On Christmas Eve, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel received the servants and chanters of the Patriarchal Cathedral at the Patriarchal Residence, who had announced the birth of Lord Jesus Christ. On this occasion, His Beatitude explained that the Saviour Christ heals and forgives sins through humble obedience.
The Humility of Divine Omnipotence
“This feast of the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ shows us the humility of divine omnipotence. It is the greatest miracle of the humility of the almighty God: the One invisible becomes visible, the One infinite becomes contained in the womb of the Virgin, in the cave and manger of Bethlehem.”
“This descent of God to earth, through the conception by the Holy Spirit and from the Virgin Mary, and through the birth of Christ from the Virgin Mary, aims to elevate humans to eternal heavenly life,” explained the Patriarch of Romania.
Humble Obedience
His Beatitude also emphasized the importance of the obedience and humility of the Saviour Christ in the economy of salvation.
“Christ, through humble obedience to God the Father, heals the disobedience of our ancestors, Adam and Eve.”
“The New Adam, obedient to death, and even death on the cross, through humble obedience, Jesus Christ heals from disobedience and grants forgiveness of sins because disobedience is the sin from which all other sins derive. He heals mankind from the sin of disobedience and grants it eternal life through His resurrection from the dead.”
On this occasion, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel stressed that the humility of the Saviour should be a model for all humanity.
“It is very important for us to see that this humility of Christ is the beginning of healing man from pride and self-sufficiency, from the desire to be like God, without God, which Adam and Eve showed through their disobedience.”
“The Mother of God is called the New Eve, who said, when the angel explained that the Child would be born through divine work: ‘Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word.’ This perfect obedience of the Mother of God shows that from her would be born a Son, and He, too, obedient, even obedient to death on the cross.”
God Initiated Our Salvation
His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel also spoke about the particularities of the Dismissal of the Nativity feast, which emphasizes that the coming of the Savior into the world was done freely.
“The Dismissal of this feast shows that Jesus was born in the cave beneath the earth and then laid in the manger. Surprisingly, the Orthodox liturgical text does not say He was ‘born,’ as with an ordinary man, nor that He was ‘laid’ in the manger, but ‘He was born’ and ‘He laid Himself’ in the manger.”
“Why is the reflexive used instead of the passive? To show that God the Word is the subject who performs the action. That He, freely, accepted to be crucified, and freely accepted to be buried, therefore, freely, He rose from the dead.”
“This emphasis on the work of the Person of the eternal Son of God, in His humanity or through His humanity, shows that God took the initiative for this salvation,” added His Beatitude.
Congratulations to the Cathedral Servants
In conclusion, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel congratulated the servants of the Patriarchal Cathedral for maintaining the liturgical schedule and for the missionary work done through carols.
“We congratulate you for the missionary work you have carried out, with all the services during the Nativity Fast, but also for the missionary work accomplished through carols.”
“A multitude of carols have reached cities, villages, and even the Parliament, and this Romanian tradition shows the beauty of the Romanian soul, its gentleness and creativity, the adornment of the soul with the joy of Christ’s humble and merciful love,” said the Patriarch of Romania.
Photo: Basilica.ro / Raluca Ene
