Imagine your children being “led away on foot” by your enemies (Bar 5:6). Imagine your son handcuffed and led off to prison. What if your children were exiled in a foreign land and you would probably never see them again? This is similar to what the Jewish people went through at the Babylonian exile. About forty years later, Yahweh performed one of His greatest miracles. He freed the Jewish exiles, and they returned home.

The Church brings this to our attention because this Christmas the Lord wants to bring our children home to Him. He wants those imprisoned and exiled to repent of their sins and to come to Him this Christmas.

At this moment, some people are possibly entering into hell. They smell a rancid, putrid odor. They hear shrieks and howls. They are attacked and beaten by demons. They live in unimaginable pain and terror.

At this moment, some people are possibly entering into heaven. They are “borne aloft in glory as on royal thrones” (Bar 5:6). They are indescribably joyful (see 1 Pt 1:8) and radiant. They are being embraced by Jesus and by their family and friends who have died in Christ. They are perfectly happy forever.

Come home to Jesus for Christmas. It makes all the difference in the world — and beyond the world.

Rescript:  "In accord with the Code of Canon Law, I hereby grant the Nihil Obstat for the publication One Bread, One Body covering the time period from December 01/2021 through January 31, 2022 Reverend Steve J. Angi, Chancellor, Vicar General, Archdiocese of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio May 5, 2021"

The Nihil Obstat ("Permission to Publish") is a declaration that a book or pamphlet is considered to be free of doctrinal or moral error. It is not implied that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat agree with the contents, opinions, or statements expressed.