Csquared Thoughts

the work begins

An appropriate thought for the day before Epiphany, courtesy of God's Politics.

When the song of the angel is stilled, When the star in the sky is gone, When the kings and princes are home, When the shepherds are back with their flock, The work of Christmas begins: To find the lost - To heal the broken - To feed the hungry - To release the prisoner - To rebuild the nations - To bring peace among brothers and sisters - To make music in the heart. - Howard Thurman

the day after Christmas

My friend Dennise quotes Corinne Heline in Holy Christmas Mysteries:

During the twelve Holy Days between Christmas and Twelfth Night, the light of the archangels envelopes the earth. The fragrance of this aura permeates the planet with a rare perfume, like an intermingling of fairest roses and purest lilies. During this sacred interval, as the earth gradually absorbs this radiant light and healing fragrance, it is an ideal time to rededicate one's soul to its path.

Christmas

I don’t think that it is a coincidence that we celebrate Christmas just a few days after the winter solstice. More than one thoughtful writer has remarked that December 25 means that we have moved passed the shortest day of the year, and that already, however slightly or imperceptibly, the days are getting longer again, the light is returning.

Peace and joy this Christmas!

Christmas Eve

Peace and blessings on this night!

the Christmas story

It's part of our culture to conflate the birth narratives of Matthew and Luke.

But it's worth remembering that while both place Jesus' birth in Bethlehem, Luke has the manger and the shepherds watching the fields, while Matthew has the wise men and a house in town.

Our Christmas imagery combines the two, but Matthew and Luke and Luke have quite different perspectives. Matthew seems to have been written to a more affluent audience of early Christians, while Luke's focus is on the poor and disenfranchised. That's reflected in their respective birth narratives.

"Happy Holidays"

I wrote on this topic last year, but I've gotten some new readers since then, and in any case I feel strongly enough about the subject I think it bears revisiting.

Putting aside for the moment the difference between Advent and Christmas, there are those evangelicals and members of the religious right who protest the use of the term "Holidays," rather than "Christmas," and the use of "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas." However, in spite of the efforts of the "W" administration and others to make make Christianity the state religion, the First Amendment does still stand: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."

The fact is, there are a lot of people who are not Christians and who do not celebrate Christmas. My first wife was Jewish, and I'm still in touch with some of her family. A good friend and former co-worker of mine is a devout pagan. Terry and I deliberately select Christmas cards that do not use the word Christmas, but rather say things like "Peace on Earth." And I'm proud of it. Just because I choose to follow a Christian path doesn't mean I want to convert others to that path.

I do say "Happy Holidays!" and I'm proud of that too.

No Kindle for Christmas

Terry asked me what I wanted for Christmas. I said I wasn't sure. She said, "How about a Kindle?" I said, "Absolutely!" She went to order the Kindle for me, and after being in stock and available all summer, they are now on eleven-to-thirteen week backorder. sigh.

Guess I'll keep reading books the old-fashioned way for the time being.

Christmas Blessings

The Joy, Peace, and Blessings of Christmas to you all!

After Epiphany

I recently wrote about about W.H. Auden's For the Time Being, its approach to the Nativity, and life once Christmas is over. Kathryn, over at Good in Parts, take a more hopeful view, and gives us this poem.

When the song of the angels is stilled, When the star in the sky is gone, When the kings and princes are home, When the shepherds are back with their flock, The work of Christmas begins: To find the lost, To heal the broken, To feed the hungry, To release the prisoner, To rebuild nations, To bring peace among brothers and sisters, To make music in the heart. - Howard Thurman

This certainly reflects my view of the church's mission.

Being in Advent

Dean Alan Jones of Grace Cathedral has been talking about Advent, and making the point that it is Advent, and not Christmas, and that we shouldn't rush it. It's a time of preparation. Pastor Koch at Good Shepherd takes much the same approach. There will be plenty of time for Christmas when it gets here, so let's make good use of of this time of preparation, so that we're ready for Christmas when it arrives.