RETURNING
TO BETHLEHEM Several years ago I received a telephone call from a man in Lancaster County who was constructing the Biblical village of Bethlehem as yet another tourist attraction. He wanted to make it as historically accurate as possible so that visitors might recapture the feeling of that first Christmas. Since I had worked in Israel and studied Biblical archaeology, he wanted my consultation on the construction of first century homes and what an inn at Bethlehem might have looked like. How does one return to a place that no longer exists? Even if we were to accurately rebuild the small shepherd village where Jesus was born, what significance would it have for our lives today? When we first heard the Christmas story as children, we formed our images of Joseph and Mary traveling the dusty highways to Bethlehem, finding no room at the inn, Mary giving birth to Jesus in a stable, angels appearing to shepherds, and magi crossing the desert to bring gifts. All the Christmas cards we have ever received reinforced the pictures in our minds. It is those images that are the reality for usCa nostalgia for an event far away and long ago that can never be revisited except in the imagination. But it is precisely those images that affect the way we keep Christmas and how we teach our children about the love of God born in the baby Jesus. Each year in our homes, in our social gatherings, and especially in our churches, we maintain the traditions of the pastCnot because we want to live in the past–but because we recognize the eternal values and significance of this important occasion. It helps us to realize the blessings of family, the value of friendship, the importance of human kindness and compassion, and mostly the qualities of love, mercy, and forgiveness. It is the time when something deep within us reminds us that God >s will is for peace on earth, a seemingly elusive dream that we must resurrect each year lest we lose it altogether. It is important that we keep our Christmas traditions alive, for without them we may very well forget the coming of Christ. However, it is more important that we remember those for whom Christ came, and those in whom Christ livesCthe poor, the innocent, the lonely, the hungry, the despairing, the lost, the homeless, the friendless. They are the ones in whom the Spirit of Christmas will continue to dwell. They are the ones for whom Christmas will always be necessary. I pray that the presence of Christ will be made real in your life as you rediscover the essence of this hallowed and gracious time.
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