Giving as divine essence
by Or lando P. Carvajal
of Sun.Star Cebu
Christmas is around the corner as I write.
There is no mistaking the onset of the season of giving and cheers. By now homes would have been done up with Christmas trees and Christmas lights. Lists have been made and gifts purchased, possibly wrapped ready for giving. There is a heavy feeling of anticipation in the air which will burst into cheers come Christmas Day.
Have we ever wondered why it is the season of giving? Why it is the season of cheer?
Christmas commemorates the birth of the New Man. The New Man is divine and the essence of divinity is love. God is love. He exists to give. Jesus, His incarnate Son, is His gift to man and is Himself giving personified.
What better way, therefore, to remind us what Christmas means. What better way to show us the way towards God.
What better way to tell us that our goal in life is to become divine.
What better way to teach us that to become divine is to learn to give.
Christmas is probably one time in our life when we are so engrossed trying to figure out what to give to others that we forget ourselves.
Christmas is one time when we become really divine in that we think only of giving to others. Unfortunately, a lot of the giving that happens around Christmas is basically just symbolic, a way of getting into the spirit of the season. Yet, even this symbolic giving already fills us with joy and happiness.
So what cheers you up on Christmas? Is it your giving? Or, is it receiving all those gifts from people who appreciate you? Putting back Christ into Christmas is to get your joy, your cheers from giving something of yourself. Putting back Christ into Christmas is to go beyond symbolic giving and share your blessings with those who need your help. I have some suggestions of non-symbolic or real giving that could lead on to real and lasting peace and joy for many Christmases to come.
Children, how about forgiving your parents for their mistakes or failures in the way they raised you and re-establish the bond of love in the family? Parents, how about really listening to your teenage children’s problems, hopes and dreams and stop getting mad at them for not listening to and not following your wishes and dreams for them? If you are secure in the love of your family, would you consider sharing that by adopting an orphan?
If you are a successful career person, would you consider giving somebody a chance by sending him to school, who otherwise would never have the opportunity?
Teachers, how about throwing away the lesson plans you have used all these years and share something new and updated with your students? Government officials, how about improving the system in your office so people do not have to stand in line for hours on end waiting to be served? I am sure you get the drift and can think of many more ways to give.
The joy of giving is the purest and the most satisfying of all joys because giving is the only way we can touch base with the Divine. At Christmas we do a lot of symbolic giving. They are meaningless without real giving. |
