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How Long Before Small Boys Here Ask: A Church? What’s That, Grandad?
Daily Mail (UK) ^ | December 28th 2009

Posted on 12/27/2009 9:59:04 AM PST by Steelfish

How Long Before Small Boys Here Ask: A Church? What’s That, Grandad?

PETER HITCHENS

I had hoped to have a sort of Christmas truce this week, but the controversy just keeps on raging, drowning out the choirs and bells. And one of the problems is Christmas itself. How much longer will it exist in the form we know today? I fear it won’t be much longer. Many of its traditions are visibly dying. Teachers complain that children don’t know the carols any more, because their parents don’t know them either.

Dying tradition? Members of the Royal Family attend the Christmas Day service at Sandringham Church in King's Lynn At a couple of packed services during Advent (a season many haven’t heard of), I’ve noticed that large numbers of adults stand with their lips not moving during the singing of these simple, easily mastered songs.

Perhaps they’re humming, or struck dumb with awe, but it looks to me as if they are just completely unfamiliar with words or music and don’t know what to do. For the moment, they still think they should come to church, but for how much longer? A few days ago I heard a story from the former East Germany, where Christianity was coldly tolerated but officially discouraged, and as far as possible denied to children.

This created a mixture of hostility and indifference that has not been overcome in the 20 years since the regime collapsed. The link between people and Christianity, many centuries old, has now been broken. A small boy was walking with his grandparent past a church in a small town in Brandenburg. ‘What’s that strange building? What’s it for?’ he asked. But East Germany wasn’t half as subtle as the politically correct revolutionaries who run this country. Our lot are far cleverer.

(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; United Kingdom
KEYWORDS: europeanchristians; hitchens; secularization
How left-wing governments destroy their culture and heritage. begin with multi-culturalism:

"They hope to destroy the Christian religion through a thousand regulations. But first they have to rob it of its ancient standing by treating it as equal (if not slightly inferior) to Islam, Buddhism and Hinduism."

1 posted on 12/27/2009 9:59:06 AM PST by Steelfish
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To: Steelfish

The Obama Children are probably asking the same question right now, “Why don’t we go to church on Christmas Eve daddy?”


2 posted on 12/27/2009 10:36:05 AM PST by RatsDawg
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To: RatsDawg

Could Obama be the first president in modern times not to have gone to Church on Christmas Day?


3 posted on 12/27/2009 10:37:35 AM PST by Steelfish
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To: Calm_Cool_and_Elected

ping for after my nap


4 posted on 12/27/2009 10:37:39 AM PST by Calm_Cool_and_Elected (Who is John Thompson?)
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To: Steelfish

Two weeks ago I was part of a group from our church visiting the government housing projects in our city. We had them practicing for a Christmas play. We supposedly live in the second most religious state in the US, and we wanted the kids, ages ranging from 6 to 15, to sing some Christmas carols with us. The ONLY Christmas carol that they knew was “Jingle Bells.” They had never heard of such hymns as “Away in a Manger” or “Silent Night.” I was shocked.


5 posted on 12/27/2009 12:51:16 PM PST by Nosterrex
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To: Nosterrex

Surprised and sad. What the left has done to this country is unimaginable. 8 years of Clinton was the curse that befell this nation and now Obama.


6 posted on 12/27/2009 1:54:00 PM PST by Steelfish
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