Filed under: Christianity
Have you heard of the Bible-verse-spewing-Jesus-figurene that is rocking the Christmas sales?
Just wonderful. We’ve reduced our only hope for peace, love, and joy to a GI JOE. Our Messiah has joined the ranks of Ken and Barbie.
Just a couple questions about this video….
I have a lot of interactions with people who don’t celebrate Christmas (Atheists, Agnostics, Muslims, Jews), some of whom are friends of mine, some of whom have been very hurt by the church. Why would I wish these people a ‘Merry Christmas’? I think that the words ‘Merry Christmas’ are supposed to be a blessing. Some people don’t feel blessed when they hear those words. If some people feel more blessed when we say ‘Happy Holidays’ rather than ‘Merry Christmas’, shouldn’t we be more than willing to bless them in that way? Then, even has I say the words ‘Happy Holidays’, in my heart I’m saying, ‘May the peace, love, joy, hope, and salvation of Jesus Christ be yours also”.
This past Fourth of July my wife and I were staying on the edge of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area wilderness in Northern Minnesota. We had a chance to drive and hike through the forests that had been hit by the fires last spring. Already the undergrowth of bushes, grass, and small trees had starting coming back. While thinking about our country, the Iraq war, and the forest fire, I wrote the following poem:
“Peace of July”
I see peace fall in cool rain
The hot violent fires exhausted
Hands on knees heaving soothing breathes
Of springing air touching our smoked scorched lungs
All was drenched in the peaceful dew
Love had quenched our roots
While we slowly grew back
Teaching our children by Spirit
We’ll stare at the tree scar museum
Of charcoal, of desolation, of ash
Passing on the story
Of hot violent hatred
And how peace came to pass
