Down in a lonely manger, the humble Christ was born; and God sent us salvation that blessed Christmas morn!
My beloved, all:
Christmas is a time of joyous surprise as we receive God’s gift of hope yet again. The darkness, though threatening, has not overwhelmed us. In bread and cup, body and blood, the gift of Christ comes given and shed for you, for me and for all. In a simple, almost hidden way, hope breaks into our hearts, our lives and our world anew.
Christmas is a time of joyous surprise as we receive God’s gift of hope yet again. The darkness, though threatening, has not overwhelmed us. In bread and cup, body and blood, the gift of Christ comes given and shed for you, for me and for all. In a simple, almost hidden way, hope breaks into our hearts, our lives and our world anew.
The joy of such a simple, subtle surprise stands in stark contrast to the let-down experienced by so many of us. Gail Ramshaw once put it succinctly: “Santa Claus promised us perpetual happiness, a mythic family gathering, mounds of toys, all of our heart’s desires. But it didn’t happen. Heaven didn’t establish itself in my living room this year. We got sick on the eggnog…”
Because Christmas is for so many a painful time, a season of disappointment and loneliness, it is important for the church’s celebrations and holy day observances to be different.
Let this season of hope be a time of telling the truth in love. Let it be a time to center our lives in prayer, the Word made flesh, a holy communion with God and neighbor. Let us remind one another, that though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is born among us, still the ruler yet. Let us receive the gift; and be in Christ, gift to one another and the world.
Praying with you that our days and our deeds in this Christmas season and throughout 2018 will be marked with peace. I am grateful for the privilege of serving Christ with the Pastors, Deacons and Lay Leaders of our Delaware-Maryland Synod; may we witness faithfully to the love of God in Jesus Christ, our Emmanuel.
...Go tell it on the mountain, over the hills and ev’rywhere; go tell it on the mountain that Jesus Christ is born!
The Rev. William (Bill) Gohl Jr., Bishop
Delaware-Maryland Synod, ELCA
Because Christmas is for so many a painful time, a season of disappointment and loneliness, it is important for the church’s celebrations and holy day observances to be different.
Let this season of hope be a time of telling the truth in love. Let it be a time to center our lives in prayer, the Word made flesh, a holy communion with God and neighbor. Let us remind one another, that though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is born among us, still the ruler yet. Let us receive the gift; and be in Christ, gift to one another and the world.
Praying with you that our days and our deeds in this Christmas season and throughout 2018 will be marked with peace. I am grateful for the privilege of serving Christ with the Pastors, Deacons and Lay Leaders of our Delaware-Maryland Synod; may we witness faithfully to the love of God in Jesus Christ, our Emmanuel.
...Go tell it on the mountain, over the hills and ev’rywhere; go tell it on the mountain that Jesus Christ is born!
The Rev. William (Bill) Gohl Jr., Bishop
Delaware-Maryland Synod, ELCA