St. Christopher's - Christmas Eve

St. Christopher's Sunday worship is centered on Christ through the proclamation of Holy Scripture and the administration of Holy Communion.

Christmas & Epiphany
The seasons of Christmas and Epiphany in the church year are very closely connected, as they bring us to the realities of the Incarnation and how the glory of God has been manifested in Jesus Christ.  

In the Christmas season we remember the coming-into-the-world of the Son of God, Jesus Christ, in human flesh by way of being born of the Virgin Mary.  According to St. John, Jesus is the Light who “shines in the darkness”:  and this darkness “has not overcome” the Light (John 1:5).  It is only through Jesus that we can be forgiven of our sins and united to God.  The Christmas season is comprised of the twelve days from Christmas Eve Night/Christmas Day through the eve of the Feast of the Epiphany (December 25 through January 5).  The season of Epiphany, in which we encounter Jesus being manifested as the Son of God and savior of the whole world in Scripture, begins on the Feast of the Epiphany, and lasts until the season of Lent, which begins on Ash Wednesday (January 6 until the beginning of Lent).

Taking seriously the reality of Jesus’ becoming human impacts our spirituality. Leo the Great said, “Think of the Lord’s birth, wherein the Word became Flesh, not as a past event which we recall, but as a present reality upon which we gaze.”  In his Incarnation, Jesus, while not ceasing to be fully God, emptied himself to take on the form of a human (Philippians 2:7).  At Christ’s ascension, he has united our humanity which he took upon himself to the Father.  Therefore, the Son’s incarnation continues into eternity.  Our challenge of discipleship for Christmas is to not look to our own interests, but those of others, and become servants to those in need in our community:  to have an incarnational ministry that is present and evident in our culture and community.

As the glory of God is manifested in Jesus Christ, may Christ be manifested in us and through us by a life of prayer, and by love and service to others in the Epiphany season.