“Should old acquaintance be forgot, And never brought to mind?...for auld lang syne… for old long since.”

“The Christian faith can never be separated from the soil of sacred events, from the choice made by God, who wanted to speak to us, to become man, to die and rise again, in a particular place and at a particular time.” (Pope Benedict XVI)

“But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman…” (Galatians 4:4)

“Live from day to day, dear daughter, and you will accomplish your duties much better, accomplish the sacrifices of the journey better by telling yourself: “It will be over tonight.” Besides, there is a great law of holiness which is ever true, ever good and ever powerful in works: the law of the Holy will of God upon us. We find our special grace of sanctification in this present and personal divine will, and this special grace is attached to every hour, every action. When the time for action has passed, this grace has also passed.”

“This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” (1 Corinthians 11:25).

Ivonne J. Hernandez Ivonne is a Lay Associate of the Blessed Sacrament, President of Elisheba House, and author of The Rosary: Eucharistic Meditations. She lives in Trinity, Florida, with her husband, Rick, and their children.

“You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way, to give his people knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins. In the tender compassion of our God, the dawn from on high shall break upon us, to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace.” (Luke 1:76-79)

“Light dawns for the just; and gladness, for the upright of heart. Be glad in the LORD, you just, and give thanks to his holy name.” (Psalm 97:11-12)

“Our Lord veils Himself for our good and our advantage, to force us to study His soul, His intentions, and His virtues in Himself. If we saw Him, we would be satisfied to admire His appearance; we would have for Him only sentimental love; our Lord wants us to love Him with a love of sacrifice. It is hard for our Lord thus to veil Himself. He would prefer to show His divine countenance, which drew so many hearts to Him in His mortal life, but He veils it for our good. Our mind is thus forced to study the Eucharist; our faith is spurred on; we acquire a deeper understanding of Our Lord. Instead of showing Himself to our eyes, He shows Himself to our soul. Through His own light, He notifies us of His presence in us. He is both the light and the object we must contemplate in that light; He is the object and the means of our faith. The clearness of one’s insight into the Eucharist is proportioned to one’s greater or lesser love and purity of life. Our Lord said so: ‘He that loves Me, shall be loved of My Father: and I will love him, and manifest myself to him.’ Our Lord gives to souls of prayer a deep understanding of Himself; He never deceives them. He varies His grace of light. He directs it now to one point of His life, now to another. And since the Eucharist is the glorification of all the mysteries, Jesus Christ becomes Himself the object of our meditation, no matter what its topic may be.” (Saint Peter Julian Eymard - The Real Presence)
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Rick Hernandez Rick Hernandez is a common sense Catholic, Lay Associate of the Blessed Sacrament and a Director for Elisheba House. He lives in Trinity, Florida, with his wife Ivonne and their children. He also writes for the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament's Daily Eucharistic Reflections and for Catholicmom.com.

“When the time comes, God will lead us where he wills. God allows this so that we will abandon ourselves to him, to be led like Mary and Joseph. Have courage. If the sun had risen and set only once, how we would have admired its beauty and glory and how grateful we would have been to God. Our Lord is the sun of justice, but he neither rises nor sets. He remains always in his brightness and glory on our altars”. 

Saint Peter Julian Eymard (From a letter to the Servants of the Blessed Sacrament, 12/23/1859, Christmas)

The Christmas Mystery:
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525 Jesus was born in a humble stable, into a poor family. Simple shepherds were the first witnesses to this event. In this poverty heaven’s glory was made manifest. The Church never tires of singing the glory of this night:
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The Virgin today brings into the world the Eternal
And the earth offers a cave to the Inaccessible.
The angels and shepherds praise him
And the magi advance with the star,
For you are born for us,
Little Child, God eternal!
 
526 To become a child in relation to God is the condition for entering the Kingdom. For this, we must humble ourselves and become little. Even more: to become “children of God” we must be “born from above” or “born of God.” Only when Christ is formed in us will the mystery of Christmas be fulfilled in us. Christmas is the mystery of this “marvelous exchange.” 
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“Two men will be out in the field; one will be taken, and one will be left.” (Matthew 24:40)
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Laura Catherine Worhacz Laura Catherine Worhacz is a Lay Associate of the Blessed Sacrament and author of Consecration to Jesus Through Our Lady of The Blessed Sacrament. She is also the Director of Mothers of The Blessed Sacrament. She lives in Trinity, FL with her husband and their two daughters.