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Recently my husband and I went on a date…to the grocery store…without our four kids. Exciting, right? For us it was. It was wonderful and exciting because it was the closest thing we’ve had to a date night in a long time. Welcome to life in the second stage of marriage.
Saint John the Evangelist, traditionally thought to be the “Beloved Disciple,” was the writer of the fourth Gospel, and presumably, the only apostle who was not martyred. He is also the disciple to whom Jesus entrusted his mother from the cross. Symbolized as an eagle, Saint John’s Gospel “soars” in its theological treatment of the Good News.
All the just–all of us–are beloved of the Lord. We are all called to find gladness in our relationship with him. We are all called to be grateful for God’s care for us, for the glory that he shares with us.
If it weren’t for Saint Luke telling us about the selection and martyrdom of Saint Stephen in Acts of the Apostles, we would know nothing about him at all. The little we do know, however, speaks volumes about what kind of man he was, his love for Jesus, and the early Church community.
We know how fragile newborn life can be. And we know that these tiny lives can still be lost, even with all the technological advances of our own century.
Think of a gift you can give someone that is not a physical product with a receipt and return policy. Could it be a hug? A kind word? A beautiful memory shared? These are the kinds of gifts that truly reflect the meaning of Christmas.
Seeing all the celebration that surrounds Jesus’s birth, it seems appropriate that we should likewise celebrate how special each of us is.
All feast days celebrate, in one way or another, the gifts of God granted to us human beings. Today we celebrate Nativity of the Lord.
There are lots of strange, unusual, uncomfortable, even eerie things going on in this nativity reading from the Gospel of Luke. Yet God is merely keeping his promises as he always does.
The holidays can be extremely difficult for people for myriad reasons. The loss of loved ones, loneliness, mental health issues, being far away from family, and working long hours in jobs that don’t slow down because it’s Christmas are just a few that come to mind.
