Later tradition says that Jesus was born in a cave, but the text from Luke’s gospel indicates it was in a outdoor space near the inn. From Luke’s gospel comes the tradition that Joseph and Mary could not stay in the comfort of the inn because there was no...
Henri J.M. Nouwen, in his book “Advent and Christmas Wisdom,” reminds us that when we journey, like Mary and Joseph did, God is with us. “God came to us because [God] wanted to join us on the road, to listen to our story, and to help us realize that we are not walking...
In this rather short passage from the Gospel of Matthew, the trust and faith of Joseph is demonstrated. The word came to Joseph, about the conception of Jesus trough the Holy Spirit, through a dream. Like Joseph, we are also called to listen for the word of God in our...
The author of Luke’s gospel focused on Mary prior to the birth narrative, the author of Matthew’s gospel tells the story form Joseph’s point of view. The name Jesus is derived from the Hebrew name Yeshua, which means “to deliver” or...
The text from the passage of scripture is popularly know as the Canticle of Zechariah. Like the Canticle of Mary, it is largely composed of phrases from the Septuagint and is likely Jewish-Christian hymn. It does not directly answer the question Zechariah was asked in...
The author of the Gospel according to Luke gives us the first birth narrative of Christian scripture; John in born to Elizabeth and Zechariah. John is one of the important characters of the Advent season because it was he who would prepare the way for the Lord, as...
