Stollen

Papa Bear's Papa brought us some baked goods. He said, "This is stollen, but I didn't break any Commandments."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stollen

Sometimes less is more.

A friend posted on Facebook:
Why the heck are they still playing Christmas music??? That's ridiculous!

I replied:

Because Christmas doesn't end until Jan 6. And we wouldn't be so tired of it if we hadn't been celebrating for two months straight already. You've heard of the 12 days of Christmas? Christmas was intended as a festival that didn't begin until Dec 25, and ran until Jan 6, 12 days, long enough for any celebration. The four weeks before Christmas are Advent. (Actually, it starts with the 4th Sunday before Christmas, so the length varies from year to year.) Advent is supposed to be a season of fasting, repentance, and prayer.

And what about all those songs that don't have anything to do with Christmas, but are just winter songs? They play them all through Nov and Dec when there's not much snow, and it's not technically winter, but stop Dec 26, when winter is just getting under way. No wonder so many people find winter depressing!

Merry Christmas!

This morning GL was helping me pass out bulletins at church. Since this is the last Sunday before Christmas, there was a picture of the Virgin Mary and Infant Jesus on the cover. After handing out a few bulletins, GL held a stack of them over his head and began yelling, "Extra! Extra! Read all about it! Baby Jesus is born again!"

It Came upon a Midnight Wierd

(Cue "Decorations" from the album Chipmunks Roasting on an Open Fire by Bob Rivers.)

Decorations (Parody of Good Vibrations by The Beach Boys)

I, I love the colored lights every year,
And the way that neighbors stop their cars and stare.
I strap a Santa Claus on my roof—
Plastic candy canes and reindeer everywhere.

I’m stringing up decorations,
It’s draining the power stations,
Fake icicle light formations,
Imported from third world nations.

I’m stringing up decorations,
I’m freaking out fire stations,
I’m pumping out radiation,
My neighbors are out of patience.

“Hey, pal, come on knock it off…It’s three in the morning!”

Got to keep those yuletide decorations up all winter,
God appreciates my plugged-in tribute to The Savior,
God would love it if I could keep ‘em up till well past Easter.

A----men

Good, good, good decorations:
I’m putting up a manger station—
Three wise men’s destination,
Nutcrackers in full claymation,
Little Drummer Boy animation.

Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la
Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la
Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la
Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la

Good, good, good decorations
I’m stringing up decorations,
It’s draining the power stations,
Fake icicle light formations
Imported from third world nations...
(fade out)

Okay, now that I've set the proper mood,  (exaggerated announcer voice): Come to the Cavalcade of Bad Nativities! The finest Christmas Kitsch for all your shopping needs! Click on Page 1, Page 2, and Page 3 to see the True Meaning of Christmas—the story of Jesus' birth retold in art so tasteful, it would make Liberace blush! All presented with snarky Cake Wecks–style commentary that would warm the Grinch's heart! But wait! There's more! New for 2007: Cavalcade of Bad Nativities II! Three more pages of Bad Nativities for your viewing pleasure! But that's not all! We know you love Christmas. We know you love Jesus. So we know you must also love Angels. Of course you love angels! Who doesn't love angels? I mean, how could you not love angels? Click now, and we'll show you not one, not two, not three, not four, but five, yes, five pages of angel pictures absolutely free! Tacky angels! Creepy angels! Fiber-optic angels! Thomas Kinkade angels! They're all part of our special holiday bonus package, Angels We Have Heard Are High. This complete collection is not available in any store! Unlimited time offer! Avoid disappointment! Visit today!

The Countdown Continues

We give gifts on St. Nicholas Day, Dec. 6, instead of Christmas. Once that's over, the rest of Advent is much more peaceful. You can read the whole story of how we arrived at this plan here. So we've just got to make it through the weekend. About Dec. 1, Goldilocks was yelling at Mama Bear, convinced she was holding out on him:
"You're never going to let me have any presents!"
"You just have to wait for St. Nicholas Day."
"Christmas is already here, and you still have my presents! You stole them! I'm going to take you to court!"

She finally persuaded him that St. Nicholas Day was six days away. He's been much calmer, almost his ornery old self. This morning, he announced,
"St. Nicholas Day is six days away."
"No, it's only four days away."
"You told me it was six days away. You told me that five minutes ago!"

Sigh. He's always been a little vague on time concepts, but that one is new. Anything that happened in the past was always "yesterday". Anything we ask him to stop momentarily he can never do, "never, ever again". Anything happening in the future, whether goof or bad, whether five minutes or ten years from now, is a source of great anxiety. He can't relax until all predictions, plans, and expectations are filled. And he lives almost entirely in the future. He doesn't care what's happening now, he wants to know what's happening next, and after that, even though knowing only increases his anxiety.

