Word on fire is brought to you by Catholic cemeteries, serving the Chicago area since 1837.

This is Cardinal Francis George, and I invite you to join me for the next few minutes to

reflect with Father Robert Barron on the Word of God, which is the Word on fire.

Father Barron will challenge us to open our hearts to the Word on fire, which is God's

Word of Love for each of us.

If our hearts are open, the Lord can change and transform us, could we might speak with

love about the One who is love?

The Archdiocese of Chicago through the generosity of Sacred Heart Parish and Winetka now presents

the Word on fire.

Peace be with you.

Friends, our readings for this fourth Sunday of Advent.

Reveal something that our fathers in the faith took for granted, but that we too often forget.

Only that the New Testament can only be properly understood in light of the Old.

That's a very old problem by the way in the church.

There were heretics very early on who said, get rid of the Old Testament.

It testifies to a fallen God, a God of cruelty and violence and all this.

That view, by the way, is all over the place today.

But very early on, the church resisted it and said, no, no, the two testaments have to

be read together.

In fact, without the Old Testament, you just won't get what the New Testament is talking

about.

What was revealed in Jesus makes sense only against this very rich and complex background

...