In Joseph's shoes errrr sandals?

I wrote this as part of my other post 'Joseph, the Unsung Hero' http://emmanuelreagan.blogspot.com/2011/12/joseph-unsung-hero.html, but then realized that this was incongruous. To just delete it off would go against my principle that words are precious, the creativity almost of first order. I decided to make a post out of it. Besides, by making this as a separate post, this would be the 50th post of this year... a good rounded number to end 2011. :) In other words, this is a post for the sake of a post. If you, for some reason have been reading till now, this might be a good place to stop. :P

If you didn't,  you have only yourself to blame... Well, as I was writing my post on 'Joseph, the Unsung Hero', I tried an thought experiment of putting myself into Joseph's shoes. Just to see what it would mean to be the man that Joseph was. There are three points which I'll have trouble putting myself in Joseph's shoes, or should I say sandals...

Matt 1:18 Mary had been betrothed [that is, legally pledged to be married] to Joseph.

This sounds pretty much like an arranged marriage. Even though I come from a culture where arranged marriages do happen, it is on the decline. I would find it  tough to willingly accept an 'arranged marriage'. Living in the world of radical individualism, having someone else make decisions especially when it comes to matters so close to my person, would be a bridge too far to say the least.

Matt 1: 20 An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit..."

Honestly, I would rather find it difficult to obey an Angel in my 'dream' suggesting that I marry a pregnant lady. Living in a post-Freudian world, I would find such a 'dream' rather confusing if not spooky. I would wonder if my 'subconscious' was venting out some repressed feelings in my dream. I might even have been tempted to argue with the Angel that he was asking me to something that did not seem very consistent with some parts of the revealed (Old Testament) word of God.

Matt 1:25 But 'knew' her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.

Not be able to have sexual intimacy with my wife for at least a year would be a tough sell to say the least. Having had to be abstinent until marriage and when one thinks one has finally arrived, to realize that one has to wait for one more year would not be an easy pill to swallow. 

The Man Joseph had no hesitation. He, with amazing speed agrees to marry Mary as per the Angel's command. (Matt 1:24 When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife...).

I think there are three problems why it is difficult for someone born in the modern age to put oneself into Joseph's shoes/sandals...

I think  in the modern age, our culture place a lot more premium on the 'attraction-factor' than any other time in history, which is one of the reasons why we find 'arranged marriages' impossible. We can't imagine getting married to someone we don't feel attracted to. If we look at human nature, for centuries attraction developed after marriage. In making 'attraction' a prerequisite to marriage, I wonder if we are putting the cart before the horse.

The second problem with modern age is that we don't believe that God intervenes in history to communicate to his children about His plan for their lives. When it comes to matters of marriage we listen more to our hearts promptings than to God's guidance. This reductionistic decision making process is akin to cutting off ones limb to fit the small cot.

The third problem is that we have made sexual intimacy a big part of marital life. I have read psychologists say that most problems in marriages can be traced by to sexual problems between the husband and wife. I don't know how this works... but I think if someone is truly in love, they'll be attracted to each other even if they don't have sex with each other. I think sexual intimacy is just the icing on the cake, not the cake itself. I think here too people in urbanized cultures, by giving too much importance to sex, are putting the cart before the horse.

I don't know that we can set the clock back... but we'll have to be true to human nature, else we cease to be human any more, and I think we are getting close. 

Joseph, the Unsung Hero

It is customary for me to write a post about Christmas before Christmas, but I got too busy this Christmas to write anything on my blog... so here is my post-Christmas, Christmas post. After all this is the 4th of the 12 day Christmas, so I am not late any ways.

Over the past few weeks and months I have been pondering what it is to truly be a strong man. I have been looking at most things in life through this lens. Christmas is no exception. I think the unsung hero of Christmas is Joseph, Jesus's foster father.

As per Old Testament law, if a woman were to get pregnant out of wedlock, she'll have to be stoned to death. Back in those times, if a woman were to be pledged a man and she is already pregnant, he'll probably be the guy to hurl the first stone at her. But Joseph being a good man (Matt 1:19) decides to quietly divorce her instead of brining shame upon her. It is noble for a man of that stiff-necked patriarchal culture to be so benevolent.

