Carols @ MindSay

did you have to sing christmas carols in elementary school at holiday pagents? I did and while I never minded the holiday winter songs I was often offended by the christian content of the hard core carols.

so I would sing the songs- many are beautiful: Like Hark the Herald Angels sing... and when the word christ appeared I didn't sing that word because I have always been careful to say Jesus. I think it diminishes the theological elements of a holiday or observance when non believers participate fully. like I wouldn't take communion or make the sign of a cross in a catholic church but I would behave respectfully and even light a candle. would and have.

and when visiters to my temple come I would expect them to stand in respect for the torah when it is removed from the ark but I wouldn't want them kissing it, wearing tefillin or  a tallit- a  head covering is ok because that's custom not halachah.

anyway this all came to mind when i pulled up in front  of the post office to mail a netflix film and I saw two rose bushes still in bloom. one yellow and one red. set in very sunny surroundings with asphalt heating them up..

My two hedges of camellia sasanquas are blooming and the hummming birds are having a great time visiting their yellow and red blooms. and berries on the salal and kinnikinnik are attractive to the birds too.  and of course the juncos and chickadees are having a ball in the thickets that are the piles of wood and kindling being cured for next winter.

Jim is doing better. snot is more a problem than blood now and he is getting about and making snacks. for dinner I gave him over cooked ravioli in a black olive pesto and very overcooked carrots and prunes- sorta like a tsimmes. tomorrow I may cook some stollen and some cookies for my brother near DC as he doesn't have Margit this winter to help him stay fat.

Now I am closing down the fireplace , turning off the lights on the tree ( we have one t of those nifty foot switches-  and abi and I will race upstairs so I can hide her treats. What a difference this week from last. phew !!

Any one out there upset over seeing Jesus Christ removed from 'Holiday Winter Concerts' or from Christmas itself?!!  This year I had enough, I finally wrote a letter to my children's Principal...

Dear Principal... 

It was a great disappointment to hear no Christmas songs at your 'Holiday Winter Concert' again this year!  What in the world are you celebrating?  Was it Winter or Hanukkah?  I wasn’t sure?

Have you forgotten where you live?  We reside in the United States of America, who 85% of Americans believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior to the World.  We as a human race should be glad that the Creator of the Universe thought highly enough of mankind, to send His only begotten Son to redeem us, so that 'we' may not perish but have everlasting life.

Who are you afraid of?  Man?  If I were you, I would fear The Almighty more than man, since man cannot save your soul and God can.  I have been speaking to many of the parents whose children attend (our schools) and everyone seems to agree that ‘political correctness’ has destroyed our celebration of Christian values.

As an American citizen in this Christian Nation of ours, it would be nice to hear 'Silent Night', 'O Come All Ye Faithful' or 'Away in the Manager' at my children's 'Holiday Winter Concerts'.  What a disappointment to hear that the main reason for Christmas has been removed!  No need to worry about the Law of the Land because IT’S LEGAL!  Call American Center for Law and Justice at (757) 226-2489 if you have any questions...

I have slowing seen that Christmas carols are no longer being sung at our school districts 'Holiday Witner Concerts'.  It's ok that 'other religions' are represented there, I just don't like the fact that mine is not.

The customs and traditions associated with Christmas have changed over the years.  My blog gives a glimpse of some of those associated with Christmas past.

"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" was introduced in the film Meet Me In St. Louis by Judy Garland in 1944.

Gift giving was first practiced by the Romans, who would exchange small gifts duting the winter months.  Early Christians, inspired by the belief that the shepherds and Magi took gifts to the Christ Child, also began to observe the custom.

"Deck the Halls" is based on an old Welsh tune from the 1700's and Motzart enjoyed playing this tune.  Words were later added in America after 1800.

Decking the halls with ivy, yew, holly, fir cones and other natural materials was a Roman custom which signified eternal life.  Holly has its own special meaning as well as it's spiked leaves are said to represent Christ's crown of thorns, and the bright red berries His blood.

A popular story says that Martin Luther cut down the first Christmas tree and decorated it with candles to represent the starry sky of Bethlehem at Christ's birth.  Under it he placed a nativity scene.

In 1951, President Truman said a prayer for peace before lighting the National Christmas Tree.  This soon became a Pageant of Peace when a life-sized nativity scene, along with 8 Alaskan reindeer were added to the ceremony.

President Franklin Pierce was the first to decorate a Christmas tree at the White House.  A 90 foot Norway spruce was placed in Rockerfeller Center in 1948 while one of the largest trees ever seen was 212 feet tall and erected in Seattle in 1950.

Originally a rowdy and pagan practice, St. Francis of Assisi was one of the first to introduce sacred music to the custom of caroling in an effort to Christianize the custom.  Caroling from door-to-door, began in Victorian England before becoming popular in North America.

"I Heard the Bells On Christmas Day" was originally a poem written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow on Christmas Day 1863.  The Civil War was at it's height and hearing bells chiming he wrote this prayer for peace.  It was later put to music by an English composer John Calkin, with the bass notes written to sound like the ringing of a bell.

"Jingle Bells" was written by James Pierpont around the middle of the 1800's.  He told his neighbor he had a little tune in his head and asked to use her piano to try it out.  The neighbor, Mrs. Waterman, helped him compose the chorus of this favorite.

Giving to charity during the Christmas season began before the tradition giving of gifts.  The Christmas Box was placed in the church on Christmas Day and worshippers could use it for donations to the poor.  The next day, commonly known as Boxing Day, the money was distributed to the poor.

In the 1930's, tree safety became a big issue so people were urged to discontinue the use of candles on their Christmas trees in favor of electric lights.  Aluminum trees became the rage in the 1950's and because electric lights were not an option for them, floodlights or revolving colour wheels were used to light them.

The Christmas card is a fairly new idea dating back to the 1840's.  The first commercially made cards looked a great deal like valentines, because they were put out by firms already selling Valentine cards.  More than 2 billion Christmas cards are sold each year in the U.S. - enough to fill a football field 10 stories high.

At age 18, Isaac Watts complained to his father about the tacky, graceless songs being sung in church to which his father replied that if he didn't like them, to write better ones.  For 222 consecutive Sundays he did just that presenting his home congregation with a new hymn each Sunday.  "Joy to the World" was written by him.

The most popular gift in 1957 was the hula hoop.

The traditional English Christmas desset, plum pudding, contains lots of dried fruit but no plums.  Sugarplums are thought to be round chocolates filled with nougats or creams.

The story of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer was conceived by Robert L. May for the advertising department of Montgomery Ward and used as a give-away item for the Christmas season of 1939.  The song of Rudoph's story was put to music by Johnny Marks and recorded in 1949 by Gene Autry and Bing Crosby.

St. Francis of Assis is credited with the idea of the nativity scene. Carved miniature models of the nativity soon became popular and although the clothing and likenesses have changed over the years, depending on the location of their manufacture, they still embrace a child in a manger, Mary & Joseph, wise men and shepherds.

May the true message of Christmas, that there is hope in Jesus Christ, become a reality in each of your lives this special season.