Happy Birthday, King Jesus Christ

For Christians, end of December is a holy season when we reflect upon the simplicity of the birth of greatness and kings,

Christians hold Jesus, the son of Mary or Maria, and Joseph the carpenter as the son of God and, therefore, God in His own right.  Jesus is also known as the Christ (the anointed one), the Messiah (the redeemer), Emmanuel (God is with us), the (Great) Teacher, Martyr, King of Kings, Forgiver and Carrier of humanity’s iniquities. 

Like Him or dislike Him, Jesus matters. His birthdate, Christmas Day, matters. The actual date of Christmas is different among Christians. Orthodox Christians, notably in Russia, Ukraine, and other countries, celebrate Christmas in January while others celebrate in December.

Teachings of Jesus, through parables, still stand out as the best teaching approaches more than 2000 years after being subjected to bloody lashing via Dolorosa and cruelly murdered by crucifixion on Mount Golgotha. To date, teachers will agree, teaching through storytelling, fables, folkstories, and parables, is second only to teaching by doing (practicum) in developing student mental capacities.

In those days, more than 2000 years ago, Jesus was born in a cattle manger (khola or kraal) in Bethlehem of what was then Judea.

Picture the wet filth in a typical khola la ng’ombe, but Jesus was born there. His parents had to shield Him from several dangers to His life, including the infamous Herodian plan to eliminate Him by killing all newly-born male children.

 Jesus was rushed out to Egypt for protection.

How many of us, bwanas of today, were not born in some form of a khola, a manger? How many of us, bwanas of today, were not born in extreme poverty? How many of us, bwanas of today, would not  have died had it not been for the love and protection provided by our earthly fathers, our earthly mothers and our heavenly Father (sorry mothers; there is no heavenly mother).

A child born in such trouble and poverty  rose to be probably the most-known teacher in the  universe.  His influence on our lives cannot be denied. Whether you wholeheartedly believe in Him as the Son of God and one of the trinity that makes God (The father; the Son (Jesus), and the Holy Spirit) or you wholeheartedly don’t,  Jesus still defines your life.

A whole religion emerged out of denying that Jesus is Son of God. By trivialising the belief in God the Son, followers of that religion are influenced by Jesus.  Jesus is still the subject of marriage, child raising, and behaviour.  Jesus is a subject of academic study. The more He is studied, the more He remains mysterious.

Monday is Christmas Day. If Jesus decided to come back and be born again, in the khola in the country or region he was born over 2 000 years ago, what would be His nationality in 2023? Would He be willing to be born in Bethlehem, today’s Palestine?

By being born again in Bethlehem, Jesus would be a Palestinian and He would most likely be considered a member of Fatah or Hamas and He would be a target of an openly genocidal military operation of the 21st Century.

Would He be pleased with the killings taking place in that region?  We doubt it.  Would He be contented with being called a Stateless Palestinian?  We doubt it very much.  As such, He, certainly, would prefer to be born in a more loving, peaceful and welcoming country.  That country, as we have said before, the most beautiful and friendly country Jesus would choose to be born in would be Malawi, the Warm Heart of Africa. And the exact place of the manger would be located in Chizumulu, but certainly not in Cashgate city or Cashgate university down town Matawaleland.

However, are we Malawians, ready to receive Jesus among us as a fellow citizen, a voter for one of our political parties?  Have we prepared ourselves to receive Him? Have we removed those logs in our eyes that blind us to the truth?

Happy Birthday, King Jesus Christ and Merry Christmas to all Malawians.