Jesus is the Reason?

"Candles and Holly Berries"

"And now to Rome, as always in December, came the Saturnalia." 

"Io! Saturnalia!" was the call that ushered in, and the greeting that echoed through, the holiday season. This gay carnival of thanksgiving was in honor of Saturn, the kindest and most provident of gods. "Io! Saturnalia! Io! Io!"

Merrymakers sang through the streets in red pointed caps. 

Every child would want a doll and every household would need candles. The makers thereof were busy ahead of time in preparation. 

Evergreens and holly branches, with their red berries, were brought in to grace the buildings.

Gifts were selected and wrapped for family and friends. After a family dinner of roast pig there came the exchange of gifts.

Many tiny masks of Bacchus (the Roman god of agriculture, wine and fertility) were hung on small fruit and olive trees.
(Excerpts taken from Augustus Cæsar's World and paraphrased.)

What modern-day holiday comes to your mind as you read about the Saturnalia?

Christmas, of course!

I hear Christians, this time of year, lamenting the lies that children are told concerning Santa Claus. It is indeed lamentable. 

The clause that follows this lament always stirs my heart- "We know that Jesus is the reason for the season!" It does not stir my heart with joy but sadness. 

How can adults blindly follow the myth of Christmas, year after year, continually passing on to the following generation a belief that Jesus is indeed the reason for the season? Traditions are very strong.

I was taught from a young age that Jesus is not the reason for the season. Christmas is a pagan holiday. 

A few years ago, as we studied ancient history, this truth was more deeply etched in my mind and heart as we read about the Saturnalia.

This was a holiday to worship a god of the people's making and it was practiced long before the time of Christ. This is why you read about "Christmas trees" in the Bible. (Jeremiah 10:3-4)

People say it couldn't be the Christmas tree because it was before Christ. Well, surprise! Do the research. It is the very same holiday. 

The apostles and early Christians did not observe Christ's birth, but his death, as was customary for great people in that time. This He also implored them to do. (Luke 22:19)

The only purpose I see for Jesus in this season is to help people make it through. This season is not about Jesus, but about family. About gifts. About traditions. About food and festivities.

The spirit is not one of giving but of getting. One family decided that for Christmas one year they would only give presents to needy people instead of exchanging them among themselves. The children (who were not young) said, "Let's not do this again!"

The same thing that "Santa Clausers" say, Christians repeat. "It's for the children. Let's not spoil their fun." To be honest, I don't recall ever receiving a Christmas gift and I never felt cheated in the least.

Our young son once chose a "Christmas" song at some other time of year and the song leader made some remark about it. Something like, "Oh, a Christmas song! Hmm. Well, we could sing it." Some twittered. Like, just don't sing songs of Jesus' birth "out of season". 

Yet no one knows the time of Christ's birth. Only, we do know it was not in December because shepherds would not have been in their fields at this time of year.

So we limit songs of Christ's birth to one month when there's no possibility of that being the month wherein He was born.

What if we sang only songs of the Resurrection the whole month of April?

Or, for a month before that, we would sing only songs of Jesus' crucifixion and death? (This would, in reality, be more scriptural than singing of His birth for a month.)

Then we would leave it at that. Don't sing these songs any other time of year. 

Anyway, you get the drift. I'll let you do the further research. How did Christ-mass come to be? 

Why are you celebrating it?

What is the "Spirit of Christmas"?

Why are there more suicides this time of year?

Why are Christians exhausted and left feeling "high and dry" when January comes? 

Today I am thankful for...
...parents who taught me the truth.
...the calm of not celebrating Christmas.
...the wisdom God will give, if we only ask. (James 1:5)

Thankful

The Lord is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble and he knoweth them that trust in him. Nahum 1:7

God is good, all the time: All the time, God is good.

This past week has been wonderful! The men were home most of the week, getting projects done around here. We took off from academic studies. It was a relaxing week in a lot of ways even though it was busy.

A sign in the pottery shop

Our shop with an open porch is now a larger shop because there are walls built around the porch. Usually the men would enclose the porch with plastic for the winter to have space to work but now there are real walls. They are doing a major renovation on the interior of the building also, to make it more usable. 

The yard has had its fall cleanup- the last mowing and leaf pick-up. It looks so nice!

One day the men cut up six bushels of apples for me which I made into sauce. They helped to turn it through the strainer also. We got around 63 quarts. We like a thicker sauce so I poured a lot of liquid away. Most of the sauce went into the freezer. I canned seven quarts.

That same day, we three teachers of our class at Kid's Club took five of the girls out for the evening to Polka Dot Pot in downtown Winchester. PDP is a pottery shop. You can book a party and paint pottery. We each did a mug except one girl did an ice cream cone trinket "box".

Thanksgiving Day didn't seem like it . Okay that sounds weird. But I was hoping for family time, playing games, etc. We just each went our own way, doing whatever and waiting for the evening when others were coming. Thomas' mom, my parents, my sister Verina and family and my sister Joanna from NC came for a 6:30 supper. Of course it was a very short evening. Gobble up the turkey and be stuffed. Ha.

Joanna stayed for the rest of the week and left today. We enjoyed having her with us for a few days. Last weekend my sister Rachel was here with "her very own boyfriend" (as my five year old niece put it.) And in Oct my brother LeRoy and his friend Darek from Poland visited awhile. What a privilege to have family visit us!

And friends! Nathaniel came to visit.

My parents have spent the last few weeks in Gap Mills, making fruitcakes and helping along with the bakery. 

Toward the beginning of the month the younger boys and I had the privilege of visiting different artists. They set up a tour for people to come watch them work and/or see their handiwork. The things the boys enjoyed most were stained glass art and wood turning.

Melvin's art work. The boys enjoy artistic things.

The boys also enjoyed a field day with the church school and a school in Bittinger, MD. It is an annual thing they do, getting together to see who can jump the farthest, run the fastest etc & etc. It's a fun day for all. At least for all of mine.

These things were lying close to one another on the coffee table one day and I couldn't resist the photo. Melvin made the axe.

That day was very unusual for me, being home by myself most of the day. What did I do of the one hundred one things I could have done? Read! Actually I did more than that but I did take some time to enjoy the luxury.

Puzzles are my weakness and this one was especially fun!

Then I had another while to be alone when Thomas and all the boys but Stephen went on a hiking trip with friends for two days and two nights. They were out there when a strong wind came up with rain and sleet, followed by cold temperatures. The precipitation let up but the wind continued. The men were in my thoughts a lot as I wondered how they were able to stay dry and warm. The next day I discovered that they had relocated to a cabin for the night... so.... all was well!

Buddy

Thanksgiving week is over. Some people say the Christmas season begins. Not knowing that bondage is very wonderful. An elderly lady who attends our church regularly was once asking me some questions about Christmas. I don't remember exactly how our conversation went. In response to my saying that I don't believe it has anything to do with Jesus but it has become a Christian holiday to many people, she decidedly shook her head and said, "No, I wouldn't think it is Christian." And she "religiously" observes Christmas, knowing it is no Christian holiday.

Mama's Christmas cactus

When one of the church ladies went to a store to purchase Thanksgiving themed things, she was told that once they clear out Halloween things they move on to Christmas. Two pagan holidays. Christians try hard to make something godly out of Christmas but what a failure! Go back in history to discover where this all came from and you will begin to see that Christmas is about family traditions that make one feel good but have zero to do with Jesus. Traditions have a way of blinding us.

Are you caught up in "the Christmas spirit"? 

Why or why not?

I don't want to judge you but challenge you to look deeper. Read Colossians 2:16. And I Thessalonians 5:21.

Excuse the random photos. :)

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