I had a Christmas, one of our large extended family gathered and a really nice young man came up to me and said, "You know why my generation doesn't get into the Bible and all these Christian things?"
Actually, conversations where people are going to be earnest, honest and cultivated, well-mannered and civil are just Great. And I was greatly intrigued and profoundly said, "Why?"
"Well, it all sounds great, but all Jesus' Disciples seem young, energetic, see all these supposed great things and then they all Go Out and Die Off Horribly."
I had to laugh. "That was Succinct."
"Yeah, and, then, the saints all die off. After suffering. And they all die young."
So to our young friend, this seems like Sing Pretty Songs, Annoy People and Die. You know, he asked the right person, so I told him about John being Boiled in Oil, the whole Empire knew. John survived and people saw the survival, with the guards dying of splashed oil. The crowd began to convert. The Emperor sent John to Patmos Island, which is beautiful and Heavenly.
San Giovanni Oleo. Rome. The Steeple on the Church explains:
Titus
Yes, and I love to tell about Titus living to be old and ancient on beautiful Crete.
Today's answer would be profound and true. All Christians who have prayed for some time will be able to point out to you - Comfort, Help. Miracles of prayers answered. Assurances. Hope in Heaven from our Father who calls all the Heavenly Host by name and appoints the Stars. Life experiences of assurance that dreams and prophecy did come to be the Will of God.
Today would have a place in History and become part of Church History.
In the 1970s
People politely asked each other what denomination are you. You weren't asked if you were Christian, just what denomination. To place you in fervency and in literal belief. The ripples hit upon your decisions and politics. The most asked question, was, 'if you believed Jesus was born to a literal Virgin'. Pontius Pilate didn't have Historical fact behind him, to be found later, and was believed to be fictitious. Today, we have proclamations of Pilate written in stone and letters from the Roman Empire.
A lot of the art used to represent Christianity was Medieval. It was flat, 2nd Dimensional and Jesus was apart from Mary. The faces were serious more than loving. Christmas cards, mostly, fell into the family photo category, the 'Jolly' category, the 'nature' category and the 'artistically serious' category.
Then the 1980s.
Suddenly, the USA was interested in decorating in country living. We didn't splash dark grey, shades of grey or beige and wrought iron shapes. Instead, we had Gingham and checked fabrics, blue and pottery. All things suggesting lambs and cows. Simple, cheerful farm living.
Why? Maybe because The Scientific Studies of Prayer. Prayer had extensive studies on Hospital Patients, and all the prayed for people had far better outcomes. Prayer was a thing. Christmas Cards and Christmas Trees then became covered with Angels. Angels hung from rear-view mirrors. Closet door light switches. Angels were found all over warmer Christmas Cards when not Family Photos, Jolly, or Nature.
The 1990s
Were influenced by the 1980s. Lifelong familial denominations began to become abandoned to find more literal Word of God Denominations and Churches. People had become exhausted by the Literal Question regarding Jesus' birth and the Virgin Mary. Yes, Jesus was born of a Virgin. Church History will show churchgoers were plentiful. And the more austere denominations began to lose 2% of their overall populations.
The 2010s
Will show the retirement of the old guard. 2015 and 2016 demonstrates a profound increase in interest of the youth in Christianity. A Pro Life stance with the younger generation and older generation. Suddenly, as we see Pew Reports in the late 2010s, the whole increase is suddenly thrown off. Let it be known the Pollsters, like George Gallup, said it wasn't so much the sway of the populace as the method of the questions being administered with the new management styles of opinions formed before the Poll was administered. The 2010s no longer showed the magazine's covered by brown paper to cover photos not appealing to the overall population.
2020
We will never forget the Pandemic brought the most readers to the Bible and Bible Studies than any other sector on the internet. Isaiah 40 was the most read Chapter. Every growth has an opportunity for concern. And 2/3rd's of the Population says they are in tune with their God and their Christian Spiritual Life, without interest in being part of Church and the Body of Christ.
Giving life, always in the Bible, to this passage of Scripture:
Romans 10: 17- 18
Consequently, faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ. I ask, did they not hear? Indeed they did: “Their voice has gone out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.”
What is true from Life Experiences is told of in God's Living Word.
We find what has prompted the 1980s, 1990s and all eras.
True of all generations!
Hebrews 11:1-36
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
For by it the people of old received their commendation.
By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.
By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks. By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God. And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.
By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful who had promised.
Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born descendants as many as the stars of heaven and as many as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.
These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return.
But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one.
Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.
By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, of whom it was said, “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back. By faith Isaac invoked future blessings on Jacob and Esau. By faith Jacob, when dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph,
bowing in worship over the head of his staff.
By faith Joseph, at the end of his life, made mention of the exodus of the Israelites and gave directions concerning his bones.
By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden for three months by his parents, because they saw that the child was beautiful, and they were not afraid of the king's edict. By faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward. By faith he left Egypt, not being afraid of the anger of the king, for he endured as seeing him who is invisible.
