Reflections on Christmas

As any reader of this blog can tell (if, indeed, there are any), I am a Christian.

This time of year is special to me, as it is the time of year we celebrate the birth of our savior, Jesus the Christ (by the way, Christ isn't Jesus' last name, but his title. Christ is the Greek version of the word Messiah.)

Truth
This time of year was celebrated by pagans long before the birth of the Christ. December 21st or 22nd marks the winter solstice, the time of year in which the sun appears to stand still. It marks the beginning of winter.

Jesus was not born in December. From hints in the text, we can assume he was born between August and October.

The reason we celebrate the birth of Jesus in December is that the Catholics super-imposed the birth of the Christ on top of the existing pagan celebrations.

Christmas is a secular and commercial holiday for 95% of the population of this country.

I know all that. Here are some other facts to consider.

2,000 years ago, an angel appeared to a virgin and told her she was going to have a child. This virgin's future husband knew that he hadn't had sex with her, she's pregnant. Logically, he thinks that she cheated on him, and was going to call everything off. An angel talked to him, and convinced him that she had not.

I know that this poor couple had a baby in a smelly barn, laying the baby in an animal's food trough. I know that angels appeared to shepherds in the fields and announced the birth.

I know that God himself came to Earth to redeem man. I know that keeping this monumental fact fresh in my mind is extremely important.

It doesn't matter if I mark the anniversary of Jesus' birth on December 25th, October 16th, or May 3rd. The important thing is that I mark it.

In the old testament, God created feast days that the Jews were to follow. The passover season is to remind them how God delivered them out of slavery. The feast of tabernacles reminded them of the provisions and protection of God while they wondered in the wilderness.

In the new testament, Jesus asked his followers to partake of the Lord's supper (communion) 'in remembrance of me'

A common theme is a formal remembrance of the blessings of God in our lives. It is vitally important for us humans to set aside a time to change our focus and make God our center of attention.

I choose to celebrate the birth of my savior and Christmas is a good of a time as any.

An ode to the Cellphone Camera

I hate the camera in my cellphone.  It's very low resolution (640X480), most of the time the pictures are blurry, and sometimes the lighting is such the pictures look stupid.

Even so, I love having a camera in my cellphone.   Every now and then, I see something unexpected, and I can capture it with my camera.

Sometimes, it's amusing, sometimes it's disturbing, and sometimes it's one of those indelible, iconic moments that turn to cherished memories .  

Today, I saw this car parked in fr

ont of our building.  It was rather unusual and amusing.

Especially, if you have kids, you need to have a cell phone camera, because you never know  when the 'cutest' moments will occur.

Case in point is Benny eating an ice cream cone at Little Huskies

Or the expression on his face while eating a tomatoe at Maw Maw Di's.

Camera phones rock. 

Nothingness

While doing some reading for school, I came across a reference to a philisophical world-view known as nihilism.

A good summation is " Existential nihilism begins with the notion that the world is without meaning or purpose. Given this circumstance, existence itself--all action, suffering, and feeling--is ultimately senseless and empty." (emphasis mine)

Let me sum it up.

• There is no God, no devil, no angles, no heaven, no hell, and no life after death
• We're nothing more than a cosmic accident
• We're nothing more than animals
• There is no higher authority than mere human contrivance.
• Right and wrong are abstractions created by the human mind. There is no right and wrong.
  
• There is no meaning to life
• There is no purpose in existence.
• We are born, we live, we die and there is nothing more than that
• All values, all goals, all accomplishments are, in the end, meaningless and temporary. Humanity's greatest achievements will not last.
  
• The ends justify the means.

This mindset, mixed with marxist dogma, explans where most liberals come from in their perspective of the world. They are steeped in this and conflict theory.

Since all that exists is now, and evil isn't real, we are to live our lives to maximize our pleasure and enjoyment in life. Whatever flips your switch is ok, as long as you don't bother me.

So all that is in the world is materialism and sensuality.

Also, since there is no objective right and wrong, the ends justifies the means.

No hope, no real joy, no meaning, no purpose, nothing that lasts. Nobody really matters.

These poor people don't know how deluded they are! Folks, there is a God!

Therefore I have a purpose. I have joy, meaning, and hope. I know that what I do matters. I know I matter, and I'm more than just an animal. There is a future, and right and wrong are not matters of opinion but fact.