But then Joseph has a dream and the Angel wants him to go one step further and marry Mary. The Man Joseph had no hesitation. He, with amazing speed agrees to be given the shorter-end of the stick (Matt 1:24 When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife...). By agreeing to marry Mary, Joseph also forgoes the pleasure of sexual intimacy with his wife (Matt 1:25 But 'knew' her not until she had given birth to a son). By sacrificially accepting the shorter-end of the stick, Joseph shows true masculine strength.

Joseph gives Mary and the child the support and legitimacy that they need to live and thrive in a society.  In fact, when people are sarcastic of Jesus later on in his life, they still call him the Carpenter's son! But for the strong man Joseph...

There are two kinds of strong  people...
First, the high-achievers - the ones who change reality to get what they want.
Second, the high-sacrificers - those who shoulder the weight of reality to give to others the strength and the support they need, whilst sacrificing their personal prerogatives.

From Steve Jobs to Justin Beiber, the popular culture admires the high-achieving men, who make themselves look good by having great achievements under their belt. I submit that it is the second kind of high-sacrificing men that are seldom looked-up-to. From Bruce Oslon to William Carey, these people expend themselves sacrificing their personal well-being for the sake of others. These are are the ones that are truly strong.

Ironically, 'popular Christianity' is no different from popular culture in that it celebrates strong men of high-achieving kind over the stronger men of the high-sacrificing kind. David is the considered a hero in 'popular Christianity' because he slew Goliath. He is the strong man who'll won many battles. But 'popular Christianity' often fails to reckon that when it comes to taking responsibility for his kids and family, David was a TOTAL failure. Then there is the whole affair of his impregnating another man's wife and then trying to get the innocent man to take responsibility for it, failing which, getting him killed. Where David fails to take responsibility for what was his, Joseph does the opposite. He take responsibility for what wasn't his. That is where true high-sacrificing manliness is. Carpenter Joseph is a stronger man than Kind David.

With 2011 ending, one of the key obituaries people are reminiscing about is the demise of the legend Steve Jobs and how his life has affected billions around the world. What is seldom acknowledged is that Steve Jobs was a terrible father. He disowned the kid (Lisa Brennan Jobs) of the first lady he impregnated. On a court case on paternity, he went so far as to claim impotence. He tried to wriggle out of a second out-of-wed-lock impregnation too before finally agreeing to marry the lady. His daughter did not invite him for her graduation. All of this history of Steve being an irresponsible father is often glossed-over because in the eyes of 'popular opinion makers', his public achievements override his private failings.

Let alone popular opinion makers, the idea of celebrating strong high-sacrificing manhood is seldom appreciated even in the Church. The failure of the Church to preach this sort of manhood has had a detrimental impact on the society. I was reading an article by the sociologist/historian David Brooks in New York Times. He talks about the social plight of 40% of the children that are born today being out-of-wedlock kids. Single moms are having to step-up to give the kids a good chance at life. Most of the single moms are great in being momma grizzlies. They show great resilience. The society/government tries to do what it can to help such single moms. But what is missed in the dialogue is the root cause of this problem, which is the irresponsibility of the men that impregnate the women. David Brooks goes on to say that  we have lost the social norms from a 100 years ago which warranted that a man who impregnated a woman was expected to marry her.  If only we had more Josephs we'll have fewer out-of-wedlock kids.

We need to delve a little deeper into the psyche of modern men who refuse to take responsibility for impregnating a woman. I suspect that the impetus to be irresponsible is not so much about an aversion towards being a father, as much as it is about a craving for pleasure (of the illicit kind, to not be bound to one 'partner' in crime). This craving for pleasure is crudely epitomized by Christmas celebration in the Washington and Jefferson College in Pennsylvania where the Dean approved a Christmas tree decorated with condoms (http://nation.foxnews.com/christmas-tree/2011/12/09/condom-christmas-tree-sparks-outrage). Here too Joseph sets a great high-sacrificing example. It would have been legitimate for Joseph to have wanted to share sexual intimacy with his wife, but he refrains. He sacrifices pleasure in order to help and love Mary. Joseph's loving-kindness towards Mary in refraining even from legitimate pleasure is a great example to both men and women in today's world whose lives often seem to be defined more by craving for illegitimate pleasures than by virtues of love, kindness and sacrifice.

