Perth Amboy evening news., 1904-12-24
NV lniam Rosser Cobbe.

Christmas should be the greatest
festival day of the church and of
the people. At first thought one might
say that, logically, Easter OF Ascen-
sion day should have priority. Mans
whole being craves immortality, and
the only satisfactory answer to jobs
earnest query: "If a man die. shall he
live again?p is found in the words OF
the angel at the tomb Of Jesus at the
early dawn Of that first Easter morn:
He is not here. He is risen!" Coa-
tirmAtory OF this was His visible ascen-
sion into heaven, as Witnessed by Peter
and others Of the apostles and by a
number OF His disciples.
Christmas, of itself has to do with
the, birth Of a man-child, only. Yet
the herald song Of the angels at that
birth has come down through the ages.
repeated BY the glad voices of children
and OF age. 1t was the beginning of. a
life which during Its short course ex-
empiihed the most virtuous living and
that gave forth the most sublime teach
ing ever seen or heard of by mortal.
Perhaps the romance Of His birth has
something to do with the interest
which attaches to the day. The youth
fuI virgin-wife ~journeying with her
carpenter husband through the hill.
country from the village OF Nazareth
TO the proud and great city of Jerusa-
lem; the crowded inns, which forced
them to drag their weary feet four
miles away to the little village of Beth
iehem, where they could find shelter
in the stable of an inn, among surlyi
cameIs and lowing cattle; the birth
Of the child Jesus in a manger; the
announcement to the shepherds; the
song of the heavenly choir: the o
derful star In the east and the visit
or the magi bearing gifts for the
young child, and the efforts of King
Herod to find and kill the child Jesus
~all these strange incidents appeal
strongly to the young, who hear the
story told over and over again, until
1t Is engrafted into their very being
and never loses its freshness and
brightness throughout life.
Then, too. with the lapse of time
there came to be engrafted in the OBJ
servance of the day the bestowing OF
gifts upon the schiidren of the house
hold. in imitation of the gifts brought
ny the magi Ito the child Jesus. Sub
s9Quently the giving of gifts VIA ex-
tended to the adults Of the household.
and Christmas grew into a day of
Rofne-hringing and home festivities as
we'll as of devotional church service.
There, Is that peculiarly attractive to
motherhood in the child Jesus. Each
mother as she thinks of the Christ
child grows more tender in her sym
PATTY for Mary and her love for the
Child. The mother of the middle ages,
as we'll as the mother OF this genera
tlQn, never wearies of telling her off
spring the pathetic story OF the birth
IN, the Manager at Bethlehem, and the
bearing OF that story upon human life
and human character. That story
never has lost its charm and never
will lose 1t. SO long as there are moth
erss Id the world.
IT would seem to be the practice of ma
ttOiiss to commemorate the anniversary
a the birth of a hero rather than that
Of some great deed or deeds OF his.
Thus It is in this country. as in the
case OF Washington, Lincoln and
Grant. So IL is with the advent of
Christ into the world. This event is
stxep prominence as being the be-
ginning OF . career which abounded in
incident, In miracles. in sublime teach
Ing and which closed in a tragedy SO
terrible that 1t caused the sun to dark
On and the earth to quake and restore
its dead to life, The natal day ON
'pfehends the entire life Of benevolence,
Of mercy. kinoliness and intense suf-
fering. II is given place above and
before any single event. in that the
birth suggests ali that He did, all that
He endured. The manger at Bethle-
hem points un%erringly to Calvary, to|
the tomb Of Joseph or Arimathea and
to the ascension. One meditates on
the Christmas day and lis lessons, and
thought follows the babe to youth and
manhood. 1t sees Him on the Mount
of Beatitpdes, as He utters the grand
est sermon ever preached. 1t follows
Him In His jcurneyings, in which the
dead are made alive and the blind are
made to see. 1t sees Him before PLATE,
and the s%courging, the crown of thorns,
the driven nails and the thrust spear
follow.
Yet Christmas is a glad day and
should be . Joyous one. The suffer,
isings Of the Christ are ended. He
brought glad tidings of great joy to all
the people. He introduced a new relig-
ion and . new and a higher civiliza-
ton. He confirmed hope of immor-
tality into sublime faith, and made the
World. brighter and better and glad
der.