<p>There are numerous stories written, told and enacted on the Christmas theme of “peace on earth and goodwill to men”. <br /><br />Among them all, I recall a simple and yet powerful story I read as a teenager. The protagonist is painting a winter scene. <br /><br />The landscape covered with snow is set when the night is falling. A log cabin barely visible in the shadows is enveloped in semi-darkness and the pine boughs nearby are bare and dead. <br />It is a scene of complete gloom. <br /><br />Then, reminding himself that the gloomy winter also ushers the season of Christmas the painter adds some bright yellow tints onto the windows of the log cabin. <br /><br />These skilful strokes give the effect of a cheerful lamp glowing inside the cabin. <br />This solitary light is instantly reflected on to the snow with its golden rays brightening up the landscape. <br /><br />Soon the canvas is transformed from a lifeless state to a lively image. The cold and dark scenario vanishes. A warm feeling of love and security emerges! <br /><br />The central message of Christmas, which is considered one of the most dramatic events of all history, is pretty much the same as in the little story above. <br /><br />The birth of Christ the Saviour, more than 2000 years ago on that First Christmas in Bethlehem’s stable, is for all Christians, the light that came to dispel the sin-darkened world. <br /><br />In Luke 2:11 the Angel tells the shepherds, <br /><br />“Today a Saviour has been born to you in David’s town; He is Christ the Lord.”<br />Celebrating Christmas with family and friends is perhaps the most heart-warming tradition in the chill of the winter days.<br /><br />Exchanging gifts, singing Christmas Carols, creating Nativity scenes, putting up the Christmas trees with all its glitter and tinsel and indulging in sumptuous meals are all the external aspects of celebrating the birth of Christ. The real meaning of Christmas however comes from the spirit of giving and sharing. <br /><br />Giving out of charity, love, gratitude and feelings of bonhomie form the true essence <br />of honouring Christmas. <br /><br />For the birth of Christ itself symbolises God’s ultimate gift to humanity. <br /><br />The true spirit of Christmas goes beyond the celebrations that popularly mark the day. </p>.<p>It reflects God’s love for mankind which deepens the faith of man in God. It renews hope, adds joy and strengthens the bonds of families. <br /><br />It draws fellow beings closer together with the reassurance that ultimately, there is something more to this life that can be satisfied only by God. <br /><br />It is with this wisdom that Helen Keller, the deaf and blind American author, political activist and lecturer once remarked, “The only blind person at Christmas is he who has not Christmas in his heart.”<br /></p>
<p>There are numerous stories written, told and enacted on the Christmas theme of “peace on earth and goodwill to men”. <br /><br />Among them all, I recall a simple and yet powerful story I read as a teenager. The protagonist is painting a winter scene. <br /><br />The landscape covered with snow is set when the night is falling. A log cabin barely visible in the shadows is enveloped in semi-darkness and the pine boughs nearby are bare and dead. <br />It is a scene of complete gloom. <br /><br />Then, reminding himself that the gloomy winter also ushers the season of Christmas the painter adds some bright yellow tints onto the windows of the log cabin. <br /><br />These skilful strokes give the effect of a cheerful lamp glowing inside the cabin. <br />This solitary light is instantly reflected on to the snow with its golden rays brightening up the landscape. <br /><br />Soon the canvas is transformed from a lifeless state to a lively image. The cold and dark scenario vanishes. A warm feeling of love and security emerges! <br /><br />The central message of Christmas, which is considered one of the most dramatic events of all history, is pretty much the same as in the little story above. <br /><br />The birth of Christ the Saviour, more than 2000 years ago on that First Christmas in Bethlehem’s stable, is for all Christians, the light that came to dispel the sin-darkened world. <br /><br />In Luke 2:11 the Angel tells the shepherds, <br /><br />“Today a Saviour has been born to you in David’s town; He is Christ the Lord.”<br />Celebrating Christmas with family and friends is perhaps the most heart-warming tradition in the chill of the winter days.<br /><br />Exchanging gifts, singing Christmas Carols, creating Nativity scenes, putting up the Christmas trees with all its glitter and tinsel and indulging in sumptuous meals are all the external aspects of celebrating the birth of Christ. The real meaning of Christmas however comes from the spirit of giving and sharing. <br /><br />Giving out of charity, love, gratitude and feelings of bonhomie form the true essence <br />of honouring Christmas. <br /><br />For the birth of Christ itself symbolises God’s ultimate gift to humanity. <br /><br />The true spirit of Christmas goes beyond the celebrations that popularly mark the day. </p>.<p>It reflects God’s love for mankind which deepens the faith of man in God. It renews hope, adds joy and strengthens the bonds of families. <br /><br />It draws fellow beings closer together with the reassurance that ultimately, there is something more to this life that can be satisfied only by God. <br /><br />It is with this wisdom that Helen Keller, the deaf and blind American author, political activist and lecturer once remarked, “The only blind person at Christmas is he who has not Christmas in his heart.”<br /></p>
