Almighty God, you have given your only-begotten Son to take our nature upon him, and to be born of a pure virgin: Grant that we, who have been born again and made your children by adoption and grace, may daily be renewed by your Holy Spirit; through our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom with you and the same Spirit be honor and glory, now and for ever. Amen."The First Nowell"
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| Santos Nativity - Puerto Rico Late 19th century - Unidentified artist, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston |
Jesus DearQuite by accident, I found the poem above that I wrote three years ago, which was not in the short list of my poetry on the sidebar. I'd completely forgotten about it, and I'm a bit puzzled, because I rarely write in regular rhyme or meter. So here's the bit of verse, for better or for worse. When the muse visits, which is not often, I write. Whether the effort is worthwhile, is not for me to say.
One glorious night in stable cold
A Babe is born in days of old.
O Mother Mary, do you hear
The angels sing of Jesus Dear?
As Jesus Dear your arms embrace,
You see His face so full of grace.
Your overflowing love abounds,
Hearkening to the angels' sounds.
Your arms around Him keep Him warm.
You vow He'll never come to harm.
Yet in your heart there dwells a fear
Of hurt to come to Jesus Dear.
A shadow of a cross falls o'er
To pierce your loving heart well sore.
O Mother Mary, what distress
To mar the blessed happiness!
He'll grow in wisdom and in grace,
A Babe no more in form and face.
Sweet Mary, do I see a tear?
Weep not; He's yet your Jesus Dear.
(From Luke: 2)
June Butler - 12-24-09
English folk singer and songwriter Kate Rusby singing traditional English Christmas song Sweet Bells (arr. Kate Rusby and Damien O'Kane; words by Nahum Tate, 1652 - 1715)
UPDATE: St John's dressed for Christmas Eve.ST JOHN'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH
718 Jackson Street
Thibodaux, LA 70301
(985-447-2910)
* Christmas Eve Services - Dec. 24
St. John’s - 5:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m.
St. Joseph’s Manor Chapel - 2:00 p.m.
St. John’s parishioners are not only friendly with one another but are truly welcoming to the newcomer. So, on behalf of the people of God here at St. John’s Episcopal, WELCOME!
In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. All went to their own towns to be registered. Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.
Though in the form of God,Stained glass window from St Joseph Church, Mountain View, California.
Christ Jesus did not cling to equality with God,
But emptied himself, taking the form of a servant,
and was born in human likeness.
Being found in human form, he humbled himself
and became obedient to death, even death on a cross.
Therefore, God has highly exalted him
and given him the name above every name,
That at the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
And every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
O Emmanuel, Rex et legifer noster, exspectatio gentium, et Salvator earum: veni ad salvandum nos Domine Deus noster.Isaiah 7:14
O Emmanuel, our King and our Law-giver, Longing of the Gentiles, yea, and salvation thereof, come to save us, O Lord our God!
Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel.
Philippians 4:4-8
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
An Advent PantoumCollect - Fourth Sunday in Advent
We treasure light lessened in seasons of sleep,
an axis tilting toward beginning,
“and darkness was on the face of the deep”,
light candles on a wreath, imagining.
An axis tilting toward beginning,
restart anew from the first and best resource,
light candles on a wreath imagining
all that is and was and will be in due course.
Restart anew from the first and best resource,
the raw material from which God made
all that is and was and will be in due course,
the dark that was all before it was shade.
The raw material from which God made
earth and sky and sea and a precious Son,
the dark that was all, before it was shade,
now know in the flicker of stars set to stun.
Earth and sky and sea and a precious Son,
we have need of this, this stuff of creation,
now know in the flicker of stars set to stun,
guide us past our fear of last devastation.
Set four wicks ablaze in anticipation,
“and darkness was on the face of the deep”,
study the ways of holy incubation.
We treasure light lessons, in seasons still, steep.
(Marthe G. Walsh)
Purify our conscience, Almighty God, by your daily visitation, that your Son Jesus Christ, at his coming, may find in us a mansion prepared for himself; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.Many thanks to Marthe for permission to use her pantoum.
I wish I was home again, at home in my heart again,I like the old guys still singing, like Eric and Leonard, and still singing so well. Maybe it's because I'm old.
It's been a long time since my heart talked to me;
Wasting my precious days, wishing my life away,
If wishes were fishes, we'd all cast nets in the sea.
I wish I was young again, my songs still to be sung again,
The sweet tunes of my life have gone sour and off key;
Writing my tired old rhymes, trying to turn back time,
If wishes were fishes, we'd all cast nets in the sea.
Chorus:
If wishes were fishes, I know where I'd be,
Casting my net in the dark rolling sea;
And if my net's empty when it comes back to shore,
I'll throw it away and go fishing no more.
I wish I could care again, reach out and share again,
Mend what's been broken and let it run free;
The older I get it seems, more wishing takes the place of dreams,
If wishes were fishes, we'd all cast nets in the sea.
First Moloch, horrid king, besmear’d with blood Of human sacrifice, and parents’ tears, Though for the noise of Drums and Timbrels loud Their children’s cries unheard, that pass’d through fire To his grim idol. (Paradise Lost 1.392-96)
Read again those lines, with recent images seared into our brains—“besmeared with blood” and “parents’ tears.” They give the real meaning of what happened at Sandy Hook Elementary School Friday morning. That horror cannot be blamed just on one unhinged person. It was the sacrifice we as a culture made, and continually make, to our demonic god. We guarantee that crazed man after crazed man will have a flood of killing power readily supplied him. We have to make that offering, out of devotion to our Moloch, our god. The gun is our Moloch. We sacrifice children to him daily—sometimes, as at Sandy Hook, by directly throwing them into the fire-hose of bullets from our protected private killing machines, sometimes by blighting our children’s lives by the death of a parent, a schoolmate, a teacher, a protector. Sometimes this is done by mass killings (eight this year), sometimes by private offerings to the god (thousands this year).Read Garry Wills' entire op-ed and see what we have become as a country.
An AR-15 is usually capable of firing a rate of 45 rounds per minute in semiautomatic mode.Lanza used one of the pistols to kill himself.
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| Bushmaster .223 caliber Remington semiautomatic |
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| Sig Sauer 9 mm |
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| Glock 10mm pistol Auto |
O Rex Gentium, et desideratus earum,Isaiah 9:7
lapisque angularis, qui facis utraque unum:
veni, et salva hominem, quem de limo formasti.
O King of the Gentiles, yea, and desire thereof!
O Corner-stone, that makest of two one,
come to save man, whom Thou hast made out of the dust of the earth!
His authority shall grow continually,Isaiah 2:4
and there shall be endless peace
for the throne of David and his kingdom.
He will establish and uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
from this time onwards and for evermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
He shall judge between the nations,Text from Fish Eaters.
and shall arbitrate for many peoples;
they shall beat their swords into ploughshares,
and their spears into pruning-hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war any more.
Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for the honor of your Name. Amen.Reposted from last year, and the year before, and, and...as a Wounded Bird tradition.
