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Homilies are posted no later than during the week
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4
Advent
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A child was
terrified of the dark. Her father tried to calm her by saying God was
in the
bedroom with her. She still was upset. She told her dad, "I want a God
with skin on Him."
The Christmas season
for most of us is speeding in the fast lane miles above the speed
level. It is
bearing down on us like a truck out of control.
Theoretically these
last few weeks should be spiritual quality time between the approaching
Christ
and ourselves. But preachers are spitting into the wind. Many Catholics
will
first touch Jesus when, exhausted, they put the chipped plaster Infant
back
into the shoe box after the Epiphany. Then they put it in the dusty
attic for
the next year.
The malls that ring
our towns decree that gift-hunting season opens the day after
Thanksgiving's
turkey find its way into the soup pot. Malls can't wait to get their
hands on
our wallets.
This is one of the
worst times of the year for many. Depression before the holiday arrives
as
faithfully as credit card bills arrive after it. The University of Utah
School
of Medicine has reported that ninety percent of us suffer from
emotional
reactions brought on by Christmas stress.
In Chicago, three
hundred counselors operated a hot line
one year from December 21
through 27. They clocked two thousand calls from
depressed people. Suicide rates rise
significantly. Death from heart attack and natural causes peak on Dec
25 and 26
and Jan 1. (A sacramental confession this week is a good investment.)
Alcoholics, who have been dry for years, will find their way back to
friendly,
neighborhood liquor stores. "Spare me Christmas wrapping," they will
snarl.
Children suffer
anxieties about Santa's existence. They become
greedy because of too many
gifts or envious because of too
few. "I want," said a boy, "any kind of gift as long as it's
expensive." Non-Christians feel shut out since they are told Jesus is
the
reason for the season and wise men still search for Him.
Even Norman
Rockwell's blue-haired grandmother is hiding in a
Florida
condo where kids are as welcome as hurricanes.
This we are advised
is the season to be merry, but the
above suggests many of us
would be wiser to be wary.
Jules Feiffer puts
it this way: "Every Christmas the family gathers together and fights
about
presents and why we don't get together more often. And it occurs to me
the
Bible must have the dates wrong. Christ was born on Good Friday and
crucified
on Christmas. Isn't everybody?"
But Jesus the Christ
whose birthday we celebrate can hardly be enthralled by the style of
many of us
who claim to be authentic Christians. If you want to better understand
what it
cost God to become one of us, think how you would feel becoming a
cockroach.
(CS Lewis)
One is more inclined to look more kindly on
Ebenezer Scrooge. There is an awful lot of humbug in Christmas.
Yet, Jesus is not
humbug. The birth of Christ brings the infinite God within reach of
finite man.
(Unknown) The girl who began this homily is going to get God with skin
on Him.
When you look into
the stable, you witness the Absolute in swaddling clothes and
Omnipotence in
bonds. (John Newman) The Incarnation is superb poetry, exquisite
painting, and
sublime music wrapped into one gayly wrapped package.
One never tires of
Jesus as a subject. The cover stories of both Time, Newsweek, and US News &
World Report regularly mark His
nativity. One reason for featuring Him so often is that their
circulation
invariably increases. Born twenty centuries ago, Jesus still sells. Mel
Gibson
broke all records with his DVD version of The Passion of the Christ. He
sold
nine million copies in three weeks at $22 a clip. The first book
published by
Pope Benedict XVI is called "Jesus of Nazareth." It quickly found a
home on the Best Seller list of The New York Times.
As you read
these lines, dozens of writers, unknown to one another, work at their
computers
around this cosmos to produce still one more volume on Him. This
despite the
fact that the Library of Congress already has twice as many books on
Jesus as
any other subject.
Artists at their
easels struggle to paint His portrait again.
Have you seen Andy
Warhol's Nativity? Composers struggle to
salute Him with a fresh musical score. Will it ever be otherwise? I
believe
not.
Tell others
of Jesus. But firstly allow Him to be born in you. He can't be born
again, but
we can. (James Tahaney)
If you want
to be considered subversive this week, answer "Merry Christmas" when
people wish you "Happy Holidays."
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http://www.st.ignatius.net/pastor.html
4 Advent
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The readings for this Sunday are an immediate preparation for
Christmas. Instead of hearing about the Second Coming of the Lord as we
did the First Sunday of Advent and instead of hearing about the
instructions and the mission of John the Baptist, as we did the Second
and Third Sundays of Advent, we are brought to the events that take
place within nine months of Jesus’ birth.
