Christmas Mass at Dawn Year B
Isaiah 62:11-12
Psalm 97:1, 6, 11-12
Titus 3:4-7
Luke 2:15-20
The Christmas Liturgy offers four distinct Masses: The Vigil Mass, Mass During the Night (traditionally called “Midnight Mass”), Mass at Dawn and Mass During the Day.
The readings assigned to each of these express a movement from the promise of Jesus’ ancestry, through the events of Christmas night and daybreak, to the deep meaning of the Incarnation of the Word made flesh. Most parishes opt to use the readings of the Mass During the Night for most of the Christmas Masses. Often there are several Vigils and only one Mass on Christmas Day.
The readings of the Mass at Dawn have a wonderful message that is worth our reflection. We join the shepherds as they journey to Bethlehem to see what the angels had proclaimed. They seek the sign foretold and share the news they heard from the angels: “So they went in haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known the message that had been told them about this child.”
What is told to Mary and Joseph then becomes something that Mary ponders in her heart: “Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart.” The shepherds return to their fields, full of joy, “glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, just as it had been told to them.”
The message about Who the Child is and how heaven has made known to the humblest of persons is now proclaimed for us. We are invited to allow it to enter our hearts and to bring it to our own experience of life in this world. With Mary, we ponder in our hearts all that we have heard. With the shepherds, we return to our own homes and lives and glorify God.
Paul expresses to Titus the deeper meaning of the Christmas message: “He saved us through the bath of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he richly poured out on us through Jesus Christ our savior, so that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life.”
The message of Christmas includes not only the Word of God becoming man, dwelling among us, but also the gift of salvation that would be accomplished through Jesus Christ. Christmas fulfills Isaiah’s promise: “See, the Lord proclaims to the ends of the earth: say to daughter Zion, your savior comes!”
The Incarnation and the Redemption are given to us in the Child born in Bethlehem. Although we often see Christmas as a feast for children, in truth, we are called to acknowledge that it holds a deep meaning for us at every age. “A light will shine on us this day: the Lord is born for us.”
We may see what occurs through the eyes of little ones, but when we ponder in our hearts what is being offered, something more happens in the depths of our spirit.
Even in a culture that sets aside religious faith and denies the existence of a benevolent God, this season is experienced as a time for human beings to acknowledge our solidarity with one another.
Men and women of every background can be caught up in the spirit of giving and of concern for those who are less fortunate. There is a light that shines on in the darkness, a truth that is received into hearts that we might not understand. All are called to ponder the reason for the season.
Christmas Day begins an Octave, observed on the Solemnity of Mary, the mother of God, eight days of reflection and prayer concerning the Mystery of the Incarnation. This continues with the “12 Days” of Christmas that carry us to Epiphany, traditionally Jan. 6, but observed on the Sunday after the Solemnity of Mary.
The formal end to the Christmas season is the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, this year on a Monday. For those who are strong, the spirit of Christmas may be kept along with many religious orders until Feb. 2, the Feast of the Presentation. Let us who do acknowledge the coming of Christ in the flesh live this season fully.