What Christmas is all about

Tomorrow the world will celebrate the anniversary of the most important event in human history - the humble birth of Jesus Christ.  Too often we forget the true meaning of this most special holiday, most of which is brought on by the societal pressures of commercialism and such "politically correct" phrases as happy holidays and seasons greetings.  I gladly take this chance that has been afforded me by the technological innovations of the internet and the personal computer to remind us all of the true meaning of Christmas.

As humans, many times we tend to overcomplicate things.  Which is why I choose to choose a very simple adaptation of the Christmas story -- that of Linus from A Charlie Brown Christmas.  For those of you who have never seen the movie *gooutandbuyitandwatchitnow*, I have his monologue from the end of the movie posted below.  He quotes from Luke 2:8-14.

"'⁸And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. ¹⁰And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. ¹¹For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. ¹²And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. ¹³And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, ¹⁴Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.' That's what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown."

You can also watch the clip here:

I would also recommend reading this piece about what Reagan knew about Christmas (and he wasn't afraid to admit it).

Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown.