Homily on the Immaculate and Divine Nativity of Our Great God and Savior Jesus Christ
(For the Sunday After Christmas)
By St. Neophytos the Recluse
(For the Sunday After Christmas)
By St. Neophytos the Recluse
We all know, of course, we know that this visible sun sends forth its light to the whole inhabited world, “and there is no one who can hide from its warmth,” nor from its most radiant brilliance. Yet many times its shining rays are covered by clouds and mist, or by the foliage of trees; and yet again, the breath of a wind disperses that cloudy covering and the mist, allowing the luminous rays to spread clearly throughout all creation.
But the Sun before the sun, the intelligible “Sun of Righteousness,” who was born today from the “swift cloud,” from the light-bearing, sunlike, and all-pure womb in a wondrous manner, is covered by the “form of a servant,” by infant swaddling clothes, and by the poor cave — and, according to the divine economy, by certain other things as well, which symbolize poverty and humility.
Yet, as has already been said, just as the breath and force of the wind scatter the covering of cloud and mist and reveal clearly the sun’s rays, so it happens here also with the “Sun of Righteousness,” God and Master, who is wrapped in swaddling clothes and hidden in a cave and in a manger of irrational animals, because of His great condescension and “because of the excess of His goodness.” The cooperating All-Holy Spirit and the good pleasure of the Father clearly reveal this sun and God who is hidden in the manger, and they move all creation — visible and invisible — to hasten forth and proclaim the King of glory and Creator of all, who lies hidden in a cave and a manger, wrapped in swaddling clothes. There the Magi from the East came without hesitation, bearing precious gifts, to offer them and to worship Him faithfully.
And not only they, but angels also descended from heaven and melodiously cried out to the “God in the highest” and the Peacemaker “on earth,” announcing the reconciliation of God with mankind, which He accomplished by the good pleasure of the Father. They rendered to Him, as their King, the fitting acclamation, and they clearly revealed the King who was still hidden, proclaiming Him to the nearby shepherds, as was fitting for them, as “the great Shepherd of the sheep.” “For unto you,” he says, “is born this day a Savior, who is Christ the Lord, in the city of David. And this shall be a sign unto you: you shall find a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.”
When the shepherds heard these things, “they said to one another, ‘Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing which the Lord has made known to us.’ And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the babe lying in the manger; and when they had seen Him, they made it known” to the people, “and they returned, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.”
Why, then, is the One who lies hidden as an infant in a cave and a manger proclaimed and magnified by heaven and earth? It is clear that this is done to make known to all creation that this Child has authority over all things visible and invisible, and that He is the King of glory.
For this very reason, all creation, according to the law of nature, stood still in reverence before that wondrous and ineffable birth, so that the flows of rivers, the outpourings of springs, the movements of the seas, the flights of birds, the journeys of men, reptiles, beasts, and four-footed animals — in short, all nature and creation, heavenly and earthly — “stood still and were astonished and ceased,” interrupting for a moment their motion and activity, until the mystery of that wondrous and ineffable birth was completed, as the history concerning these things clearly testifies to us.
And I accept this and believe it readily and am persuaded of it, because it is inconceivable that at the moment when so great a work is being accomplished, something else should dare to take place or even to move in the slightest degree. Rather, all things were immobilized together, as though released for a moment from the law of nature, rational and irrational, visible and invisible, reverencing as servants their Master. For it says: “You have founded the earth, and it remains, for all things are Your servants.” Since, therefore, “all things are His servants” and sensed the great work of their Lord, the salvation of the world, each of the creatures stood unmoved until that divine work was completed; and after this, creation continued its activity in its proper order.
Indeed, “the heavens were amazed at this, and the ends of the earth were astonished,” “for unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son of God is given, whose government is upon His shoulder; and of His peace there is no end; and His name shall be called the Angel of Great Counsel, Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Ruler, Prince of Peace, Father of the age to come.”
He is called “Angel” because He bears from God the Father reconciling gospels, that is, good and joyful tidings of reconciliation and peace between God and men; through divine Baptism, tidings of adoption; liberation of our nature from wicked bondage; the complete abolition of death; the merciless banishment of the devil; the binding of the tyranny of demons; the resurrection of the long-dead; and the bestowal of new and great mysteries. And not only these, but also the promises of the Kingdom of Heaven and the granting of an immortal inheritance to those who have lived well. In these gospels the mystery of the blameless faith is preserved, the seal of the thrice-holy God; and He brought tidings of many other great gifts and awesome mysteries, of which He Himself became both the Giver and the Teacher. Thus, and rightly so, He is called the “Angel of Great Counsel,” divine and active.
He is called “Wonderful Counselor” because He exists “before the ages and in the beginning” together with the Father and the co-eternal Spirit, being of the same nature as They. His Counselor is the “Great Counsel,” the Father and God. And what did He counsel? Clearly, to create the invisible and visible world and all the adornments within them, and man, and that all things should be sustained and held together through Him, so that the universe might endure and be preserved in the best way. He did not do this without counsel, nor did the Father command Him imperiously to create the world and man within it, but, consulting wondrously with this Wonderful Counselor and Beloved Son, He said: “Let Us make man in Our image and according to Our likeness” — that is, an earthly god and ruler, who by virtue of free will bears the image of God, and according to likeness, that is, immortal, and, as far as possible for man, capable through virtue of becoming like God. Truly, then, “all things were made through Him,” the Wonderful Counselor, “and without Him was made nothing that was made,” as it is written.