In contrast to the high-achieving heroes of our age from Steve Jobs to Justin Beiber (who I believe is currently battling a paternity claim), Joseph stands tall and timeless - a high-sacrificing man with a spine and a chest, shouldering the responsibility of protecting and loving the vulnerable. In as much as the likes of the Josephs remain the unsung heroes, today's society as G.K.Chesterton says, will continue producing 'men without a chest'. Eventually, such a civilization will disintegrate, not for the lack of high-achieving heroes of the Jobs kind, but of the lack of high-sacrificing heroes of the unsung kind of Joseph.

Christmas with the Van Zants - An Experience of Unconditional Love

I usually go to Church on Christmas Eve, and love singing Christmas songs, but sitting alone by myself, in the midst of families, I experience what is called the 'outsider archetype'. In an article 'Depression During Holidays', in Psychology Today the Dr. Elaine N. Aron explains the 'outsider archetype' this way...

"The shadow side of this period of light and hope is darkness and despair, and many people fall into darkness at this time of year. They feel left out. Deep depression, the kind that goes on day after day or leads to suicidal thoughts, is complex and needs to be treated carefully and from every angle. ... is the problem of becoming identified with the archetype of the 'Outsider'. There is nothing bleaker, or more dangerous to survival, than being alone in the cold, physically or emotionally hungry, left out, while others are gathered around the fire, sharing food and gifts and above all, love." 

Wanting to commit suicide is an extreme case of the outsider archetype, not every outsider feels that way. But  having spent the past 4 Christmases by myself sitting at my home alone on Christmas Day, I can see where Dr. Aron was coming from. In fact, as much as I love the Christmas season, owing to my self-identification with the 'outsider archetype', a part of me had also begun to dread it... of spending the 5th Christmas in a row alone by myself.

Thankfully, this Christmas wasn't to be that way because my buddy Matt Van Zant invited me to spend this Christmas as an 'insider' in his family. I couldn't thank him enough for having invited me and alleviated me the pain of having to spend another Christmas Day all alone. What I found very interesting was that having been the 'outsider' for so long, the transition from the 'outsider' archetype to the 'insider' archetype actually takes some effort. It takes a deep understanding and acceptance of unconditional love to be able to make the transition.

Here  is how the story goes... Matt picked me up from my place on Christmas Eve, we went to service with his Mom, Dad and two pretty sisters. Then we went to Benihanna, I was treated to a great dinner. We went to Matt's home and sat there talking and watching the program 'Christmas with the Mormon Tabernacles Choir'. Of course, we cracked a few jokes about Mormons, no offense, but who doesn't... As much as they are fodder for good jokes, Mormons are good singers. It is also one of the fastest growing religions, thanks to their procreative proclivities. Matt's Mom googled some theological differences between Mormonism and Christianity, and read it aloud. We talked about that for a while. It was a fun time. Then we called it a day.

I had a long sleep in the cozy guest bedroom. I woke up very late next morning had a great brunch with eggs and sausage and english biscuits and fruits and desert, prepared by Matt's Mom. Then it was time to open gifts under the tree. Back in India, we didn't have the opening of gifts tradition. Christmas there was very different (http://emmanuelreagan.blogspot.com/2009/12/christmas-in-india.html). So this opening gifts tradition, was new to me. It was great to see the love and affection with which each of them had gotten gifts for others. I was given a gift too. I was the only one there who did not have any any gift to give.

We chatted, played with the dogs... I went back to my bed to have a quick nap, which ended up becoming a 3 hour sleep. I woke up from the sleep and there was in my head, a nagging thought... From having great food, fellowship and gifts, I took so much from the table, but I nothing to 'bring to the table'. Being a 'works righteousness' guy, this was a bitter pill for me. I had been showered with so much love and affection, but I  didn't know why I deserved it when I had nothing to give in return. Deep within, it even made me feel a little bit guilty.