We come upon Joseph. A very disappointed Joseph. The beautiful young
girl he would soon take into his home was pregnant. His life was
falling apart around him. We don’t know the exact time that Joseph was
aware of the problem, but obviously Mary was showing. What was Joseph
thinking? Would he have forgiven Mary a supposed indiscretion if she
were not pregnant? But she was pregnant. The child was ruining
everything.
And then the angel came in the dream and told him that the child will
make all things wonderful. He is the Savior. Mary has remained
virtuous. And Joseph was given the opportunity to take the Messiah into
his family. Basically, Joseph was told to celebrate this unexpected
birth.
It seems that just about every Sunday I notice another one of our
ladies is going to have a baby. As a man I have no clue at what it is
like to have a baby inside you. As a priest, I have no experience of
the excitement a husband must feel when his wife tells him that they
are expecting. Those first few months, when it is their secret, must be
wonderful. Then when they are ready to share their secret, family and
friends celebrate the coming child. And every child has a right to have
his or her coming celebrated.
That right extends also to those children whose coming, like the
Lord’s, is not expected, whether their parents thought they were done
have children or whether their parents did not even consider that their
actions could would lead to their conception. It makes not difference.
Once the coming of a child is learned, the child should be celebrated.
A few years ago we had a wonderful experience of a girl who chose to
celebrate her coming child. She had moved out to the Tampa area to
begin college and to get away from a relationship which had turned
physical. She sought a second virginity, a term saying, "I am going to
reconsecrate myself to the Lord and stay celibate until I marry." She
had sought out our parish because she had been involved in Life Teen in
her home parish and wanted to stay involved in Life Teen. What she
didn’t realize was that she came out here already pregnant. The
relatives she was living with demanded that she destroy the child.
Through our Youth Minister, Bart Kovacic, myself and our Upper Pinellas
Pregnancy Center, she got the support she needed to plan her future and
her baby’s future. When she took my advice and called her family, she
received further support, including from the baby’s father. She decided
to go back home. The day before she left, I took her to lunch. The
entire time she talked about her plans for the baby. He’s going to
learn Spanish. He’s going to do this or do that. It was wonderful. She
was celebrating the unexpected, but coming baby. As was the baby’s
right.
On Monday evening and on Tuesday we will sing sweet carols about the
Babe of Bethlehem. Although we know that this is the Second Person of
the Trinity, the All Powerful One, we also know that he chose to become
one of us, totally one of us, even being conceived and carried in a
womb and being an infant, toddler, child, teen and young adult before
revealing himself to the world at his Baptism by John the Baptist. And
so we focus on his infancy. We tell him in song to "sleep in heavenly
peace." We sing of the unexpected joy.
Every child has a right to be celebrated with love. Every child has a
right to be carried inside and outside the Mom with deep love. Every
child is a joy, whether a planned joy or an unexpected joy.
Every child has a right to be carried and to sleep in heavenly peace,
not in emotional turmoil. We have a responsibility as Christians to
celebrate the pregnancy of our girls and the arrival of our babies.
They are all our babies. They are part of our family. They are made in
the image and likeness of God. They will receive the indelible imprint
of God at their baptism. They will radiate his presence in a way the
world never experienced before. They will be capable of being saviors,
saviors to their parents, saving them from selfishness, saviors to
those whom they will love in their lives.
It is wonderful that we have our Pregnancy Center to help new and or
poor mothers. But the materials that you so generously provide, the
counseling that is offered, the testing and referrals that are made are
not enough. Babies need more than that. Babies need warmth and love.
It is clear from the scripture that Joseph provided for more than
Jesus’s external needs. He loved the child. He took him into his
family. He named him. And, I feel certain, he held him and rocked him
to sleep when Mary was exhausted. He celebrated this unexpected child
and in doing so celebrated the presence of God’s love on earth.
We pray to St. Joseph today to help us to do what he did. We need to
care for, to love and to celebrate our babies. In doing so we are
celebrating the arrival of yet another reflection of the presence of
God on earth.
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http://www.geocities.com/seapadre_1999/
* available in Spanish - see Spanish
homilies
4 Advent
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Bottom line: These final days in Advent give us an opportunity to thank
Mary for her role in salvation and for her example that guides us.
