One day, when I was in Tsinga, Cameroun, I passed through the local market behind Mosquée de Tsinga, going to play football in Carrière. Then, I saw an untidy place made of wood with many animal feces that caused a pungent smell. It was a goat pen.

That scene at the Tsinga market brings me to imagine what the sheepfold looks like, where the sweet Baby was born. Imagine, the untidy place with many animal faces, the filthy place becomes the birthplace of The Son of God, The Savior of the world, and The Bringer of joy and smiles on our sweet faces.

Why was He born in the sheepfold? Why did He like to choose an untidy place? The key answer in the Gospel of Luke tells us that Mary and Joseph didn’t find some guest rooms available for them (cf. Luk 2:1-7). Thus, we can understand simply that God doesn’t create any drama with the birth of His son; it is a consequence of coming and living in the history of humanity.

Thousands of years later, the Second Vatican Council (cf. Lumen Gentium Art. 6) gives us also an understanding that a sweet Baby who was born in the sheepfold becomes the Good Shepherd and the Prince of the shepherds (cf. Jn 10:11; 1Pt 5:4) who gives His life for the sheep (cf. Jn 10:11-15). As a Good Shepherd, when one of His sheep gets lost, He tries His best to find it. When He finds it, He is happier and full of joy (cf. Luk 15:3-7; Mat 18:12-14).

Bring Joy to the World

The sweet Baby who was born in an untidy place is named Jesus. His name is always praised in the history of mankind. We believe that He is the center of our history of salvation (cf. Eloa,  2014). In Hebrew, the name “Jesus” means “God saves”. That name was given by the angel Gabriel during the annunciation. This name expresses both His identity and His mission (cf. CCC 430).

Theologian Hans Urs von Balthasar—as quoted by Andreas B. Atawolo—said that “Jesus is God’s mission”. The mission started from His birth and culminated with His death on the cross. So, we cannot separate the events of Jesus’s birth and His death. The two events become a single identity. (cf. Atawolo, 2022).

Then, what is Jesus’s mission? Bernard Sesboüé states strongly in his book L’Église et la liberté: Jesus of Nazareth, recognized also as Messiah, comes to heal a man of his evil and restore in him the gift of freedom. He comes to free humanity from the servitude and confinement of sin and to bring to His people a deeper and new liberation (cf. Sesboüé, 2019).

His mission of releasing humanity from sin occurred not only at the cross but also throughout His life. He shows us real examples. The synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) report two scenes where Jesus formally says to a sinner: Your sins are forgiven. These are the healing of the paralytic (cf. Mt 9:1-9; Mk 2:1-12; Lk 5:17-26) and the sinner who came to Simon the Pharisee (cf. Lk 7:36-50). He also invites the sinners, sits, and eats with them (cf. Luk 7:49). All of His missions had a lovely ending on the cross (cf. Sesboüé, 1994).

Moreover, as human beings with all our weaknesses, we can’t save ourselves . Therefore, we need someone more powerful than us that can free us from sin. We find that person in the presence of Baby Jesus who was born in a manger.

The Baby Jesus’ crying from the manger broke the silence of Bethlehem and brought joy to His parents. Then, Jesus also brings joy to the world by living in our history and rescuing us from our darkness. He becomes a good shepherd who fights for us when we are lost.  As a good shepherd, He will descend to search for the lost sheep until they are found. Isn’t that the caring love that brings happiness and joy in the world?

The final reflection of the sheepfold in the mystery of salvation carried out by the Baby Jesus ends with the reflection that His coming into the world, living in human history, and His work for salvation is the proof of His great love for humanity. That great love was emphasized by Pope Francis in December 2021 at Paul VI Audience Hall: “This is the reason for joy: we are always loved first by God, with a love so concrete that He took on flesh and came to live in our midst, in that Baby that we see in the Nativity scene”. (*)

*This article has been published in CIFA INFO: Sengkang, Nando. “Baby Jesus Brings Joy to The World.” CIFA INFO No. 25, Desember, 2024.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

 Catechism of the Catholic Church Lumen Gentium

Atawolo Andreas B, Allah Trinitas: Misteri Persekutuan Kasih, OBOR, Jakarta, 2022.

Eloa Jean Linzenge, Jésus Christ à l’épreuve du monde, Comprendre et vivre la foi chrétienne, Masseu, Yaoundé, 2014.

Sesboüé Bernard, L’Église et la liberté, Éditions Salvator, Paris, 2019.

———————, Pédagogie du Christ : Eléments de christologie fondamentale, Les éditions du Cerf, Paris, 1994.

https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/audiences/2021/documents/papafrancesco_20211222_udienza-generale.html (Uploaded on 16 November 2024).