Being an 'outsider' has one sent of psychological bad problems. But being an 'insider' has another set of good psychological problems to be solved. I had to find a resolution to the feeling of not knowing what made me worthy of love and affection, when I have nothing to give in return. Being an introverted HSP (High Sensitive Person), I am a little too in touch with the nuances of my feelings to not be bothered by them.

The dinner prepared by Matt's Mom on Christmas day was one of the best meals I had recently had. For dinner on Christmas Day, two friends of Matt's sister came to join us. They too were guys who were away from home experiencing lonely Christmases. As we sat at the table, Matt's Dad asked Matt to pray. I found the answer to my nagging question in Matt's prayer. Matt's prayer went something like this...

"Thank you Lord for bringing us together as one family in this table. Christmas is not about traditions, it is about celebrating the salvation that you have provided for us so that we can love each other as a family..."

I didn't hear the rest of the prayer, because in those few words, I found the answer to the question that was nagging me. My question was, 'What did I do that makes me deserving of such unconditional love? What do I have to bring to the table to make myself worthy of such love?' The answer is, I did not have to do anything, Christ did all that needed to be done on the Cross. I was unconditionally loved by the Van Zants not because I did (or could do) something to deserve it, but because they believed in the unconditional love of Jesus Christ which made them love me unconditionally and invite me to be an 'insider' their family.

The basis for love is not what one has done to be worthy of love, but what Christ has done on the Cross. Only a love that is inspired by the love of Christ can be truly unconditional. The love I experienced with the Van Zants was this Christ-inspired-unconditional-love. So I could REST in what Christ has 'brought to the table' instead of being hung-up over what I couldn't bring to the table to be worthy of being the 'insider'.

In a sense THIS is what Christmas is about, we are ALL born 'outsiders' to God's family. Left to ourselves, we'll die. Christ had to show us conditional love to make us 'insiders' into His family. Making the transition from the 'outsider' to the 'insider' requires of us an acceptance this unconditional love of Christ. For some of us because of our life experiences this transition from the outsider archetype to the insider archetype takes some time, the likes of the Van Zants make such a transition easier.

As I noted earlier, I couldn't thank my buddy Matt enough for making this Christmas special by inviting me to be an 'insider' in his family. Christians will spend an Eternity thanking and worshiping God for making us all insiders in His Family. Everyday in Heaven would be such a Christmas day. Our Christmases here are just a foretaste of the overflowing experience of unconditional love that is to come! After 4 years of lonely Christmases, my Christmas with the Van Zants has been one such experience of unconditional love!

November Facebook Status Updates

A friend asked me what I did last weekend. I said, "Saw a good movie, read a good book has good conversations with people". We talked for sometime then he asked me again. "What did you do that was FUN???". I said, "Saw a good movie, read a good book has good conversations with people"... What more does one need to be FUN???

I was having lunch with a friend today, discussing the meaning of life. My friend said that discussing meaning of life might be futile... that we need to live in the present... I said I really want to know the Truth... Finally, we got the fortune cookie and mine said, "Enjoy life! It is better to be happy than to be wise". We had a good long laugh till we almost teared-up... :)

Since this morning, in conversations with the friends I have hung-out with I got at least 4 suggested readings... "How to read a Book", "The One and The Many", "Ego and Archetype" and "How Trinity Changes Everything"... I don't have the bandwidth to read all of these books now, but haven't I the MOST awesome friends???!!!

There couldn't be a more beautiful day than today to sit outside and read... cool, dark and melancholic. :)

Any system of life that is devoid theology which connects the idea of man with the idea of God, would end up dehumanizing man


I need to talk to someone who has read or seen 'Moneyball'. Some parts of it sort of went over my head...


The luckiest are the ones that were born in the early 80s... Like me. :P

Why does 'Adagio in G minor' make you feel the way it does?

J. Edgar is 2 hours and 40 minutes long, but leaves you wanting more. DiCaprio and Eastwood have tried to deal with Hoover's life in ALL of its complexity that they barely scratch the surface - leave much shrouded, intentionally I believe.

Grief is good as long as it does not lead to self-pity. Life is good as long as there is hope and faith that God would work it ALL for the ultimate good - Rom 9:28.

