The Shepherds, Mary, and “All Who Heard It” 

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Homily for the Nativity of the Lord (Christmas Day) 

St. Alphonsus Catholic Church, Brooklyn Center, MN

Saturday, December 25, 2021

On this day that we celebrate the greatest and most important event in the entire history of the world— God becoming a human being, our Gospel passage (Luke 2: 15-20) has three groups of people: the shepherds, Mary, and “All who heard it.” What’s their response to this historic and historical event? We begin with the shepherds. Shortly after Mary has given birth to her child, the angel of the Lord appeared to the shepherds who were in the region where Jesus was born tending to their flock. To them the angel said, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord.” To make the story even more acute, a host of angels appeared with this angel and began to praise God, “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” After the departure of the angels, the shepherds proceeded in haste in search of what they’ve been told. They run to Bethlehem, bothered everybody, and knocked on people’s doors looking for Mary and her child. When they finally found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in the manger, they told everyone listening the message they received about Mary’s child. Why did the shepherds proceed in haste in search of the Holy Family? They have found their role in the Theo-drama. What’s Theo-drama? It is the script or drama that God himself is writing, producing, and directing. God has revealed to the shepherds their mission and purpose. So, they moved in haste. What’s the opposite of Theo-drama? Ego-drama, which is the drama that I’m writing, producing, directing and starring in. And it is the drama that most of us like to act out. Caught in ego-drama, we are consumed by personal projects, personal plans, and becoming a glittering star in the eyes of the world simply for self-aggrandizement. If your whole life is totally focused on acquiring wealth, procuring power, amassing honor and intensifying and increasing your pleasure, you are hooked in ego-drama. Finding your role in the Theo-drama is realizing finally that your life is not about you, rather about God, and God’s purpose for you. It is discovering that you are part of something much bigger than your own projects and plans, that you are part of a Divine Plan. This Divine Plan doesn’t denigrate the self, it elevates the self. When you surrender to God’s purpose for you, you find who you really are. The shepherds’ response should be ours as well. When God calls, drop everything, for nothing could be more important. 

As far as we know, Mary did not see the host of angels, just the shepherds; but the shepherds did tell her about the angels. What’s the response of Mary to what she heard? Wonder. The Gospel says that Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart. The word “ponder” is a deep and beautiful word. Mary did not fully understand what was happening, but she did understand that what was happening was purely wonderful and unambiguously beyond words. That’s why she pondered it. Don’t misunderstand me. Mary understood that the greatest event in all of time has happened, but she did not understand every piece of it. So, she pondered. She reflected. As for us, when it comes to scientific or technological matters and other matters we lack the competence to understand, we often avoid pondering over them and leave them to the experts. But not so of anything universally human, anything that is about all of us. And Jesus is about all of us. This baby whose birth we celebrate today is about all of us. Like Mary, we should ponder about this great event—God becoming a human being. Pondering is part of prayer. Pondering simply means looking at something with rapt attention. And what we should ponder the most in prayer especially at Christmas is the immensity of God’s love for us. God loves us so much that he is willing to become one of us. Our meanness, our dysfunction, our cruelty, our dirt, our unreliability, our waywardness etc. did not deter God from becoming one of us. That’s huge, everybody! Ponder over it. Such love, such unspeakable love should make us ponder especially during Christmas.  

The third group of people mentioned in today’s Gospel is “All who heard it.” This group includes the people who were around at that time and place to hear the shepherds narrate the message they received from the angels and all who have heard of it for the last two thousand years through the Church’s work of evangelization and the spreading of the Good News. This group “All who heard it” includes you and me. What’s the response of the people who first heard the Good News? Today’s Gospel passage answers, “Amazed.” The word used throughout the Gospels to describe the first reaction everyone has to Jesus when they meet him is amazement or astonishment. His disciples, his enemies, and those who were not sure whether they should be his disciples or his enemies were amazed by Jesus. That should be our response and reaction too. Amazement is not just a feeling. Feelings are subjective, and they demand nothing from us. If you feel uncomfortable and I feel comfortable, that’s just about you and about me. But the amazement people have about Jesus is Jesus himself. Jesus is shocking. He’s a live wire. If we are not shocked and astonished by him, something is wrong somewhere, and it has to be fixed through prayer, through reading the Gospels, and meeting Jesus in his people, in our neighbors, especially the poor and all those in need, beginning with the members of our own families.  

Sisters and brothers, we’ve gathered here today to celebrate Christmas, to celebrate the greatest event in human history, to celebrate the turning point and fulcrum of history.  Some people see the 18th century as the climax of history, as the birth of the modern world, as the turning point of history. Everything before the 18th century they consider as dark and medieval, and everything after that as merely participating in progress and modernity. But today, Christians everywhere around globe say with a strong voice “Heck No!” Yes, the 18th century did give us many good things. There were great political and scientific revolutions in that century, but it is not the fulcrum of history. It is not the turning point of human history. The turning point and fulcrum of human history is the birth of Jesus Christ. The climax of history is that time, that moment when God became man, a human being, when the divinity invaded our space. That’s truly amazing! If this doesn’t shock you, something is wrong somewhere. 

Merry Christmas, everybody!