Weekly Lectionary Spotlight
Sojourner Truth | John 1:1-14
December 24, 2025
“And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory...)” - John 1:14 NRSVue
Isaiah 9:2-7; Psalm 96; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14, (15-20); Isaiah 62:6-12; Psalm 97; Titus 3:4-7; Luke 2:(1-7), 8-20; Isaiah 52:7-10; Psalm 98; Hebrews 1:1-4, (5-12); John 1:1-14
Sponsored By:
“An finally somethin’ spoke out in me an said, This is Jesus! An I spoke out with all my might, an says I, This is Jesus! Glory be to God! An then the whole world grew bright, an the trees they waved an waved in glory, an every little bit o stone on the ground shone like glass and I shouted an said, Praise, praise, praise to the Lord! An I begun to feel sech a love in my soul as I never felt before—love to all creatures. … Honey, I jes walked round an round in a dream. Jesus loved me! I knowed it—I felt it. Jesus was my Jesus. Jesus would love me always. I did nt dare tell nobody t was a great secret. Everything had been got away from me that I ever had an I thought that ef I let white folks know about this, maybe theyd get Him away—so I said, Ill keep this close. I wont let any one know.”
Sojourner Truth
Listen to Dr. Smith’s Weekly Advent Reflection
Scripture: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overtake it.
There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.
He was in the world, and the world came into being through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.
And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son,[d] full of grace and truth.”
*These AI-generated images are artistic recreations that evoke the world these women inhabited. They are imaginative renderings of their time and faith, not literal likenesses.
Bible Passage
Her Interpretation: Welcome, beloved friends and family, to this special Christmas episode in our Advent journey, where we watch and listen for the Word made flesh. Today, we celebrate what the Revised Common Lectionary calls the Nativity of the Lord. For Christmas, churches around the world pull from three sets of scriptures known as Propers One, Two, and Three. This gives us multiple readings to help us see the birth of Christ as a light for all people, hope in hard places, and love that reaches out to everyone.
John’s words are beautiful. But what does this mystery of Christmas look like for someone living on the edge of society, hoping for a better world?
Today we listen to Sojourner Truth. She was born Isabella, enslaved in New York, with her family torn apart by auctions and cruel separation. As a child, her mother would point to the stars, telling her those were the same stars shining down on her siblings, no matter how many miles apart they were. She said, “There is a God who hears you, a God who sees you.”
Sojourner endured unspeakable hardship, but she found freedom. She famously walked to court to rescue her son, refusing to let injustice have the last word. After gaining her freedom, she traveled across the country working for justice, speaking powerfully for women’s rights, agitating for freedom, and comforting the sick and the broken. She could not read or write, but she insisted on listening to the Scriptures over and over, letting the Bible speak straight to her soul.
For Sojourner Truth, Christmas was real and personal. Jesus came close when everything else had been stolen from her. His love could not be taken away or locked up.
What is the Nativity of the Lord? It is the living God stepping into the world’s suffering to bring light, hope, and love that no one can take away. Sojourner’s story invites us to see Christmas as more than a pretty picture. The Christ child arrives where things are messy and hard. That is where glory shines the brightest.
As a free woman, Sojourner did something extraordinary. Her son Peter had been illegally sold away from New York to Alabama, breaking even the laws of the time. Sojourner walked miles and took his case to court, refusing to let injustice or distance end her love. Against all odds, she won and brought her son home. It was one of the first times a Black woman won a court case against a white man in America. Her strength was not only spiritual, but determined, practical, and persistent. Sojourner was rooted in love that would not let her go then, and it does not let us go now.
The points below will help you continue to ponder.