On this Fourth Sunday of Advent we focus on the Blessed Virgin Mary. It
used to be that we Catholics placed great emphasis on Mary while our
Protestant brothers and sisters tended to ignore her. That is changing
- and sometimes Evangelical Christians remind us about Mary's important
role. There is nice Country Western hymn that Johnny Cash sings, called
Merry Christmas, Mary. Here are some of the lyrics (don't worry, I
won't sing them):
Merry Christmas Mary thank you for the child
Thank you for Lord Jesus thank you for the child...
And we thank you Mary for helping give God's greatest gift to man...
Merry Christmas Mary too often we forget
To thank you for your part in giving the greatest Christmas present
yet.
We do forget to thank Mary. Next to Jesus, Mary had the greatest role
in our salvation. By the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus took flesh
from her. For the first nine months of his human existence, he was
totally dependent upon her. After his birth, she continued to nourish
him with her bodily substance. She cared for him as any mother cares
for a tiny baby. Do we thank her for that?
Our Gospel reminds us that Mary's role was hardly a walk in the park.
Today we call it a troubled pregnancy. For a time she lost the support
of her betrothed. He was so disappointed, he wanted to divorce her. It
took the intervention of an angel - in a dream - to help St. Joseph
understand. All of this must have caused terrible anguish to the
Blessed Mother. As we know, she did not crawl into a shell. She reached
out to someone who needed her help. It was a gracious act for Mary to
visit her cousin Elizabeth, now in the final months of her pregnancy.
What a great example Mary is for us. Pope Benedict speaks about Mary's
example in his recent encyclical . He notes that for over a thousand
years, Christians have greeted Mary as "Star of the Sea." In former
days, mariners used the stars to guide them home. As the pope observes,
"The true stars of our life are the people who have lived good lives."
Next to Jesus, Mary is the greatest guide for our journey home. The
Holy Father speaks directly to Mary: "Your life was thoroughly imbued
with the sacred scriptures of Israel...Mother of Hope, Mother of God,
our Mother, teach us to believe, to hope, to love with you. Show us the
way to his Kingdom! Star of the Sea, shine upon us and guide us on our
way."
Mary is a great guide for our lives. These final days in Advent give us
an opportunity to thank Mary for her role in salvation and for her
example that guides us:
Merry Christmas Mary thank you for the child
Thank you for Lord Jesus thank you for the child
Christmas time is here again peace on Earth good will to men
The air is filled with joyful sounds merry wishing all around
Giving and receiving gifts stopping by to thank all of our friends
And we thank you Mary for helping give God's greatest gift to man
Merry Christmas Mary thank you for the child
Thank you for Lord Jesus thank you for the child
Merry Christmas Mary too often we forget
To thank you for your part in giving the greatest Christmas present yet
Merry Christmas Mary
**********
Spanish Version
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http://www.agreeley.com/homilies.html
4 Advent
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The Christmas stories in the Gospels of St. Matthew and St. Luke
are not meant to be literal history, like, let us say, detailed
descriptions of the Battle of Gettysburg. Rather they are theological
stories designed to tell us that with the birth of Jesus a new phase of
the history of humankind had begun. The stories may not be true in all
their details but they are True in the sense that they disclose to us a
sudden, dramatic, and total transformation in the human condition. As
John Shea says in his book Starlight, we discover at Christmas, not
only the light that is God and the light that Jesus came to bring to
the world, but the light that is and has always been in us because we
are creatures who share in the light of God, beings in whom the spark
of God's light and love has always shone. Christmas reveals to us that
like Mary and Joseph we too can be the light of the world and that
indeed our own frail and often dim lights are not completely
discontinuous from the light of Jesus, from the starlight that shone at
Bethlehem.
Story:
Once upon a time there was a little girl named Jeanne Marie who
was afraid of the dark. She wouldn’t go to sleep at night unless all
the lights in her room were on. You couldn’t never tell, she argued,
who’d sneak into her room at night if it were dark. She absolutely
refused to go into her closet because, like the boy in comics several
years ago, she thought monsters might lurk in the closet especially at
night. She claimed that she could hear the monsters talking about what
they were going to do to her. Although she like snow, she hated winter
because it was dark so much of the time. She didn’t like to go off to
the country for vacation because there were no street lights and the
dark was very scary indeed. The monsters who had hidden in her closet
now wandered the streets of the summer village and lurked in the woods.
