I was born in my parents' home. This was common practice in my village half a century ago. I don't know who else was present in the room with my mother and the midwife. I'm not sure if my father was in the room or in an adjoining room waiting for the birth. When I think about who the people who first saw me with their own eyes were, I can say my mother and Helena, the midwife. After them, my father, and some close relatives who were able to come and help.

I thought about the circumstances of my birth when pondering the solemnity of the birth of the Lord. I was thinking about the people who first saw this unique newborn child, true God and true man. Following the story of the birth of the Lord in the gospels we can review the list of people who saw the Lord immediately upon his arrival in this world.

The first people to see the child God were his most holy parents. The Blessed Virgin, who carried him in her immaculate womb for nine months, now saw him with her own eyes. This child was "God's Word made flesh." St. Joseph, who had seen Mary's womb grow during this time, now also saw the Son of God and son of Mary with his own eyes. These two exceptional human beings saw God made man before all other mortals by a special grace that God gave them. Between the two, Mary was the most exceptional. She had been preserved from original sin. The holiness of the blessed Mother is unique. God also gave a lesser special grace to St. Joseph to be the adoptive father of his Son.

The second group of people who saw the baby Jesus were the shepherds. It was to them that God first announced the news of the birth of his Son. An angel went to the field where they were tending their flocks and told them the great news. The shepherds believed and hurried to meet this heavenly creature. Shepherding in Israel was among the humblest occupations. Many important Israelite figures were shepherds: Moses, King David.

The third group of people who saw the baby Jesus were the wise men from the East. They did not belong to the people of Israel. Far from where the baby Jesus was born, they saw a star and followed it, believing they would find a new king.

I would like to highlight three qualities that these three groups of people make observable. First, I want to highlight the dignity or pride of the saints. The most holy saints, especially the Blessed Virgin Mary, are the pride of humanity. By divine design, Mary was exalted to the original dignity of humanity. She was created free of sin as God initially created human beings. Therefore, she was the first to come into literal contact with God, the first eyes to see the splendor of God made man.

Secondly, I would like to emphasize the word “encouragement”. Humble Christians, who are the saints after the Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph, encourage us by their example to live the Christian life and thus also see God, to be in communion with Him.

Third and last, I would like to emphasize the word "hope." The wise men from the East represent Gentiles, all of humanity. The God of Israel is the true God, the God of all peoples of the earth. The Son of God came to save everyone, not just a few. The wise men from the East were brought into the presence of the true King of the universe, a newborn child, by divine initiative.

Just as the celebration of the birth of the Lord attracts us and the manger invites us to approach the baby Jesus, so too do we carry in our hearts that attraction to heaven, to immortality, to eternal life. The virtue that stands out during this solemnity is humility. Especially the humility of God. Humility is also the virtue that we must cultivate throughout our lives to one day have access to heaven, just like the shepherds of Bethlehem.

Let us humbly ask the baby Jesus to grant us his grace to be humble, and to be able to see him in this world around us. May this divine child grant us that grace that we so long for, to see his face and be happy seeing his glory. Merry Christmas!