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Christmas Season · Second Sunday after Christmas Day · Year C

John 1:(1-9), 10-18

The Word Became Flesh

Saint John the Evangelist, Jean Bourdichon
Saint John the Evangelist, Jean Bourdichon, 1503–1508Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris
Saint John sits on a rock beside his eagle, pen raised, looking up from his open book; the gold band below reads the opening words of his Gospel.In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.Jean BourdichonCourt painter to four kings of France, whose Great Hours for Queen Anne of Brittany is one of the most famous books of the French Renaissance.Bibliothèque nationale de France, ParisThe Bibliothèque nationale de France in Paris, which keeps the Great Hours of Anne of Brittany.Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris

Overview & Insights

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory.” (John 1:14)

The prologue is set apart from the rest of John’s Gospel by its designation of Jesus Christ as the Word (Gr.: logos , vv. 1, 14) rather than “the Son.” The term One and Only (implying sonship) is introduced, however, in verses 14 and 18 and sets the stage for the Gospel’s characteristic emphasis on the Father-Son relationship between God and Jesus.

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What does John's prologue add to the Christmas story?

Where Luke gives the manger, John gives its meaning: the eternal Word through whom all things were made became flesh, full of grace and truth, the light no darkness can overcome.

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