Incarnation

Merry Christmas!!

Like so many Christmas mornings of my life, I'm up while the rest of the house is still quiet. My inner seven-year-old is curious to see if Santa came, I guess.

But, unlike the Christmas mornings of my past, today I find myself in Auburn, Indiana, at the home of the steady's parents. It's a blessed first. I arrived here yesterday at 6:45 a.m. on the Amtrak train from Pittsburgh (where I had been visiting with my family for few days).

Last night, we went to the 11 p.m. service at the First United Methodist Church. It was quite nice. And, we'll soon head out for the 10:30 a.m. Mass at Immaculate Conception Church. (See: Ecumenism in necessary practice.)

Over at Dating God, Br. Dan has posted a reflection called "Christmas is Not a Holiday…It’s a Game-Changer!"  Here are two snips to ponder:

" ... Christmas marks the most important moment in Salvation History -- the Incarnation, the coming of the Lord, the birth of a child who reveals to us the unseen God, makes visible the invisible and shows us that God's Reign unfolds in the making of the impossible possible!

" ... with God's entrance into the world as one like us, the game has totally changed. Jesus Christ is the game-changer par excellence! The way that humanity related to God previously had become outdated and finally recognized as imperfect, because, whereas once we were able to know about God, now we can personally know God."

Flashback: Christmas 2009 and 2008

The image above is "The Adoration of the Shepherds" or "L'adoration des bergers" by James Tissot. It is the property of the Brooklyn Museum of Art.