Eleventh Day of Christmas (Jan 4)

December 26, 2021, By: Jimmy Scruggs

Welcome! As you journey through these Twelve Day of Christmas we invite you to use this approach, which works well for individuals and groups of all ages.

Light a candle. Pause to remember the presence of God filling you with Light and Love.

Pray this Opening Prayer:

Radiant Creator, awaken me to your presence.
Jesus, Light of all Lights, kindle love in my heart.
Spirit of Illumination, guide my path today.

Christmas Reflection for the Day:

Now after the magi had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. (Matthew 2:13-15

I am bathing my face
In the mild rays of the sun
As Mary washed Christ
In the rich milk of Egypt.
Sweetness be in my mouth,
Wisdom be in my speech,
The love the fair Mary gave her Son
May I see at the center of all life. (Carmina Gadelica)

Merry Christmas!

During this adventure of the Twelve Days of Christmas we will discover that “Christmas is not not just a long season of shopping followed by one day of partying; it is twelve days of adventure that beckon us to a lifetime of incarnational living.” (Bruce Epperly)

Thought for Today: Jesus, Mary and Joseph were political refugees. The pilgrimage of the Holy Family can reshape our understanding of Christmas. In Advent-Christmas we practice Welcoming the Light (or Christ Child) in all the spaces of our lives. In practical terms, this means making a place for strangers, immigrants, and asylum seekers. As mentioned before, Christmas is political. How can we seek and support policies that protect all children and truly honor the complexities and varieties of family life?

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Set your intention for the day. Say: Today I will prayerfully explore how I can provide spiritual sanctuary to strangers and immigrants in my community.

Daily Christmas Prayer: Let me make a home for you, Jesus. Show me ways to open my heart, arms and resources to provide well-being for the marginalized and those who dwell in the shadows for fear of being deported. Let me, regardless of my political position, be guided by compassion and truth, not fear and falsehood. In the name of the Refugee Christ. Amen (Bruce Epperly)

Together on the Journey,

Katie Martinez

P.S. Some of us are reading along in the short devotional book, Thin Places Everywhere: The Twelve Days of Christmas with Celtic Christianity.