‘He took my body. He offers me His Spirit. He gives me the treasure of eternal life, taking but also giving: He takes my body so that He may sanctify it, He gives me His Spirit so that He may save me.’ (St John Chrysostom, Homily on the Birth of our Saviour Jesus Christ). Christmas has come to be synonymous with gifts, but St John Chrysostom’s above words, delivered to his congregation at a Christmas service in Antioch in the fourth century A.D., remind us about the greatest divine gift of all. Christmas, the Incarnation of our Lord is God’s [...]

Glancing at the first line from the first Ode of the Canon of the Nativity, we are reminded of the miraculous nature of birth of Jesus. So miraculous, that the whole universe anticipated it for thousands of years, the heavens offer a dancing star, the earth a welcoming cave, the angels praise Him with the shepherds and the Magi arrive bearing gifts. The Virgin offers her womb and we… well we can do nothing but give glory for ‘Christ is upon earth’, Immanuel, Christ is with us (Isaiah 7:14)! Looking at the icon of the Nativity of Christ, we notice [...]