A Christmas Message to the Students of Juan Diego

Christmas does not arrive loudly.
It comes quietly—
like snow settling on the ground,
like light slowly finding its way into the dark.

After weeks of waiting,
after candles and prayers and the short days of semester exams and the long nights of Advent,
we arrive at the central Christian mystery  - God chose to come close to us. This changes everything!

When Christ enters our lives, he comes in a way that is:

Not powerful.
Not impressive.
Not untouchable.
But small.
Human.
Vulnerable.

This is the heart of Christmas and the coming of Jesus:

God does not stand above our lives, watching from a distance.
God steps inside it.
Inside our questions.
Inside our friendships.
Inside our joys and disappointments.
Inside the parts of us that feel confident
and the parts that feel unfinished.

Jesus is born not just in Bethlehem long ago,
but in the ordinary places of our lives and hearts, right now.

Jesus is born:
In the laughter we didn’t expect.
In the forgiveness we finally offer.
In the courage it takes to be ourselves.
In the moments when  we feel seen,
and even in the moments, perhaps most especially, when we feel alone.

Christmas tells us this truth:
God is not afraid of our humanity.
God chose it in the life of Jesus

And that means our lives-
exactly as they are-
are places of holy ground.

As students of Juan Diego,
we walk in the footsteps of our patron, Juan Diego, who discovered that God speaks to the smallest, the humble,
to the overlooked,
to those willing to listen with open hearts.

Like Juan Diego,
we don’t have to be special or extraordinary for God to work through us.
We just have to be open.

So this Christmas,
don’t look for God only in perfect moments
or polished prayers.
Look for Him where love is real.
Where kindness shows up quietly.
Where grace takes up residence in small, brave ways.

That is where Christ is born.

May this Christmas remind us
that we are deeply loved,
that God is closer than we think,
and that the light we’ve been waiting for has already begun to shine— within all of us.

Merry Christmas JD!

- Dr. Colosimo