The Unclad Soul

In case any of us have forgotten, the Jesus of Christmas was a Jew. He was born one, lived one his entire life, and died one. He had no intention of starting a new religion (Christianity). His life as a teacher and healer was to do something good within Judaism, within the faith he had known all of his life. He did not die for the sins of the world. This was something his followers and the writers of the New Testament later ascribed to him. He died because he challenged the powers of the Roman Empire. He died because he threatened the Emperor’s influence, by promoting peace between people and nations, and not war and dominance. He died because he preached economic and political justice, which people were starving to hear and experience, but which those who governed thwarted. We forget these things. Or else we have never considered the real facts around the life of Jesus. But Bible scholars, theologians, archeologists, historians and solid researchers have known these things fo...

As I get older Christmas changes. For one thing, the cheeriness of the season seems to get more and more lost in the annoyance of the shopping frenzy. Every year brings a new disgrace from the conduct of those shoppers who turn Christmas into a battle zone of mall derangement. And there’s Black Friday. And retail stores with 18 hour schedules. And sale’s wars. These things make Christmas preposterous. Why not make it a rule that everyone gets $100 of Christmas shopping money per year and no more. And nothing goes on sale. No bargain bins or price cuts. Everything stays the same as always. The stores all keep their usual hours. People might then decide to only get one nice gift for someone and then perhaps make the rest of their gifts. People might actually think about what gift or gifts they give. People might even get creative and shop in remote little places where there are items no one has and people have not endlessly handled. People might stay home more and enjoy the pre ...

Autumn in Dallas has nearly come to an end. Many of the trees here have displayed their final colors and have dropped their leaves like beautiful Christmas ornaments that lay everywhere. As I walked to my car yesterday outside my apartment where all sorts of trees decorate the grounds I could not keep from seeing the leaves. They were shuffling in the breeze like children in brilliant dress raising their hands to be noticed. I stopped and looked at the ones at my feet. Bright yellow and red ones; some speckled with shades of both. I felt as though I was walking past gifts on my way to my car. All of that adornment reminded me that it is the natural things in life that are most enduring. I get bogged down in this disgraceful presidential race, in the snarling Christmas traffic, in the sagging economy, in bills and cranky shoppers and the nightly horror on the news. Perhaps that is why autumn was created, to help us keep our focus on life's truest treasures. The poet W...