Love Came Down at Christmas

The painting at left is Paul Gauguin's
Te Tamari No Atua (Nativity)

God did not wait till the world was ready,
till...nations were at peace.
God came when the Heavens were unsteady
and prisoners cried out for release.
God did not wait for the perfect time.
God came when the need was deep and great.
God dined with sinners in all their grime, turned water into wine.
God did not wait till hearts were pure.
In joy God came to a tarnished world of sin and doubt.
To a world like ours, of anguished shame,
God came and God’s Light would not go out.
God came to a world which did not mesh;
to heal its tangles, shield its scorn.
In the mystery of the Word made Flesh,
the maker of the stars was born.
We cannot wait till the world is sane to raise our songs
with joyful voice, or to share our grief, to touch our pain,
God came with Love: Rejoice! Rejoice!

-- from “First Coming”, Madeleine L’Engele

Wishing the most blessed of Christmases to All