The Manger Scenes !

A student invited me to watch the the manger scene they created as part of their class activity. Each class did this. What was common to all the four manger scenes was the snowy flavour to the scene! I liked the way the sky was captured artistically! The lights using cups as shades added to the aesthetic sense! 

As I later visited the other three manger scenes, I felt that it symbolises the inner manger in human hearts for the incarnation of Jesus during this season!

I go through this Christmas season amidst some challenges of  broken relationships on account of the different  way I view certain matters  from those of others!

So I have a journey to make for bringing peace in to relationships! Friendships are too precious to be lost in a fog of misunderstanding! 

M.C.Mathew(text and photo)

Joy, Peace and Goodwill...!

This picture of white rose from the garden of Peter and Katharine Makeover in  London, taken in 2015 October is the best representation I can recall of the symbolic message of christmas. The rose  flower has in its background two buds, ready to blossom. There were other flower buds too in the plant which would open for several weeks to come!

As I think of this symbolic sequence of flowering, I am reminded how through the last 2000 years or so the message of Christmas was perpetuated by recurring reminders to humankind that Christ came to bring, joy, peace and goodwill. 

We too are called to be messengers of this good news in our humble way!

Our neighbour is preparing to visit three homes of people who live reduced lives to share the good news with them on Christmas day!

This GOOD NEWS brings joy unspeakable when  it is shared with all around us!

M.C.Mathew(text and photo) 

Heart of Christmas!

The commonest symbol of Christmas in the village where Anna and I live last year was a star. We have noticed this year, the Christmas Father in various attire and positions outside homes, churches and public places. This is a change in the trend. 

I was invited for a Christmas gathering.  The one who gave the message spoke about the three features of Christmas-the Christmas tree, Christmas star and the Christmas father. I noticed that the ‘babe of Bethlehem’ did not appear in the list of the ‘features’ of Christmas.

As it is elsewhere in the world, Christmas has acquired more commercial significance than spiritual significance even in rural areas. Every nativity scene will have a Christmas tree,  Christmas father and Christmas star. Because they are more colourful and prominently placed, the small manger recedes into the background. 

I fear that Christ of Christmas would get even more peripheral as we get drawn by the glamour of Christmas. 

While one my evening walk yesterday, I found four groups of young men sitting beside the irrigation canal and consuming alcohol. One group stopped me and offered me a peg, saying, ‘celebrate the joy of Christmas’. When I refused, one of them said, ‘how can you be joyful without a drink?’. 

That statement left me thinking. In today’s news paper, I found an item of worshippers of a congregation  having their Christmas service in a residential home, where women with psychiatric illnesses stay. The service was followed by breakfast, games, walks, singing, etc. The congregation chose to be incarnational in their  behaviour and honoured the ‘least of God’s children’.

It will be such exceptions which would resonate the heart of the Christmas. A leading news paper of Kerala encouraged school children to save money which they would have spent on clothes, cakes, cracker, etc and spend that money to help the disadvantaged children staying in hostels. Most of the schools turned that to be an occasion to share the good news of Jesus and of His coming. 

We would not be able to stop marginalization of Christ of Christmas in a commercialised world, but we can promote acts of goodwill to remind others that ‘Love came down at Christmas’.

M.C.Mathew(text and photo)  

  

Play Time -Learning Time!

I watched these two dogs during their ‘wrestling play’. They were on top of each other, but in a non-hurting way and most tolerant of each other. They chased each other, jumped on each other, never to provoke but to prolong the play time. Their play was interrupted only for short spells even when people were passing by. During the fifteen minutes I spent watching this, I saw some play patterns common with what the three years old children would do during the rough and tumble play.

Play is a learning time. The puppy in the black, probably an Alsatian, is the initiator of the play. The white Pomeranian seemed to enjoy this immensely. They are neighbours to each other living in two adjacent compounds. Sometimes, the puppy was too demanding of the Pomeranian.

They belong to two different age groups; they are from two different breeds; they belong two different families; they probably have two different temperaments. And yet, they are fond of each other!

I returned from my visit to this place with this searching question in mind! There were many things that were different between them, but the instinct for play was shared by both the dogs.

I wish we as humans would find more common ground between people to relate and communicate. It is the time of elections in India, both the state assemblies and the Parliament. As I hear the political leaders address the mass rallies to persuade the electors, I sense that the language used conveys hatred, animosity and arrogance more than discussing issues at stake!  

Humans are brothers and sisters to each other. There are more common things that bind us together in the human family than those that separate us! 

I wish, we have more reconciliators in our midst- those who feel the pain of separation and divisions and long for cordiality, respect and tolerance!

We are already in the season of the advent! The message of Christmas is peace, love and good will among humankind!

M.C.Mathew(text and photo)

Joyful memories

Anna and I was looking back at our life at PIMS and many pleasant memories returned  to  us. 

One such memory was the frequent visits of students to our home. This picture is of one group who came to our home carolling on 14th December, 2011. We used to have students meeting at our home for Bible study for a season. We had foster students dropping in regularly. There were some who offered to look after Delphine when we went away on week ends. Anna had a group meeting at home for Bible club. We had celebrations such as birthday parties at our home... our memories are flooded with gratefulness for many acts of kindness and love we received from many students during our time at PIMS.

We are getting to know the students at MOSC Medical college. We attend their weekly Bible study and look forward to having more contacts with them. Anna is already receiving acknowledgement from students for her creative teaching. We look forward to enhancing this contact with the student community. 

One challenge to all of us, who are occupied with our long hours of work is, 'how much of time we create to build relationships'! If we live by moving from one activity to another and not spare time to relate to people at a deeper level, we can suffer from an inner void of affection, love and kindness that others can add to our lives. This is one way of living with inner fullness- allow others to bring goodness into our lives.

We know of a senior couple who would have neigbours come home for post dinner coffee and cake to offer and receive friendship. 

Blessed are those who have time and space for others !

M.C.Mathew(text and photo)