The Crib and the Cross, Sermon by Fr. Paul Robinson, SSPX
Season 2026
Episode 1
#catholic #christmas #sermon
- When God Himself became incarnate in this world, when He assumed our human life, He decided that there would be two symbols that would be representative of His life.
- Those two symbols were the manger and the cross.
- Both of them are made of wood.
- On both of them, Our Lord lied down. Our Lady laid Him down in the manger, while the Roman soldiers laid Him down on the Cross.
- On both of them, Our Lord was bound and in a state of helplessness. In the manger, He was wrapped in swaddling clothes, clothes that confine a baby in such a way that he cannot move. Likewise on the Cross, He could not move, because He was nailed to it.
- On both of them, Our Lord was in a state of poverty. He laid in a manger in a cave, a place that was not his house, a place that belonged to no one. On the Cross, He was naked and completely despoiled of all of His possessions.
- On both of them, Our Lord was in a state of humiliation. In the manger, He was a tiny, helpless child, born in extremely humble circumstances. On the Cross, He was being executed as a criminal in full view of hundreds of people.
- The Creche and the Cross are the two defining moments of Our Lord’s life; they are the two symbols that He chose to represent His life.
- We know that Our Lord chose the life that He would live, we know that He lived the most perfect life, and we know that His life is the model for our lives.
- This is why being a Catholic and living a Catholic life is always a great challenge, in every age. It is difficult to imitate Our Lord, because it is difficult to embrace poverty, humiliation and suffering.
- This is why Our Lord’s life has always been a scandal to the world. One of the many reasons why the world has always rejected Our Lord is that it does not want to be called to the excellence of Our Lord’s life. It finds His life far too demanding, far too difficult.
- As such, the world has always defined for its followers a different path. In place of poverty and humility, the world presents another “virtue” for everyone to practice. It is the “virtue” of mediocrity.
Published on 4 days, 10 hours ago