A Christmas Poem

Oh, to have been a shepherd or a king
and to have heard those angels sing
or to have seen that star so bright
upon that holy Christmas night.

But Christmas transcends both time and place
and we can share in that night’s grace
when like those humble ones back then
we heed God’s call and proclaim, “Amen.”

(For those who received a Christmas card from me, I hope you won't mind seeing the poem again.)

Censoring Christmas

I just got this from the Catholic League. The beat goes on.

Catholic League president Bill Donohue commented today on efforts to censor Christmas:

“We haven’t hit December yet and already the politically correct police are out in force trying to censor Christmas. Here’s a sample:

· For 75 years, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce sponsored the ‘Hollywood Christmas Parade.’ When it refused to sponsor the parade this year, the L.A. City Council took over, renaming it the ‘Hollywood Santa Parade.’

· The Department of Housing and Urban Development has censored Christmas religious symbols from its housing complexes.

· No Christmas decorations are allowed on school buses in parts of Vermont.

· A Jewish public official in Wisconsin wants to rename the State Capitol Holiday Tree the Christmas Tree, but is being opposed by the Freedom From Religion Foundation.

· Chattanooga has banned a live nativity scene from its public festivities.

· Sonoma City Council has nixed religious displays on the Plaza.

· Voters in Berkley, Michigan have forbidden a crèche at City Hall.

· Fort Collins, Colorado says it is okay to have green and red lights outside city buildings, but only secular symbols are allowed inside.

· After Briarcliff Manor, New York was ordered to erect a crèche next to a menorah, the village elected to ban all religious symbols.

· Residents in Olean, New York are fighting over privately owned nativity scenes being displayed in city parks.

· A nativity scene in front of the Ypsilanti Township fire hall in Michigan has been banned.

· No religious symbols are allowed in Seattle-Tacoma airport, but trees made of cardboard are legit.

· Nativity scenes at Texas Tech are not permissible, but a tree is okay. The official in charge says, ‘We’re not saying it’s a holiday tree, because it’s a Christmas tree, but we choose to do a tasteful tree that really anybody can embrace.’ Great idea!

“There you have it. The multicultural monsters are rearing their ugly heads once again, showing what they really mean by tolerance for diversity.”

Go ahead: Say "Merry Christmas!"

Every year we hear about the Grinches who try to undermine Christmas - from fighting displays to even curbing the right to wish people "Merry Christmas."

The Catholic Daughters of the Americas in one parish in the Diocese of Rochester is taking action when it comes to the greeting.

The CDA court at Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish in Brockport is selling green buttons that read, "It's OK to say Merry Christmas to me!"

They've ordered a thousand of the buttons, and they are reportedly selling well this year.

Not only are the buttons intended to help keep the Christmas spirit alive, but they also draw attention to the CDA. It's a worthy social and service organization started by Knights of Columbus members back in 1903.

The Brockport group got the idea from a CDA court in Sparkill, N.Y. (Court John Paul II).

You can call the the Brockport CDA at 585-637-6325 to get information about the buttons. Maybe other groups and courts could do the same. What a positive way to buck the trend.

It would be great if they all sold out, and we heard "Merry Christmas!" at area stores.