Posted on 11/29/2015 11:55:56 AM PST by CHRISTIAN DIARIST
Today is the first day of Advent, which marks the start of the pre-Christmas season. It is observed by many, if not most, of the Catholic faithful. And it is in popularity among Protestants, particularly those of us who count ourselves evangelical Christians.
Advent begins four Sundays before Christmas and ends on Christmas Eve. During that four-week period, the Christian faithful prepare for the commemoration of the birth of Christ. Satan hates Advent. That’s because he wants to take the “Christ†out of Christmas. He doesn’t want Christmas to be a Godly “holy-day.†Rather, his aim is to reduce the birth of Christ to an unGodly, secularized “holiday,†on a par with, say, Halloween.
And, lamentably, Satan and his minions have largely succeeded in hijacking Christmas.
Indeed, no longer is Christmas a celebration of Christ’s birth, but the worship of Mammon. It begins the day after Thanksgiving, which is aptly named Black Friday. It is a day of orgiastic buying and selling in America’s temples of commerce.
Meanwhile, the evil one’s useful idiots have driven Christ out of the public square during Christmas.
That begins at the White House, where the president of the United States, who claims to be a Christian, sends out Christmas cards that do not mention Christ. Like last year, when the White House Christmas card featured the Obama Family’s two dogs – rather than, say, the Virgin Mary and the Christ child – with the secularist message:
“In this wondrous season, may the spirit of the holidays bring you strength and happiness.â€
And Obama is not the only elected official doing the work of the devil; taking the Christ out of Christmas.
In 2014, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio declared that New York City public schools could no longer have holiday concerts featuring songs in which the lyric “Christmas†was sung. “I don’t hate Christmas,†de Blasio claimed, “but it’s not about me, it’s about the thousands of children that don’t celebrate Christmas, and could find it offensive.â€
Then there are the atheists, and their sympathizers, who use the courts to attack Christmas.
That’s what happened this past April when a three-judge panel of the liberal Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco outlawed the Nativity scenes depicted on large dioramas in Santa Monica, California’s Palisades Park.
Those dioramas had been erected in the park every Christmas season since the 1950s.
That’s why the redeemed of the Lord should stand up for Christmas during Advent. For the Word of God promises that if we resist the Devil, he will flee from us.
What religion is de Blasio?
If Christmas is losing, it’s our fault that the Birth Of Christ is losing, so I would suggest not to let that happen....
We went into Home Depot on Friday to buy paint and there was a mechanical Santa calling out Merry Christmas as you came .in the door and Christmas carols on the PA system. Everybody was saying Merry Christmas back to the Santa. I turned to Mr. GG2 and said “you can thank Donald J. Trump for this turnaround”
Atheist. He’s a commie.
My daughter works at Michale’s, and they have always said ‘Happy Holidays’ not her....she’s out there with ‘Merry Christmas’ to everyone and most people love it....
Thank you Mr. Trump for waking people up and seeing where we are and where we can go supporting you....
Aside from the word “Christ” in “Christmas “, it’s mostly a pagan winter holiday. All decorations in stores are pagan. Trees with lights are pagan. Santa has nothing to do with Saint Nicholas.
It’s feast of buying. A bonanza for stores.
The country is rushing headlong into atheistic materialism. Has been for a long time. I remember a sermon when I was a kid about Christmas being a merchant’s holiday, not Christ’s birthday.
de Blasio worships Marx and himself.
Advent is a season of anticipation, not a season to "celebrate" anything. It's not even part of the Christmas season. The modern consumerism of Christmas comes to an end on December 25th, but that's actually the first day of a joyous season that extends through the time after Epiphany and doesn't come to a formal end until February 2nd.
What religion is de Blasio?
Communist I believe........
Advent’s part of the Christmas cycle, broadly speaking...and no, we are not singing the Gloria and are wearing violet, but if there were no celebration in the season, we wouldn’t have Gaudete Sunday. Some looking forward seems appropriate. Like we have the presepio/Nativity set up, but of course the stable is unoccupied.
And it’s full of pretty stellar feast days: Immaculate Conception, St. Nicholas, St. Lucy. Kinda hard to keep celebration out of it.
I am immensely pleased to hear this. Advent really is the perfect antidote to the Exmas Rush (as C.S. Lewis called it). Instead of shop till you drop, first the fast, then the feast.
Imagine the imact on the US econimy without Christmas - an Obama wet dream.
People need to push back.
The good people of Santa Monica should thumb their noses at the Ninth U.S. Circus Court of Appeals in San Fransicko and go ahead and observe their 60-year tradition of erecting a Nativity scene in Palisades Park.
If you're going to start invoking post-Biblical "sacred tradition" as authoritative, then you can't be much of an evangelical.
Everything about Christianity is taking a hit...but we should not be surprised or blame ourselves....Jesus said it would be so....the time of the tribulation, set up and such, ‘needs’ a deceived and foolish public for it to happen.....they are ripening just for that...
Today the tolerance for Christians has lowered as no other time in our generation so of course we need to stand for the gospel message . Recalling that Daniel stood in a pagan culture and so shall we.
There is a certain amount of penance, but not the deep penance that you see at Lent. It is more preparing and finding peace.
....Unless and I do have a friend whose birthday is also on Christmas, kid you not. I do enjoy saying that she shares it with Lord.
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