Christmas, time to look at
our vulnerability
Christmas: Emmanuel, God among us. With these words we can summarize what Christianity celebrates on December 25, January 6 or January 7. The divinity comes to share among humans, as a baby. I cannot think of anything more vulnerable than a baby. The word vulnerability comes from vulnus (wound) abilis (which can) or quality of being hurt. Who is interested in being hurt? I imagine that no one, now the question rather is: can we avoid being wounded? What are the theological and ethical consequences of knowing that divinity chose to be vulnerable and not almighty?
After the experiences of the terrorist attacks on the center of cities of the global north (New York, London, Madrid) it became clear that no nation has a shield that can avoid being wounded in its center. Perhaps due to this shocking reality, philosophers from the global north, such as Judith Butler and Adriana Cavarero, have dedicated themselves to reflect on violence and vulnerability. These thinkers invite us to look at vulnerability, not as a threat but as a space for dialogue, as a place where we all meet. It is an invitation to incline. An inclination that changes the posture, instead of look from above, assume the posture of inclination to heal wounds.
In recent times, discourses and practices that try to displace others have been the norm, in this way our political systems and for our religious systems are generating thousands of bodies that are disposable. Populist discourses call for the return to the so-called fundamental values and those discourses are used against migrants, against those who have a different religion, against the poor, against ethnic minorities, against queer communities ... against everything we understand threatens our security. The question is: on what basis do we build our security?
In the midst of this reality God chooses the vulnerability to walk among us and from that space the divinity inclines towards our own vulnerability, to heal us. Maybe it's time to look at ourselves from our wounds to heal in community. Emmanuel is here ... let's not be afraid.