When he was seven, and his cousin was four, she announced to Nana, "I know what's wrong with GL."
"What?" Nana asked.
"His calm down button is broken."
Not one of the many professionals he has seen has offered a better description.

Advent Calendar

Mama Bear got out the Advent calendars today. We have a big felt one, obviously made by some crafty person, and MB usually buys the boys each a consumable one each year. You know, the kind with a little paper door for each day that you tear open to reveal that day's piece of chocolate. At bedtime, BB asked, "Could you lock mine up in case GL gets up in the night, and decides to make Christmas come quicker?"

Bah! Humbug!

I hate holidays. They bring out the worst in people. GL has been screaming and pounding on the walls for hours at a stretch for two days now, yelling, "I want my Christmas presents now, now, now,  now NOOOOOWW!!!"

Once in a while, he'll throw in something memorable, like, "Christmas is never coming! I waited for half an hour!"

And we can't even laugh, because that makes him worse.

Happy New Year!

If that sounds a little confusing, you can read an explanation here. Read about how we celebrate Advent in A Voice Crying in the Wilderness.

This year we are learning Thou Didst Leave Thy Throne.

Catching Up

We had an unusually hectic September and October this year. Then last week we were all sick, and Mama Bear had the worst of it. We still have the sniffles, and MB is still struggling with a cough and asthma, but I think we are on the mend. We didn't get much school done last week. As with last year, I got sick before I finished my Fall Cleaning. I never did finish last year. I'm hoping to finish this year, as soon as I have the energy.

We usually sit down as a family sometime in October and discuss what is important to each of us in our Advent and Christmas celebration. That way, we include whatever is most important to each of us, but do not waste energy on things that no one really wants, but we all feel are expected. We haven't done that yet. We give gifts on St. Nicholas Day, Dec. 6, so our extra shopping is done by then. We try to stay out of stores as much as possible in December, and make Advent (the four Sundays before Christmas) and Christmas (the twelve days from Dec. 25 to Jan. 6) a quiet, low-key, peaceful, and holy season. You can read about our journey here.

Update on the DVD player: After being plugged in for several hours, it powers up, but the door pops open at random intervals and it stops playing. The remote was DOA. The seller has shipped a replacement. I was afraid I'd get stuck paying to ship the bad unit back, but they said not to bother.

Happy New Year!

While the civil calendar begins on January 1, the Church Year begins on the first Sunday of Advent, which is the fourth Sunday before Christmas. So Happy New Year! The Western world, and even many Christians have forgotten Advent for so long that in some churches, several generations have grown up without even hearing of it. Even if we are vaguely uneasy about what has become of our Christmas celebrations, many of us are unaware of just what it is we are missing.

Christmas becomes for many people a secular holiday that begins at Thanksgiving and comes to an end shortly after dinner on December 25th. Christmas concerts, Christmas parties, even Christmas services of lessons and carols are held from early December on, building to an almost anti-climactic series of services on December 24th and 25th. Those who insist on waiting to celebrate Christmas when it actually arrives... are often dismissed as modern day Ebenezer Scrooges, who thought Christmas was humbug and did not even care that Advent existed. Sadly, much is lost in this popular reordering of the Church year. In fact, Christmas itself is impoverished.

By celebrating Christmas from the beginning of December on, we override Advent and lose it. And this is a terrible loss. Advent sets before us the powerful unfolding of God's plan for all of history, a plan that culminates not in the first coming of Christ, but in his second coming. Without Advent, Christmas is all too easily reduced to a sentimental story about a baby. When Advent is swamped and washed away by the premature celebration of Christmas, we lose something more: we lose the gifts of expectation and anticipation.

Full Homely Divinity, Rediscovering Advent

Read more about Advent, and some things your family can do to help restore it, in the Advent Carnival.

A Voice Crying in the Wilderness

How a Simple Tradition Led from Commercialism to Christ
Here are links to this series of posts, in order:
Part 1 Early Memories and the Expanding Season
Part 2 Keeping Christ in Christmas?
Part 3 Joining In
Part 4 Something New Needed
Part 5 Scaling Back
Part 6 Separating the Celebrations
Part 7 Discovering Advent
Part 8 The Challenge
Part 9 Advent Hymns
Part 10 Advent Prayers
Part 11 Christmas Eve
Part 12 Christmas Day
Part 13 The Hearts of the Fathers: After Christmas?

Read about how other families are celebrating a holy Advent in The Advent Carnival.

A Voice Crying in the Wilderness Pt. 13

The Hearts of the Fathers: After Christmas?

