Issue 52.09
As I write this, it’s a week before Christmas. Most of us are still scurrying around to purchase those final gifts for family and friends. As I reflect on the meaning and sacredness of this holy season, my mind turns towards the spiritual gifts that Christmas offers us.
One thought that keeps running through my mind is: The best Christmas gifts are unseen. We don’t find them under the tree or in “the stockings hung by the chimney with care.” What are the intangible gifts of Christmas?
The birth of Jesus at Bethlehem created a spiritual shift in the universe and the gift of a new spirit was born in humanity. This birth changed our relationship to God. Through the birth of the Christ child, God expressed unlimited love and compassion for all of humanity. The gift of this divine love fills us with joy as a new spirit is born in us. We become aware that we are loved unconditionally by God.
God loves us as His sons and daughters. Living into the spiritual truth that we are one family in God, we experience the gift of peace. As we practice the spiritual truths of Oneness and being one family in our daily lives, then “Peace on Earth, Goodwill to all” can become a reality for us.
With the birth of the Christ child, a new spirit is born in our hearts. May the light of that first Christmas morning shine in our hearts where Christ is born in us today. May all beings be filled with light and love. And may all hearts be open and receptive to God’s gifts.
These invisible gifts of Christmas are good reason for all of us to sing out:
“Joy to the World! The Lord is come. Let every heart prepare Him room, and heaven and nature sing… the wonders of His Love.”
Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Luigi Persichetti is the chaplain for Southern Utah Home Care and Hospice and the minister of the Unity Church of Positive Living in St. George.