“Mighty God” openly proclaims the power of the divine nature; for there are also pagan so-called gods, but they are not mighty. Therefore, when you hear that “a Child is born and given to us,” do not suppose that this Child is merely an ordinary child, equal to others, but understand that this Child is also the Wonderful Counselor of God the Father. “And of His peace there is no end,” as has already been said; for this Child possesses an unlimited and boundless wealth of peace together with His Father and the Spirit.
“Father of the age to come” reveals the creative and unoriginate nature of this Child who is born. Just as one who becomes the father of many children is the cause of their formation and birth, so this Child who is born is the Creator and Begetter of all creatures, the ruler and father and leader of the seven passing ages and of the boundless eighth; therefore He is called the “Father of the age to come.”
“For unto us a Child is born” today and is wrapped in swaddling clothes — He who long ago wrapped the sea in mist.
“For unto us a Child is born,” whose beginning is without beginning and whose end has no end.
“For unto us a Child is born,” who holds all things together as His servants; therefore they serve Him as servants, acclaim Him, and offer Him gifts: the Magi and the star, the angels and the shepherds, the cave and the manger, the Virgin Mother in a supernatural manner, and Joseph the betrothed carpenter, appearing as the father of the Craftsman of all. Absent, however, from that honored, wondrous, and virginal birth is the attendance of midwives; for where the Virgin becomes a mother by the overshadowing of the power of the Most High, midwives are not needed. These things, and others equal to them, clearly revealed the divine sovereignty and omnipotence of the newborn Child.
“For unto us a Child is born” of the holy Virgin without a father — He who was born “from the womb before the morning star” of the Father without a mother.
“For unto us a Child is born,” the Judge of the living and the dead.
“For unto us a Child is born,” and today He revealed the pre-eternal mystery, and thus was perfectly fulfilled that which the Prophets of old perceived “in many portions and in many ways;” for they foretold that “out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem,” and that “God shall come from Teman,” and that “out of Zion is the splendor of His beauty,” and that “a rod shall come forth from the root of Jesse,” and the like.
“For unto us a Child is born,” whose birth was revealed to the Magi, the kings of the Persians, who came guided by the star to worship Him—those whom Holy Scripture long ago called the Sabaeans, saying: “Men of stature, the Sabaeans, shall pass over to you and worship, saying, ‘God is in you, and there is no God besides you.’” These men came, worshiped Him, and, theologizing, offered Him gifts: gold, because He is King; frankincense, because He is God; and myrrh for His immaculate Passion—the outcome of which was completed by Joseph and Nicodemus, when after the Passion they buried that life-giving Body with a hundred pounds of myrrh and aloes.
“For unto us a Child is born,” who now lies in the manger — He who holds the sphere of the earth in His hand and sustains all creation with divine majesty and ease.
And to conclude briefly, omitting many things: “For unto us a Child is born” — the Savior of the world, the healer of diseases, the destroyer of demons, the abolisher of idols and altars, the eradicator of diabolical sacrifices and profane smoke, the eternal binder of the tyrannical apostasy of the devil, and the initiator of the universal resurrection of the dead.
Who has ever seen or heard of such a Child — lying in a manger, wrapped in swaddling clothes, and holding all things in His palm; calling the waters of the sea to the heights and pouring them out wherever He wills; resting in a manger and at the same time using the cherubim as His chariot; being nourished with milk by a Virgin Mother and yet “sending forth springs of waters in the valleys”; being held in virginal arms and yet securely holding the universe? “O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!” as the divine Paul exclaims. O wondrous marvel, newer than all that is old or new! O divine providence and extreme condescension! How did the infinite Word and Son of God the Father willingly limit Himself within the form of a servant? How did the One who is by nature incorporeal clothe Himself with a body? How did He who is invisible even to angels appear? How did the Creator of the immortal powers condescend to put on flesh? How did He who possesses the incomparable wealth of divinity and bestows rich gifts come to the utmost poverty? For what could be poorer than a stable, a manger, and a cave? How was the Invisible wondrously seen? How did the Most High descend? How did the heavenly One will to dwell among us who are lowly? How did He who is surrounded by hosts of radiant angels come to converse with men? How did He who “wraps Himself with light as with a garment” wrap Himself in humble swaddling clothes? How did the all-pure One descend to us who lie in the pit and corruption of destructive passions?
Why, for what reason, did this incomprehensible and great condescension take place? It is clear to those who wish to examine the power of the mystery; I will explain it briefly with an image. Just as someone who has fallen into a very deep and muddy pit cannot climb out by himself but needs a hand from above to draw him up, so it happened with our nature: grievously burdened by the fall into the pit of transgression and lying in the abyss of Hades, it needed a most powerful hand to pull it out. And since no hand of a fellow servant had such power, from above, from the divine heights, there was stretched forth “the all-powerful right hand,” which, as the paternal right hand, not only drew up those who had fallen into that pit, but also “by the multitude of its glory and power crushed the adversaries,” as it is written; and by supernaturally taking up our nature which had been cast down there, it led it up to the heavens and seated it on the throne at the right hand of the Father, making it worthy to be worshiped by all creation. And calling us there, He said: “If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also.” Likewise the blessed Paul exhorts us: “Seek the things above, set your mind on the things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God the Father.”
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
