Christmas From The Manger To The Margins

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This message by Fr Fabian Dicom:
Tonight, we come together from many different places, each with our own story – some filled with joy and tradition, others seeking something deeper, and some perhaps simply searching for peace in a world that often feels uncertain.
Whether you are a visitor, here for the first time, returning for your annual mass, or not of the Catholic faith, know that you are warmly embraced and deeply welcomed.
In this moment, we are not just a congregation, but a community of diverse hearts, united by the shared longing for hope, for love, and for meaning. Whatever has brought you here tonight, you are valued, you are seen, and you are part of this journey with us.
Tonight, we celebrate a truth that touches the deepest places in each of our hearts: God is with us. This is the essence of Christmas – the extraordinary love of God, who chooses to enter into our ordinary, often cluttered lives, not to change us from a distance, but to walk alongside us, filling us with hope, love and the promise of change.
In this moment, God meets us where we are, with all our joys, our struggles, and our hopes. Let’s try to make sense of this:
A God who comes close The Gospel proclaims, “And she gave birth to a son, her first born. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger” (Luke 2:7).
These words may feel familiar, but they hold an extraordinary truth: the
Creator of the universe enters our world not in power or splendour but as a vulnerable child.
Marcus Borg, an American New Testament scholar, theologian and author, reminds us that the Incarnation is about God becoming intimately present in the world – not as a distant figure but as Emmanuel, God-with-us.
Jesus’ birth in a stable shows us that holiness is not found in grandeur or greatness but in the ordinary moments of life. This is good news for all of us.
God does not wait for us to have our lives perfectly together. He meets us where we are – whether we are struggling, questioning, grumbling or simply tired. God enters the routines of our lives, sanctifying the ordinary and reminding us that we are never alone.
How does this work we wonder? It sounds so cliched! You can know and feel God’s presence in your life through moments of prayer, reflection and openness to His love. It may not always be a dramatic experience, but God’s presence is often felt in the quiet moments of your day – when you pause to listen to your heart, when you experience peace in the midst of chaos, or when you find strength in times of weakness.
You may recognise his presence in the simple acts of kindness, in the beauty around you, and in the support of others. Also, when you reach out in compassion, when you forgive someone, you sacrifice your time and comfort for someone else…God is with you – God is always with you.
But, having said all that, Fear… fear can disrupt our confidence or assurance that God is with us
A hope that transforms The angel proclaimed to the shepherds, “Do not be afraid; I bring you good news of great joy.”
These words are for us, too. Fear often weighs us down – fear of failure, of change, of not being enough, fear of uncertainty.
But Christmas tells us a different story. The child in the manger is God’s declaration that love is stronger than fear, that light is more powerful than darkness. This is not just a comforting idea; it is a revolutionary truth.
John Shelby Spong, an American bishop of the Episcopal Church and liberal Christian theologian, once said that the message of Christmas is liberation: liberation from the chains of fear, exclusion and division.
Jesus’ birth reminds us that the barriers we build – between nations, races and religions – are not God’s design. In Him, all are welcome, all are loved, all belong. And this gives us hope, a virtue vital for our journey of faith, for our journey of life.
This hope is not naive optimism. It is the assurance that God is with us, working in the ordinary moments of our lives. In our acts of patience, forgiveness and love, God’s light shines.
That gives us reason to hope, and this hope transforms us, giving us the courage to face our challenges and the strength to be a light for others.
From the manger to the margins But the hope of Christmas is not meant to stay with us alone. It is a gift to be shared.
In the Christmas story, let us not overlook who first received the angel’s message: shepherds. They were poor outcast, and often ignored. Yet, they
were the ones chosen to witness the miracle of Christmas.
Look at the shepherds. After encountering Jesus, they didn’t stay at the stable; they went out, proclaiming what they had seen.
God consistently lifts up the lowly and makes the margins the centre.
The Christmas story challenges us to move from the manger to the margins, to see the sacred in those who are often overlooked in our world today – the homeless, the migrant, the struggling family, and particularly in Malaysia the indigenous people, the refugees, the differently abled and the transgender persons – to look beyond ourselves and respond to those in need.
Jesus’ birth calls us to open our eyes to the sacredness of every person. When we reach out to those on the margins, we encounter Christ Himself.
In Matthew 25:40, Jesus says, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”
As Pope Francis often reminds us, the peripheries are where God’s presence is most powerfully revealed.
Carrying the light of Christmas As we stand on the threshold of this Christmas night, let us remember that the story we celebrate is not just a story of long ago – it is a living, breathing truth that touches us today.
In the simplicity of the manger, God shows us the depth of His love, a love that does not wait for us to be perfect but comes to us just as we are.
This is the heart of Christmas: a God who is not distant, but close – close in our joys, in our struggles, and in our deepest longings.
The hope that was born in the manger is the hope that transforms us. It is a hope that shatters fear, that calls us to live boldly, to act with compassion, and to be a light for those who walk in darkness.
But this hope is not just for us to hold on to – it is for us to share. Just as the shepherds went out to spread the good news, so too are we called to take this message of love, hope and peace into the world.
As we go from this place tonight, let us go with the conviction that God is with us – walking beside us, lifting us up and guiding us to the margins, where we find him in the faces of the poor, the oppressed and the forgotten.
May we have the courage to be his hands and feet in the world, bringing the light of Christmas to those who need it most.
Together, let us transform our world, beginning with our hearts. From the manger to the margins, may we proclaim Emmanuel – God with us – in everything we do.
Fr Fabian Dicom, the director of Caritas Malaysia, delivered this homily at the Christmas 2024 Midnight Mass at Assumption Church in Penang.

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