Op-ed views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author.

As we come to the end of 2023, it feels difficult to find peace. We are surrounded by news of barbaric terrorism, regional wars and their attendant horrors around the globe. 

When we look to our own institutions for legal security or moral clarity at a time that demands strength, our institutions are the foremost entities wavering with uncertainty. 

Further, when we turn to look for any good news, our old mainstream media are driving divisions through every definable difference between us, and the new anti-social media is full of voices uttering hatred. 

With all this surrounding us, it is a time for remembrance of that babe for whom the Inn held no room, for whom the stable had to do, to deliver his birth, among a circle of shepherds. It is time to be reminded, that Jesus spent his childhood growing up in a household with no luxuries, and his adulthood in a home where there was an accounting for every penny, as the life of a neighborhood carpenter of Nazareth brought little money. 

And, when he left that home to serve the world, his life became unlike the foxes, who had their dens, unlike even the birds who have nests… The Son of Man ventured where he had no room to rest his head…for he rejected a path open to him of wealth and power, and chose a path of love and suffering instead.

His ministry started as he opened a passage of Isaiah, which read, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to bring the Good News to the Poor.” Which news was that God was not as the Greeks conceived, a distant, uncaring master of geometry; nor was God as his fellow Jews thought, a demanding and exacting judge, awaiting a judgement day whereupon to scourge mankind. The Good News was that God was filled with love for humanity, and a cause for celebration! So came Jesus’ first signal miracle, the happy transformation of water into wine at a wedding in Cana.  

When Jesus chose his companions, he chose persons like himself, as simple and as extraordinary as any could be. He chose the women who attended his travels from his mother, Mary, to Mary Magdalene, from Joanna to Susanna and others, whom he treated as sacred. He promised his companions three things according to F. R. Maltby: “that they would be completely fearless, absurdly happy and in constant trouble!” Where his company walked, they brought hope, cheerfulness and kindness, and when Jesus spoke, his syllables went forth filled with the breath of Heaven.

Jesus welcomed everyone he met, whether a Jew, a Roman, a Greek or Samaritan; he spent his time with rabbis, tax collectors and sinners alike.  But spent his important time with those who suffered from being blind, or deaf, or lame, or lepers…  healing all of the desperate outcasts of society. He spent his time touching those whom no one else would touch, and loving those whom no one else would love.

When disciples of the prophet, John, ventured to ask him who he was, he answered: “Tell John what you have seen and heard, the blind recover their sight; the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed; the deaf hear; and the dead are raised up; the poor have the Good News told to them!” 

The greatest news was in Jesus’ teaching, and was opposite to anything ever heard: “To you who are listening, I say love your enemies, do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you, pray for those who ill-use you. As you would like others to act towards you, you must act towards them!” “You must love the Lord your God with your whole heart, your whole mind, and your neighbor as yourself!” 

Jesus taught in a style that everyone could understand, through parables. Perhaps his finest story was that of the prodigal: about a son who asks for his inheritance early and then goes on to waste its entirety in gambling, drinking and womanizing. Yet, when the son returns home, the father celebrates! Jesus explained, “What man of you who has a hundred sheep, and who hast lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine… and go after the one that is lost until he finds it?” Jesus taught that God, in his love, was searching for his lost ones…a humanity that strayed, and Jesus was the shepherd sent to bring home to God those who were lost.  

When the Pharisees asked Christ when the kingdom of God was coming, he answered: “the kingdom is within you!” But you have to enter it by your own free will, not through the force of an aristocracy or Caesar.  For “there is a domain in which Caesar’s writ does not run and which belongs wholly to God.”

To bring we, who are lost, to that domain of peace, Christ had to suffer a cross, the only place on earth that finally had room for one so profoundly good…

Before he left, he bid his apostles to greet everyone they met and every house they entered with a prayer for peace, a peace only afforded in the kingdom he built within each of us.

Celebrate the birth of the most extraordinary child ever born, who offers eternal love and shelter from the storm! Merry Christmas, Everyone!

• About
• Latest Posts

Richard Lyons

Richard C. Lyons, author of The DNA of Democracy: Volume I and Shadows of the Acropolis: Volume II is a third generation printer, whose early career centered on religious and special education publishing. Lyons has since engaged in literary pursuits as a poet, essayist, screenwriter and indie publisher.

Latest posts by Richard Lyons (see all)

• Glory on the Fourth - July 4, 2025
• Birth rights and due process - April 25, 2025
• A time to remember - December 24, 2024

Comment

We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.