Nativity Stained Glass from Bayeux Cathedral, for The History of the Christmas Collects

The History of the Christmas Collects

Posted on December 24, 2024
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We expect the Christmas Collects to celebrate the birth of Jesus, and they do. But they also surprise us by repeatedly applying the birth of Christ to the life of the Christian believer. Because he is light, we can know light. Because he was born, we can be born again. Because he shared the life…

Hymn Guide: Hark! The Herald Angels Sing

Posted on December 13, 2024
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The majestic Christmas carol, “Hark! the Herald Angels Sing,” celebrates both the birth of Christ and the saving work he came to do. First written by Charles Wesley, with small but significant modifications by George Whitefield, it reflects the confidence of the Great Awakening in the glorious grace of God.

12 Christmas Books for Kids

Posted on December 10, 2024
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In our family, we store our Christmas books in the attic for most of the year. So it is a cause of great delight, near the beginning of Advent, when we bring them out again. In these books, we find wonderful stories to celebrate the birth of Christ. To be clear, these are not adaptations…

Eighth Day Prayers: Advent, Christmas, Epiphany header

Review: Eighth Day Prayers (Volume 1)

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Eighth Day Prayers: Daily Hope for Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany, takes the focus on Christ’s incarnation deep into the heart, inviting us to a place of deep spiritual reflection in God’s presence as we enter the darkest yet most hopeful time of the year.

Today in the Spirit: Christmas 1B

Posted on December 24, 2023
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The Churchโ€™s messaging on the Sundays following Christmas Day might best be summed up as promises fulfilled with more to come, or light shining with ever-increasing brightness. The Christmas 1 readings are the same all three years. It is on this Sunday that we receive as a Gospel selection the famous prologue to Johnโ€™s Gospel,…