NOTES for Luk 2:10-11

The news of the Messiah's birth is joyful. Joyful for all. For each person. Not only for those who later would be called Christians, but for everyone who takes spiritual life seriously. Of course, the Jews awaited Him most of all. The people of God. They alone at that time could understand what had happened and what the good news meant. The others could only guess. But the point is not only who understands what. Although for spiritual life, understanding and awareness play the central role.

The point is also what happened. In the Kingdom which, according to the Savior's words, "has drawn near." And this can certainly be felt not only by Christians. A person may know nothing about the Messiah, about the people of God, about the history of the Covenant and salvation in general. But every seeker can feel the breath of the Kingdom. Remarkable and noteworthy in this sense is the transformation in the Christian era of some Eastern teachings, Hinduism, for example, or Buddhism. Could one have imagined in pre-Christian times that a Hindu, even a consistent monotheist who had chosen the path of yoga, would call God the heavenly Father?

Yet in modern Hinduism this happens. And this is by no means the influence of Christian missionaries. It is the stirring of the breath of that very Kingdom which does not fit into any religious framework. It is open to everyone striving for genuine spiritual life, whatever tradition he may belong to. Of course, there is no Kingdom without the King. But the seeker does not always know about the King. Sometimes he learns about the Kingdom before he learns about the One who rules in it.

But the King is glad for everyone who comes. And one can become acquainted with the King after learning about the Kingdom, touching it, understanding that this is precisely where one was going and that one has arrived where one had long wanted to be. There is still time before the full triumph of the Kingdom, before Christ returns in glory. This means there is also time for seekers to meet the King, become acquainted with Him, realize with whom they have met, and entrust themselves to Him.

Of course, the direct representation of the Kingdom on earth should first of all be the Church. But she is not always equal to this task, and Christ Himself never said that He would limit His activity in the world to the framework of the earthly Church. He promised not to abandon her, but He did not promise us, as Christians, exclusive rights to the Kingdom. After all, it is His Kingdom and His Church. And only He decides how far it will spread and who will be able to share in it.