If I were writing this last year I don’t even think I would have paid any attention to this part of Nicholas’ story. I’m not sure the word would have registered in my brain. But this year? Hearing of a young boy losing both his parents to an uncontrolled illness was hard to ignore.
This is the time of year when many Episcopal clergy start reminding anyone who will listen how important it is
Imagination stands as one of the most powerful gifts that God has given human beings.
As we enter into the Christmas season I am struck, once again, at how messy life, family celebrations, and gift giving can be. T
The 8 foot tree stands in the living room of our tiny, messy apartment and we step carefully around it to get into the bedrooms.
A few years ago, I received an electronic Christmas card from a friend who had always sent a paper one.
Driving up the highway to return a few backup Christmas gifts, I began to meditate on the Christmas season, baby
As I stared at the crowds amassed around our holy family, it occurred to me that with our first child, other than the occasional comment on our parenting and her stranger glare reserved demeanor, we were pretty much left alone as parents to sink or float.
Advent is my favorite season. The waiting, the candles, the music, the smells of cookies and gingerbread baking, the early darkness; I revel in all of it. As a child with infinite imagination, every year I embraced the anticipation of the Christ child with all my heart. And yes, Santa and gifts were fine with me too. But it is the expectation of wonder that thrills my heart. These days, as a parent, a Christian educator, and a reluctant adult, it’s all a little more complicated.
While “A Charlie Brown Christmas” is an animated cartoon about characters who look funny, who make silly noises and often pratfall, Linus’s recitation of Saint Luke’s verses is its solemn core. For a few moments, the story’s busyness is suspended to make room for a larger and more eternal story.