As we prepare for Christmas, it is good to remind ourselves of what the Catholic faith teaches us about the person of Jesus Christ. First and most importantly, the constant witness of the Church from the time of the apostles, and set out with clarity in the creeds and declarations of the early Councils, is that Jesus Christ is truly God made man, the eternal Word made flesh, the living God who has come down from heaven to be our Saviour.

We can become accustomed to hearing people speak with disrespect about Jesus, and express what previous generations would have recognised as blasphemy. We should not feel obliged to excuse this. Although as Christians, we try to understand others, we do not need to go along with offensive comments about Our Lord who is our loving Saviour and our God.

In our own prayers and worship, we need to remind ourselves of that attitude of adoration which is shown in many depictions of the Nativity. We bow down in loving homage before Our Lord and God who deigned in humility to visit us on earth.