She was frightened when she went to the movies because the theaters
were too dark. Her mother said to her once aren’t you old enough now
not to be afraid of the dark. She said, no, the older she got the more
reasons she should think of for being afraid of the dark. She came home
from school one day with the story of the midnight sun in Sweden in the
summer. Lets live there, she said. But in the winter the sun hardly
ever shines there, her mommy said. Well, where does it go. To the South
Pole. Well, lets live there. It’s too cold. I don’t care, so long as
it’s not dark. Then one day her mommy and daddy took her to midnight
Mass in the church. It was totally dark inside. Jeanne Marie was
terrified. Then the priest flicked the switch and the church was filled
with light. Oh, said Jeanne Marie, it’s so pretty. Light always comes
on, doesn’t it mommy? If you wait long enough
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http://www.ctk-thornbury.org.uk/
4 Advent
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http://www.saintvincentarchabbey.org/homilies/index.lasso
4 Advent
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Fourth Sunday of Advent
Gospel Summary
Having sketched the human provenance of Jesus (vs.1-17), Matthew now
presents his account of Jesus' divine origins. Unlike Luke, Matthew
tells the story from the perspective of Joseph. It is Joseph who is
distressed over Mary's pregnancy and it is he who has a dream, which
resolves the matter. As one who hears God's message in a dream, Joseph
is connected with the patriarch Joseph who communicated with God in
dreams (Gen 37:1ff), for Matthew is intent on showing how the Hebrew
Scriptures were fulfilled in the story of Jesus.
When Joseph's rather inept attempt to resolve his dilemma is cut short
by a message from God, the primary point of this passage is revealed,
namely, that God controls all the critical moments in that ultimately
most real history, which involves God's gracious plan for human
salvation. Virgin birth is an obviously divine act and such an
intervention cancels human attempts to control everything. It also puts
Mary in touch with the unnamed virgin in Isaiah (7:14) whose
childbearing re-asserted God's intention of being with his people, come
what may.
Life Implications
We are constantly being urged to take charge of our lives and to make
things happen according to our wishes. If we fail, it is usually
assumed that we just didn't try hard enough. In a word, our secular
culture prizes control almost as much as it prizes money.
In this gospel, we learn that God takes charge in really critical
situations and that we are asked to acquiesce in this assertion of
divine control. For the confirmed secularist, this is really bad news.
But for those of us who believe in the goodness and wisdom of God it is
truly gospel, that is, good news. For it demonstrates that our history
is an arena, not just for our exploits, but also for the display of
God's love. It is also a reminder that there can never really be any
doubt about the ultimate victory of God's goodness. It is incredibly
consoling to know that a good and loving God is in charge of history.
Our task and our challenge are to trust the goodness in life so that we
may be part of that victory. Joseph was confused, as we often are, but
he trusted God's mysterious ways and found incredible blessing in what
he had not planned. Christmas is the feast that celebrates God's love
and goodness. There could hardly be a better way to prepare for
Christmas on this last Sunday of Advent than to imitate Joseph in his
willingness to be positive and hopeful at those times when life does
not seem to make sense.
Demetrius R. Dumm, O.S.B.
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http://www.christusrex.org/www1/mcitl/lowhome.html
Meeting Christ in the Liturgy
4 Advent
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Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
The perpetual virginity of Mary, part of God's plan, comes to our
attention in today's Gospel according to St. Matthew, chapter one,
verses eighteen to twenty-four. In the Catechism we read:
The gospel accounts understand the virginal conception of Jesus as a
divine work that surpasses all human understanding and possibility (Lk
1:26-38): 'That which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit,' said
the angel to Joseph about Mary his fiancee. (Mt 1:20) The Church sees
here the fulfillment of the divine promise given through the prophet
Isaiah: "Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son. (Is 7:14) (CCC
497)
Christian virginity is holy
We live in a cynical and godless age, in which the sacredness of
marriage and family life is under vociferous attack. In such times, the
virtue of virginity is spurned; presumed humanly impossible,
undesirable, or somehow suspect. "People are sometimes troubled by the
silence of St. Mark's Gospel and the New Testament Epistles about
Jesus' virginal conception. Some might wonder if we were merely dealing
with legends or theological constructs not claiming to be history. To
this we must respond : Faith in the virginal conception of Jesus met
with the lively opposition , mockery, or incomprehension of
non-believers, Jews and pagans alike; so it could hardly have been
motivated by pagan mythology or by some adaptation to the ideas of the
age. The meaning of this event is accessible only to faith, which
understands it in the "connection of these mysteries with one another"
in the totality of Christ's mysteries, from his Incarnation to his
Passover. St. Ignites of Antioch already bears witness to this
connection: 'Mary's virginity and giving birth, and even the Lord's
death escaped the notice of the prince of this world: these three
mysteries worthy of proclamation were accomplished in God's silence.'
