For many in Newton, Connecticut, the idea of celebrating Christmas ideals of cheer,  joy, and peace seem  inhumane this December 25th. Smiling and happiness in the face of massacre, pain, and mourning… doesn’t seem right. In fact, celebrating amidst such darkness almost...

“Pooh-pooh to the Whos!” he was grinch-ish-ly humming.   “They’re finding out now that no Christmas is coming!   “They’re just waking up! I know just what they’ll do!   “Their mouths will hang open a minute or...

Anyone who’s come over for dinner has seen my collection of Peruvian oil paintings of the Virgin Mary. Several years ago, a spending spree and newfound obsession with Catholic art (despite being a Reformed Baptist) landed me with a few too many Marys: three hanging in the hallway and one...

Everyone knows how the Christmas story goes.  As Stanley Hudson vehemently asserted in the most recent episode of The Office (8.10 Christmas Wishes) regarding the sensitivity to celebrate everything but Christmas during the Holidays: I want Christmas! Just give me...

The concept is bizarre when you stop and think about it. Let’s take a couple of days off of work at one of the busiest times of the year.  We’ll time our school calendars so that the semester break occurs during the holiday. For the month preceding the holiday, houses and...

Today (Dec 13) I am flying home after my first term at St Andrews. It feels like time has sped up ever since I arrived. An hour seems a bit shorter than I remembered in the States. Whole weeks have felt like insignificant blocks of time that pass by all too quickly. Why does time seem so...

For the reading audience, this comes as part three of a themed week focus on the tension between celebrating Christmas, as specifically Santa, alongside the advent of the Messiah. For those of you who have not read John’s misnomer[1] article titled “Why I Wouldn’t Teach my Kids About...

The commercial and symbolic culture of Christmas has been lost on no one.  The true meaning of Christmas has.  In America, Christmas is a month-long celebration full of tradition.  It’s more a season than merely a date on the calendar.  Radio stations and department stores play nothing...

I don’t actually have a problem with Santa Claus.  In fact, I enjoy the general holiday cheer, even if it isn’t specifically Christian.  I’m fine with songs like ‘Santa Claus is Coming To Town,’ ‘Frosty the Snow Man,’ ‘Silver Bells,’...

Confession: there is a part of me that hates Christmas time.* We might be quick to throw stones at Dr. Seuss’s scornful Grinch for his hatred of inarguably one of the world’s most celebrated holidays. And perhaps in part it is because his heart was 3 sizes too small. But regardless of his...