Well... to go or not to go and watch 'J. Edgar' DiCaprio's latest movie with Clint Eastwood at 00:01 hours tomorrow (actually tonight)... THAT is the question.

I think one thing that Facebook does well is it gives people a chance to be a tad bit more creative than they normally are. :)

Houston was beautiful today! There were clouds, then some rain, little snow flakes dancing about for a very short while, then pouring rain, then a mist, then some sun and then cloudy again. Classic Houston!

Strength in the midst of weakness is true strength, for if there is no weakness in a person, then 'strength' has no point to prove. If one hasn't had a chance to win a battle from within, one may not be able to overcome the battles from without. So, Cheer up! If you think you are weak, you have an opportunity to be strong. :)

In life, we expend ourselves, anyone who doesn't feel expended, probably isn't alive yet.

If you have a strong arm and a sharp knife, when you make one cut, you'll have two pieces of meat. Well, what I am saying is if you have strong principles in your life, you can be decisive. :)

Sojourn - A High Stakes Christian Covenant Community

(Disclaimer: What is stated below is my impression of what Sojourn Church Community stands for. My impressions may or may not reflect the Church's official stand on things)

'Covenant' is a very heavy word that has in recent times has lost the depth of its meaning. Before the modern idea of 'contract', became the norm for any transaction whether marriage or business, it was 'covenant' that bound people together. Covenant has a deep relationship aspect which the 'matter-of-fact' contract lacks. Where contract tries to define the boundaries of the liabilities, the covenant went ALL in. Where contract is signed in ink, covenant was signed in Blood.

When I realized that Sojourn had a 'Covenant Membership Class' to induct new members, my understanding of the weight of the word caused pause. I needed to really consider the stakes involved. Generally speaking, a Covenant answers three questions, what do I need to give? what do I get in return? who is the covenant enforcer? To me, the key question to which I wanted to find the answer to was the first one, 'what do I need to give?'. I wanted to know what was at stake before I could commit to be a member of this Church.

Because I was apprehensive, I made sure that I could decide not to become a member if I didn't want to, after attending the class. I was assured that I could. So I attended the class last week. The covenant class was taken by the passionate Pastor Joseph and facilitated by the able administrator, Drew.

Three points stood out to me from the class.
1. The need to create a Christian presence in urban enclaves.
2. The need to allow the Gospel to permeate everyday aspects/rythmns of ones life.
3. The need to commune, submit and be strengthened by each other.

In every culture, there is a part of the society that is fragmented and is in dire need of the gospel. The Christian has two options to deal with this. Either jump headlong into the decadent culture, open it up to the Good News by building a Shining City in the midst. Or retire to the Christian ghetto, assured that one has the 'ticket' to heaven and that one will 'make it' even if all hell breaks loose around them. It seemed to me that the Sojourn Christians are encouraged to be of the first kind of Christians. To be the Christian of the first kind, one has to venture outside of one's comfort zone. For example, Joe said that if you decide to live in urban enclaves (as against the suburbs), you may not be able to own a house until you are in your mid-thirties or early forties. Besides, you have to open your homes for neighbours to come and fellowship at. That is a sacrifice one has to consider making to be a high stakes Christian of the first kind.  This a not a low bar. But how could I not covenant with that?  Check!

A big problem with the urban progressives is a sense of entitlement. The urbanite believes he/she has a RIGHT to happiness, no matter what is at stake. In fact, I think, one could draw an almost straight line from the belief in right to happiness to the breakdown of marriages in the Western civilization. The only thing that can effectively work against this obsessive 'pursuit of happiness' is the Gospel permeating every aspect of our life. Gospel kills the discontentment that arises out of the sense of entitlement, by helping us SEE the crucified Lord. This Gospel-focus SHOULD fill us with the GREATEST sense of GRATITUDE that nothing else would matter so much so as to rob us of our 'joy' in the Lord.

Joe recounted how one of the Elders in the Church had to recite the Gospel to him when he was feeling discontentment over something. It is a great example to see pastors use a self-deprecating examples to glorify the Gospel. To make much of Christ and less of self is the fruit of the workings of the Gospel. It seemed to me that the Sojourn Christians are encouraged to be Gospel-focused to make much of Christ and less of self in their everyday aspects/rythmns of life.  This a not a low bar. But how could I not covenant with that? Check!

