Day 3: 18th December - Novena of Christmas, by Saint Alphonsus de Liguori

Day 3 ‘The Eternal Word from being Lord became a Servant.’

Behold Jesus, obeying with ready submission, a simple Virgin and a man in the poor cottage of Nazareth: at one time smoothing the wood to be worked upon by Joseph, at another time collecting the scattered shavings for fuel, then in sweeping the house, fetching water from the well.

Jesus showed his obedience by his submission to them. A God to serve! A God to sweep the house! A God to work! How the mere thought of this should inflame us all and make us burn with love!

Subsequently, when our Savior went forth to preach, he made himself the servant of all: ‘The Son of Man has not come to be served, but to serve.’

Behold finally how the Lord of all submits as an obedient subject to the unjust sentence of Pilate. Our Redeemer, in order to rescue us from the slavery of the devil and from death, chose to become a servant, to be nailed to the cross, and there in the end to lay down his life in a sea of sorrow and ignominy.

Oh my Jesus! Thou has been pleased to become a servant for love of me, to release me from the chains of hell. Suffer me not to be separated from Thee.


(Edited excerpts from St Alphonsus de Liguori, Novena for Christmas in: The Complete Works of St Alphonsus de Liguori. Rev. Eugene Grimm (Ed.)