Hi there everyone, and happy Thursday.
It’s finally cold here in Charlotte. That’s really all I have to say. I am so happy about it.
I’m sorry if you struggle with the cold. I struggle with the heat. I am wearing all the sweaters and boots currently available to me. I encourage you to do the same.
The Part Where There’s an Essay:
Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah:
“A voice was heard in Ramah,
weeping and loud lamentation,
Rachel weeping for her children;
she refused to be comforted, because they are no more.” (Matthew 2:16-18)
Christmas is bursting at the seams with cultural trappings at our point in history. We fill our homes to the brim with favorite treats, gifts, and celebratory decorations.
In spite of our desire to make the season into a rosy-glowed affair, reading Matthew 2 reminds us that the reality of Christ’s birth was a stark reality, bringing turmoil with it. He was born in a tiny, unremarkable town, yet his parents had to flee for their lives. The king of Israel sought to kill him even as he was learning to walk and talk.
His generation in Bethlehem and the surrounding towns -- those boys who would have been his playmates and friends -- were exterminated, leaving their parents devastated and weeping.
At the same time, Matthew wants to remind his reader that none of this drastic upheaval was unexpected. His frequent habit of referring to the Old Testament -- four times in these twenty-three verses -- assures us that God was sovereignly unfolding a greater purpose.
It was not surprising to God the Father that his Son’s arrival brought with it wicked jealousy from men who desired glory and power. The incarnation brought with it a shift in the economy of the universe that could not be undone. The wheels of redemption were turning. Without the incarnation, there is no crucifixion, resurrection, or glorification.
“The zeal of the Lord will do this.” (Isaiah 9:7)
For the Anglophiles
I loved this little story about the history of a pub in Hull.
Reads & Listens of the Week
An interesting article here about how the nature of social media mimics flocks of starlings. “A rumor does not simply spread — it spreads because we spread it, even if the system is designed to facilitate capturing attention and to encourage that spread.”
One of my favorite little books on the Inklings is Joseph Laconte’s A Hobbit, a Wardrobe, and a Great War. Here’s an interview with the author, talking about World War I.
This week I published a guide to watching the World Cup for people who don’t like soccer. One soccer-related thing we’ve enjoyed lately is Welcome to Wrexham, which is a documentary about that team in Wales that Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney bought. They introduce you to people in the town and follow the first season after the purchase. Delightful. (contains language, both swearing and Welsh.)
Jonathan Rogers reminds us that Hope is a Civic Virtue.
There have been a lot of opinions offered on the demise, certain or not, of Twitter now that Elon Musk has bought it. My feed has been largely unchanged, which is a testament to who I follow, I think. But the humor regarding this season has been unmatched. I have selected a few gems for you:
"Take the very hardest thing in your life - the place of difficulty, outward or inward, and expect God to triumph gloriously in that very spot. Just there He can bring your soul into blossom." ~ Lilias Trotter, Parables of the Cross