A child is born for us,
and a son is given to us;
his scepter of power rests upon his shoulder,
and his name will be called
Messenger of great counsel.
his scepter of power rests upon his shoulder,
and his name will be called
Messenger of great counsel.
“And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14)
Saint Augustine of Hippo offers the following insight on this verse from today’s Gospel:
“What you can see here, dearly beloved, on the table of the Lord, is bread and wine; but this bread and wine, when the word is applied to it, becomes the Body and Blood of the Word. That Lord, you see, Who “in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” was so compassionate that He did not despise what He had created in His own image; and therefore “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us,” as you know. Because, yes, the very Word took to Himself a man, that is, the soul and flesh of a man, and became man while remaining God. For that reason, because He also suffered for us, He also presented us in this sacrament with His Body and Blood, and this is what He made even us ourselves into as well." (Sermon 229)
O God,
Who wonderfully created
the dignity of human nature
and still more wonderfully restored it,
grant, we pray,
that we may share in the divinity of Christ,
who humbled himself to share in our humanity.
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Who wonderfully created
the dignity of human nature
and still more wonderfully restored it,
grant, we pray,
that we may share in the divinity of Christ,
who humbled himself to share in our humanity.
Who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Glory to You Father, Son and Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning is now
and will be forever. Amen!
as it was in the beginning is now
and will be forever. Amen!
