Dieter F. Uchtdorf
Second Counselor in the First Presidency
A story is told that during the bombing of a city in World War II, a large statue of Jesus Christ was severely damaged. When the townspeople found the statue among the rubble, they mourned because it had been a beloved symbol of their faith and of God’s presence in their lives.
Experts were able to repair most of the statue, but its hands had been damaged so severely that they could not be restored. Some suggested that they hire a sculptor to make new hands, but others wanted to leave it as it was—a permanent reminder of the tragedy of war. Ultimately, the statue remained without hands. However, the people of the city added on the base of the statue of Jesus Christ a sign with these words: “You are my hands.”
O God, the Eternal Father,
In the fullness of time,
Thou chose to reveal Thyself,
The fullness of Thy divine character,
In Thine only begotten son,
Jesus Christ.
Emmanuel, “God with us,”
Is Jesus, the fullness of Deity,
Who came to earth,
A crying baby
Born of a tired mother,
Surrounded by tired animals,
In a tired manger,
In a tired town.
Through the life, ministry,
Death, and resurrection of Jesus,
It was Thy good, pleasing, and perfect will
To reveal the fullness of our humanity,
Who we should be,
What we should do.
O, we come and adore Thee,
Heavenly Father,
And Thy Holy Son,
For Thou foreordained
The salvation of all humankind,
Throughout all generations.
In the arms of his young mother,
We behold the helpless baby,
Who would one day
Spark a blessed flame
That would set this weary world on fire.
Thou, O God, are with us, indeed.
With the Holy Ghost,
We pray to Thee, Heavenly Father,
In the name of Jesus Christ,
The Light and Life of the world.
Amen.
聖誕祈禱文
培瑞兹 弟兄 敬禱
神啊,永恆的父,
藉著時機成熟之際,
透過您的獨生子,
耶穌基督,
您決定向世人顯現
自己神性的豐滿
以馬內利(神與我們同在)
即是耶穌,神的豐滿,
他來到人世,
一個哭啼的嬰兒
藉疲憊的母親降生,
由疲憊的動物環伺,
在一個疲憊的馬槽,
在一個疲憊的小鎮。
透過耶穌的生命,傳教,
逝世和復活,
是您美好,樂意,和完美的意願
顯示了我們人性的豐滿,
我們應該是誰,
我們應該怎麼做。
噢,我們來崇拜您,
天父,
以及您的聖子
為您所註定
拯救全人類,
貫穿所有世代。
在他年輕母親的懷抱裡
我們看著那個無助的嬰兒
他日後
將點燃祝福的火焰,
光耀這個疲憊的世界。
神啊,您確實和我們在一起。
藉著聖靈,
奉主耶穌基督的名,我們向您,天父,
世界的光和生命,祈禱
阿門。