Christmas Message to the Seton Hall Law Family 2019

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To my Seton Hall Law School Family:

For Christians around the world, the Advent/Christmas season is a time to contemplate the action of God in human history--Salvation History--the story of the divine embrace of humanity. Franciscan Father Richard Rohr, founder of the Center for Action and Contemplation in New Mexico, writes:

When we speak of Advent or preparing for Christmas, we’re not talking about waiting for a little baby to be born. We’re in fact welcoming the universal, cosmic Christ—the Christ that is forever being born in the human soul and history. In Franciscan spirituality:

Creation is the first and probably final Bible,
Incarnation is already Redemption,
Christmas is already Easter, and
Jesus is already Christ.

The loving message of the Divine Incarnation is bigger than just one man. It is the ultimate character of all reality, including each one of us in community as the ongoing Body of Christ…Incarnation is the oldest Christian story. Through Christ, God is pouring God's self into all creation. To be Christian, then, is to see Christ in every thing.

Christians perceive love in God’s creative will. Love is clearly the keynote of the Christmas season, which begins the evening of December 24 and extends through January 12, the feast of the Baptism of the Lord. May your celebrations with family and friends be filled with love and every joy of the season. And may you be energized for good work in the days of the new year.

Father Nick
Rev. Nicholas S. Gengaro
Chaplain