Featured photo by Dietmar Rabich. CC BY-SA 4.0.
As we gather on this Christmas Eve, let’s set aside the noise and hear the plain truth of the night, guided by two early church giants: Saint Augustine and Saint John Chrysostom.
Augustine, the 4th-century bishop of Hippo, preached every Christmas with fire in his voice. “He whose hands governed the world, lay in the manger,” he said, “and Infant that He was, He was also the Word.” The Word did not abandon heaven when He entered the womb; He simply clothed Himself in our flesh. This is the great exchange: Christ took our poverty—sin, weakness, death—so we could inherit His riches—righteousness, strength, eternal life. The King of kings was born to a teenage mother in a cattle shed because no one made room. Christmas Eve is our call to do the same—make room, lower ourselves, meet the Savior where He chooses to be found.
Across the empire in Antioch and later Constantinople, Saint John Chrysostom preached the same mystery with even sharper edges. In his Christmas homily around 386 AD, he asked: “What shall I say! How shall I describe this Birth to you? For this wonder fills me with astonishment. The Ancient of days has become an infant. He Who sits upon the sublime and heavenly Throne, now lies in a manger.” Chrysostom marveled that God did not thunder from Sinai but whimpered in Bethlehem. He came not to destroy us, but to be destroyed for us. The cross was already in the crib. That is why Christmas Eve matters: the wood of the manger points to the wood of Calvary. Worship now, Chrysostom urged, because the Baby will one day say, “It is finished.”
Both of these early church leaders warned against empty celebration. Augustine wanred us that many keep the feast, but few keep the faith. Chrysostom said “This is why I ask and beg all of you to be here in Church for that feast with all zeal…” Gifts and lights and carols are fine—only if they lead us into living the new life Christ bought.
So here is my Christmas Eve wish, straight from the sermons of our Christian forefathers: May the God who became small make you great in mercy. May the Light who entered darkness shine in your words and deeds. May the peace announced to shepherds settle over your homes tonight and carry you into the year ahead.
From all of us at the Phyllis Schlafly Report — Merry Christmas Eve. Christ is born. Adore Him.
