The other day, the usually quiet School of Theology at the University of Navarra, where work, was shocked by a couple of events. In the morning, after several holidays, opening the building revealed that the angel of the Nativity Scene had fallen down. Permanently located on the portal, it was displaying its well-known message: Glory to God in the highest....

And as misfortunes never come alone, in the commotion that ensued when checking the damage, the platform of the Nativity Scene was shaken by a tremor that toppled King Melchior. Second leave in a few hours. Among the comments raised there were those who, in a more legalistic spirit (I do not know, but perhaps the colleagues of Canon Law), highlighted the fact that both losses came to adjust the capacity, since there were only six human figures congregated there: the Virgin with St. Joseph and the Child, a shepherd, Gaspar and Balthazar.

summary: With Christmas just a few days away, we urgently need an angel and a magician-king. Which requirements should be included in the resume? Those who can prove that they are able to perform their duties effectively. Namely:

For the angel. An angel is a spiritual being, whose mission statement is to transmit a message from God. As they do it immediately, they are usually represented with wings, for the sake of speed. And what message should they carry? Very simple: God is born as a Child in Bethlehem. And this is a reason to give him glory, that is, for those who come to know about it to glorify and praise God for the love he has had for us, this suffering humanity, which urgently needs a message of hope. And what better than the birth of a Child! A birth, the beginning of a new life, is always a cause for joy.

To be exact and so that the working conditions are clear, the complete message to be transmitted is: "Glory to God in heaven, and on earth peace to men who love God". Therefore, the message must also include peace. Interesting, isn't it? Those who are able to praise God because he wanted to take on our human nature and be born, poor, in Bethlehem, are promised peace. The peace that is born in the hearts of men of good will and are capable of kneeling before such an ordinary and admirable event as the birth of a Child.

requirements for the king-wizard. This position is not so easy to fill because we need a king-magician. Not just a king, which is already complicated, and nowadays kings are not what they used to be... Nor a magician, like those who claim to be able to tell the future. NO, we need a king-wizard. And who is a king-wizard? Someone who knows what we are looking forward to and what we need. All children have the experience that, every year, the magi-kings know what each one wants and also what they need, and that's why they bring something from each one. And, second requirement, a king-wizard is someone who, even if he has nothing, will always give us something. His mission statement is to give, to bring gifts, to make others happy...

Well, we already know the relevant requirements to fill the roles of angel and king-wizard. I believe that if each one of us proposes to play the role of angel and the role of king-wizard this coming Christmas, even if it is only one day, or in some time that we have, not only will we have solved the problem of the Bethlehem of my School, but we will live with greater intensity the mystery that we are celebrating, the Mystery of Life and Love! And, for sure, we will not only have given happiness and peace to others, but we will also have lived them with an unknown intensity.

Santa and Merry Christmas.