Sat., Dec. 19: Judg 13:2-7, 24-25a; Luke 1:5-25

How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years. Poor Zechariah! The moral of his story might be: "When the angel of the Lord appears to you, don’t ask questions!" If the Advent and Christmas seasons teach us nothing else, we should at least come away with less cynicism. These are days for pondering the most wonderful stories we know, for telling about how our God is with us. Some say that Christmas is (just) for children. Not so, but we could take a lesson from them, for they have not yet grown jaded with the years. May we use these final days of Advent to recapture our capacity for wonder. O Root of Jesse, come!

*For wonder and awe, we pray.