Photo by Michael Alexander

The celebration of Christmas is approaching and one might ask, what is the perfect time for Christmas? Why do we celebrate it?

On Christmas we celebrate the birth of the Savior. Yet the era when the infant Jesus was born was not perfect at all. It was a time of much uncertainty, tension and confusion.

So, was it the perfect time for the Savior to be born? Yes, it was precisely the right time because the arrival of God made man brings hope to a world without hope and love to a world immersed in loneliness and offers peace to a world poisoned with hate and violence.

Both in that time when Jesus was born and in our time, His presence and His Gospel are not dated. They are still alive because experiencing our daily life as one among us but without sin, He offers to open our hearts to hope.

We all dream and pray for a better world, a world in peace, but do we pursue peace on our own terms or according to the Gospel of the Lord?

To create the world that Jesus offers us, we first have to let Him change our selfish hearts and help us recognize our imperfections. Then we realize that mercy and love only dwell where there is great humility.

Christmas invites us to a daily conversion of love and hope. Allowing Jesus to be born in our hearts, which is our personal conversion, is a priority, a necessity, if we want to see a world where peace reigns. Then, with Mary, we will proclaim the greatness of the Lord forever.

This is the perfect time to hear the call of the Christ Child. He is seeking shelter in our hearts because He cannot come into the world without first finding a place within us.

A blessed Christmas is the wish of Jesus for each one of us. May we be transformed into a living manger for the Christ Child to give to our families, communities, cities and the world a new year full of love.