The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14
“This is the reason why the Word assumed a body that could die…Because of the Word dwelling in that body, it would remain incorruptible, and all would be freed forever from corruption by the grace of the resurrection.”
Athanasius of Alexandria (c. 296-373) in his work, On the Incarnation of the Word, as recounted Milton Walsh in Witness of the Saints: Patristic Readings in the Liturgy of the Hours (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2012) 527.
Today I pivot from recent posts from Mother Teresa to reflections from famous saints in church history on facets of the incarnation. It seemed fitting to start with Athanasius for a post from his classic work on the topic.
He answers a question that might come up in Christmas conversations. It’s the ‘Why’ question. Why would God become flesh and become baby Jesus. He cam to remain incorruptible in order to make a way to free us from corruption.
But how do we do this? At parties people talk about war, inflation, and many other problems spreading fear. You can simply reply emphasizing that the world is broken and Jesus came to free us from our brokenness and make us whole.
And the work that started with the incarnation (Christmas) finds completion by grace in the resurrection (Easter). So for those who go to church on Christmas and Easter, they hit to bookends of the work of Jesus. It’s a start.
But if they stop there, they miss the grace available to us the other 50 weeks of the year. This Advent season share the gift of the grace and truth of Jesus with one person. Ask God for an opportunity and share boldly.
This just might be the greatest gift you will give anyone in this season of gift-giving,
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