If  the urban progressives had real, healthy and cherished communities, the Starbucks business model would have bombed right at the start. After all, a good number of people that go to Starbucks for the pseudo-community experience than for the 'real' coffee. In contrast to the pseudo-communities around us, Christians are supposed to be the 'real' community builders. We are to find our identity in the community of those who love the Lord. While most pagan communities that look real are built upon principle of 'networking' driven by self-interest of some form, the Christian community is built upon virtues of mutual love, mutual submission and mutual exhortation. Unlike Communism (Marxism), the Christian community is not classless, there is a definite hierarchy. But the Christian community is a lot more radical than Communism in that Communism mandates that everyone be treated equally, whereas in the Christian community, one is expected to treat the other better than one self. This is where rubber meets the road. This a high bar. I'll need to covenant with that! Check!

It takes a lot of gospel-focus, prayer and mission mindedness to be able to fulfil my part of covenant deal. Truth be said, it will not be easy. But I have the 'Helper' (John 14:16), the Lord the Holy Spirit to help me through. Even if I fail, the covenant Enforcer is gracious (Romans 3:23 - 26: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood). The covenant is cut from His blood, not mine, which is why I can confidently go ALL-in into this high stakes Christian covenant community.

Elf - Lost & Loved!

I feel greatly encouraged by my buddies Kyle and Matt to continue writing posts about movies on my blog. Yesterday, when we were watching the cheesy Christmasy movie 'Elf' with friends from Church, Matt wondered if I would write a post on it. I took the challenge to write one. I don't think I have ever written a post on any cheesy movie. I enjoy watching funny movies, but a movie without depth does not inspire me to write. My challenge with this post is to find something deep about 'Elf' for a worthy write. But it is difficult task given that you have Will Ferrel staring in a movie... just saying. :) If this post is lame, don't blame me. :P

Anyways, for the sake of this post I have gleaned two profound ideas from the movie.
1. There is a connection between knowing who we are and finding a sense of belonging as someone's beloved son/daughter.
2. There is something divine about enjoying the 'spirit of Christmas' even when it is all about the Santa, and ubiquitously Christless.

In Elf, Will Ferrel is a man who gets 'lost' at birth and ends up growing among the Elves in the North Pole. As dumb as he is, when he is 30 years old, he realizes that he isn't an Elf but a Man. He realizes he does not 'belong' with the Elves and that the Elves don't quite love him. Will starts on a quest to 'find his true self'. Will finding his real Father in New York is what the movie is about.

This 'finding your true self' presupposes that one is 'lost'. None of us perfectly 'belong' in this world. We are all misfits in some ways. We don't love right, neither are we loved right. This causes a sense of alienation, insecurity and ultimately a sense of lostness.

Broadly speaking, modern human beings have two ways of dealing with the sense of lostness. One, try to escape the angst by becoming drunk or profligate or jump headlong into the rat-race for the 'American Dream' etc... Two, try to find a deeper purpose to override the gnawing sense of lostness by becoming Zen Buddhists or artists or activists etc... We forget that the ONLY thing that truly gives us a sense of 'belonging' is to be TRULY LOVED as Someone's most beloved Son/Daughter.

In the movie, Will wisely decides to find a sense of belonging by seeking his Father's love. When Will's Father gives up his 'dream job' to show Will how much he loves him, Will feels loved and finds a sense of belonging in life. From the Christian perspective, this is what Christ did on the cross. Christ gave His life up to show us how much He loved us.

Ephesians 1 4-6: In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace

Pay special attention to the first two words 'In love'. If God's adoption as His Son/Daughter does not give us a sense of being loved, NOTHING EVER will. If God's everlasting love doesn't make us feel loved, NONE ever can. We can try everything from being a drunk to becoming an activist. We'll just be a stone rolling about that gathers no mass, moving about from one place to another or one person to another.

Moving on to the second theme - the 'spirit of Christmas'... There is something really interesting about the way the idea of the 'spirit of Christmas' is presented in the movie. In the last scene of the movie the real Santa from the world of the Elves makes his appearance in NYC. It is witnessed by two groups of people - the true believers and the sophisticated skeptics. The true believers see the Santa, the sophisticated skeptics (the members of the media) just don't get it.

