctify yourselves to-day and be prepared, for to-morrow you shall see in you the Majesty of God ’”’—how, I ask, is this to be understood, if it is not true that we see with our souls whenever with devout affection and “ faith unfeigned ”?” we represent and recall to our minds that great “ mystery of godliness which was manifested in the flesh, was justified in the spirit, appeared unto angels, hath been preached unto the gentiles, is believed in the world, is taken up in glory ” ?

That, my brethren, is always new which always renovates the mind. That is never old which never ceases to fructify, which no length of time can rob of its freshness. Such is this Holy One Whom God will not “give to see corruption.” He is the new Man Who is incapable of ever becoming old, and Who confers true newness of life even upon those whose “ bones have all grown old,” as the Psalmist says. Hence it is that in to-day’s most sweet announcement, we are not told, as you may have noticed, that He was born, but that He iş born, that “ Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is born in Bethlehem of Juda.” For just as He is still daily immolated in a mystical manner whilst we ‘‘ show forth His death ” upon the altar, so also does He seem to be newly born whilst we annually commemorate His nativity. To-morrow, therefore, we shall see the Majesty of God, not indeed in Himself but in us. We shall see Majesty in humility, Power in weakness, God in man. For He is Emmanuel, “which, being interpreted, is God with us.” But listen to a more evident testimony: “The Word was made flesh,” writes St. John, “and dwelt among us.” Then and thereafter “we saw His glory, the glory, as it were, of the Only-Begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” It was not the glory of divine power and Majesty that we saw, but the glory of the Father’s love, the glory of His grace, whereof the Apostle says, “ Unto the praise of the glory of His grace, in which He hath graced us in His beloved Son.”

Thus, therefore, is He born. But born where? “In Bethlehem of Juda.” We must not, my brethren, pass over Bethlehem, for the shepherds did not say, “Let us pass over Bethlehem,” but, “ Let us pass over ¿o Bethlehem.” What though it be but a poor insignificant village? What though it seems to be but “a little one among the thousands of Juda”? For such a birth-place is not unbefitting for Him Who, whereas He was rich, became poor for our sakes ; Who, although He was “the great Lord and greatly to bepraised,” was born for us as a Little One ; Who said, “ Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,” and, “ Unless you be converted and become as little children, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Therefore did He choose the stable and the manger, a house of clay and the shelter of beasts, in order to teach us that it is He Who “ lifteth up the poor out of the dunghill,” and “ preserveth men and beasts.”

Would to God that we also were each of us found to be a Bethlehem of Juda, so that Christ might condescend to be born in us, and that we might deserve to hear addressed to us the words, “‘ Unto you that fear My name the Sun of justice shall arise”! And perhaps it is the same thing to say that a man must make himself a Bethlehem of Juda if he would have Jesus to be born in his heart, as what I remember to have remarked awhile ago, namely, that there is need of sanctification and preparation before we can see in us the Majesty of God. For, according to the Royal Prophet, “ Judea is made His sanctification,” because, namely, all sins are washed away by confession ; * and Bethlehem signifies the “‘ house of bread,” which seems to be suggestive of preparation. How indeed is he prepared to receive and entertain so noble a Guest, who is obliged to say, “ In my house there is no bread”? So we read of a certain man who, because he was thus unprepared, had to go at midnight to a neighbour’s house and to knock at the closed door, saying, “ A friend of mine is come off his journey to me, and I have not what to set before him.” ¢ ‘ His heart is prepared to hope in the Lord,” says the Psalmist, speaking no doubt of the just man, “his heart is strengthened, he shall not be moved.” But the heart that is not strengthened cannot be prepared. Now we know on the testimony of the same Prophet, that it is bread which “‘strengtheneth man’s heart.” Not prepared, therefore, but “ withered ” and dry is my heart, if “I have forgotten to eat my bread.” But “I am prepared and am not troubled, that I may keep the commandments ” of life, if “ forgetting the things that are behind, and stretching myself forth to those that are before, I press towards the mark.” You observe, my brethren, that there is one kind of forgetfulness which is to be wished for, and another which we ought to avoid. For the whole tribe of Manasses * did not cross over the Jordan, nor did the whole tribe choose to remain on the hither side. There are some who forget the Lord their Creator, and there are some who “set Him always in their sight,” forgetting their “people and their father’s house.” The former are oblivious of heavenly things, the latter of earthly ; the former of the future, the latter of the present ; the former of what is invisible, the latter of that which is seen ; the former of “ the things of Jesus Christ,” the latter of “ the things that are their own.” Both are Manasses, because both are forgetful: but the one is forgetful of Babylon, the other of Jerusalem. That is to say, the one is forgetful of what it is expedient to forget, and so is prepared ; the other, on the contrary, forgets what it is expedient to remember, inexpedient to forget, and he is altogether unprepared to see in himself the Majesty of God,—he is not a “house. of bread” in which the Saviour will condescend to be born, nor is he the Manasses who has the vision of Him That ruleth over Israel and sitteth upon the cherubims, according to the Psalmist, “ Thou That rulest Israel, Thou That sittest upon the cherubims, shine forth before Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasses.” In my opinion these three are the same who, according to the word of God, “shall deliver their souls by their justice,” * and are called by the Prophet Ezechiel, Noe, Daniel, and Job. They are also represented, as I think, by the three ¢ shepherds to whom, at the birth of the “ Angel of the great counsel,” the ministering angel announced great joy. And consider further if you cannot recognise the same three, to wit, Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasses, before whom God “shines forth,” in the three Magi, who come now, not from the east alone, but “ from the east and from the west” to “sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.” And perhaps it will not seem unreasonable to suppose that to Ephraim (whose name signifies fructification) belongs the oblation of incense. For to “ offer worthy incense for an odour of sweetness”’ is the office of those whom the Lord appointed that they “ should go and bring forth fruit,” that is, of the prelates of the Church. Benjamin, as being the “son of the right hand,” has the duty of offering gold, that is, the substance of this world, in order that the faithful people, placed on the Judge’s Right Hand, may deserve to hear, “ I was hungry and you gave Me to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me to drink.” And Manasses, if yet he desires that God should “ shine forth” to him, must offer the myrrh of mortification, which, in my judgment, is particularly demanded from persons of our profession. I have said this in order to show that we do not belong to that part of the tribe of Manasses which remained on the hither side of the Jordan, but to the other which, “‘ forgetting the things that are behind,” stretches forward with eagerness to attain what lies before.

