“For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him might not perish but might have eternal life.” John 3:16

The Life of Jesus

Glossary

Messiah “God’s Anointed One” or “Saviour”. A messiah is a person chosen to save people from a particular situation. Jesus is the Messiah, the One who God promised to deliver all people from sin.

Oral tradition is a body of stories that have been passed down by word of mouth. In ancient Israel, before the Gospels were written, people told stories about God and all he did for them.

The Incarnation is the mystery of the Son of God becoming man, one like us, Jesus Christ, who is both truly man and truly God.

The Trinity is the three persons of the Christian God – the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Covenant - a formal alliance or agreement made by God with a religious community or with humanity in general

Mary’s fiat is Mary’s acceptance of the angel Gabriel's announcement that she would bear the Son of God, with these words, 'I am the Lord's servant, May it be to me as you have said'.

The Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55) is the Virgin Mary's response to Elizabeth's greeting, glorifying God and thanking Him for choosing her to bear His Son.

In the Bible – both in the Old and New Testaments, simple stories are used to help us understand who God is and what He is able to do. Beginning with the story of Creation in Genesis, we can understand the great love that God has for his people and His desire for them to follow His ways.

In the New Testament, the Gospel writers and other followers of Jesus recorded their most important memories of Jesus. Just as a new parent might write down the details and keep pictures of the birth of their child and then continue to record special occasions in a diary or a photo album as their child grows up so too does the Gospels – from conception to his death and resurrection.

Many of us have a special box or place where we keep things which remind us of our birth, special occasions – whether it is a diary, photos, tickets to special events such as family occasions, concerts, sporting competitions etc. These remind us of the significant people and events who have been so important in our lives.

Imagine that you have a special memory box – what items would you put in it? What do they say about you and the memories that they have helped you to recall. You may even have religious mementos which remind you of special moments in your relationship with God.

Draw a picture of your memory box with your special memories in it. (Remember to include diary entries, photos and tickets!)

When we share our memories with others, we often tell them about both our good and not so good experiences, what we have witnessed in our lives and the lessons we have learned. Each of us is very different – we are unique and just as our life story is unique to each one of us so too is the way we tell others about our experiences.

Depending on our audience, we may tell our life story or what we have witnessed in different ways - with humour, sadness, amazement, to teach, to shift the blame etc. (The pupil who kicks the ball and smashes the classroom window will describe the same incident in slightly different ways to the head teacher and to his friends.)

As we are all unique, consider which of the following words are most likely to describe you.careful adventurous compassionate

quiet funny emotional

observant talkative creative

assertive serious easygoing

Matthew and Luke were the two Gospel writers who wrote about the conception and birth of Jesus. Luke was most likely a physician, a well-educated member of a wealthy Greek family. After becoming a follower of Christ, he accompanied the Apostle Paul on some of his journeys.

It was important to Luke to show how Jesus came to save not just the Jews but also non-Jews, the poor and the outcasts of society. He emphasised the mercy and compassion of Jesus.

Matthew was most likely a Greek-speaking Jew. He was counted as one of the Twelve who heard many of the parables told by Jesus, saw some of his miracles and was present when the Risen Jesus revealed himself before ascending to the Father. It was important to Matthew to show how Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies regarding the Messiah. He connected the story of Jesus with the story of the people of Israel.

“Listen, O house of David! . . . the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel.” Isaiah 7:13-14

The Message of Jesus’ BirthAt first, Jesus’ disciples spread the Gospel by word of mouth or oral tradition. Later they wrote about the mysteries of Jesus’ life.

Luke and Matthew’s accounts of the mystery of Jesus’ birth differ. Luke wanted to pass on the faith of the Church that there were signs from God that his plan to send the Messiah was coming true. He wrote about Elizabeth, who recognised that Mary was to be the Mother of the Saviour.

Luke also wrote about shepherds, who had little importance in society yet an angel appeared to them to announce the birth of the long awaited Messiah. Luke was teaching that the Lord had come to help all people even those considered to be the lowliest of people.

Matthew wanted to show that Jesus was the fulfilment of the Old Testament. He wrote a genealogy of Jesus – how Jesus had descended from David, Israel’s first great king. Matthew also told the story of the Magi, priestly men from the East whose visit to Jesus was a sign of great things to come.