“But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John... And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. And he shall go before his face in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to walk in the wisdom of the just; to make ready for the Lord a people prepared for him.” Luke 1:13,16-17

With the frenzied activity of our old December habits, after Christmas came the inevitable letdown. Advent was the framework that organized and supported all our previous efforts to build a more meaningful Christmas celebration. The feelings of anxious hurry were replaced by feelings of calm and happy expectation. The boys expected the readings, and complained if we missed a day. When we read in the morning, we saw improved attitudes and behavior all day. In church on Sundays, we listened more attentively because we were better prepared.

But what about after Christmas? After a week or two, my wife said, “These readings are good. I think we should continue them after Advent.” I told her there were readings for the twelve days from Christmas to Epiphany. “No,” she said, “I mean we should continue them all year.” Three years later, family worship has become a habit. We've missed days, and even weeks, but our days feel incomplete without it, so we always return to it.

A Voice Crying in the Wilderness Pt. 12

Christmas Day
The weeks leading up to Christmas were pleasant and peaceful, but Christmas Day seemed empty. Most of our activities were done, our presents already opened, and aside from Christmas dinner, which was simple to prepare, there didn’t seem to be anything to do. Everyone else was busy with the activities we had reduced, businesses that didn’t close any other time were closed, and nothing seemed worth doing at home.

Midnight Christmas Eve services were an important tradition for many families, so we gave it a try. The church was hot and stuffy, crowded with people who hadn’t been there since last Christmas. The church had modern hymnals that had changed so many of the words that even the most familiar carols were hard to sing. There seemed to be a year’s supply of readings, carols, and choral numbers. The service seemed like it would never end. No wonder these people hadn’t been back since last year! Then the pastor got up and said, those of you who come here every week, this sermon is not for you, so you can tune out. Those who come once a year, this is the only time I get to preach to you, and I’ve got you for an hour, so I’ll give it to you straight. He preached hot and heavy for an hour. By the time Communion started, I just wanted to go home. Christmas Day seemed even more empty, we were all tired, Mom and Dad had headaches, and the boys were out of sorts.

The next year, we went to the Christmas Day service. What a difference! There were very few people there, but everything was calm and bright. Instead of stress and fatigue, we were full of peace and joy. There was a feeling of being in the right place.

Afterward, we went home, prepared our quiet meal, and spent a relaxed and happy day together. Because we selected only the food that made Christmas special for us, there was not too much cooking, but we had a delightfully memorable meal. We didn’t even put on any weight in December.

We played table games and read stories. There was no fighting, arguing, whining, or complaining, and no broken toys. No one was busy with extensive preparations, no one had to stay out of the way, no one had to rush off, no one felt trapped in the house, and no one was tired or had a headache. Instead, we felt thankful for our Savior, happy to be together, and free to enjoy the day.

“The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken.” Isaiah 40:3-5

All four Gospels quote this prophecy about John the Baptist’s preparation for Jesus’ arrival. There is no mention of gifts, cards, pageants, music, decorations, travel, family, food, drink, or most of the other things we have come to associate with the Christmas season.

“John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins.”
Mark 1:4-5

May we all be so prepared.

A Voice Crying in the Wilderness Pt. 11

Christmas Eve
We tried to include others in our simpler celebration, and those who came enjoyed it, but most people were too busy and too tired. On Christmas Eve, I read the Christmas story, and the boys acted it out with their Nativity. We had a few family members stop by for cookies, and sang carols together. Then we went to bed at our usual time.

A Voice Crying in the Wilderness Pt. 10

Advent Prayers
After lighting the candles, reading the Scripture, and singing the hymn, we would have a time of prayer. Last year we added the O Antiphons, an ancient series of Advent prayers. There is a prayer for each day December 17-23. Each one highlights a title for the Messiah and refers to Isaiah's prophecy of His coming.

A Voice Crying in the Wilderness Pt. 9

Advent Hymns
After the reading we sang a hymn together. We found that by singing the same hymn every day for a month, even the youngest child could learn both the tune and the words to three or four verses. Besides the usual Christmas carols, there are hymns of preparation especially for Advent. Last year we learned O Come, O Come, Emmanuel. You can read the words and hear the tune here.

This year we are planning to learn Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus.

A Voice Crying in the Wilderness Pt. 8

The Challenge
I’d like to challenge each person reading this blog to read from these selections each day of Advent, either alone or with your family. If you're reading with your family for the first time, choose just one of the readings, perhaps the shorter Psalm. Find a time of day when your family will be together. If some of your children are beginning readers like ours, choose a good reader -- an older child or parent -- and let the others follow along. If you miss a day, just resume with the reading for the next day.