In the movie, the idea that the engine of Santa's sledge will work only by the 'Spirit of Christmas' in the hearts of the true believers is very ingenious. The first among the true believers is the 'tenderly beautiful' Zooey Deschanel. When Santa's sledge loses power, she feels it in her heart and starts singing the song 'Santa Claus is coming tonight'. Everyone joins in, even the ones watching on TV. Santas sledge gets the power it needs and zooms into the night skies.

It might appear that this is another show of commercialized Santa-celebrating Christmas. But we need to remember that even in this sort of Christless Christmas there still is something that can't help but glorify God. I almost teared-up when everyone sang 'Santa Claus is coming tonight'. There is something that makes a human being tear-up upon witnessing people share something profoundly simple. In this case, the 'spirit of Christmas' is shared by one and all. Why should this make one tear-up? It is because of the Image of God in man. Apes don't tear-up upon sining. Apes can't imagine myths about Santas or reindeers or gifts in stocking. Apes do not have the sense of wonder to enjoy the 'Spirit of Christmas'.

Only Human beings can connect to myths in a deep way. It is the Image of Christ in us that makes us true believers in myths. Myths are things that by themselves, do not have survival value. But they give value to survival. In and of itself, the 'Spirit of Christmas' has little survival value. But it gives value to survival. Without the image of God that makes man special, man cannot enjoy myths that give value to survival.

So, if one has to truly believe in the Santa's 'spirit of Christmas' (even when it is Christless), then one has to presuppose a Christian worldview - that man is made in the Image of God. Unless man feels loved as a son/daughter by the One in whose image he is made, he'll NEVER feel loved, no matter where he searches. He'll never belong anywhere. He'll feel totally lost. Thank God Christ came to save the lost! Merry Christmas!

The Lives Of Others

'The Lives Of Others' is an award winning Foreign language film that actually made me cry because the end of the movie is so evocative of how life works, for those of the Christian faith. I am glad my friend from Church, Luke, lent me his copy.

The movie is about a Captain of the East German secret police the Stasi who is true to his principles even at great personal peril. Some power-hungry officers in the Stasi decide that they need to bring destroy a famous Playwright in the communist East Germany. They wire his house and put Captain Weiler in charge of monitoring the wire taps. Captain Weiler is a principled man, totally devoted to the totalitarian principles of the Communistic state. 

Captain Weiler is promised rich rewards if Weiler can find incriminating evidence against the playwright. But during the surveillance, Captain Weiler realizes that the Playwright is a true artist and that his art needs to be protected against the regime. The Captain decides to not report some of the Playwright's work that is aimed at exposing the Communist regime. Weiler knows that if he is caught, he'll be dealt with the most severe form of punishment. Weiler bends over backwards to save the Playwright. The Stasi realize that Weiler had hidden some critical data. They don't have proof, so they demote him to a very menial position which Weiler does faithfully for many years. Eventually, the wall comes down and East Germany gets unified. 

The Stasi men are wealthy in the unified Germany too. They work the system. But Weiler 'falls through the cracks' and is a dejected man delivering mail from door to door. Throughout the movie, Weiler is an unhappy man. He is not successful. He never has his 'American Dream'. He stands for a principle and pays the cost for being the righteous man.

One day, the poor, inconsequential, despondent Weiler is walking the streets. He sees a huge poster of the Playwright with his new novel 'Sonata for a Good Man'. Curious, Weiler goes into the shop, opens the book. He realizes that the Playwright dedicated the book to Weiler. After unification of Germany, the Playwright gained access to the wire taps and realized how Weiler had saved his life. Weiler takes the book to the cash register. The clerk asks if if this book needed to be gift-wrapped. Weiler looks up, and for the first time in the movie has a beaming smile and says, "This is for me!". 