The new star in the sky was a sign of the birth of a new ruler. Matthew also included events that had connections to Moses’ birth. Matthew wanted the community to recognise that Jesus brought a “new Exodus”, freedom from sin forever. He used ancient Israel as his setting, linking Jesus life to the Old Testament.

The Gospels written by Mark and John do not include accounts of Jesus’ birth. Mark chose to begin his Gospel with the preaching of John the Baptist to emphasise the proclamation of the Good News. The Evangelist John concentrated on exploring the mystery of the Incarnation.

Although Luke and Matthew’s accounts of the birth of Jesus differ, their message differ, their message is the same: God lovingly revealed himself to us through Jesus, the Second person of the Trinity. Without losing his Divine Nature, the Son of God became a man and lived among us. This is called the Incarnation. The Holy Spirit gives us the gift of faith so that we can believe in the mystery of the Incarnation and respond to God’s love. With faith, we strive to better understand God’s Revelation.

Task:

The Gospels of Matthew and Luke give different accounts of Jesus’ birth. Each tells a part of the Christmas story as we have come to know it. Choose the event from either Gospel which best describes the mystery of the Incarnation for you.

Give reasons for your choice.

The Word Made Flesh

The name Jesus means “God saves.” For Christians, Jesus is truly the Son of God. Each year, all over the world, Christmas services retell the story of the birth of Jesus. Sometimes they retell the story with events from both the Gospel of Luke and the Gospel of Matthew. What’s important is not the exact order of the events, but what Luke and Matthew were telling us about the mystery of the Incarnation.

John’s Gospel differs from those of Matthew and Luke. For example, Jesus’ human ancestors are not listed and this Gospel does not tell the Christmas story as we know it.

The Gospel of John begins with a prologue which means ‘a word before.’ The Prologue introduces the Gospel and previews its main themes. It presents Jesus as the source of life, light and truth.

The Prologue starts with the phrase “In the beginning,” the same words that begin the Book of Genesis. John the Evangelist helps us understand that Jesus, the only Son of God, the Word of God, has always existed. He is God.

John also wanted his readers to understand that Jesus the Son of God took on flesh, or became man. He wrote:

“And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14

The Teaching of the Roman Catholic Church

By the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus, the Son of God, became man. Jesus fully possesses a human nature and a divine nature. God and humanity are united in the divine Person of Jesus. Being truly God and truly human, Jesus is the Mediator, someone who acts as a go-between, between God and human beings. We call Jesus Christ “Lord” because we believe in his total and complete divinity.

Task:Think how Jesus could be both human and divine:

Human Divine

Mary, Mother of GodMary, ever a virgin, conceived her Son by the power of the Holy Spirit. She willingly became part of God’s divine plan for our Salvation. Jesus is Mary’s only Son, but her spiritual motherhood extends to all people whom he came to save. Mary is a model of trust and faith in God. She continues to be a source of inspiration to all as we seek to know God’s plan for our lives.

Mary knew about the women of Israel who came before her and were blessed by God. She was aware that in God’s plan for salvation, a person could have a very important role. Mary trusted in God and rejoiced in his favour.

She shared this wisdom and faith with her cousin Elizabeth. Elizabeth’s pregnancy was both a sign of God’s Covenant with his people and a sign of the coming of the Messiah whom God promised to send.

Mary accepted God’s call freely and responsibly; she was aware of the cost of accepting the call. This is known as Mary’s fiat. She understood that her life would be one of loving service to the Father in all ways.

Mary’s faith led her to give birth to Jesus, watch him grow, witness his ministry and follow him to his cross and Resurrection. Mary is the Church’s model disciple of faith and charity by her complete obedience to the Father’s will, to his Son’s work for our Salvation, and to every prompting of the Holy Spirit.

The MagnificatAccording to Luke’s Gospel, after Mary agreed to become the Mother of God’s Son, she sang a song of praise to God which we call the Magnificat.

Tasks:1. After reading the Magnificat, make a list of the things in your life that you are grateful for. Either write a thank you note or a poem to God expressing your thanks for all of these things.

2. The trust that Mary placed in God makes her a role model for people of faith. What are the different types of things which make it difficult for some people to trust God today? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. When things are difficult, how can our faith help us?

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4. Whether it’s the birth of a baby in the family, the winning of a big match or an invitation to a special event, good news brings people together. Write about a time when good news brought your family, friends or team together.

What were you celebrating?

Who was part of the celebration?

How did everybody celebrate?

What difference did the good news make to your family, friends or team?____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________