The Story Behind The Christmas Story
I expect we’re all aware that Christmas isn’t really about Black Friday sales and going to the mall to see how much stuff you can cram into the trunk of your car to haul home and put under a dead tree in your living room. I trust we all understand that Christmas is really about commemorating the first coming of Christ to earth when he came to be the Savior; the Redeemer; the Atoning Sacrifice; “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.”
But Jesus came and did all those things long before we started celebrating “Christmas.” So where did Christmas come from? How did it get started and how did it develop into what it is today? And what about this Santa Claus character, what’s up with that?
There is a story behind the celebrating of Christmas, and behind Santa Claus too, and it begins with a fourth century saint – Saint Nicholas. I was recently treated to the telling of that story by one of America’s premier historians, Bill Federer, who was interviewed by my friend and fellow Constitution Party supporter, Cynthia Davis, on her Home Front podcast.
In addition to reading your favorite Bible passages about the Word being made flesh and dwelling among us, and maybe going to a special church service, and, of course, getting together with family on Christmas Day, and eating w-a-a-a-a-y too much, I encourage you to listen to this special message: “Is Santa Claus Real,” and to learn about the origins of the celebration of Christmas. I would hope that reviewing the roots of this holiday might become a habit with us and that it might lead to our emulating Saint Nicholas (Yes, he’s real!) and his acts of Christian charity.
Merry Christmas! May the Blessing of the Lord come upon you and overtake you in the coming year.
When conservative talk radio host, Glenn Beck, announced he would not be voting for Trump, and suggested that, if Hillary wins, we can oppose her agenda in Congress, live to fight another day and work to elect a conservative in 2020, the right reacted in shock and horror, angrily contending, “the nation cannot survive Hillary!” “It will be too late to save America in 2020!” “All will be lost!” Then repeating the mantra used in every Presidential election year: This is the most important election of our lifetime!
As the pundits pontificate, the politicians bluster and blather, and the American public eagerly awaits the opening of Presidential debate season, there are only two things missing from American Presidential politics: 1) A news media willing to ask the real questions that address America’s moral condition, the candidate’s guiding principles, and the rule of law under the U.S. Constitution; and, 2) Candidates who comprehend America’s moral condition, possess guiding principles, and understand the rule of law under the U.S. Constitution.
A couple years ago, while reading an article about some internal strife in my state’s Republican Party, I was surprised to read that, “the state GOP has a policy of not endorsing one Republican over another.” I had noticed that this seemed to be the party’s practice, but didn’t know it was an actual policy.
“Now more than ever before, the people are responsible for the character of their Congress. If that body be ignorant, reckless and corrupt, it is because the people tolerate ignorance, recklessness and corruption. If it be intelligent, brave and pure, it is because the people demand these high qualities to represent them in the national legislature … If the next centennial does not find us a great nation…it will be because those who represent the enterprise, the culture, and the morality of the nation do not aid in controlling the political forces.”
It’s that time again – time for another “special election.” This time, the City of Spokane is looking to renew a levy (i. e., Tax) for emergency medical services (EMS) at an April 26 special election. But why is the city spending taxpayer money to hold a special election for this single measure instead of just adding it to the November general election ballot? Well, it’s for the same reason that every special election is held – it’s because levies, bonds and other tax measures have a better chance to pass at special elections than at general elections.
I expect we’ve all heard the phrase, “three coequal branches” used to describe the composition of our federal system of government. In fact, we’ve probably heard it so many times that we don’t even pay attention, we just accept it as fact and move on. But, is it true? Are the three branches of our federal government really “coequal?”
When we give our endorsement to someone or something, we intrinsically connect ourselves to the object of that endorsement and to the values which it embodies, thus lifting – or lowering – ourselves to the level of the entity we have endorsed.
