The holiday that is Epiphany (January 6) highlights and celebrates the public manifestations of Jesus as Messiah, as the Divine King of the Israel, as the long-promised Light to the Gentiles. The primary historical events thus celebrated are the first manifestation of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles (the Magi from the East acknowledging Jesus’ divine…
* “The Under- and Over-Estimated Jimmy Carter, RIP” (Stephen Hayward, Power Line) From the article — Carter presents layer upon layer of difficulty to untangle. Carter’s one-time speechwriter Patrick Anderson observed that in Carter’s hometown of Plains, Georgia, neighbors said of him that after an hour you love him, after a week you hate him, and after…
Once again this Yuletide, Claire and I were treated to a surprise visit from old friends and pro-life colleagues Tom & Donna Kotchka. And once again, we learned that Tom had a dramatic recitation to delight and inspire us as he performed it in person — just for the two of us! Last year, he…
* “Are the Years of Madness Ending?” (Victor Davis Hanson, American Greatness) From the article — Never in U.S. history has a president-elect been welcomed as the real president before his January 20 inauguration. And never has the incumbent president so willingly surrendered his last two months in office and all but abdicated—to the relief of his nation…
From a purely logical point of view, the Advent of Christ occurred at a most inconvenient time and in a most inhospitable place. The details of this scheme certainly would not have been cleared by professional planners or modern-day management consultants. I mean the circumstances seemed so wrong. Caesar Augustus, the ruler of the Roman…
The striking phrase above comes from the third verse of Isaac Watts’ 1719 hymn, “Joy to the World.” “No more let sin and sorrows grow, nor thorns infest the ground. He [Jesus] comes to make His blessings known far as the curse is found.” This song, long beloved as a Christmas season carol is better…
Okay, it’s an unusual Top 5 post for today because 1) I’m actually providing links to 6 articles; 2) 3 of those articles are mine from Vital Signs Blog; and 3) there is a “popcorn” list of news items that you may well have missed from the last week or so. Let’s get to ‘em….
A hitchhiker’s lot is a lonely one. And not only lonely but anxious, exasperating, humbling, and occasionally dangerous. Believe me, I know. And as the cold, snowy weather of winter whirls around this December night, I am remembering one particularly miserable and frightening experience from my long ago days of thumbing a ride. It was…
Believers in Christ are called on to occupy until Jesus comes, to strengthen the things that remain, to shine their light into the darkness, to stand and courageously defend “the least of these,” to speak the truth in love, to stand against the wicked schemes of the devil, to do justice, to rebuke evildoers, to…
Today I pass along two documents for you to peruse. One is a copy of the letter I sent to Santa a couple of weeks ago. The second document is Santa’s response, being a brief note he wrote to several political officials to which he attached my original letter. Check ‘em out. Dear Santa, Season’s…
