Archbishop Bonaventure Kwofie, CSSp: 2025 Christmas Message

My dear people of God, Merry Christmas!

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” Is 9:6

I extend my warmest greetings and blessings to each and every of you at this time when we commemorate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

The good shepherd and the king of the universe was born ordinarily in a manger. Unlike our kings who adorn themselves with gold hanging on the hand and around the neck, the king of the universe comes to us a person not interested in gold hangings on the hand and around the next, but a king who is interested in feeding the hungry, quenching the thirst of the thirsty, visiting the sick and lonely, welcoming the stranger, embracing the rejected, clothing the naked, putting his hand in the leper’s hand, etc. etc. (cf. Mt 25:31-46).

John’s gospel tells us in Jn 1:1-18, that the pre-existence of Christ who at its own time took on human flesh and came to dwell with us. This is the message of Christmas. During his life with us, we refused to believe him as the one sent by the Father. The gospel tells us “He came to his own, but his own did not accept him. But those who accepted him, he gave them power to become children of God” (Jn 1:11-12). As a true Israelite, where else could he go but to his own people Israel? However, He tasted that bitter lesson of rejection from his own people. But there are those who believe like you and me. We believe it is a free gift of grace to have been adopted as the family of God. What we didn’t have before, we now have: a new status of being children of God.

How do we live our new status of being children of God? For this Christmas, I would like to call your attention to the preaching of John the Baptist which we read in the second and third Sundays of Advent Year C. John was only
“a voice crying in the wilderness” (Lk 3:4, cf. Is 40:3). His mission was to be a forerunner or precursor announcing the coming of Christ. His message was we be men and women who produce “fruits worthy of repentance” (Lk 3:8). What is this “fruits worthy of repentance”? “Fruits worthy of repentance” is about acts of service and kindness. To have food, water and clothing are the basics essentials that must be available at every home giving warmth and energy to the human body. They are like the air we breathe. We don’t know how essential it is until the time we are in need of it. This friend tells himself, “today I have to something to eat, let me think of what tomorrow will bring.” He lives at the mercy of those whose crumbs fall from the table.

To produce “fruits worthy of repentance” is to put an end to cheating in society. To cheat is exploitation, it is acting dishonorably, dishonestly and unfairly, it is to apply the power that you have to your advantage; it is taking advantage of those who are innocent and are without defense.

If John were to live among us, he would see to his amazement that there are still government workers in charge of collecting levies and taxes, they are Christians who have hear this gospel preached over and over again, yet they are still cheating their subscribers by demanding more than is legally required to pay. There are still people in the 21st century, who use their offices to intimidate and extort from others what they are required of do. Their primary role is to work to maintain peace and order. It is a great contradiction for agents of order and peace to intimidate and extort from others. This is what Christmas is asking of us.

My dear people, Our faith in God is true faith if it takes seriously the project of bridging the gap between the rich and the poor. Our faith in God is real faith if we see the human person as brothers and sisters who must be respected and not made into objects for cheating and exploitation. Faith in God demands that we become each other’s keeper.

This is not the only time we’ have heard of this preaching. The prophets of the OT told us about social justice, and in fact Amos was known as the prophet of social justice. James spoke to us that faith without works as a dead faith (James 2:14f). Jesus himself spoke of this as the criteria for the final judgment: I was hungry, you gave me to eat, thirsty you quenched my thirst, stranger you showed me hospitality, naked you clothed me, sick and in prison you visited me (Mt 25:31-46). This is the “law of love “ that must guide every aspect of our human behavior and interactions. Let us resolve to be brother and sister to each one and put a smile on the faces of those who suffer.

I wish you the very best of Christmas.