Merry Christmas and enjoy your holiday

 (My new American Thinker post)

We are going away for a couple of weeks and want to thank American Thinker and our readers for a fun 2021.   

 

Enjoy this wonderful holiday with your family.   

 

This is a message for all of you from Father Gerald E. Murray the pastor at Holy Family Church.     Father Murray was with St. Vincent de Paul in New York when he wrote this message for National Review.  I guess that some things get better with time.   I think that you will agree:

A monsignor friend of mine is known to walk up the stairs of his rectory saying out loud, “Filled with joy, filled with joy.”

 

His reminder to himself and anyone in earshot is that joy is the central reality of Christian life.

 

Amidst the many problems and difficulties of everyday life in this world, faith teaches us to rejoice in God’s goodness.

 

At Christmas, God makes it easy to rejoice once again. Past and present seem to be one: the Virgin and Child at Bethlehem, the Christmas tree and crèche scene in our home growing up, our present-day preparations to celebrate another Christmas.

 

Christmas morning is certainly a time of great joy for children. Think back to those happy days.

 

The anticipation of finding under the tree exactly what we asked for was almost always fulfilled, unless Santa decided otherwise in his wisdom, as our parents were quick to tell us as we opened a box containing a shirt or a sweater.

 

Be grateful for what you have, they said, which is surely good advice.

 

Anyway, we will have soon have a chance to thank the Baby Jesus at Mass, so get dressed now!

 

Gratitude indeed is the root of our joy:

 

We recognize God’s goodness, experienced in a small but very important way through giving and receiving Christmas gifts, and we rejoice.

 

Joy in the soul is a foretaste of Heavenly beatitude.

 

Joy at Christmas is the fruit of knowing deep down that the birth of the Child Jesus changes everything for all time.

 

The cold and darkness of the long night of waiting has passed as the Sun of Justice shines upon creation.

 

Pope Benedict XVI recently called for prayers in these words:

 

But let us also think of those, especially young people, who have lost the sense of authentic joy, and who seek it in vain where it is impossible to find: in the exasperated race for self-affirmation and success, in false amusements, in consumerism, in moments of drunkenness, in the artificial paradise of drugs and of other forms of alienation.

 

This reads as though the pope has been spending time going through Page Six of the New York Post.

 

But in fact he does not need to be reminded of the inanities and self-destructive acts of mankind, as typified (but not exclusively, to be sure) in the lives of celebrities.

 

We are all to some extent, in one way or another, at some point (or points) in our lives, on the wrong track going downhill.

 

What can get us out of this spiral of despair?

 

Joy. To know joy exists, and that it is within our reach, can be sufficient motivation to exit the fast lane and find that path that the Wise Men took to reach Bethlehem, and the Child.

 

May joy draw us out of ourselves and lead us to kneel in awe before the tiny Child who makes all things new....."

 

What more can I say?   Father Murray said it all.   

 

This is going to be a strange Christmas season.   My mother passed away in May and thus I won't have my parents around.  It will be very strange to say Feliz Navidad or eat some of the Cuban food without them.  My consolation is that my parents are together again looking down at the growing family with pride.

 

Merry Christmas to you and your family.   See in '22!

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1968: Julie Nixon married David Eisenhower

Richard Nixon was elected president in November 1968 but Julie Nixon and David Eisenhower did not wait for a White House garden wedding.       They had a private ceremony instead.    (Her sister Tricia did have a White House wedding in 1971)

Julie and David met at the Republican National Convention in San Francisco, California, in 1956.  His grandfather and her father were campaigning for re-election that year.  They were 8 back then and most have clicked quickly.   

So we congratulate them on their wedding anniversary.

David wrote a few books later about his grandfather. 

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1808: Beethoven's 5th Symphony premiered in Vienna

What more can we say about Beethoven?   Not much.    He is one of the greatest composers ever.

We remind you that # 5 premiered on this day in 1808.

And the rest is music history.       Get your"5th" here!

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1972: Immaculate reception and Franco Harris

The AFL and NFL merged in 1970.   The Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore Colts and Cleveland Browns moved to the AFC.     

The first big game of the new post-merger era took place on this day in 1972:     

The historic play took place during the semifinal playoff game of the American Football Conference (AFC), in Pittsburgh. Ken Stabler of the Raiders scored a touchdown with 73 seconds left in the game, putting Oakland up 7-6. Things looked dark for the Steelers, a struggling franchise that had finished 31 of the previous 39 seasons with a losing record. Bradshaw’s pass, launched from the Steelers’ 40-yard-line, was intended for halfback Frenchy Fuqua. 

When the Raiders safety Jack Tatum collided with Fuqua at Oakland’s 35-yard-line, the ball bounced backwards in a huge arc for a total of seven yards, where Harris scooped it up before it hit the ground and ran 42 yards into the end zone."

The victory put the Steelers on the football map.   They won 4 Super Bowls in the 1970's and became one of the greatest teams in NFL history. 

It all started with a crazy play in an AFC playoff game.

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1914 Christmas and World War I

In 1983, Paul McCartney released the LP “Pipes of Peace.”  The title song was about a special moment on Christmas Day 1914 when German and U.K. troops shared some wine and even played a little soccer in the battlefield.

The Dallas Morning News‘ Christmas Day editorial recalled that moment from years ago:

One hundred years ago today, something of a battlefield miracle occurred amid one of the world’s bloodiest conflicts. Soldiers on both sides of the Great War’s front lines let down their guard and allowed faith in the goodness of their fellow man to prevail over hatred and distrust. Warring soldiers put down their weapons, emerged from their trenches and sang “Silent Night” together.

It began with a simple call by Pope Benedict XV on Dec. 7, 1914, “that the guns may fall silent at least upon the night the angels sang.”

