“And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.’”
“And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.”
The tender
mood that claims us today when we are touched by old memories and the gladness
of home and the simple delights of children; the angels “bending near the earth
to touch their harps of gold” and the shepherds and the Christchild of the
beautiful story told to us in Luke 2:8-18 somehow doesn’t seem so far away.
It was
December 24, 1998 when columnist George F. Will opined about “The
Happiest Holiday”. In his piece
he observed, “On Christmas Eve, at the end of the rarely stately and always
arduous march that Americans make each year to the happiest holiday, it
sometimes seems that they are supposed to celebrate Christmas as though they
have agreed to forget what supposedly it means.”
Christmas has
not lost its meaning. Don’t let anyone
try to convince you otherwise.
For centuries
we have taught our children about the wonder of Christmas through symbols and
traditions like the fir tree, an evergreen which symbolizes the everlasting
hope of mankind.
There’s the
star we place atop the tree; a sign of God’s promise of a Saviour.
We teach our
children that the candle symbolizes Christ who is the light of the world and
the wreath is a reminder that love never ceases because it is a perfect
circle. The holly leaf represents the
crown of thorns worn by our Lord and the red holly berries represent the blood
He shed at His crucifixion.
The candy
canes we place in their stockings symbolize the shepherd’s hook and reminds us
that we are our brother’s keeper.
The angel we
hang on the branch of the tree is meant to remind us that they were the ones
who heralded the news of our Saviour’s birth.
The sound of
the bell teaches our children about guidance and the return of lost sheep.
The gifts that
we give are a symbol of God’s indescribable gift. This is the heart of Christmas. God loved us
enough to send his only begotten Son.
Santa Claus is
not the center of our celebration, he is merely the humble servant of the One
that is.
Your cartoon of the day reminds me if the old Doonesbury strip, "The part of the baby Jesus will be played by a 40 watt bulb"
ReplyDeleteMerry Christmas! And best wishes for the New year!
(You'll need it for year five of the Obama administration.)
@Proof,
ReplyDeleteAccording to reports, the Times Square Alliance has rolled out a set of figurines of multi-cultural good luck charms including a lucky rabbit’s foot, 13 dream catchers and a horseshoe to ward off any bad luck for 2013. Meh.
Merry Christmas, my friend.