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From pagan Yule to carols and cribs
(8 minute read) Jasmine Jones uncovers the history of Christmas as we know it, from pagan Yule to carols and cribs.
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We wish you a thoughtful Christmas
(2 minute read) Nicole Law offers some practical ideas on how to make the upcoming festivities more human and more authentic.
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The Epiphany star: still shining after all these years
(10 minute read) Joseph Evans sees the star which, tradition has it, guided the Wise Men to Jesus as an ancient form of the internet. And he argues that, two millennia on, the tale continues to be relevant for believers and unbelievers alike.
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Discovering unlikely worlds in the silence of 2020
Margareth Sembiring uses the lockdown silence to look inside herself, and hears unforeseen melodies ...
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Bendiciones
Ida Nieves remembers the Latino Christmases of her childhood. As 2020’s celebrations loom, she wishes Bendiciones to all but already misses the hugs!
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Have yourself a merry Adamah Christmas … by listening
For a season which is habitually designated as one of goodwill, Christmas this year is struggling to live up to its reputation. Divisions in society are chasming into ruptures – the sharp, noisy drill of a pandemic on otherwise healthy soil has left deep cracks. Political and cultural earthquakes in Britain and America (think Trump, think Brexit) have loosened the bonds of community in those countries and the surrounding areas and have shattered peace within families and even within hearts. In Africa frustration at injustice and corruption is boiling over into street protests. In Asia gross abuses of human rights are continuing while the world looks away. Even the word…
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The making of the great British Christmas
(8 minute read) The feast described in carols and schmaltzy TV adverts is a complicated patchwork of cultures constantly evolving, as Adam Brocklehurst reveals.
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Nativity
There was no room but each excuse had its own space, Every negation required its own dimensions. Comfort of course demands numerous metres squared, ... A poem by Joseph Evans
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A refugee’s Christmas
At Christmas, along with the merriment, it can help to focus on one very specific refugee family: that of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. Juliette Flach considers the modern day relevance of the Christmas story.
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Away in a Hollywood Manger
Faith and film go together like … well, oil and water. They tend to sit one on top of the other, never really successfully merging. Ronnie Convery asks whether movies are the right medium for mystery.
