The entire Christmas Eve service is shared for all to enjoy!
(The homily starts at 36:42 (36 minutes, 42 seconds) should you want to only hear the homily.)
In his Christmas Eve homily “Why Christmas?”, Dr. Steve Watt centers the message of Christmas on the simple but profound truth of John 3:16: God sent Jesus into the world because God loves the world. Drawing from Luke 2, he recounts the birth of Jesus and the shepherds’ joyful response, then warns how easily people—especially Christians—can miss the point by turning faith into rule-keeping or partisan politics. Watt emphasizes that Jesus did not come to enforce religious purity or advance political agendas, but to embody God’s love through compassion, generosity, and grace. Christmas, he concludes, is about remembering and reclaiming this central truth: God sent Jesus for one reason alone—love—and Christians are called to stay centered on that love and share it with all.