THE GOOD NEWS
ARCHBISHOP BELTRAN

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December 21, 2008

The Good News...

                    ...Christmas 2008

My dear Brothers and Sisters:

It is my hope and my prayer that each of you will have a most blessed Christmas. May the love of God which is expressed in the Christmas message bring you peace and joy.  May we begin to realize anew that God’s plan for us is so beautiful and fulfilling that we must never allow anything to interfere.

God created us in His own Image and Likeness. He made us out of love. He created us in such a way that we can receive His love and love Him in return. If we do so, we will live with Him forever. This is the plan of God. This is the meaning of Christmas — to be with God — or as the Scripture says: “Emmanuel, God is with us!”

Truly, God is with us. Jesus is the Eternal Son of God. Jesus is the One promised to us. In that most disastrous moment of human history, when human beings sinned and rejected God’s plan, He did not reject us. Rather, He looked at us and He said: “I will send My Son and He will save you.”

Jesus is the Son of God. In the fullness of time, He was conceived by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Blessed Mother. He was born in the stable at Bethlehem. He came to save us by His own life, death and resurrection. It is His birth, His coming to be with us, that we celebrate on Christmas.

It is this reality of Christmas, that God is with us, that I want to share with you as I extend greetings for a truly blessed Christmas. I want to assure you that, even though the current economic crisis weighs heavily upon you, nothing can ever outweigh the Good News of Jesus.

There is a deeper reality to our existence than finances, or power,  or possessions. It is the reality of  who we are. We are God’s people. We have been created in His Image and Likeness. He made us for a  reason. He has a plan for us. He wants us to be with Him forever enjoying an abundance of life and a fulfillment of love. Thus we have Emmanuel, God is with us. This is the Good News. This is our Christmas blessing.  Jesus lives with us now to help us prepare to live with Him forever!