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Forming those who form others

Unto Us a Child Is Born

Some people approve of “baby-worship;” others don’t. I’m one of the worshippers. Baptizing babies—the younger the better—is one of the greatest joys of my priesthood. I love to see and hear babies at Mass. They preach a far better sermon than I could ever do. By raising their voices in praise of God, they tell us that a mother has had a baby, and that her faith is so fundamental to her life that she wants to bring the child to Mass with her. Thank God for mothers and fathers and babies! On Christmas Day Our Lady and St. Joseph, the angels, and the shepherds all worship a baby, the baby. Of course, they worship him! This baby, this child born for us, this Son given to us, wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger, is God the Son, eternally begotten of the Father in the Godhead, and on Christmas day is born in time and human nature of the Ever-Virgin Mary. Of course, we must worship him!

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Fr. John Saward is a priest of the Archdiocese of Birmingham, England, a Fellow of Blackfriars Hall, and priest in charge of the parish of SS. Gregory and Augustine, Oxford. He is the author of several books, including The Beauty of Holiness and the Holiness of Beauty: Art, Sanctity, and the Truth of Catholicism, which was recently reprinted by Angelico Press. He is the prior of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Dominic in England.

This article is from The Catechetical Review (Online Edition ISSN 2379-6324) and may be copied for catechetical purposes only. It may not be reprinted in another published work without the permission of The Catechetical Review by contacting [email protected]

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Catechesis and Culture

Evangelization

Issue:

7.4

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About Franciscan Catechetics

The Catechetics Degree Programs and the Catechetical Institute (CI) at Franciscan University of Steubenville work in concert to prepare clergy, religious and laity to join the “army of catechists” called for by St. John Paul II, eager to help the Church in her mission of making all nations joyful disciples of Jesus Christ. We combine a thorough formation in Sacred Scripture, Sacred Tradition, and Magisterial documents with training in effective pedagogical techniques to help those we serve to grasp the truth, goodness, and beauty of the Father’s plan, and to bear witness to others faithfully of the wonderful life of grace in the Holy Spirit.

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