(CCC 498)
Mary is "ever-virgin"
The deepening of faith in the virginal motherhood led the Church to
confess Mary's real and perpetual virginity even in the act of giving
birth to the Son of God made man. In fact, Christ's birth 'did not
diminish his mother's virginal integrity but sanctified it.' And so the
liturgy of the Church celebrates Mary as Aeiparthenos, the
'Ever-virgin.' (CCC 499)
Against this doctrine the objection is sometimes raised that the Bible
mentions brothers and sisters of Jesus. (Mk 3:31-35) The Church has
always understood these passages as not referring to other children of
the Virgin Mary. In fact James and Joseph, 'brothers of Jesus,' are the
sons of another Mary, a disciple of Christ, whom St. Matthew
significantly calls 'the other Mary.' They are close relations of
Jesus, according to an Old Testament expression. (Gen 13:8; 14:6;
29:15) (CCC 500)
I look forward to meeting you here again next week as, together, we
"meet Christ in the liturgy," Father Cusick
(Publish with permission.) http://www.christusrex.org/www1/mcitl/ |
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Contact Father at cbonar@cfl.rr.com; information about his book of homilies is available at www.clydebonar.com.
4 Advent |
God's Song Of Love, "I Am With You"
Introduction
Today's Gospel reads like a birth announcement. Mary and the Holy
Spirit proudly announce the birth of their son, Jesus. Weight of the
baby and how long are not mentioned.
The card includes some data not normally in a birth announcement.
Joseph, the betrothed of Mary, is the step-father. Because Joseph takes
the child as his own, Jesus is born of the House of King David. Jesus
is to be known as Emmanuel, which means "God is with us."
We know the details of the birth of Jesus. Each Advent we hear the
story repeated.
"Do Not Be Afraid"
But, think about the anxiety the birth of Jesus caused for Mary and
Joseph. At the Annunciation, the angel Gabriel told Mary "do not be
afraid" (Luke 1:31); and today the angel of the Lord tells Joseph the
same thing. Asked to do very difficult things, Mary and Joseph put
total trust in God.
At their betrothal Mary and Joseph had exchanged vows before witnesses.
Mary continued to live with her parents, and in a year or so, after
their marriage, Joseph would take his bride to his own house. In the
meantime, Mary was called the "wife" of Joseph. Any infringement of
Joseph's marital rights could be punished as adultery.
Both were young. Perhaps thirteen, perhaps fourteen. Youthful
teenagers.
Then, suddenly, by the power of the Holy Spirit, Mary becomes pregnant.
But, who would believe that story? Mary knew, Joseph knew, everyone
knows, how babies are conceived. Mary also knew she had not engaged in
an adulterous affair.
What would she tell Joseph? Or tell her parents? What would the
nattering gossips at the village well say when Mary went to bring
water?
Still, Mary knew all things are possible with God. Because Mary trusted
God, she said, "Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me
according to your word" (Luke 1:38).
Very troubled himself, Joseph thought, "I'll quietly divorce her."
Joseph didn't want to expose Mary, did not want to cause Mary any
shame, or to see her punished for adultery. But, neither was he going
to take the rap. Joseph did not want to support someone else's child.
That's until the angel of the Lord told Joseph, "do not be afraid to
take Mary your wife into your home." Joseph now knows, the Holy Spirit
is the father. That dream changed his mind. With total trust in God,
Joseph did as the angel of the Lord commanded.
No doubt, a time of anxiety for Mary and Joseph. Asked by God to do
something no one had ever imagined, Mary and Joseph did as God asked.
To each, an angel said, "do not be afraid." With total trust in God,
Mary became the Mother of Jesus, Joseph became the foster father of
Jesus.
