For Heaven's Sake by Mike Morgan for December 27, 2010

Sweet.

Yes–now that the secular and commercial world have finished with Christmas (One local radio station went to all Christmas songs from Nov 7 through Dec 25!) the believers can celebrate the real Christmas Season–the gift of God come to be with us is too great to rejoice for only one day!

thanks for reminding us that, in this case, X does in fact mark the treasure spot.

bmonk: Thanks! It’s so nice to celebrate the miracle of Christmas without all of the commercialization, etc.

Maybe Samuel has a funny shaped foot?

Or at least an interesting gift in the stocking.

So the twelve days of Christmas go from December 25th to January 5th? What is supposed to be done to celebrate each of the twelve days? If it can be summarized, that is.

Yes, us terrible secular peoples…….. ummmm…… never mind that. I just never really learned. For years I thought Boxing Day was when they must have the biggest boxing match of the year.

Remember that the twelve days of Christmas came from when people counted funny sometimes. The twelve days traditionally run from Christmas (December 25) to Epiphany (January 6)–but I don’t recall that there was any special ways to observe the different days.

Now I am left to wonder why we celebrate as we do anyway. Giving each other gifts and decorating. I know Boxing Day was a day to share with those less fortunate traditionally. (many try to do that before Christmas now)

I guess I just thought there might be a reason for twelve days. Like celebrating twelve gifts Jesus gave the world or something.

This is more than I know: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelve_days_of_Christmas

Ummm……. sometimes I am stubborn. Of course the answer is no fun. (Blows Raspberries)

This sounds like it is probably correct: http://www.holytrinitygerman.org/xmastide.html , does that sound about right?

There are several theories on the original meaning/purpose of the 12 Days of Christmas song. The song is probably why that period of time is so well known. I guess I missed when being Catholic was punishable by icky gruesome death.

This is one reason I will probably always be unaffiliated to any one religion. It hurts to hear people claim to be believers of God and yet show hatred toward their fellow man because they have differences in their belief system.

It takes an unusual and special person to Hate the sin and Love the sinner and also to not condemn others because they interrpreted things differently.

(Wow! I went off on tangent!) I guess I should continue working on that thing above. Especially with people who represent their churches! When I hear them spewing that stuff I ……. I……. get really frustrated, because I know they are teaching their hatred to others.

Well……. no need to rain on the parade aircraft-engineer. A rather harsh way of putting it….. nice to know all peoples are capable.

Do you consider yourself a Pagan (a very broad term)? It would be interesting to learn from another perspective.

@Ooops!, the idea that the Twelve Days of Christmas was written to tell about the Catholic faith under the Anglican persecution is a nice story, but almost certainly not true. The key is what the symbols are supposed to describe–the basic truths of Christianity, like the four Gospels (calling birds), or the twelve drummers drumming (Apostles, or the twelve points in the Apostles’ Creed)–but these were not the disputed issues between Catholics and Anglicans. If the song were a Catholic invention to hide their faith under symbols, there would be reference to things like the Apostolic Succession, the Pope, and the universality of the Church. These just aren’t there.

Bmonk, a nice story?…… you are very strange. The part I noticed is that wouldn’t have even been a theory if persucution hadn’t been an issue at one time.

I guess I just want things to be simple. I don’t understand how people can teach love through hate. I am beginning to suspect I don’t want to be able to understand. Sometimes I wish people could understand how I think and feel. Then later I realize what a horrible thing that would be. I think understanding love through hate muust also be a horriblee thing.

I appreciate the emphasis on CHRIST in CHISTMAS

Ooops!, remember:

Christians can be a little strange. We accept the reality of persecution, and look beyond the bad part to find the good of it. Who else celebrates martyrs, those willing to suffer and die without resisting, for their faith?

As a wise professor used to like to say, “Christians have a remarkable dexterity for missing the point.” (Like everybody else, come to that.) The point is, we forget or mistake what we are about–the command to love–and get caught back in the hatred we are trying to escape. Things like the inquisition, that started with good intention, and even seem to have had some good effects–the witch trials were much more rare in Catholic areas than in Protestant areas, probably due to the inquisition being able to dismiss most of the cases out of hand–degenerated into a political tool of the worst sort of persecution, in its Spanish form. But the way I can keep from despair over human sinfulness and our ability to warp the good out of anything is by keeping my eye fixed on God, and God’s ever-faithful love. God loves, and shows us how to love, even when we cannot love ourselves. If I look at human nature, I get caught in the fallen and broken–even today’s Calvin & Hobbes is an example, when he wants to “fix” his father rather than himself–but it’s only when I look at God that I see what is truly possible.

For whatever reason I am not ready to look towards God or maybe it is that I am not able to recognize him. Sometimes though it is almost as I can see love.

And Yay Me! I am aware that because of what ever reason many people consider my opinion and thoughts not worth consideration. Now, I am more likely to feel sorry for someone so close-minded or insecure that they will not consider person’s words and or actions than to imagine beating them with a foam covered ‘stupid stick’ until they get brains. Which would of course be counterproductive.

@Ooops!, if you did dare to raise your eyes to God’s face, I believe you would see his overwhelming, compassionate love for you, and be, well…overwhelmed.

: )