IN THIS ISSUE

ARTICLES ON CHRISTMAS
                                                                            
The Christmas Paradox.....................Walter J. Burghardt, S.J..4
The birth of Jesus brings both peace and the sword

Christmas: Now and Then...................Marcus J. Borg............6
Christ is born in us again and again...

There Was Room at the Inn.................Richard J. Rice...........7
An unforgettable Christmas

At the Heart of Christmas.................Gillian Leslie, O.D.C.....8
The richness and complexity of incarnation is celebrated in the
traditional Christmas carol

Delivery and Deliverance..................Forrest Church...........10
The Christmas story offers both the gift of life and life's redemption

The Sermons of Dietrich Bonhoeffer........Geffrey B. Kelly.........12
Bonhoeffer calls Christians to compassion and action

Jesus' Birthday at our House..............Ella P. and..............14
Celebrating Christmas by bringing.........Henry H. Mitchell..........
gifts to Christ    

The Reality of Herod......................Kerry Bond...............15
Addressing the shadow of evil that hovers over Christmas

Christmas: The Messianic Age..............Robert T. Cornelison.....16
The Messiah is God's answer to the most fundamental problem of despair

Holy Dissonance...........................Barbara K. Lundlad.......18
God's word doesn't wait until everything is prepared

Pregnancy and Childbirth:
An Encounter with the Divine..............Dorothy Dow Crane........19
The earthy details of birth show forth the paradox of the incarnation

The Interruption of Christmas Plans.......Craig T. Barnes..........20
Too many plans and not enough dreams

Christmas in July.........................Jude Siciliano O.P.......22
We are year round Christmas preachers

QUOTATIONS ON CHRISTMAS

In the Hebrew Scriptures [24]
In the New Testament Scriptures [25]
Theologians, Scholars and Philosophers [28]
Saints and Mystics [29]
Poets and Writers [30]

BOOKS ON CHRISTMAS

The Winter Pascha by Thomas Hopko [31] 
The Martin Luther Christmas Book by Martin Luther [31]
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens [32]
The New Being by Paul Tillich [33]

IDEAS FOR PREACHING ON CHRISTMAS

What is Christmas?........................Howard Thurman...........35
Preaching the Christmas Story:
New Approaches............................Justo L. Gonzales........36
..........................................David H.C. Read..........37
..........................................Ginger Grab..............39
Exegetical Notes on Christmas Texts.......Judith Hoch Wray.........41
A Christmas Story of Conversion...........John F. Russell, O.Carm..42
A Rare Opportunity to Touch the Soul......Kathleen K. Mandeville...44
The Lectionary at Christmas...............Judith Hoch Wray.........46


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