In the beginning was Christmas. In the opening verses of his Gospel, St. John offers a profound meditation on the mystery of Christmas, drawing us beyond the earthly details of Bethlehem to God’s eternal plan for our salvation. Unlike the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, which recount the historical events of Christ’s birth, John begins with a hymn of cosmic proportions.
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (Jn 1:1). With these words, John echoes the opening of Genesis, proclaiming that the child born in Bethlehem is none other than the eternal Word, through whom all things were made. This Word, who was in perfect communion with the Father, took on flesh and made His dwelling among us, revealing God’s glory in a way mankind had never seen before.
At Christmas, we marvel at the humility of the Incarnation — God becoming one of us to redeem us. John’s prologue (the first 18 verses of his Gospel) invites us to gaze deeper into this mystery, reminding us that the light shining in the darkness is no ordinary light but the very life of God offered to the world. This Word made flesh is the fulfillment of humanity’s deepest longings and the source of grace upon grace.
The Prologue of John’s Gospel
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 to be through him,
and without him nothing came to be.
What came to be through him was life,
and this life was the light of the human race;
The light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness has not overcome it.
A man named John was sent from God. He came for testimony, to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.
He was in the world,
and the world came to be through him,
but the world did not know him.
He came to what was his own,
but his own people did not accept him.
But to those who did accept him he gave power to become children of God, to those who believe in his name, who were born not by natural generation nor by human choice nor by a man’s decision but of God.
And the Word became flesh
and made his dwelling among us,
and we saw his glory,
the glory as of the Father’s only Son,
full of grace and truth.
John testified to him and cried out, saying, “This was he of whom I said, ‘The one who is coming after me ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.'” From his fullness we have all received, grace in place of grace, because while the law was given through Moses, grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. The only Son, God, who is at the Father’s side, has revealed him.