But now let us return to Bethlehem and let us see this Word Which is made, Which the Lord hath made and will show to us. It is good for us to be there, because Bethlehem, as I have already remarked, is the “‘ house of bread.” For where the Word of God is, there must also be the bread which “ strengtheneth man’s heart.” Hence the Psalmist says, “ Strengthen me in Thy Word.” For man liveth “in the Word Which proceedeth from the Mouth of God,” he liveth in Christ and Christ liveth in him. It is in the bread-strengthened heart that Christ is born and reveals Himself. He loves the heart which is strong and stable, not that which is weak and wavering. If any man hesitates, if any man falters, if any man murmurs, if any man purposes to wallow again in the mire, or to go back to the vomit, or to violate his vow, or to abandon his resolution, such a one cannot becalled a Bethlehem, he is no “ house of bread.” It is only famine, and a very severe famine, that compels him to go down into Egypt, to feed the swine there, and to long for the husks which these poor animals eat: because he is far from the house of bread, far from the home of his Father, where, as he knows, even the “hired servants abound with bread.” Christ, therefore, will not be born in such a heart as this, which is wanting in the strength of faith; for faith is the bread of life, as the Prophet Habacuc testifies where he says, “ The just man liveth by faith.” Hence the Apostle also assures us that so long as we live here below, Christ, Who is the true Life of our souls, “‘ dwelleth by faith in our hearts.” How indeed could Jesus be born there, how could salvation be found in the inconstant heart, since the word of the Lord stands firm and fixed, that only “he that shall persevere unto the end, he shall be saved”? And that the man of wavering will has not Christ within him and is not of the number of those to whom it is said, ‘‘ You have the unction from the Holy One,” is manifest from this especially, that his “heart is withered ” because (he) forgot to eat (his) bread.” Much less can such a one belong to the Son of God, Whose Spirit, as the Prophet Isaias bears witness, will only rest upon “ him that is poor and little, and of a contrite heart, and that trembleth at (His) words.” Besides, there can be no fellowship between eternal fixedness and such mutability, between Him Who is, and him “ who never continueth in the same state.” Nevertheless, however constant we may be, however strong in faith, however well prepared, however abounding with bread through the mercy of Him to Whom we daily cry, “ Give us this day our daily bread ” : in spite of all this, we still have need to add the petition which follows in the Lord’s Prayer, “ And forgive us our trespasses.” For “if we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” He is this Truth, Who is born not simply in Bethlehem, but in Bethlehem of Juda, Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

Therefore, my brethren, “let us come before (the Lord’s) presence with confession,” so that being both sanctified and prepared, we also may be found to be, each one of us, a Bethlehem of Juda, and thus may deserve to see the Saviour born in us. But—and this is a matter of much importance for ourselves—if any soul should have made such progress that she is now a fruitful virgin, that she is now a star of the sea, that she is now full of grace and has the Holy Spirit coming down upon her, I believe that He will condescend to be born not only im but even of such a soul. Yet no one should presume to claim for himself so great a privilege save those whom He has Himself particularly designated and pointed out, as it were, with His finger, where He says, “ Behold My mother and My brethren.” * And listen to one of these mystical mothers : “ My little children,” exclaims St. Paul, “ of whom I am in labour again, until Christ be formed in you.” For if Christ seemed to be born in the disciples whilst He was being formed in them, why may I not also presume to say that Christ was born of the Apostie, by whom He was in a manner brought forth in them? It is thou, O impious Synagogue, it is thou that hast brought forth to us this Child, discharging the office of a mother, yet without a mother’s affection. Thou didst put Him out of thy womb, didst drive Him forth from thy city, and, lifting Him above the earth, didst seem to say to the Church of the gentiles and to the primeval Church, which is in heaven, “ Let Him belong neither to you nor to me, but let Him be divided. Let Him be divided not between both, but from both.” For after expelling Him from the city, and raising Him up (so that He might remain neither within thy walls nor upon the earth) thou didst compass Him about with a palisade of iron to prevent His escape on this side or on that. O most cruel mother, how couldst thou have the heart thus to cast forth the Child of thy womb with none to receive or to care Him? Look now and see how much thou hast gained by thy cruelty, or rather how thou hast gained nothing at all. For everywhere the daughters of Sion are going forth to see King Solomon in the diadem wherewith thou, His mother, hast crowned Him. But He, leaving His mother, hath cleaved to His Bride, and they are two in one flesh. Banished from Jerusalem and lifted up from the earth, He is drawing all things to Himself because He is the Same Who is over all things, God blessed for ever. Amen.