I’ve finished my Christmas worship
preparations: 2 Christmas Eve services and Christmas Day all ready to go. I have some cookies to bake and some other
gifts to finalize, but things are looking good for the start of the 12 days.
To all who might take a moment to
read these blogs, I extend my joy and blessing to you all, and to the whole
world. May we all know peace and love
this Christmas and in in the new year.
I’ve been listening to some of my
Christmas songs on my iPod; my daughter gave me a copy of Michael Bublé singing “My Grown-Up Christmas List”
by David Foster and Linda Thompson-Jenner.
While it is a little schlocky for my tastes, it does capture the essence
of hope and love in the world. It’s been
covered by many pop singers over the years.
The refrain of this song is this:
No more lives torn
apart
That wars would never start
And time would heal all hearts
And everyone would have a friend
And right would always win
And love would never end
This is my grown-up Christmas list.
That wars would never start
And time would heal all hearts
And everyone would have a friend
And right would always win
And love would never end
This is my grown-up Christmas list.
These words do reflect my hope for
Christmas and beyond, especially as 2016 comes to a close; it has been a
challenging year for many for a whole host of reasons, politically and personally!
My understanding of Christmas has
always been informed by the idea that the Christ Child was first shown to
shepherds who featured very low in the 1st century social
stratification. In humility, the Christ
was born among us and within us. William
Kurelek, a Canadian artist and writer from the prairies, created a book
entitled A Northern Nativity. The essence of this book is the line, “If it
happened then, why not now? If it
happened there (i.e. Bethlehem), why not here?”
There are depictions of tough Canadian situations in which the birth of
the Christ child occurs. The Christ
child is always found in challenging situations inviting justice and love.
May the Christ break into our world
anew this year with the new life of justice, love and hope. Justice, love and hope are desperately needed
in Aleppo, and in the downtown Eastside of Vancouver; they are in need wherever
life is lived. May 2017 truly be a year
in which we figure out how to live in harmony with creation and with each
other!
Blessings to you all!
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