January 2013
Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
Christ is Born! Glorify Him!
"In Him all the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily." Colossians 2:9
Stop and think for a moment or two during the Christmas Season about what the Incarnation means. First it means that God loves us so much that he does not leave our salvation up to prophets and scriptures. As wonderful as they are and essential, that is still love at arms length. Instead God gives himself arms and embraces us. He gives himself human flesh so that he can love us up close in a way that can only happen between human beings with arms that can surround and hearts that beat with real flesh and blood. God became man, taking on all of human nature, deifying the whole thing in one grand event - Christmas.
Secondly, think of all the Divine Energy that created the universe and sustains it day in and day out, that produced billions upon billions of galaxies in a cosmos that cannot be measured, that is growing and expanding and ever-changing, poured into a single human baby. The Incarnation is like a magnifying glass concentrating the rays of the sun into a single ray. The world catches fire! ·
In Him are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Colossians 2:3
Perhaps this is one of the meanings of the Lord's mysterious words, "I have come to bring fire upon the earth." Indeed! He is come. He is the Fire. The Divine Light which now resides in human flesh for all ages. And we, too, are that fire, the Image ofthe God who became flesh. His coming reignites the flame that is smoldering under the debris of our suffering, our shame, our fear. The Fire bums away the debris and what we see is glorious beyond words! What is left? The image of God glowing with uncreated Light.
The theme of Light and Divine Energy continues all the way through Epiphany and the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple. They are three winter Feasts of Light. Rejoice and participate!
With much love in Christ,
Fr. Antony Hughes