The Christian's life is akin to Weiler's. The Christian cannot conform to the ways of the world. Conforming to God's standard for righteousness, the Christian has to set himself apart. Others have a jolly good time 'working the system', whereas the Christian true to the principles of Truth gets the shorter end of the stick. From Elijah to David to Paul to Luther, people that follow God have struggled immensely with life. They are often disappointed and depressed. Yet unmindful of the present-day struggles, they run towards the ultimate reward of Heavenly life. The smile on poor Weiler's face when he says, "This is for me" is representative of the smile that would be the Christian's when he is rewarded in Heaven for all his hardships on earth.

Revelation 17

13 Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?”

14 And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

17 For the Lamb at the center of the throne 

  will be their shepherd; ‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’ 

  ‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’

Sometimes the hardship we undergo as principled Christians can be overwhelming. We find ourselves as misfits in the world. But we shouldn't give up. We need to remember that we have a beautiful inheritance awaiting us in the Other shore in the form of a great relationship with God. He'll satisfy us for all the hardship we undergo for the sake of His Name. In this life, we should not conform to the standards of the pleasure and power mongering world. We should stand apart. We need to do our best to Serve God even when it comes at great personal peril, disappointment and despondency. We who end up as losers for the sake of righteousness, are actually in the good company of the ones in White Robes, washed in the blood of the Lamb. Our mourning shall be brief! Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted (by the King)! 

Another Blessed Lonely Christmas!

Owing to multiple reasons, I schedule my annual vacation round Feb/March. Consequently, this is the 5th Christmas, in a row, that I am going to be away from family. Actually, I have lost all memory of what made Christmas special when I was young. It is sort of sad.

The only thing that is Christmasy about my life these days is listening to Christmas songs. There are some songs that always bring a tear to my eye. One is 'The Little Drummer Boy' http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=endscreen&v=Adg_JIQzdhs. The other is 'What Child is This' http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oz44GJlSPeo.

Little Drummer Boy is about this little boy standing by the manger Jesus is born at. He loves Jesus so much, but he has nothing to give Him. BIG people come and give Jesus BIG gifts. He is sad that he has noting to give the King. He thinks and thinks what he can give Jesus. Then he realizes that he can play the drum for Jesus. He sweetly asks Jesus, 'Shall I play for you?'. He plays the drum for Jesus. He plays his BEST for Jesus. His ULTIMATE joy is in seeing... 'Then Jesus smiles at me... Me and my drum...'. Even writing this makes me tear up, that the Lord is pleased with whatever little I can glorify Him with. He considers it precious. I think I try to put myself in his shoes a little too much. The GOAL of Christmas is not just to have a good time. But to make our Lord 'smile' at us and what we do thing Christmas.

'What Child is this' makes me tear-up not just because the tune evokes a depth of transcendence and awe and mystery, but because there is a philosophical depth to it too. The song deals with the whole Person of Jesus. His Kingship 'King of Kings', His mean estate 'among ox and lamb', His Love 'pleading for sinners', His crucifixion 'nail, spear shall pierce through him'. It also talks about ordinate human response 'Good Christian fear', 'Hail, hail the Word made flesh', 'Let loving hearts enthrone Him', 'Raise, raise a song on high'. The going back and forth between Christ's Greatness and Human Response brings tears of joy and admiration.

Christmas is BEST when Christ is made the Celebrity that is most admired over and over again... When people tear-up in Michael Jackson concerts, how much more should we tear-up when Christ is the Celebrity??? Well, this applies only to the sensitive mushy ones I guess... :P

I think lonely Christmases are blessed because being alone around Christmas has given me a greater appreciation for life. It has given me the ability to appreciate life in spite of life being reduced to the bare essentials. It is at such times that I gets to really enjoy God. Loneliness is a very small cost to pay for the opportunity to enjoy and be satisfied in Christ.

It was St. Francis of Assisi who said, "A man who has everything and Christ has everything. A man who has everything but Christ has nothing. A man who has nothing but Christ hasn't anything less than the man who has everything and Christ'. Understanding this quote of the great Saint at a philosophical level is one thing. Living it at an existential level is a whole another experience. Blessed lonely Christmases give me this priceless experience.

At the end of the day, Christmas is about glorifying God and share my Joy in Christ with people around me. I can always do this whichever part of the world I am at, for the WHOLE world is the Lord's and the WHOLE world CELEBRATES the King of Kings!