Our world is filled with turmoil, strife, contention. Every time it seems that our nation or even our own lives are at peace, again something disrupts it. Peace is as elusive as a slippery eel. Today’s readings will point us to the truth that the peace we seek cannot come from the powers of the world, nor can it come from anything in our own hearts or our spiritual potential. Real peace comes from what seems like the least promising place: a little town, through the young Virgin. Peace comes from Bethlehem, from where God comes to us. From God’s Word. From the Bread of Life in Holy Communion. Real peace comes to us, often beyond our understanding, through the babe of Bethlehem, Jesus Christ, through whom God made peace with us by a cross.