Dear Saints,

Matthew 1:23 is one of the most well-known lines in all of Scripture: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means ‘God is with us.’”

2,000 years later, people around the globe still understand that child to be Jesus.

Jesus is known by many names: “wonderful counselor,” “prince of peace,” “king of kings,” “lord of lords,” “lamb of God,” “the good Shepherd,” and more. Yet when Matthew tells how the birth of Jesus came about, he refers to him as “God is with us.”

“With us” isn’t just where God is; it’s who he is. In other words, it is not in God’s nature to be anything but with us. Jesus’ birth is a living testament to that reality. We celebrate Christmas first and foremost because it is the day that, as St. Augustine said, “Him whom the heavens cannot contain, the womb of one woman bore.” It was the moment God breached the chasm between heaven and earth, so that we would know beyond all doubt that he is now - and forever will be - with us at all times and in all things.

Christ’s Peace,

Father Daniel

δοῦλος Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