All posts tagged Christmas
I'm not always wearing my full habit...
Merry Christmas!
It’s the Sixth Day. Are you still celebrating? We’re only halfway through!
Gold, Frankincense, Myrrh… and a Kindle!
Woot! Jesus was a Dominican! I knew it!
Last year, Americans spent $450 billion on Christmas. Clean water for the whole world, including every poor person on the planet would cost about $20 billion. Let’s just call that what it is: A material blasphemy of the Christmas season.
(via redcloud)
A wonderful parody of one of the most awful Christmas songs I’ve ever heard.
For a pretty little Marian song, I’ll stick with Roger Whitaker’s Momma Mary.
We commemorate this miracle by lighting a menorah, a nine-branched candelabrum: one candle for each day of Hanukkah, plus the ninth shammes, or helper candle, that is used to light the others. (To conceptualize this in an Extremely Reform way, think of each of the eight candles as reindeer—Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, and Blitzen—with Rudolph as the shammes.) … To save time, many Extremely Reform Jews celebrate all eight days of Hanukkah on one day, December 25, using a pine tree instead of a menorah.
David M. Bader, How to Be an Extremely Reform Jew (via vladislava)
Is it wrong for a Christian to laugh at this? Because it’s really, really, really funny!
(via neutered)
Is Santa Claus Christian?
Some thoughts for you on Santa Claus:
In the time leading up to Christmas — during and before the season of Advent — we often hear debates about Santa Claus. We may even participate in the debates: explaining why we think teaching our kids about Santa is a bad idea or how we could never bear to take the “magic of Christmas” away from them. We encounter people who tell us that the Santa tradition is satanic, as if everything not explicitly made sacred is satanic and not merely secular. And we encounter people who seem to celebrate Santa far beyond their celebration of Jesus. If you’re a clergyperson or a leader in your church, you probably get asked about this. Is is okay for Christians to believe in Santa Claus? Can Christian parents keep the Santa tradition alive for their children without compromising their faith? Where did all this Santa Claus stuff come from, anyway?
The primary answer to all of these questions is: It depends; you are responsible for listening for the still, small voice and acting on what you’ve heard. Seriously, you expected a definitive, absolute answer from an Episcopalian?!? I do have some answers for you below the fold…
- Wait, Saint Nicholas is real?!
- How could the Santa tradition possibly be bad?
- How could the Santa tradition possibly be good?
Dear world: I am not religious. That said, I will not get offended at anyone who wishes me Merry Christmas, Joyous Solstice, Happy Hannukah, or any other seasonal greeting derived from a religious winter festival. The important word is not the second one in any of those greetings - being wished merriment, joy, and happiness is wonderful. It’s dark out. Let’s all be merry, joyous, and happy together. Love, Em
I am religious. In fact, I am a Religious. :-) That said, I will not get offended by anyone who wishes me Happy Holidays, Season’s Greetings, or any other seasonal greeting, whether it’s derived from a religious festival or not. It is dark out, and I’m ready to be merry, joyous, and happy with you.
And you Christians who are offended when someone wishes you a happy holiday or greetings of the season? Undercover Nun prays for your immortal soul. Seriously, get over your silly outrage and accept the loving-kindness that’s being offered to you. It is unloving to spurn a gift, and Jesus told us to love everybody. Even people who don’t celebrate the Feast of the Nativity.
Thank you, Em, for saying this!
Remembering: Some gifts just can’t be wrapped
This is a wonderful story. GO READ IT!
Feature’s editor Jim Haag remembers a Christmas gift from when he was 10 years old. The best gifts, can’t always be wrapped…
“I wanted to put only one thing on my list: the electric football game, complete with a two-tiered stadium, that cost $21.99. But Mom insisted I give my sister options, so I put it first and hoped that she wouldn’t overlook the obvious.”
Planning a Christmas Pageant for your church this year? Not sure what to do about a script? Well, have no fears! Hyperbole and a Half is here, with a clever diagram to show you the story of Every Christmas Pageant Ever.
The story around this amazing Universal Christmas Pageant Script may be hilariously questionable, from a Christian perspective, but do not let this detract from the awesomeness of this planning tool. Undercover Nun will agree, however, that gems of good advice for Pageant Management and Discipline are present within the story.
- We don’t hit the baby Jesus… that isn’t nice.
- Oh my gosh! It’s Jesus!
- You aren’t supposed to hit things with sticks. Especially Jesus.
- Wow, Mary! You are amazing!
May all the blessings of Jesus (and Kenny Loggins) be with you this Christmastide, and forever.
(via silas216)
