Some say that Dickens is the father of the modern Christmas celebration—a tradition that was disappearing at the time he wrote the story. His portrayal of a Victorian snow-filled holiday celebrated with wassail, caroling, and families gathered around the table to eat the Christmas goose, perpetuated the secular Christmas celebration, which many Americans now enjoy. Yet, it was far more than a holiday tale. A Christmas Carol was a powerful, almost subliminal, message of Christian values and morality—though Jesus, God and the New Testament are barely alluded to in the story. How many readers knew that Dickens was an unconventional...