Luke 1:67-79
His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied:
“Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has come to his people and redeemed them.
He has raised up a horn[a] of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David
(as he said through his holy prophets of long ago),
salvation from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us—
to show mercy to our ancestors
and to remember his holy covenant,
the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to rescue us from the hand of our enemies,
and to enable us to serve him without fear
in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,
to give his people the knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins,
because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven
to shine on those living in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the path of peace.”
• Luke introduces this prayer of Zechariah as a “prophecy.” The Church has traditionally called it the “Canticle of Zechariah,” that is, a song. Furthermore, the Church has traditionally prayed these words of Zechariah as the conclusion to the liturgy of morning prayer in the office of daily prayer, where it is called the Benedictus.
• The song is Zechariah’s prayer of praise to God and expression of gratitude for his song John. It is, however, also a fitting prompt for our own prayer.
• Today, on Christmas Eve, find a moment to slow yourself from all the things that are tugging at you for your attention . . . the food, the family, the last-minute runs to the store . . . and give a few moments of dedicated space to these words. Read the passage two or three times slowly.
• Notice the lines that stir you. You might write them in your journal. Stay with the words or phrases that seem to have the most energy for you. Work with them. Let them speak to you about your life . . . about your hopes . . . about your dashed dreams . . . about your fears . . . about what you hold closest to your heart.
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