“If we believe”. Here we see the power of faith! God has done everything; he has done the impossible: he was made flesh. His all-powerful love has accomplished something which surpasses all human understanding: the Infinite has become a child, has entered the human family. And yet, this same God cannot enter my heart unless I open the door to him. Porta fidei! The door of faith! We could be frightened by this, our inverse omnipotence. This human ability to be closed to God can make us fearful. But see the reality which chases away this gloomy thought, the hope that conquers fear: truth has sprung up! God is born! “The earth has yielded its fruits” (Ps 67:7). Yes, there is a good earth, a healthy earth, an earth freed of all selfishness and all lack of openness. In this world there is a good soil which God has prepared, that he might come to dwell among us. A dwelling place for his presence in the world. This good earth exists, and today too, in 2012, from this earth truth has sprung up! Consequently, there is hope in the world, a hope in which we can trust, even at the most difficult times and in the most difficult situations. Truth has sprung up, bringing kindness, justice and peace.
What do we risk in turning our backs on faith? We need not imagine: look at how Christianity has influenced civilizations across the centuries. Yes, there is both good and bad, but ascribing the bad to the good, which does not make sense, will justify throwing out everything. In chopping at the root of the largely good tree that is Christian society, one will destroy the whole tree. Gardeners know enough to prune and treat spots of rot and disease, rather than chop off the root altogether. And here is the root of what we largely enjoy today: Jesus Christ, whose birth we celebrate at Christmas, who is present in the world through his Church, and whose reign persists in every Christian who practices justice in his name -- through the door of faith.
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