By faith he kept the Passover and sprinkled the blood, so that the Destroyer of the firstborn
might not touch them.
By faith the people crossed the Red Sea as on dry land, but the Egyptians, when they attempted to do the same, were drowned. By faith the walls of Jericho fell down
after they had been encircled for seven days.
By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient,
because she had given a friendly welcome to the spies.
And what more shall I say?
For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets— who through faith conquered kingdoms,
enforced justice,
obtained promises,
stopped the mouths of lions,
quenched the power of fire,
escaped the edge of the sword,
were made strong out of weakness,
became mighty in war,
put foreign armies to flight.
Women received back their dead by resurrection.
Some were tortured, refusing to accept release,
so that they might rise again
to a better life.
Seven locations throughout Naples have a Crèche on display throughout the year. While politicized nativity scenes have become all the rage in some places in the U.S., several cities still put up elaborate traditional ones, including the Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh and the Art Institute of Chicago.
The Met’s Crèche hails from Naples, Italy, a city famous for its artisans. The height of this art form occurred in the 18th century (although the handmade figures are still made there to this day) and included the finest sculptors of the time such as Giuseppe Sanmartino and his contemporaries like Salvatore di Franco and Giuseppe Gori.
Although the Met’s display is exclusively a religious scene, the Crèche in Naples also crosses into the secular with figures depicting soccer stars like Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. Politicians and pop stars are also often for sale on those numerous curbside displays. For example, President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jung-un became top sellers just a few years ago.
A visit to the Metropolitan Museum of Art can be a journey through time. After paying your admission, a walk up the steps and straight ahead to the Medieval Art galleries brings you to the dimly lit area featuring the iconic choir screen from the Cathedral of Valladolid.
At Christmastime each year, this massive space that resembles the inside of a church and adorned with religious figures also features a 20-foot tree and nativity Crèche. In a city famous for its many Christmas trees, the one at the Met — along with its Crèche — has become a New York tradition and arguably one of the biggest religious displays of the holiday in the United States.
It all came to be thanks to Loretta Hines Howard, a longtime museum benefactor, who began collecting Crèche figures in 1925. It was in 1957 that Howard had the idea to have her handmade Baroque statutes and angels displayed for the public to see. Seven years later, she gave her 233-figure collection to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Howard died in 1982, but her family and the Met continue to carry on the tradition.
The Crèche, The New York Met, currently on display through January 6, features the baby Jesus with a radiant halo surrounded by figures that range in size from 12 to 15 inches in height.
“We love the Rockefeller Christmas tree, but this is even more impressive,” said Charles Johnson, 48, who was visiting New York from Atlanta. “It was on our list of stops in New York because we had heard so much about it. It really connects you to the season and really what it’s all about.”
Agnete Andersen, 28, who hails from Denmark, agreed. She saw the tree and sacred imagery as a proper celebration of the Christmas season.
“This is really beautiful,” Andersen said, as she gazed up at the decorated tree. “It’s a big difference from the noise and shopping that’s going on outside. It’s like being in a church. It’s very peaceful.”
In the Christian tradition quickly spread throughout Italy as a means of getting people closer to the Bible at a time when most could not read. The Met’s display is a marriage between the Roman Catholic tradition of nativity scenes and the tree, a largely Protestant tradition that originated in Northern Europe with Martin Luther.
Abba, Father God,
I sing a song of the saints of God,
patient and brave and true,
who toiled and fought and lived and died
for the Lord they loved and knew.
And one was a doctor, and one was a queen,
and one was a shepherdess on the green:
they were all of them saints of God, and I mean,
God helping, to be one too.
They loved their Lord so dear, so dear,
and
God’s love made them strong;
and they followed the right,
for Jesus’ sake,
the whole of their good lives long.
And one was a soldier, and one was a priest,
and one was slain by a fierce wild beast
And there’s not any reason, no, not the least,
why I shouldn’t be one too.
They lived not only in ages past;
there are hundreds of thousands still;
the world is bright with the joyous saints
who love to do Jesus’ will.
You can meet them in school, or in lanes, or at sea,
in church, or in trains, or in shops, or at tea;
for the saints of God are just folk like me,
and I mean to be one too.
Our Alleluias
are in Jesus Christ.
Aaaaaaaamen.
These many years, the LORD your God has been with you.
God has carried you these many years
and
He will safely lead you.
Mark 9:24
After Jesus questioned the father, Jesus told him,
“All things are possible for one who believes.”
“Immediately the father of the child cried out and said,
'I believe; help my unbelief! '”
You are God's Temple.
God the Almighty, Creator of All Things. Our Father Who Knows the Heavenly Host by name.
Abba with us as we view the stars, babies, weddings. Moments we know Emmanuel, God with us. God within.
2 Kings 20:5a
“Turn back, and say to my people,
Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father:
I have heard your prayer,
I have seen your tears."
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