The Christ Child Within being born out of Our Heart of Stone
“I realize that the only way for us to stay well in the midst of the many “worlds” is to stay close to the small, vulnerable child that lives in our hearts and in every other human being. Often, we do not know that the Christ child is within us. When we discover him, we can truly rejoice.”—Henri Nouwen in You Are the Beloved (Convergent Books 2017).
This image of the Christ Child coming out of stone by the sculptor Mike Chapman is under the portico entrance from Trafalgar Square to St. Martin-in-the-Fields. It remains one of our best images of the Christ Child within. When I first saw it, it took my breath away. But, unfortunately, this image does not do it justice. Every time I visit London, I am drawn to it. It represents Christ’s birth to the world, and the birth of Christ within us out of our hearts of stone.
I hear the prayer to Ezekiel, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh (36:26).”
When our heart of stone is removed, we find Christ within.
How does this feat occur? First, we are touched by the God of love. Most often, this God of love reaches us through the love of another person. It can also happen in reading, writing, being by water or trees, or any of God’s creations that emit love. Our job is to put ourselves in a position to connect to the God of love through spiritual practices and our living in community. We are called to open our eyes, live in the present, and see the love of God coming out of stone and healing the stone heart within us and in the world, especially during this Christmas season.
Joanna. https://www.joannaseibert.com/