The Word Among Us

Advent 2012 Issue

Publisher's Letter

O Come and Be Made New!

Every Christmas we celebrate Jesus’ coming into the world as a baby in a man­ger. We recall just us how much God loves us (John 3:16), and we think about how God came to us so that we might come to him (1 John 4:10, 19). More »

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

I am Coming Soon

Ah, Christmas—that joyous, exciting, most wonderful time of the year! It seems that everyone, even the most secular among us, gets swept up in the magic of the season—buying gifts, hosting parties, and decorating their homes. We just can’t wait for Christmas to come! More »

O Come Emmanuel!

O come, O come, Emmanuel And ransom captive Israel That mourns in lonely exile here Until the Son of God appear More »

O Come!

December 17: O Wisdom, O Holy Word of God, you govern all creation with your strong yet tender care. Come and show your people the way to salvation. (Isaiah 11:2-3; Wisdom 8:1; Proverbs 9:1) More »

Come to the Father

In 1902, a sociologist named Charles Cooley developed a theory called the “Looking Glass Self.” According to Cooley, the way we think about ourselves is formed in large part by what we think the most important people in our lives think about us. More »

This One Didn’t Turn Away

Remember the rich young man of the Gospels? How he hurried up to Jesus, asking about the way to eternal life? More »

Special Feature

Faith and Fear Cannot Share the Space

On February 4, 2012, Joseph Estabrook, auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, died of pancreatic cancer. Bishop Estabrook was a close friend of The Word Among Us Partners. He served on its board of directors and was instrumental in helping to launch Partners’ outreach to service men and women. In honor of our good friend, we wanted to share this reflection, which he wrote just a month before his death. More »

Can You Help?

Bishop Joseph Estabrook often cited the staggering statistics facing the Archdiocese for the Military Services USA: 265 active-duty priests serving 1.8 million people spread throughout the world. More »

A “Blank Check” for God

What am I going to do now? Newly widowed at just fifty years old, that’s the question I was facing. I decided to put it on hold, though, after receiving a surprise check from my husband’s former employer. Before doing anything else, I wanted to fulfill my lifetime dream of visiting the land where Jesus lived. More »

Suffering Gracefully

“How do I go on, Lord?” That’s what my friend Michelle is asking. Not long ago, she went to bed feeling fine—and woke up mostly paralyzed, unable even to call for help. More »

Search Me, O God!

Have you ever noticed how good we can be at noticing other people’s weaknesses, while still having a blind spot for our own? Fortunately, God is familiar with this tendency. More »