Divine Liturgy, Sunday of the Holy Ancestors, the Sunday before the Nativity, December 21, 2025

Liturgy: https://mci.archpitt.org/sheetmusic/2... Livestream: https://stjohnchrysostom.org/st-john-... Nativity Schedule: https://stjohnchrysostom.org/2025/12/... Divine Liturgy for the Sunday after Christmas, Holy and Righteous Joseph the Betrothed, David, and James the Brother of God and Leave-Taking of the Nativity of our Lord, God, and Savior Jesus Christ, December 27, 2025 Christ is Born! Glorify Him! Seasons come and seasons go, the sun rises and the sun falls, the moon waxes and the moon wanes. In our human experience, change is the one great constant. The Wisdom Literature of Sacred Scripture attests to this common experience we all share. But, it is in the ebb and flow of our human existence that the Ever Existing Word of God became flesh for our salvation. He, who is above the Heavens, lowered Himself and entered into the humanness of life with us. He assumed the very flesh of His most beloved creation – Man. As we celebrate this wondrous mystery of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ, whether with family, with friends, or in solitude, let us allow ourselves time to stand in “AWE” of what God has done and is doing for each of us. The fruit of the Nativity is the sanctification of the flesh and all creation. It is the forgiveness of sins and new life that is not bound by the sting of death. No longer do we just converse with God, as did Adam in the Garden, but now we become partakers of Divine Nature. St. Athanasius, reflecting on the Incarnation writes: “He indeed assumed humanity that we might become God,” we do not become God by nature, but by grace, by the life of God within us. Out of love for us, Jesus sanctified our body by having a body Himself, a body he received from the Most Holy Theotokos. This action expresses the great reality of the mystery of God’s gift of love to us. May this Christmas Gift of Love be yours! The Rev. Thomas Donlin Please be generous and consider a gift by visiting: https://stjohnchrysostom.org/one-time...