In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. John 1: 1-4 

“Of the Father’s love begotten, ere the world began to be, He is Alpha and Omega, He the Source, the ending, He.” So begins my favorite Christmas carol, Of the Father’s Love Begotten. The simple and straight forward chant-like melody helps me focus on the story of Christ becoming human. All of the importance of Christmas is contained in this one carol.

The Trinity - “Christ to Thee with God the father and O Holy Ghost to thee.”

The Gift from God to us – “Oh that birth forever blessed when the Virgin full of grace, bore the Savior of our race.”

The promise of Christmas – “Powers, dominions bow before Him,” “And eternal victory.”

I was raised a Roman Catholic and attended Mass with my parents. The mystery of the virgin birth and reverence for the Madonna Mary were an important part of my faith. That God should choose a young woman to be the means of our reconciliation to God shows us that God will claim us any way He chooses. There is no escaping His love. For this amazing gift I will follow the directives in the carol. “Let no tongue on earth keep silent, every voice in concert ring, evermore and evermore.”

Craig Kocisko

About the Contributor

Craig Kocisko has been a member of FPC since 1991. He joined the Chancel Choir and the Chamber Singers a few years later