When we talk about the Christmas story, we often think of Jesus in the manger, the angels proclaiming good news to the shepherds and maybe the wise men bringing gifts. It is often easy to miss the next story in…
This Christmastide, don’t stop with Baby Jesus
The birth story of Jesus has plenty to offer Christians during Christmastide — stunned shepherds, angelic visitations, mysterious visitors from the East, an inn with no room, and a manger. Even though there’s plenty to love, Christians ought to continue…
Let’s put Herod back into Christmas
In 1936, with war clouds gathering in Europe, author E.B. White wrote the following for The New Yorker: “Shopping in Woolworth’s, in the turbulent days, we saw a little boy put his hand inquiringly on a ten-cent Christ child, part…
Angel wings and devil tails: Meditation on the Feast of the Holy Innocents
“This is no time for a child to be born, With the Earth betrayed by war and hate And a comet slashing the sky to warn That time runs out and the sun burns late.” —Madeleine L’Engle, “The Risk of…
It’s hard to quit Herod, but we must worship another
After the events of Jan. 6, I spent days not knowing what to think, much less what to write in a pastoral letter to my congregation. Since that day was Epiphany on the church calendar, for a while, I was…
Remember that Epiphany ends with Herod’s terror
In the days and verses after the Epiphany story, Herod goes on a campaign killing boys under the age of 2 in fear of losing his power. I imagine there were some in the region who could not believe that…
Unprofessional Christianity, part 2: Dying
The stories of Zaevion Dobson, Freddie Grey, Tamir Rice, and the birth of Jesus decenter everything we think we know about the meaning of life and Christmas. This season has nothing to do with where you go after you die,…
Epiphanic moments
By Bill Leonard “When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were 2 years old and under, according to the…