Advent-Christmas 2009

Dear Friends,

Advent Blessings! Last night we went to the Holiday Concert at our grandchildren's school. Each class sang or performed a piece from a different cultural tradition. There were no religious pieces; hence nothing Christian. The days when schools taught Christmas carols and reenacted the drama of the journey to Bethlehem are gone (at least in this school). It is not politically correct!

The Christian Church then has the distinct honor of keeping alive for all time the greatest story ever told. The birth of the Christ child is prominent in two of the Gospels. St. Anne's tells this story best in the Christmas Pageant. As in the past many children will participate. They will learn about Mary and Joseph, the shepherds and the Magi, in a faraway land.

As this story is retold each year, older members come to know many other spiritual truths. We come to an understanding of the God in our midst; of learning to see with the eyes of faith the living God in a newborn; of having the capacity to feel peace and love in the most unlikely places; of being able to hope in the midst of life's most difficult trials - that in the end all will be well no matter what life brings. This knowledge is the result of years of faith-building. It is a gift. And the wonder is that this story has the power to speak to us in new and different ways each year in the hearing of the familiar words.

We gather once again with both the privilege and the responsibility to pass this Good News on!

Christmas Blessings to you and yours!

Peggy