The pope’s words were deemed by many to have resonated throughout the cold trenches of Flanders, where Germans and Britons were locked in mortal struggle.

It was as if both sides grasped the hypocrisy of Christians killing fellow Christians on a day devoted to the peaceful message of Christ’s birth. No account from the witnesses recalls anyone articulating such thoughts. Yet all seemed to grasp the opportunity presented by this special day. 

Those who were present in Flanders described an unusual silence that morning as the smoke cleared from incessant artillery and machine-gun fire. British troops heard the faint sound of a German band playing familiar Christmas tunes. One side broke out in a carol, answered by one from the other side. Back and forth, growing louder and more boisterous with each exchange.

Then came a German’s voice: “We good. We no shoot,” recounted British soldiers Frank and Maurice Wray, of the London Rifle Brigade. Soldiers from both sides cautiously approached one another across a no-man’s land, unsure whether this might be a setup for a surprise attack.  

What each encountered was nothing more than a few lonely soldiers, anxious to set aside the fighting and celebrate Christmas with their fellow man. Some chatted. Others exchanged small gifts of food, cigarettes, beer or mementos. They sang more songs. A few tried to improvise a soccer match.  

Up and down the front lines, word spread of the unofficial Christmas truce. An estimated 100,000 troops joined in.

Of course, the world knows about the awful fighting and millions of deaths that followed. But, for today at least, let’s focus on the message of hope that emerged from a battlefield far away and long ago.

“So Christmas, the celebration of love, made sure that the hated enemies turned into friends for a short time,” German Lt. Kurt Zehmisch wrote in his diary that day. “This Christmas will remain unforgettable.”

As any war veteran can tell, war is always hell.  However, World War I was especially hellish.

First, most leaders thought that the war would be quick.  It’s not the first time that we’ve seen that.  Everyone should check the books The Guns of August and All Quiet on the Western Front.  

Second, the machine gun and airplane brought unseen damage to the battlefield.  This was not your dad’s war if I can use that expression.  The old infantry rules did not apply.  (My friend Barry Jacobsen wrote a great post on World War I entitled “If World War I was a bar fight.”)

Third, chemicals were used against troops.

The war eventually ended in 1918, but part II started twenty years later.  It was even more deadly the second time around.

Merry Christmas to all of the AT staff and readers.

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Your Spanish lesson: A Christmas song by Luis Aguile

Here is a Spanish lesson for all of friends.....a Christmas song in Spanish......the singer is Luis Aguile of Chile and it translates to "come to my home from Christmas".....it is about the people who won't be with you this season.......by the way, it was Aguile who wrote that song "Cuando sali de Cuba".........

you can get the song by clicking HERE.

Click for the song:

"Tú que estás lejos de tus amigos, De tu tierra y de tu hogar, 

Y tienes pena, pena en el alma, Porque no dejas de pensar. 

Tú que esta noche no puedes Dejar de recordar, 

Quiero que sepas, que aquí en mi mesa, Para ti tengo un lugar.

Por eso y muchas cosas más, Ven a mi casa esta Navidad. 

Por eso y muchas cosas más, Ven a mi casa esta Navidad. 

Tú que recuerdas quizá a tu madre O a un hijo que no está, 

Quiero que sepas, que en esta noche, Él te acompañará. 

No vayas solo por esas calles, Queriéndote aturdir, 

Ven con nosotros y a nuestro lado Intenta sonreir. 

Por eso y muchas cosas más, Ven a mi casa esta Navidad.

Tú que has vivido, siempre de espaldas, Sin perdonar ningún error, 

Ahora es momento de reencontrarnos, Ven a mi casa, por favor.

Ahora ya es tiempo, de que charlemos, Pues nada se perdió, 

En estos días, todo se olvida, Y nada sucedió. 

Por eso y muchas cosas más, Ven a mi casa esta Navidad. 

Por eso y muchas cosas más, Ven a mi casa esta Navidad. 

Por eso y muchas cosas más, Ven a mi casa esta Navidad...."

 P.S.  Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

 

1989: Remembering Romania and the fall of Ceausescu

We remember that the government of Nicolae Ceausescu fell on this day in 1989.  It was the end of 4 decades of ruthless communist rule in that country.

Our friend Dr. Ileana Johnson Paugh is from Romania.  She is an author & economist.   Her book "Echoes of communism" is a must read for young people, specially those born after the collapse of the USSR in 1991.     

It is definitely "a good read" for those young people caught up in "Sandersmania"!  

We can not forget the brutality of communism or allow the left to rewrite the story of  "the evil ideology" that murdered millions in the 20th century.  

I should add that the brutality of communism continues in Cuba, Venezuela, China and North Korea!

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Ralphie’s mom must have been part-Cuban

It’s Navidad and time to watch some of those movie classics, from “It’s a wonderful life” to “The Christmas Story.”

Mrs. Parker of “The Christmas Story“, played by Melinda Dillon, reminds me so much my mother growing up.  I’m convinced that she is part-Cuban.

We grew up between a very tropical Cuba and the snows of Wisconsin. 

And I am convinced that Mrs. Parker was really “una mama cubana”!    Her ways, the soap in your mouth and everything else convinces me that she was like my mom.

 P.S.  Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

We remember Robin & Maurice Gibb today

Robin and Maurice, Barry's younger twin brothers, were born on this day in 1949.  Unfortunately, Maurice died suddenly in 2003 and Robin from cancer in 2012.

I love their 3-part harmonies and songwriting skills.   

From 'New York Mining Disaster 1941" in the spring of 1967 to "This is where I came in", their last LP in 2001, the Brothers Gibb recorded and wrote some of the best songs of the last 50 years.

 P.S.  Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

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