Church - Hofmann: A trusting relationship with God can set you free
For the Bishop of the Evangelical Church of Kurhessen-Waldeck (EKKW), Beate Hofmann, Christmas is a time when people can experience the closeness of God. The shepherds discovered a small child in the stable in Bethlehem, "peacefully, in the light of a star that signals: This child in the light will be light for the world," Hofmann explained according to the sermon text distributed in advance for Christmas Eve vespers in St. Martin's Church in Kassel.
Feeling God's closeness changed the shepherds. The shepherds, who had previously been on the margins of society, had felt noticed and valuable and had passed on what they had experienced. "Through the encounter with this child, something changes in us, in our self-perception and in our relationship with God," said Hofmann. "God does not play with us, he does not belittle us and does not devalue us. God offers something different: A relationship full of trust and love. This trusting relationship with God can set us free, "free from people who are not good for us. Free from addictions that keep us dependent. Free from social constraints that oppress us."
Read also:
- A clan member is punished here
- Traffic lawyer warns: Don't talk to the police!
- Will he be convicted as Jutta's murderer after 37 years?
- He also wanted to kill his cousin
- On Saint's Eve, the Bishop of EKKW in Germany, Beate Hofmann, urged her congregation to reflect on the relationship between God and humanity, drawing parallels to the shepherds in Bethlehem who found solace and value in their encounter with the Christ child.
- As the Christmas celebrations continued in St. Martin's Church in Kassel, Hofmann encouraged her listeners to seek the same liberating relationship with God that the shepherds had discovered in the stable near Bethlehem.
- In her sermon, Hofmann emphasized the importance of trust and love in this special relationship, sharing that God does not belittle or devalue us but instead offers a relationship filled with these virtues, akin to the grace shown to the outcast shepherds by the holy child.
- In the spirit of the saint's eve, Hofmann reminded her flock that time spent in God's presence on this holy night in Cassel's church could bring them closer to the Saintly family in Bethlehem and provide a palpable sense of peace, love, and freedom.
Source: www.stern.de
