Peace this Christmas
Some world leaders will do just about everything to stay in power. North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un has been concocting all kinds of military strategies to hold on to power by making his existence visible to the rest of the world. But will he succeed? One who does not have a heart is bound to fail. Are nations threatened by all his innuendos to start a nuclear war? The North Korean minister has a big head and equally big is his dream to conquer the world. He may not be aware that our patron Señor Sto. Niño holds the world in His hands.
An inspirational book summarizes biblical Samuel’s wisdom… “When God measures a man, He puts the tape around the heart instead of the head.” I think Miss Universe Pia Wurztbach won the title because of her answer: that she was “confidently beautiful with a heart.”
Everything must start from the heart then down to the hands which executes what the heart wishes to do. My paternal grandmother used to prod me to write with my mind then rewrite with my heart.
Robotic surgery enables a heart surgeon to do the job of repairing a person’s heart without incision. I am awed by such medical discovery. What is even more awesome is how God can mend a broken heart. We can initiate the healing but mending comes in God’s time.
It is traditional among Filipinos to rearrange furniture to provide a spot where we intend to place our Christmas tree. We change our curtains to conform with our motif this season. We decorate our houses so it would look festive. A prelate in last Sunday’s TV mass said that in the advent of the Christmas season, we should start looking inward and not devote so much time and effort in holiday trimmings. He encouraged the Catholic faithful in attendance of the Eucharistic celebration to “fix” their lives. We know that when it comes to introspection, there is no quick fix. It is a painstaking process.
We can start by being mindful of who we are as a Catholic nation. There is so much vindictiveness going on. Is there room in our hearts for forgiveness? We have to constantly remind ourselves that we are the reason for Christ’s first coming. The left hand of Señor Sto. Niño has two fingers signifying peace. This advent, could we heed the call of the celebrant?