When you think of Christmas Day, the image that comes to mind likely is a placid, peaceful baby Jesus in the manger and Mary and Joseph praying, perhaps the shepherds and some livestock nearby, the star overhead.
And if that is as far as you go with your vision of Christmas, you’re missing the point.
Father Ramel, a missionary priest and pastor of a neighboring parish, rocked my world today at our final Simbang Gabi 5 a.m. Mass. Enough already with focusing on the infant, he in essence said, because there’s something bigger, something fiercer to remember.
“Behind the sweet baby, there is a passionate God,” he said. “This is not about a passive, seductive baby… this is about a driving force on God’s 
part to be with us.” Father Ramel talked of God’s “plain, unadulterated raw passion” for us, his people, and his overwhelming desire to be with us, regardless of how imperfect and flawed we may be. “He loves us, and the object of all love is reunion,” he said, and that, more than a lovely infant, is what Christmas is about.
That’s not to say we ignored the infant, of course. Most of us lined up to kiss images of the baby Jesus before the sending forth, reminiscent of the way we venerate the cross on Good Friday. And then, it was one last time for “Ang Pasko Ay Sumapit/Christmas Is Coming” (this version will give you an idea of how it sounds, but we’re much louder and a bit more uptempo when we sing it), one last gathering for breakfast, and a visit by Santa.
As I left for work, I thought of my Advent takeaways. At the top of the list is spending more time meditating over Scripture instead of reading it with a lick and a promise. Today’s homily and another during Simbang Gabi about Joseph painted scenes and raised possibilities I’d never considered. I’ll never look at a nativity scene the same way again. And for that gift and so much more, I’ll be getting up at 4 a.m. for nine days again next December for this joy of a novena.
