December, 2025
By Fr. Christopher Kubat, M.D.
There is a beautiful passage in the book of the prophet Isaiah that says, “Those whom the Lord has ransomed will return and enter Zion singing, crowded with everlasting joy; they will meet with joy and gladness, sorrow and mourning will flee (Isaiah 35:10). Since what is in the Old Testament prefigures what is in the New Testament, what do these words prefigure or predict? What do they mean for us in the year 2025?
We were ransomed by the death of Jesus on the cross. The new Zion, the new Jerusalem, is Heaven. Therefore, we can interpret these words to mean, ‘Those whom the Lord Jesus rescued by dying on the cross will enter heaven singing. So, for those who never sing in church, you will be singing. And we will meet each other with joy and gladness as sorrow and mourning will disappear, forever, permanently. One eternal moment of perfect happiness.
What does this have to do with Christmas? Everything. The Son of God became man to do two things; first to die, so we who were dead in sin may live; and second to start a Church in which we find our way into heaven. However, this is not automatic. God does not need us to save us but He will not save us without us. We need to cooperate. We need to follow the Good Shepherd. And with the grace of the Sacraments augmented by the aid of the sacramentals, we are able to do it.
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