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Christmas In Hard Times Requires A Look Up

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 25, 2008

The many angels exhibited this time of year are evidence of a widespread belief in what happened some 2,000 years ago near Bethlehem.

Seeing the different artistic representations of the heavenly beings makes us wonder how their message might have been received this shopping season, say on a clear night above a mall parking lot just before closing time.

It has been a long time since people heard a voice from above that proclaimed, "Behold, I bring you tidings of great joy ..." How folks would react today is anyone's guess, but here's our idea of what might happen on the ground.

"Did you get that?" shouts a woman in the earthly audience, "Are they running a special on a great toy?"

"Not toy, joy," the voice continues. "Great joy to all people."

"Like rebate checks?" someone asks.

"You raising my credit card limit?" asks another, looking up at a light pole to try to find where the speaker is mounted.

"No," says the angelic voice. "Unto you is born this day in the city of David a savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you. Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in a manger."

A man carrying several plastic bags shouts, "Who's broadcasting the religious station? Put some music on.

"We have a recession down here. We need cheering up."

Someone whose cell phone is ringing quickly adds, "Send us Santa Claus. Either him or Roosevelt."

As she takes the call a few laughs are heard down below, but not up above.

Maybe then the sky would grow quiet and dark again, and we shoppers would get in our cars and drive home, still unhappy about how family, employers, customers and politicians, perhaps even the heavens above, have all let us down. We're thinking about how Christmas this year is something less than we expected.

But in a different place in an earlier time, we know a much poorer group received the news with delight.

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth peace, goodwill toward men."

Or, perhaps it was phrased as it is sometimes reported, "Peace toward men of goodwill."

Whatever the emphasis, all records agree there was no mention of money, toys, mortgages, job security, not even health.

The challenge modern Christmases bring is how to look up in the midst of our holiday stresses, losses, gifts, grief, and other distractions. No one can know what the New Year of 2009 will bring..

Our Christmas Day wish for you and your family is the same, no matter what happens, no matter if you celebrate Christmas or not. We wish that you and your loved ones find many ways to share goodwill and thus claim your share of joy.

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