Growing up, we were done with Christmas by 5 p.m. on December 25. All the adults were exhausted and ready to put their feet up! The Christmas decorations stayed up for a few more days because they were pretty, and no one had the energy to take them down right away.
But in the church, Christmastide is an intentional season that continues to the Feast of the Epiphany and the Baptism of our Lord. It is a season where we go from the manger, to the Magi, to the Jordan River. Do you wonder why the Gospels skip over so many years of Jesus’s life? The biographer/documentarian in all of us yearns for a more complete picture of his early years.
In actuality, we are given everything we need to know. In Christmastide, the full nature of the child is revealed. In the manger, we see he is one of us. Through the Magi, we see he is for the world. In the Jordan, we see his divinity.
To paraphrase Joan Chittister, “Christmastide confirms what our hearts already know: God is with us.” Happy Christmastide! I look forward to following the light with you.
Mother Nina+
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