From Heaven to Bethlehem with St. Ignatius

Let us begin our Advent journey with this quotation by St. Thomas Aquinas:

On this day, in churches of every country of the earth, devout Catholics of every walk of life gather around the crib to adore their infant Savior. All, even the least educated, believe that the Christ-Child who was born nineteen centuries ago and Whose birth the Church commemorates anew each year is at the same time both God and man. All profess belief in the formula: "Jesus Christ is true God and true Man," and, indeed, this is all that our faith demands of us. (St. Thomas Aquinas, in McDonald, James, OP)

At the start of our journey through Advent, we will review the Catechism. All of the truths of our faith are learned from the book of the Catechism. Some of us remember the Baltimore Catechism which was used until the late 1960’s. In this book, the current Catechism is quoted. No matter what version is used, this is the standard for teaching the foundations of our faith. The phrase “cradle Catholics” refers to people who were taught from early childhood about their faith. Now in this book, we will start with the cradle of Jesus.

In the Nicene Creed, we pray, “I believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages…begotten not made.” It is here that we begin the great journey of coming to understand Who is this Babe Who was sent from heaven? The phrase “only-begotten" is very difficult, and we must go to the origin of the word. In modern English, to “beget” is to become the father of.  In the early translations, all through the Old Testament, we hear the word begat, but now in the New American Bible and most newer versions, we read, “Jacob became the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary” (Matt.1:16).  

So Jesus Christ is God’s only-begotten Son. Begetting, being the father of a child has the meaning of pouring life into another. The Father was with the Son from all eternity, born of the Father before all ages. Christ was eternally begotten of the Father, and Jesus was his only-begotten Son, born of Mary.  Jesus Himself points to His eternal nature: “Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM," (Jn. 8:58). In saying I AM, Jesus was referring to Himself as present from the dawn of eternity.

Meditation 1: Reflect on the phrase: “the only-begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages.” What does this mean to you and how does that impact your faith?

In the Nicene Creed, we continue, “begotten not made.” Although not a Catholic himself, C.S. Lewis has been often quoted by Catholic theologians. He explains, 

To beget is to become the father of; to create is to make. And the difference is this. When you beget, you beget something of the same kind as yourself. A man begets human babies…But when you make, you make something of a different kind from yourself…What God begets is God… What God creates is not God. (Lewis, C.S. p. 75)

So the eternal Christ was begotten, not made. Christ was poured forth from God the Father, He is not a creature. He existed from all time, He is infinite.

Then in the fullness of time, God poured the fullness of Christ into the Baby Jesus. The Co-Creator of the universe flowed into a tiny human body. It is a very profound moment when we truly take that into our hearts.

Meditation 2: Reflect on the phrase: “begotten, not made, one in being with the Father.” And this oneness was poured out of heaven into the Babe. How does knowing this help your faith to grow?