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Good morning.  Silent Night is one of the world's most popular Christmas carols. Composed in the 19th century, the story is told that this carol may owe its existence to the fact that the organ was not working in a small village church in Austria. So the priest gave a Christmas poem he had written to the organist who set it to music which could be played on a guitar at midnight mass. Since that time, this carol has been recorded by many artists and sung in churches and cathedrals across the world.   Perhaps it has become so popular because the words capture something of the simplicity of the story of Christmas…the idea that God would choose to come among people and to come in human form.  The last verse points to the magnitude of such an event with these words: Silent Night, Holy Night,Son of God loves pure lightRadiant beams from thy holy faceWith the dawn of redeeming grace
I suppose many of us may want to think of God being revealed as the almighty, all-powerful one. Yet, Christian faith teaches that God came to earth as a baby, and was born among the poor. The story of a baby in a manger depicted in nativity plays reminds us of God’s humility.  What is striking about the story of the birth of Jesus is not simply that he was born as a baby or in a barn, but that God chose to come without great fanfare to be among ordinary people. This is not a God over us, but Emmanuel, God, one with us. Prayer: Humble God, we thank you for your willingness to come among us. Teach us your humility and give us the courage to live in the light of your love and to share it with others this day. Amen