Why God Became a Baby

There’s something about a baby. If introduced into a crowded room, everyone will want a glimpse. Conversations will stop, smiles will spread and arms will reach out for a loving embrace. Even the most curmudgeonly denizen will be drawn toward the child. Babies bring peace and joy—it’s what they do.

The central message of Christmas is that God became a baby. The omnipotent Creator, the source of finite existence, the reason there is something rather than nothing, became an infant too weak even to raise his head. I’m sure that everyone around the Christ child’s crib did what people always do around babies: smile and coo and make funny noises. They were also surely drawn more closely together by their shared concern for the child.