We forget that Christ chooses to become man, not to become angel, not to descend from the clouds, blazing in his glory to live among us— but to grow hidden in heavy clay, out of sight, assimilating our humanity to his, willing to pierce our clay with the little green spear of his love at the appointed hour, to break forth, not from the stars, but from the humanity that is dust and dirt.
How much more often we would behold the glory of the Word made flesh ifduring this time of growing we forebore to comment on one another’s peculiarities and shortcomings, and instead treated one another with the courtesy that we would have shown our Lady, had we been with her during the months before Christ’s birth. It is to her that we must turn . . .to learn the lessons of acceptance and gentleness. Acceptance of God’s mysterious ways with us, of his timing and his law, and the lesson of gentleness, the bringing courtesy to Christ, small and secret and silent in one another’s hearts.
Caryll Houselander, Lift Up Your Hearts
