In light of the Christmas Spirit...

i want to ask a question.

What if Jesus of Nazareth was a stillborn? Lost children might be the worst tragedy i've ever thought about. In Lord of the Rings, there's a quote along the lines of "No father should ever burry his son." After reading this, i brought it up in casual conversation with my Dad... i had never realized that my mother miscarried before i was born. in this simple conversation my dad was able to express great loss, and amazing strength. my dad does not communicate in emotion, but he was able to, logically, cooly, explain how much children matter to their parents... i have no idea how a woman could feel... i don't even know how a man can leave his children and allow them to be raised solely by their mother/grandparents/whomever... but this... this isn't a man's choice... sadly, bad things happen. so, in light of this christmas, i pray for all of those couples who've lost a child, and also for those couples who've chosen to give up a child, either by forced means or by adoption or whatever, may God be with them and help them in their lives.

Secondly, marriage, i have heard of people breaking up because of a lost child or infertility... imagine in the 1st century how Mary must have felt... a young woman, not even married yet, giving birth to a child... i find this to be astounding... how do women do it?! (other than the obvious)... it has been demonstrated to be that pregnancy, marriage, physical maturity, even caring for the needs of a child is not enough to be a parent... real parents do so much more... there's those who have been abandoned by those they're married to... i know a certain woman who takes care of men who will not get divorces, but are rejected by their wives... they simply belittle them and push them away... i find this type of ministry to be amazing, and, in light of the Christmas Spirit, i pray for all of the couples out there... all of those who've been rejected by loved ones, either deserving or not, and may God be with them in his fullness.

Lastly, if the historical Jesus was never born, then many of the teachings he shared would have died as well... the amazing movement in culture, theology and philosophy that he put forth changed the face of history... the roman empire fell to christianity... western europe was forever changed... if Jesus was never born, all of the ministries of the church would never have happened... but, the bad things done in his name never would have been either... but, i offer this rebuttal... the evil done in the name of God is the evil born within mankind's hearts... evil men will always use whatever powers they can to commit their evils, meanwhile, it is very rare that an idea or teaching can produce so much good as those who followed this man from Israel... so, right now, in my final prayer for this post, but hopefully not the last time that i ask for God's blessing upon those in this fallen existence... God, please be with those who do good in your name, may they never grow weary and may they rest in the good that comes from your nature and teachings...

amen. Merry Christmas to all, and to all, Goodnight.