In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,In the bleak midwinter, long ago.
Holy Family in the Snow
Brad’s Nativity Scene
The Mark of the Beast
An interesting story about religious freedom in America came across my screen today. A federal court in Texas is deciding the case of a high school sophomore in San Antonio who refuses to wear a school ID that she claims is “the mark of the beast.” The evangelical student believes that ID card, which tracks students’ locations while on campus and is needed to buy lunch or check out library books, is a sign of submission to the Antichrist. The Northside Independent School District, which issued the IDs, receives federal funding based on the number of students who are in attendance each day. By locating students on campus but not in their seats when attendance is taken, the under-funded district will increase their revenues by about $1.5 million per year.
While there are many people around the country concerned that the RFID tags infringe on students’ privacy, for Andrea Hernandez the matter is one faith and religious freedom. Testifying in court today, Andrea’s father Steven Hernandez explained how important the matter is to the family. He said supporting the program “would compromise our salvation for NISD to make some money.”
The court will decide this week on Hernandez’ situation, but not on the RFID program as a whole.
Tea Light Nativity
for they shall be comforted
When death comes unexpectedly and tragically, our shaken minds can go to strange places. As I drove home from work on Friday, my heart ached and my mind went to the parents of the Connecticut victims. I found myself thinking, “They will have already bought Christmas presents. What will they do now? How can they bear to keep them? How can they bear to give them away?”
These are small questions, far down even the list of logistical problems that Death forces upon us when we are least able to deal with logistics. They’re unimportant amid all the huge, complex theological and societal questions that rise up after such useless violence. Just a feeling really. A sorrow that felt lost and wondered what to do.
I wish I had something wise to say about this ugliness that has burst into our Advent joy. I wish I did, but I don’t. It’s too close for me to trust words. All I have to share is some music that came to my wandering mind. It’s the first movement of Brahms’ German Requiem. The words are from Matthew 5:4 and Psalm 126:5-6
Selig sind, die da Leid tragen, denn sie sollen getröstet werden.
Die mit Tränen säen, werden mit Freuden ernten.
Sie gehen hin und weinen und tragen edlen Samen, und kommen mit Freuden und bringen ihre Garben.
Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.
They that go out weeping, bearing precious seed, shall come again with rejoicing, bringing their sheaves.
In the original German:
And in translation:
Galapagos Nativity
A friend sent me this picture with the following explanation:
“It is from one of the Galapagos islands. Only a small percentage of the islands are inhabited and so much of the time we were in the midst of only vegetation and wildlife. Then we would get to an inhabited island and find a rich concentration of artisans on what amounts to a speck of land in the midst of the vast seas. Even the buildings were works of art. Unique beyond imagining. This came from a studio shop which featured some of the most beautiful carvings I have ever seen.”
