Merry Christmas 2023!

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ!

Christmas is the most important holiday for every Christian. On this day we remember the birth of Christ, which the Old Testament people had been waiting for for many centuries, and about which the prophets of those times spoke. The Lord God loved and loves people so much, even those mired in sins, that He showed us His Son, God in the flesh, so that by this Grace we would be saved and meet the Creator in Paradise after the end of our earthly life.

We all know that Jesus was born in the city of Bethlehem. But few of us know that, translated from Hebrew, the name of this city means “house of bread.” Jesus himself called himself the “Son of Man,” believers call him the “Son of God.” In John 6:51, Jesus also calls himself the Bread of Life: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; And the bread that I will give is My flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” It is very significant and symbolic that the Bread of Life for humanity was born in the “house of bread.”

Christmas is a great celebration of the birth of our Savior, it is joy for all humanity, and it is the accomplishment of an expected miracle.

I cordially congratulate you on this bright holiday and continue to be in prayerful communication with all of you! Merry Christmas!

With love and prayers,
+ Chairman of the Synod,
Titular Bishop of IELC
fr. Alexius (Suvoroff)