Looking Back At Christmas

I read in the Times just the other day that Christmas is a time when people should say: “Peace on earth, good will to all,” then insure that peace freely befalls all creation, the near and the far. Look up! Have hope! Behold, the star! See how it casts its light on the child, see his expression, the innocent smile that, in the moment, touches the soul, invites kings and shepherds to sing and extol the greatness of God in the baby boy as the universe sings with sacred joy.

But tomorrow the star will be nowhere in sight, no longer to shine its perfect light, gone from the sky where the angels flew, that beacon of hope the wise men knew. What do the shepherds and common folks do? The party is over; celebrations are through. Back to the pastures, the distant towns, back to routines on familiar grounds. The mundane, the meager offer no hint of peace, just a memory of the day when humankind ceased, even for a very brief moment in time, to think beyond our selfish designs to a remarkable dream yet unfulfilled, to a day when our arrogant human will might live the song of angelic voices, decide that in our human choices we will make Bethlehem’s story true, simple folk like me and like you, but only if we choose the better way so that in these difficult, trying days, Christmas becomes a way to live, and I am the gift I choose to give.

So, let it be known both near and far that Christmas is a memory of a child and a star, each with potential to cast pure light in the midst of humanity’s common plight. Long, long ago, on a starlit night, in a place where today we abhor the sight of our need to conquer and be in control as we slowly destroy humanity’s soul, there was born a dream, a common way for caring people to join hands and say: ”May peace will the earth; may we all share goodwill.” That dream is alive and waits for us, still.

May your Christmas be merry, filled with the sights of joy-filled faces, festive lights. May the gifts you receive and the gifts you give recall to our minds what it means to live in the light of a brilliant passing star, a radiant light that defines who we are.