"There was no room..."  Over and over I have pondered these words, "there was no room."  No room for the "Wonder-Counselor, God-Hero, Prince of Peace! (Isaiah 9:5).  No room for the Incarnate Son of God!  How can this be?  I look at nativity scene after nativity scene in all shapes, sizes, and styles and they point to one fact, there was no room.  Do we have room for him in our busy, active, and sometimes compartmentalized lives?  If we say that we do, then we must come to understand that there being no room in the inn was of the design of God.  Making room for him will mean making no room for what others may think is important and essential. As Pope Benedict in his recent book, Jesus of Nazareth: The Infancy Narratives, notes,

"This [no room for them in the inn] should cause us to reflect - it points toward the reversal of values found in the figure of Jesus Christ and his message.  From the moment of his birth, he belongs outside of the realm of what is important and powerful in worldly terms.  Yet it is this unimportant and powerless child that proves to be the truly powerful one, the one on whom ultimately everything depends.  So one aspect of becoming a Christian is having to leave behind what everyone thinks and wants, the prevailing standards, in order to enter the light of truth of our being, and aided by that light to find the right path" (66-67).

As we enter into the Christmas season reflecting tonight and beyond on "the one on whom ultimately everything depends," Jesus Christ, may I invite you to make room for him even more in your life and to help others make room for him in theirs.

On behalf of the entire Catholic Apostolate Center team, I wish you a blessed Christmas.  Please know that you and your loved ones will be remembered in Mass on Christmas day.

May the charity of Christ urge you on!

In God, the Infinite Love,