There is a game we sometimes play during idle moments called “What if?’ What if I hadn’t gone to that party where I met my future spouse? What would my life be like now? What if I had really applied myself in school? Where would I be today? What if I had been born rich instead of poor? Would life have been less of a struggle? We could also play that same “What if?” game with the story of Christmas. What if there had been room in the inn? What if Jesus have been born in a big city like Jerusalem instead of a little town called Bethlehem? What if the first visitors to the crib had been rabbis instead of shepherds? Would any of that have made a difference? The more I have reflected on St. Luke’s account of the birth of Jesus, the more I am convinced that every detail is there for a purpose. Let me share with you just a few details that I think are important.

Let us start with the inn? What is an inn for? It is for people passing through, those who do not plan to remain very long. In fact, if you look at the fine print on hotel reservation forms, you will often see a statement that says, “maximum stay 30 days.” An inn is not for people moving in. It is for people who are moving on. If you are planning to become a permanent resident, then you rent an apartment or go to a residential hotel. An inn is for travelers, for strangers, for people who do not plan to form ties with the community. When Jesus took human flesh, though, he was planning to stay right here. His name is “Emmanuel,” or “God with us.” He came to know us and love us and take up residence in our heart. He came to join his divinity to our humanity. So, it would not have helped if Joseph had called ahead for a reservation, Jesus was not to be born in a place where travelers lodge.

What about that awful place in which he was born, a cave surrounded by animals? Scripture says that Mary wrapped the baby in cloth bands and placed him in a manger. That sounds nice until we realize what a manger is. It is a feeding trough for animals. She laid God right in the straw where animals had been feeding and slobbering. Luke’s point is not to expose Mary and Joseph for bad parenting. Jesus was placed in a food trough because he came as food for us, to nourish us, to feed our deepest hungers, well beyond our daily bread. He came to show us how to live in the world, how to love one another, and to open for us a new way to know God. The name Bethlehem means, “The House of Bread.” Jesus would later say, “I am the bread of life. I am the true bread come down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever.” So, he had to be born in Bethlehem, the house of bread.

Many people were expecting a messiah who would liberate them from Roman Rule, someone with an army, someone who would do battle with the Roman Legions who kept the peace and crushed every attempt at a revolt. What kind of army did God send? An army of angels who announced “peace on earth and good will to all.” Jesus would offer us peace, but a different kind of peace than what the world offers. His peace would grow from the inside and not be imposed from the outside. His strategy was to capture us by love and not by force.

Why are those shepherds important? Well, the angels announced that God had good news for all the people. Shepherds appear often in the Bible because of their special relationship with their sheep; but in Jesus’ time they fell toward the bottom of the social ladder. Shepherding was not a very prestigious job, being outside for long periods of time. God was trying to make a point by inviting the people at the bottom. The people at the bottom are the ones who are often left behind or left out. By inviting shepherds, God was reinforcing the point that, yes, everyone was welcome at the crib, even those Kings or Wise Men or Magicians whoever they were from the East. They were not schooled in the Jewish Scriptures. They were just seekers of truth, and willing to pursue truth wherever it led them. Those who do not seem important in the eyes of the world, those who do not seem to fit in: they matter a lot to God.

That brings us back to ourselves. When we play the “What if” game we often end up dreaming about how much better our life could have been. Maybe one of the lessons of Christmas is that God is very deliberate. Jesus was born at a particular time and place for a reason and so were we. God is counting on us to bring peace and good will to our little corner of the world and to love the people that God has placed in our life.  On behalf of our Servite Community and the staff at Assumption, have a very Blessed Christmas.

                                                                              Fr. Joe