Christmas 2020
Christ came to bring you joy, and glory, and peace, and light. These he offers to you always, but with especial tenderness and love at this holy season.
Paramahansa Yogananda
Dear One,
A blessed Christmas to you! I pray that God’s light and joy flow with renewed abundance into your receptive heart — and the hearts of all our spiritual family and friends around the world — throughout this holy season. May the special blessings of Christ and the Masters lift each of us into the higher consciousness needed to transform the challenges confronting our human family into victories of spiritual truth and godly values. The light and joy that shone millenniums ago at the birth of the baby Jesus — and again at this sacred time of year — is the light of Christ-love, which has the power to change our lives and to heal the world. That light, love, and bliss is the very essence of our souls, made in the image of God; and gives birth to an unshakeable intuitive hope and assurance if we make the effort to know it.
In spite of the discord and uncertainties of life in this realm of duality, we always have access to the encouragement and support of our Heavenly Father and the God-united souls He has sent to help us. Such a one is Lord Jesus, whose life was a beautiful symphony of the divine qualities by which we can rise above all limitations of outer circumstances and human ignorance and live in the inner freedom of God-consciousness. Our guru, Paramahansa Yogananda, has reminded us that Jesus’ spiritual attainment is not to be admired as an exception, but as an example of what we are all meant to realize and achieve. And the “Christmas spirit” or heavenly vibrations that radiate on earth at this auspicious time makes it easier to manifest Christlike qualities: to expand our caring beyond the little “I”; to express compassion, understanding, forgiveness; to see and humbly serve the good and the God in all. With each aspirational thought that we translate into noble action, we draw closer to the Christ consciousness in which Jesus lived.
Jesus drew his strength, wisdom, and all-embracing love from the depth of his inner communion with the Heavenly Father; and by faithful meditation and prayer, we too can draw upon that Source to bring out the best in ourselves and thus help heal the divisiveness of our times. Peace begins with each of us. On this path we have the blessing of the holy science our Guru brought to the West 100 years ago, at the behest of Jesus and Babaji, to aid us in making that connection with God and the universal Christ — and the wonderful tradition he began of having a special meditation on Christ at Christmas. Guruji said, “The idea of an all-day Christmas meditation was really given to me by Christ, that he might do something for you.” Think of that, and of Paramahansaji’s encouraging words printed above, as you meditate this Christmas. By opening your heart to the Christ-gifts of divine love, peace, and joy, they will overflow from your expanding consciousness as a blessing shared with family, friends, your community, and the world.
Wishing you and your loved ones a joyous Christ-filled Christmas,
Brother Chidananda
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