All Posts Tagged With: "Christmas"

Continued

Just like his fellow Republicans at FGO and the Oklahoma GOP, former Oklahoma congressman and failed Oklahoma gubernatorial candidate Ernest Istook chose to besmirch the Spirit of Christmas with an unabashedly (and unashamedly) partisan Christmas message. I received the following email in my inbox yesterday morning — Christmas morning:

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Forward this to your friends who care.  Merry Christmas!
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Santa Evacuated from North Pole!

Read the details at http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=84508

Here are excerpts:

Evacuation operations continue at the North Pole, as Santa Claus, Mrs. Claus, their reindeer and an estimated 5,000 elves are being relocated due to global warming to a secure but undisclosed location.

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“The only way to save future Christmases was to evacuate the toymakers and Mrs. Claus and to re-locate operations before the ice melts,” said Nobel Laureate Al Gore, who was on the scene with a camera crew for the occasion.  The footage will be included in Gore’s new documentary, “An Inconvenient But Jolly Old Elf”

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Observers confirmed that Santa was red with anger and threatened to retire.  Said one onlooker:

“His cheeks were like roses and his nose like a cherry.

His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,

And the heat of his anger was as white as the snow.”

It was unclear who would have the power to appoint a replacement, but several governors volunteered to accept responsibility for picking a successor to Santa.  Said one, “You don’t get many opportunities like this.  Appointing a Senator is worth a lot.  But choosing a new Santa Claus?  Priceless!”

There’s more.  Read it all in Ernest Istook’s column at: http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=84508

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I’ll repeat what I said in my post last Saturday regarding co-opting the Christmas holiday for partisan pandering:

This partisanship by the party that so often likes to believe it’s more “Christian” than others certainly doesn’t reflect the spirit of this Christian holiday or the Christ whose birth is being celebrated.

As our extended family gathers together today for a Christmas holiday reunion, I will be taking a brief break from blogging to devote my time to precious fellowship with those who are most dear to me. The time we get to share together has diminished over the years as we’ve gotten older and our lives more hectic, so every moment that we do get to spend together is a treasured moment.

The blog won’t be entirely dormant. I’ve pre-scheduled my specially selected Christmas songs for each morning from now through Christmas Day.

I will be back after Christmas. Until then, to all my friends and to all my “foes,” I wish you a very merry Christmas, filled with abundant blessings, treasured moments,peace, joy and love.

Happy birthday, dear Jesus!

“Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”

Leave it to the Oklahoma GOP and people like Jim Martin to make the Christmas holiday — the holiday of “peace on earth and goodwill to all men” — a partisan event.

Wishing You A Merry Red OK Christmas! click on link for flash animation

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Un-be-liev-able.

This partisanship by the party that so often likes to believe it’s more “Christian” than others certainly doesn’t reflect the spirit of this Christian holiday or the Christ whose birth is being celebrated.

(This story has circulated the Internet and appeared in my inbox a few times. It’s been verified by Snopes.com.)

During World War I, in the winter of 1914, on the battlefields of Flanders, one of the most unusual events in all of human history took place. The Germans had been in a fierce battle with the British and French. Both sides were dug in, safe in muddy, man-made trenches six to eight feet deep that seemed to stretch forever.

All of a sudden, German troops began to put small Christmas trees, lit with candles, outside of their trenches. Then, they began to sing songs. Across the way, in the “no man’s land” between them, came songs from the British and French troops. Incredibly, many of the Germans, who had worked in England before the war, were able to speak good enough English to propose a “Christmas” truce.

The British and French troops, all along the miles of trenches, accepted. In a few places, allied troops fired at the Germans as they climbed out of their trenches. But the Germans were persistent and Christmas would be celebrated even under the threat of impending death. Continued

This was sent to me this morning from a pastor friend of mine…
(Sung to the tune of “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas“)

Have yourself a peace and justice Christmas,
Set your heart a-right.
Flee the malls and focus on Christ’s guiding light.

Have yourself a peace and justice Christmas,
Give your time a way.
Share God’s love, And serve “the least of these” today.

Here we are, as we pray for peace,
We’ll live simply and give more.
We care for those far and near to us,
Which brings cheer to us, once more.

God brings down
The haughty from high places,
And lifts up the low.
God cares for the hungry and the humble, so –
Forget the stress and let the peace and justice flow!

Yesterday, Dave at Oklahoma Lefty asked the question, “What is wrong with ‘Happy Holidays’?” In his post, he said:

For as long as I can remember the term “Happy Holidays” referred to the time of the year from Thanksgiving through New Years and was an inclusive way of wishing folks well. Somehow “Happy Holidays” has become demonized by those who believe that Christmas and Christianity are under attack in this country.

I say we take “Happy Holidays” back from those who would demean and demoralize its inclusive, hopeful, and true nature.

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Dave is absolutely right. “Happy Holidays” doesn’t dishonor “Merry Christmas.” Rather, it honors the plethora of holidays during this season, including Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, the Winter solstice, Festivus, Christmas, and the New Year. There is nothing wrong with saying “Happy Holidays” to others. There is nothing wrong with saying “Merry Christmas” to others — even non-believers and/or non-participants in the Christian holiday, as long as you don’t mind them wishing you Happy Rosh Hashana or Merry Ramadan. We are, after all, a democracy and not a theocracy.

Just as Dave remembered, I too recall “Happy Holidays” being commonplace for as long as I can remember — even as a little kid. Granted, I’m not as ancient as others (like Mr. Martin), but I’m no spring chicken either. This phrase is not something brand new.

The fact that so many Christians choose to be offended by the term “Happy Holidays” is more of a reflection on those Christians than on the purported persecution of the Christmas holiday — and by extension the Christian faith. It is a classic speck-and-plank scenario Continued

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Certainly among the Christmas favorites for many of us in Oklahoma, there’s a story behind this song:

I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas is a Christmas novelty song written by John Rox and performed by Gayla Peevey (10 years old at the time) in 1953. The B-side of the original 78 featured the song “Are my Ears on Straight?”

Peevey was a regional child star of the Oklahoma City area. According to legend, this 1953 hit was recorded as a fund-raiser to bring the city zoo a hippo. When released nationally by Columbia Records the song shot to the top of the charts, and the city zoo got a baby hippo named Matilda. In a 2007 radio interview with Detroit-based WNIC radio station, Peevey clarified that the song was not recorded as a fundraiser originally. Instead, a local promoter picked up on the popularity of the song and Peevey’s local roots, and launched a campaign to present her with an actual hippopotamus on Christmas. The campaign succeeded, and she was presented with an actual hippopotamus, which she donated to the city zoo. The hippopotamus lived for nearly 50 years.