Christ came as God into the world as a man, as a child, as an infant. He historically laid in a manger, truly vulnerable to the brutality of the world. His life and sacrifice was shared with the world, beginning with the Apostles and passed down through the centuries so we can believe and have hope. God does not abandon us. Eventually some of the details of His ministry were written down in what we know as the Gospels.  Through the perspective of St. Mark we know that the followers of Christ received baptism in order to repent and have their sins taken away. This baptismal cleansing is sealed with the proclamation of their committed sins. As the Gospel begins with reconciliation so should our lives (Mark 1:4-5). 

It is impossible and overwhelming to be conscious of all of our transgressions and for this reason when we ask the Lord to take way our sins, we ask Him to take away those offenses committed knowingly and unknowingly. During the Nativity season as a community, we sang the Christmas carol, The Little Drummer Boy. Just as we imitate the playing of the drum, “Paaaa pum pum pum pum pum  Rum pum pum pum …” we strive to live a life in Christ through constant repentance, like the drumming of a small boy offering up his sacrifice to God. As stated in the mentioned Gospel, confession of sins and repentance is tightly connected. For this reason, when we prepare for the feasts of the Church, we admit our mistakes in the sacrament of Confession as a subtle beat setting the rhythm of our Christian life. 

Project Mexico and the St. Innocent Orphanage is a community with the goal to be unified in the Lord’s love. All are encouraged to draw near, confess their sins and receive true forgiveness from the loving Lord. St. Porphyrios from Greece, who passed away in 1991, labored to form communities of healing, love and repentance. He envisioned the faithful being unified in a state of paradise where men and women would gather to receive God’s forgiveness so that the worldly infirmities would be overcome (Wounded by Love, pg. 79-80, 2005). 

Whether in Tijuana, Mexico, suburban America or the villages of Greece we can live the rhythm of repentance, so that through the beating of our heart and through the Godchild, our sins are taken away.