Welcome! It’s so wonderful to be here tonight, isn’t it? Here in this warm, beautiful space…here with us virtually, wherever you are…here with whoever is sitting next to you, whether it is a loved one or someone you don’t even know. There’s such grace and blessing in simply sharing this moment. Let’s just soak it in…breathe it in, slowly and deeply - breathe out, in again, then out.
It’s hard to believe it’s going on three years now since the pandemic turned our lives upside down. Since we learned, the hard way, that though solitude is nourishing for all of us, not being able to experience that sweet exchange of energy that takes place when we are in one another’s presence is NOT good for us. Not at all. This year we are appreciating the simple goodness of being together in a way that we haven’t for a long time. This year we are feeling especially grateful that we’ve made it here, to Christmas Eve.
The 100-mile trip to Bethlehem that Joseph and Mary had to make to that first Christmas Eve was long and difficult. For Mary, whose pregnancy was at full term, it was ten or eleven days of walking, or lurching on the back of a donkey. And for Joseph, who was responsible for her and the child’s safety, it was a whole host of worries (read more)