"God Is With Us"
But Jesus is not a typical baby. Jesus is Emmanuel, "God is with us."
From ancient times, God has said, "I am with you." Words that dispel
fear and give hope, words that stroke the fan of faith.
Listing the holy people God has promised to be with forms a litany of
our faith. God told Abraham "I am with you" (Genesis 17:1-19). How
strange the circumstances. Abraham and his wife Sarah had never had
children. When Abraham was ninety-nine and Sarah ninety, God said, "I
will give you a son." Your descendants will be as numerous as the stars
in the sky (Genesis 15:5). God with them, Abraham and Sarah did have a
son, Isaac.
God told Moses, "I am with you." Here we have a Prince of Egypt who
became an outlaw (Exodus 2:11-15). One day Moses saw an Egyptian
beating a Hebrew slave. Moses killed the Egyptian. Then, while the
police of Pharaoh searched for him, God told Moses to go to the Pharaoh
and demand freedom for the Hebrew slaves. Moses objected, but God said,
"I will be with you" (Exodus 3:12). As we know, the Pharaoh set the
Hebrew people free. Marvelous things happen when God is with you.
Christ, God the Son, told his disciples, "I am with you always"
(Matthew 28:20). That morning Mary Magdalene and the other Mary had
gone to the tomb of Jesus. An angel at the empty tomb told them to look
for Jesus in Galilee. When the disciples found the Risen Lord, Christ
told them, "go, make disciples of all nations, teach them and baptize
them." Because God is with his disciples, we now have over two billion
Christians around the world.
God told Paul, "I am with you." One day while Paul preached in the
synagogue that Jesus is the Christ, the Jews jeered him. Paul walked
out, and said, "From now on I will go to the Gentiles." In a vision,
Paul heard God say, "I am with you" (Acts 18:5-10). And Paul became the
great missionary to the Gentiles.
Now, "God is with us" is born. Jesus, God the Son, is with us. Jesus is
Emmanuel. From ancient times, God has assured his people, "I am with
you." God was with Abraham and Moses and Paul, and Christ promised to
be with us always.
God’s Still With Us
Is God still with us? Does our experience of daily life indicate God is
with us? Of course it does. In our church, in our family life, in our
personal lives.
I like the story told by a priest. A man asked the priest to pray for
him. A multitude of difficulties troubled the man. Cut backs at work
threatened his job, test reports from his recent check-up worried him,
his teenage son had been caught with drugs at school.
While praying before the Blessed Sacrament, the priest presented the
man to God. Vividly the priest heard God say in unspoken words, "Don't
you know I'm more worried about him than you are!" Absolutely God was
with the troubled man. One by one, his problems faded away.
In our Roman Catholic Church, we say Pope John XXIII called the Second
Vatican Council. To Pope John, the idea of the Council was one of God's
surprises. He wrote, "This inspiration, which has taken me by surprise,
is like a new impulse, a new spirit in my heart, a voice that imparts
great courage and fervor."
That's God with his Church. The idea for the Second Vatican Council, it
was the Holy Spirit's idea. The Pope, simply the Holy Spirit's helper.
God the Holy Spirit did everything, so says Pope John XXIII.1
Let's take one more example of God with us: in marriage. Marriage is a
sacrament, in sacraments we encounter God. In marriage, with Christ
present, husband and wife help each to become more and more holy.
In marriage, self-giving is the key word. Husband listening to his
wife, wife listening to her husband, talking about life's ups and
downs. Married couples speak in terms of we and ours and us, each
sacrificing a little, each taking into account the desires of the other.
Then, in the giving of one's self to the marriage partner, what happens
is an in-breaking of God. Being self-centered gives way to being
God-centered. Unity in love becomes unity with God. God with the
married couple.
Sometimes we wonder whether God is with us. But, a little reflection,
and we see it's true. God with us in prayer, in our Church, in our
marriages.
Conclusion
We celebrate the Fourth Sunday of Advent. Throughout the history of our
faith, God never tires of singing the love song, "I am with you."
The litany begins, "Abraham, I am with you." It continues, "Moses, I am
with you;" "Paul, I am with you." To our Church and in our lives, God
says, "I am with you."
We await the birth of Jesus. Again for God to sing loud and clear "I am
with you." They shall call Jesus Emmanuel, "God is with us."
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These
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