By James Boice
Theme: The Error of King and Cleric
In this week’s lessons, we examine people in the Christmas story who did not respond to the birth of Christ as they should have.
Scripture: Luke 2:1-7
The second man who missed Christmas was Herod. Herod was the king of Judaea, or as we should more accurately say, an under-king of a border province of the far-flung Roman Empire. There was nothing likable about Herod. He was a sly old fox, guilty of many murders, including at least one wife and three sons. He probably had no religion. He was a cynic. He knew the traditions of Israel, but he only half-believed them if, indeed, he believed them at all. Yet he should have found Christmas, if only because he had such a large stake in the outcome.
VATICAN CITY: A crisis, such as the current pandemic, “can prove beneficial to us all”, if we make it an opportunity for conversion and renewed authenticity, by allowing ourselves to be led by the Spirit with courage and humility. On the other hand, if the crisis is seen as a conflict, it will create discord, competition and enemies.
Pope Francis made the point on Monday, in his address to members of the Roman Curia, the various departments of the Holy See and the central body in the Vatican. In the traditional pre-Christmas meeting with them, he noted that in “contemplating the mystery of the Incarnation, before the child lying in a manger, but also the Paschal Mystery, in the presence of the Crucified One, we find our proper place only if we are defenceless, humble and unassuming”.
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SunStar
+ December 20, 2020 A WRETCHED person that I had been for a long, long time, I used to dislike the Sacrament of Reconciliation or Confession and, naturally, had been wont to espouse the preaching of others that sins are better confessed directly to God. But I still would go to Confession, but rather rarely and reluctantly (although with true but short-lived penitence). It was much later in life that I realized the wisdom of the Sacrament that requires physical, emotional, intellectual and willful effort to manifest repentance (though in various levels). Regardless of incompetent and even stupid priest confessors who nevertheless represent Jesus Christ in the confessional, I now confess through a sacrament that, to a great degree because of the effort exerted to access it, gives assurance of true repentance within and, from above, definite forgiveness.
by
Anthony Esolen
I am writing one week before the presidential election, and although I have no idea what its outcome will be, I know that Christians will be called upon as always to fulfill the two great commandments, to love the Lord our God with all our heart and soul and mind and strength, and to love our neighbor as ourselves. The second commandment, Jesus says, is like unto the first, and many a Christian will say, correctly, that unless we love our neighbors, we do not love God, for he that hateth his brother is in darkness (1 John 2:11). What is harder for us to see is that unless we love God, we will not love our neighbors either. Here we verge upon the mysteries of God s grace, for many a man will by grace be moved to love, even though he does not know it is God who works upon him.