Merry Christmas

Today marks the seventh day before Christmas. Since the beginning of our country, we have, one way or the other, celebrated Christmas, as a national holiday. certainly, other religions should and are respected. Hanukkah, the Jewish holiday celebrating the re-dedication of the temple of Jerusalem hits right smack in the middle of the Christmas holiday, and lasts for 8 days. Most of us respect them also, if for no other reason, than that Jesus was a Jew as were all that came before him in the Christian tradition.

Next Friday, we celebrate, as we do every year, the birth of Christ. Now we know that the actual date of his birth is up for grabs, as records of the day were sketchy and inaccurate. But that doesn't matter. This date will do just fine, as nitpicking over the day and week tend to overshadow the reason we celebrate. Many feel that without Christianity or at least Judism, we would not have the moral compass that leads most of us. The ten commandments were valid then and are still valid to the point of becoming law in many countries. I'm pretty much with it on most of those commandments, except for occasionally coveting my neighbor's wife, but hey, no follow through, right?

One of the most satisfying parts of the holiday season is that it brings out generosity from those that perhaps don't feel that the rest of the year. Food banks need our help, especially this year with so many unemployed. Relatives that we haven't spoken to for months seem just that much closer.

I want to end this by wishing each and every one of you a very Merry Christmas, a happy Hanukkah, and to those that worship Buddha and other more eastern religions, peace be upon you and yours. Please click on the link below for a Christmas greeting from me. Well, I wasn't able to set up the link, but if you copy and paste it you get there. (back to the drawing board)When you access this site, click on view gallery, then click on 2004 admissions greetings, then enjoy.

http://ecard.ashland.edu/index.php?ecardYear=2004adm>