The star, the Magi, the manger . . .
Light shining in darkness is the contrast theme.
I want to pay attention here to that inner darkness we have all experienced, a darkness of soul, a darkness that brings our souls to a sense of being lost, wandering around without any vision, a darkness wherein happiness is not seen. My heart goes out in a particular way to our teenagers, those not too far removed from the days when they were nine, ten and eleven and the world was perfectly carefree, life was fun, and they were as yet untouched by the darkness that life can bring into one's soul. Teens are in that stage in life when they first wrestle with life's unfairness, when they encounter meanness in the human spirit, when they first see the dark side of human nature. We leave childhood when we have to wrestle with that part of our selves that is, shall we say, less than perfect, when we discover that we are no longer innocent, when we encounter a part of our selves that's out of control, that makes us ugly and unattractive. Nobody wants me to be with them . . .