Father General Alejandro Moral sent a Christmas video-message to the brothers and sisters of the Order, and to the rest of the Augustinian family, wishing them a fruitful preparation to prepare to welcome for the Child God, who became human in our history
Dear brothers and sisters,
I send you greetings from the General Curia, where we are still a little saddened by the death of our brother, Paul Graham. But we know that Christmas teaches us that God has come to save us and that is why the hope and joy of Christmas help us to live this moment in a different way than if Jesus had not been born.
But it is not only Christmas that points us to hope and joy, which are two fundamental aspects. I would like to point out three others, which for me are very important. The first is the immense love of God. Christmas teaches us that the love of God, that love that God has for us, that the love that God has shown us, fills our hearts and that is why we should always live with hope and with joy, with immense joy.
That God's presence in our lives has come to save us. The second aspect I want to highlight is humility. I believe that this is what we need most in today's world. A great deal of humility to live our lives as religious, to make the discernments that we have to make. Without humility, St. Augustine says that we cannot live our religious life. And I also want to point out today, on the feast of Saint Lucy, the aspect of light. Christmas comes to bring us light in a world where we do not see things clearly. In a world where we are sad because of wars, because of hunger, because of migrants who don't get to where they want to go. Because of all these negative things that make us see life with sadness, with pain and sometimes without much hope.
That is why, dear brothers and sisters, light, the meaning of light, not only in the mind but also in the heart, is fundamental to be able to live our faith. I wish you all a Merry Christmas. May Jesus be born in the heart of each one of you to live always with hope, with joy, with simplicity and with humility. The love of God who has come to bring us his Son Jesus.
Fr. Alejandro Moral, Father General from the Augustinian Order