Weekly Pause & Ponder

Christmas celebrates more than a single event, more than just the birth of a child in a Bethlehem cave long ago: Christmas celebrates a presence that continues to this day and for all time. That presence is experienced in every moment of compassion we extend and experience, every moment of comfort and consolation we offer and receive, every moment of forgiveness we seek and give.

"Emmanuel" – "God is with us." In Christ’s birth, God touches human history: hope reigns, justice takes root, peace becomes possible. The challenge to each one of us is to take on the work of "Emmanuel" – to make God’s presence tangible by being [God’s] arms for the hurting, [God’s] hands for the fallen, [God’s] heart for the grieving.

Daily Reflections for Advent and Christmas

by Jay Cormier, p. 72.