"And when the fullness of time was come, God sent His Only-Begotten Son" (Galatians 4:4), to save the human race. And when the ninth month had come after the Archangel Gabriel appeared to the Most Holy Virgin in Nazareth, saying: "Hail, thou that art highly favored...thou shalt conceive and bear a son"

The Jew thanked the Persian Magi once again and the two men went their separate ways. Artaban turned back; it would be folly to attempt the journey through the desert alone; he needed to hire some men for protection, to buy some camels and load them with provisions and water. A week went by. He was obliged to sell one of the gems in order to equip his caravan, but Artaban did not sorrow too much; he still had two gems. The main thing was not to be late in reaching the King. He hurried the servants, and the caravan moved as quickly as possible. Finally, they reached Bethlehem. Tired, dusty, but happy, he rode up to the first house. He went in and showered the host with questions. "Did some men from the East come here to Bethlehem? Where did they go? Where are they now?

Knowing how many of you have animals that you love and take care of I felt that all of you need to know about Saint Modestos, Patriarch of Jerusalem who also loved animals and took care of them and if they were injured or sick he would heal them.

In the days of Herod the king, when the Savior of the world was born in a poor cave near Bethlehem, an enormous star suddenly lit up the sky over the countries of the East. The star shone with a bright, dazzling light and slowly but steadily moved in one direction, towards the land of the Hebrews. The astronomers, or magi as they were called, took note of this new light.

I would like to encourage all of you to continue your struggle to prepare spiritually for the Birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. During this holy season the Orthodox Christian intensifies his or her spiritual lives in order to ready our souls and bodies for the Great Feast. We do this through fasting, prayer, alms-giving, repentance/confession and increased attention given to "preparing for His coming" to make sure we've done what we can to make a "fit dwelling place for Him" in our hearts and lives.

Christ, finding the holy body and soul of the Virgin, builds for Himself a Living Temple, and as He had willed, formed there a man from the Virgin; and, putting Him on, this day came forth; unashamed of the lowliness of our nature.