A Voice Crying in the Wilderness Pt. 7

Discovering Advent

Prepare the Way

“The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken.” Isaiah 40:3-5

Growing up, I never heard of Advent. Later I attended a church that used an Advent wreath. On each of the four Sundays before Christmas, a family would stand around the wreath, light a candle, and read a short passage of Scripture about Christ’s coming. I thought we should try this -- a celebration focused on Christ. I found directions for making an Advent wreath here. I looked for the readings and found that there were not only readings for each Sunday, but for every day of Advent.

Each day has an Old Testament prophecy about the coming Messiah, a Messianic Psalm, a reading from the Gospels about preparing for His coming, and a reading from the Epistles related to one or more of the other readings. Many of the readings are about repentance. I read that purple was the traditional color of Advent and Lent, and represented repentance, so my wife made a purple tablecloth.

Each morning after breakfast, we cleared the table, put on the purple tablecloth and advent wreath, lit the appropriate candles, and took turns reading. The effect was remarkable. Nothing gets boys’ attention like fire. I thought the readings might be too long for them, but they sat and listened with very little fidgeting, and even began asking intelligent questions. As the weeks progressed, the feelings of anxious hurry were replaced by feelings of calm and happy expectation. In church on Sundays, we listened more attentively because we were prepared.

A Voice Crying in the Wilderness Pt. 6

Separating the Celebrations
We felt more peaceful and better rested than in previous years, but struggled to keep our celebration simple. I began reading about Christmas traditions around the world. I found that lavish gifts on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day were the exception, not the rule. If gifts were part of the tradition, they were more often given on St. Nicholas Day (December 6) or Epiphany (January 6). In most countries, the gifts were small and simple, and most often only for children. I thought moving our gift-giving day to Epiphany would only extend a season that was already getting too long, so we looked up St. Nicholas Day traditions.

The American Santa Claus comes from the Dutch name for St. Nicholas, Sinter Klaus. St. Nicholas, noted for his generosity, was bishop of Myra. He was made patron saint of sailors and children. In Holland, the bishop or his representative, dressed in the red robes of a bishop, arrives by boat on St. Nicholas Day and quizzes the children on their catechism. Those who do well are given a small toy or a snack.

We decided to move our gift giving to St. Nicholas Day. Even if we put off shopping until the last minute, we were ahead of the crowds. All through December, people would ask the boys, “What is Santa Claus bringing you this Christmas?” and they would say, “Santa Claus already came to our house.” We found that having our gift shopping and giving done, and our activities narrowed down to those we found most meaningful and important, we were able to relax and enjoy the rest of December more.

A Voice Crying in the Wilderness Pt. 5

Scaling Back
First, we agreed on a holiday budget in keeping with our income. My family had always frowned on gift lists, but after several years of buying each other disappointing gifts, we agree it was better to have some suggestions to choose from. We decided to give each child one $10 gift, which was what we could realistically afford, at the time, and preferably something educational. We suggested to extended family that we draw names instead of everyone buying a gift for everyone else. They resisted for several years, but as they began to have children, gift giving became more expensive, and they agreed to try it. Once people got used to the idea, it worked well, and everyone was a little more relaxed.

We found that the early marketing of Christmas was leading to holiday fatigue -- we were tired of the carols and decorations and burned out on programs and parties long before the holiday arrived. We also found that many of the activities that we found exhausting were done simply because everyone assumed they were expected or required, and no one bothered to ask if anyone really enjoyed them or even cared if they happened. We started a tradition of sitting down as a family each fall and making a list of what things made Christmas special.

We always list special foods, but then had each family member list the foods that made it feel like Christmas, and planned our Christmas menu around those foods. For my wife, it was candy canes. For the boys, it was Christmas cookies. For me, it didn’t matter whether we had turkey, ham, or some other meat, as long as we had mashed potatoes and gravy. This greatly simplified our Christmas menu.

We each chose the Christmas music, activities, and decorations that made Christmas feel special, and planned our celebration around those.

We tried to avoid the Christmas department that some stores were opening right after their back-to-school sales ended the first week of September. We agreed not to play Christmas music or put up Christmas decorations before Thanksgiving. We pared down our decorations to a Nativity the children could actually play with and act out the story, some cards hung around a doorway, and a string of lights tacked up around the living room. (With a small apartment and two active boys, we didn’t have room to put a tree in a safe place. We hung a few of our favorite ornaments from the tacks.) We became more selective in which Christmas party invitations we accepted. We spread our gift-buying throughout the year, and consciously avoided items marketed as gifts -- they tend to be the kind of thing no sane person would buy for himself. We stocked up on necessities except gas and perishable food, so we could stay out of the stores almost the entire month of December. Buy Nothing Day had nothing on us!