I Last summer – which now feels like an eternity away – my girlfriend and I were lucky enough to be able to go on holiday in the Italian Dolomites. After much planning I knew what the culmination of this holiday would be (for me at least), and that was hiking to the summit of Tofana di Rozes, one of the most iconic peaks of the Italian Dolomites. It was not easy to get there.…
And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! In the prayers we say in the lighting of the Advent wreath, we have been remembering different preparation for the coming of Christ. On the 1st Sunday in Advent we remembered the desire of all people for a Saviour, on the 2nd we remembered the Old Testament prophets who pointed the way,…
On this fourth Sunday of Advent, shortly before Christmas, the Gospel passage brings us to John the Baptist, standing at the river Jordan, facing a delegation of priests and scribes from Jerusalem, who are trying to figure out who he is and what this act of baptism means. It is only a few weeks ago that I happened to be at the bank of the Jordan myself, together with large groups of Eastern Orthodox pilgrims…
Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem… Say to the cities of Judah, “Behold your God!” Isaiah 40:1 We are almost at the high feast of Christmas – it is one week away. We’ve celebrated Christmas before, so we know what it is like, so there is some expectation of joy as we approach it and, we’re making ourselves ready for the feast – turkey ordered, invitations sent – yet we…
Rejoice in the Lord always; and again I say, Rejoice. Let your reasonableness (moderation) be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand. Advent has been about the anticipation of Christ’s coming that first time in Bethlehem. It has been about Christ’s coming at the end of time. And, it is about His present coming to our souls. That coming into our world brought with it then, and brings even now to our souls judgement…