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December 23, 2010
Redemptorist Superior General Michael Brehl reflects in his Christmas message on the way Jesus’ coming among us as a human being changes how we see God and each other:
The mystery of Christmas teaches us that compassion is not pity that looks down on those in need from a position of strength and superiority. Rather, compassion is the recognition of our mutual vulnerability that responds through love in concrete situations.
God responds through the Incarnation: Jesus embraces our humanity and mutual vulnerability and brings Good News to the poor. I believe that this is why devotion to the Infant Jesus was so important for Alphonsus. In the Babe of Bethlehem, he recognized the vulnerability of God who shares our humanity in order to redeem us.
Following Jesus, and embracing our shared vulnerability with him, we are also called “to evangelize and be evangelized by the poor.” As Constitution 19 reminds us, “whoever follows Christ, the perfect human being, becomes more human.” In this spirit, we will seek and find new ways to bring Good News to the abandoned and the poor.
You can read his entire message here.