Christmas stars are popular. Many children like to have big, colourful stars in their homes for Christmas. Wise men and kings from the East came to worship Lord Jesus Christ (Matthew 2:1-12). One tradition assumes there were three as three gifts are named; other traditions think there were 12 or even more. According to one
When we were in Haryana as missionaries, during December one of my neighbours said: “I will come on Christmas day to see your Christmas tree.” I said: “Come I will give you a surprise.” I did not intend to have a Christmas tree and decorations as I did not think they were important. A few
Matthew records that the wise men came in search of the new-born King following a star. (Matthew 2:1-12) In the narrative, we can see three kinds of responses: 1) Apathetic religious leaders: The Wise men reached Jerusalem unannounced and unscheduled, creating a commotion in Jerusalem. When Herod heard that a special or unique child was
In the Christmas narrative in the gospels, angels appeared at least three times. The first one was a private appearance to Zachariah that became public immediately (Luke 1:11-17), the second was also private and to Mary (Luke 1:26-38) and it was not disclosed immediately, the third was public and it was acted upon immediately by
Humanity had perpetually rejected the God who created, sustained and loved them. It was abundantly clear in Bethlehem when Joseph and Mary arrived with the baby imminent (Luke 2:7). Joseph did not have a room booking app on his smartphone to reserve a place in advance in a hotel. Hospitality to strangers was a noble
The Prophet Isaiah foretold the birth of Lord Jesus around 700 BC. The five names he mentioned meet the five most important needs of human beings. For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty
Tradition is like a wrapper, under which there could be a truth or a myth or a mixture of both. Unpacking tradition is helpful to understand the reason for the birth of a tradition. Santa Claus is one such tradition. St. Nicholas is believed to be a monk born around 280 AD in Patara, near
