St. Francis wanted to make Christmas Real.
He wanted to smell the hay of the manger.
Hear the bleating of the sheep.
Maybe even feel the flutter of angels wings.
So 800 yrs. Ago he went off to Greccio in Italy.
A small town hanging on the side of a cliff like a wreath hanging on a door.
And he bundled some hay and rounded up some animals.
And people gathered to watch him make the first Nativity scene.
He recreated the birth of Jesus in Greccio
So that he could experience what it was like when Jesus was born.
He wanted Christmas to be as real as possible.
Is our Christmas Real?
Or is it pretend?
I think you know the difference.
A pretend Christmas is about presents that break and wear out.
A pretend Christmas ends on Dec. 26.
The stores start taking down all their decorations
And get ready for Valentine’s Day
And people take back the presents they didn’t really want.
And the world goes back to the way it was for the next 364 days.
But a Real Christmas is different.
A Real Christmas is about Real presents
The gift of Forgiveness to someone who has hurt you.
The gift of friendship to someone who is alone.
The gift of self rather than the gift of things.
Because these are the gifts that Jesus gives to us.
God gave us the gift of Himself in the manger.
A simple, humble, lowly gift that has lasted 2,000 yrs.
At Christmas God gives us the gift of Himself.
He came down from Heaven and was born in a manger
So that we can behold Him.
If we want a Real Christmas then we must give the gift of ourselves to others.
“For it is in giving of ourselves that we receive.”
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