Merry Christmas

Christmas Time is Here

Wishing You a Microaggressive Christmas

This is why the voting age ought to be 31 ;)

So here goes...

Merry Christmas One and All

The Fourth Sunday of Advent

Photo: Joe Lewis

In an Italian tradition during late Advent the shepherds come down from the hills and play before the shrines to Mary and before the Nativity Scenes, they play a traditional Italian bagpipe known as a Zampogna.

 Or for a more modern interpretation

 

3rd Sunday of Advent: Gaudete Sunday

It gets its name from the introit of this Sunday's service:

Gaudete in Domino semper: iterum dico, gaudete.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice.

Originally the period before Christmas was a fast of forty days similar to the Easter Lent, in fact starting on day after the feast of St. Martin it was referred to as St Martin's Lent.  As the Easter Lent had Laetare Sunday a break from the normal Lenten rigours, Gaudete Sunday was a break from the rigours of the pre-Christmas fast.

And just because I like Latin and Mediaeval Baebes...

The First Sunday of Advent: Christingle

 

Today is the First Sunday of Advent, the beginning of the Western Liturgical Year and the traditional start of the Christmas Season.

The Christingle has its origins in the Moravian Church in the 18th century with  Bishop Johannes de Watteville of Marienborn.

The orange represents the world, the red ribbon the blood of Christ, the dried fruit represents the fruits of the earth and the four seasons, and the candle Jesus, light of the world.

The story of the Christingle is that there were three children, who were very poor, but wanted to give a gift to Jesus, like the other families at church were doing. The only nice thing they had was an orange, so they decided to give him that. The top was going slightly green, so the eldest cut it out and put a candle in the hole. They thought it looked dull, so the youngest girl took her best red ribbon from her hair and attached it round the middle with toothpicks. The middle child had the idea to put a few pieces of dried fruit on the ends of the sticks. They took it to the church for the Christmas mass, and whereas the other children sneered at their meagre gift, the priest took their gift and showed it as an example of true understanding of the meaning of Christmas.

Throwing Culture out with the Religious Bathwater

Johansen Viggo

Montgomery Co. ed board strips religious holiday references from new calendar

The 7-1 decision by the Montgomery County's Board of Education on Tuesday came after Muslim leaders in the community asked that equal recognition be given to the Muslim holy day of Eid al-Adha.

Muslim leaders say they're not pleased with the result. They didn't want religious labels removed from the other holidays, just for Muslim students to be treated equally and to have their own holiday recognized. Huffpo

Like it or not, the United States is a Western Nation and as a Western Nation is part of Western Civilization.  Christianity is a defining, if not root, element of Western Civilization.  Everything from Santa Claus to the Easter Bunny are not just religious but cultural holidays.  In fact, the majority of Christian celebrations in the West are covered in the trappings of European pagan holidays that pre-date all other religions with the possible, but doubtful, exception of Judaism.  Christmas and for the most part Easter are celebrated by people of all religions and people of no religion.

The seven idiots on the Montgomery County Board of Education would be well served by taking a lesson from their Muslim petitioners and standing up for their cultural heritage.

Merry Christmas!

* - Hector Garrido's "Jesus, Light of the World"

I wish you and yours a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year! 

Snoopy's Christmas

One for the children, big and small...



Now put away the computer and go celebrate Christmas!

Santa Claus is not a Religious Figure

Ah...  Thanksgiving Day...  A perfect time for a Christmas-themed story... 

Would someone please explain to these dingbats that Santa Claus is not a religious figure?

"Because of our state affiliation, we decided not to have a Santa presence this year," Hollings spokeswoman Vicky Agnew said. Hollings is a part of the Medical University of South Carolina.

Decorations will be "more secular and respectful to all beliefs," Agnew said. "We don't want to offend a volunteer with good intentions, but we need to think of the bigger picture. People who are Muslim or Jewish or have no religious beliefs come here for treatment," she said. (Cancer Center’s Santa Gets the Boot)

First off, I really doubt any atheists, Jews or Muslims would be offended by the Jolly Old Elf, who is after all NOT A RELIGIOUS FIGURE!

And of course, even when the ACLU is not involved, it’s influence still hangs in the air like a noxious, flatulent cloud…

The director of the state chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union declined comment but pointed to the association's national website. It said while "some limited governmental celebrations of Christmas are not per se unconstitutional ... the burden for the government to show that its activities do not have the purpose or effect of endorsing a religious message is high."

This official stupidity resulted in a firestorm of criticism, so the petty bureaucrats announced that Santa would be invited back.  Maybe they were worried about getting coal in their stockings...

Got Christmas?

So does the federal government listing Christmas as one of its ten official federal holidays constitute endorsement of Christianity? If not, then the Santa-phobes need to check themselves and take the sticks out of their rears.

Do you get a Christmas holiday off from work or school?  If so, thank Jesus!  After all, the holiday was named in his honor.