Due to the recent tragic events in Newton Connecticut where 20 children and six adults were murdered, I can’t help but get the feeling that some very evil force has come into our lives and has taken this year’s Christmas away from us.
The wonderful animated story written by Dr. Seuss, “Don’t Let the Grinch Steal Your Christmas”, has a special meaning for us this Christmas as we all struggle to come to some kind of understanding as to how such a tragic event could happen just before Christmas. In Dr. Seuss’s version (click here), the Grinch took all of the Christmas presents and decorations from Whoville, but for the residents of Whoville, Christmas came just the same! The Grinch’s heart grows three times larger and he returns all of the decorations and Christmas presents and is welcomed back into the community of Whos.
This is a wonderful children’s story but it is also a story that needs to read and reread by all this Christmas. Our world has always had to deal with violence, suffering, and pain, but isn’t that precisely the message that Jesus brought to us on that first Christmas some 2000 years ago? By accepting his teachings of love and forgiveness and repenting of our sins, we are forgiven and will forever live with God.
And while my heart is heavy with grief, we must not let this worldly Grinch steal our Christmas. We must continue on with our Christmas celebration as we always have done here in the Finger Lakes, attending the church of our choice, spending time with our families and friends, and giving thanks to the One who taught us love and forgiveness.
