Editorial

When I was a child, I always looked forward to the Christmas season, for all of the reasons many others do: The lights, the tree, the food, the presents, and watching Hermey the misfit Elf, who’d rather be a dentist.

I also looked forward to the arrival of Christmas cards in our mailbox. In hindsight, it seems odd that I looked forward to Christmas cards, as most of these came from friends of my parents, whom I barely knew, writing about their families, whom I barely knew. But those cards became an important part of my personal Christmas liturgy, part of my celebration of the Christmas season. Looking back, I can see that in reading through those cards, they were shaping my imagination and forming my spirit. Each card contained an image: the manger, the shepherds in the fields, the wise men, and also contained words of Scripture that I read over and over: “Peace on earth,” “the root of Jesse,” “Wonderful Counselor, “God with us.” By reading these cards, the story of Christmas penetrated more deeply into my childhood mind and soul…

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