The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1904-12-23
The Christmas Festival
BY William Rosser Cobbs.

The Christmas + eshYa]
BY William Rosser Cobbs. ).
TT IS not so easy to determine why
Christmas should be the greatest
d festival day Of the church and Of
the people. At first thought one might
say that, logically, Easter or Ascen
sion day should have priority. Mans
whole being Graves Immortality, and
the only satisfactory answer to Jobs
earnest query: III man die. shall hl
live again." is found in the words o'
the angel at the tomb Of Jesus At the
early dawn of that first Easter morn:
He is not here! He II risen!" Con-
drmatory of this was His visible ascen.
sion into heaven. as witnessed by Peter
and Others Of; tho Apostles q
number Of His disciples.
Christmas, Of itself has to do with
the birth Of q 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 q
life which during its short course ex.
emplified 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
full 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.
lehem. where they could find shelter
in the stable of an inn, among surly
camels and lowing cattle: the birth
of the child Jesus in manager; the
announcement to the shepherds; the
song of the heavenly choir: the won
derful star in the east and the visit
Of the magi bearing gifts for the
young child. and the efforts Of King
Herod to ind and kill the child Jesus
all these strange incidents appeal
strongly to the young, who hear the
story told over and over again, until
It IL eugraftsd 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 children of the house.
hold, In imitation Of the gifts brought
by the magi TO the child Jesus. Sub
sequently the giving Of gifts was ex-
tended to the adults Of the household,
and Christmas grew into a day Of
home-bringing and home festivities az
well 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
pathy for Mary and her love for the
Child. The mother Of the middle ages,
as well as the mother Of this genera
ton, never wearies of telling her off,
spring the pathetic story of the birth
In the manger 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 it. so long al there are moth
ers in the world.
It would seem to be the practice Of ma.
lions to- commemorate the anniversary
Of the birth Of hero rather than that
of some great deed or deeds Of his.
Thus it IL In this country. as In the
case Of Washington, Lincoln and
Grant. So it Is with the advent Of
Christ into the world. This event IL
given prominence as being the be.
ginning of q career which abounded In
incident, in miracles, in sublime teach.
ing and which closed In q tragedy 80
terrible that It caused the sun to dark
en- and the earth to quake and restore
it's dead to life. The natal day com.
prehends the entire life Of benevolence,
of mercy. kinoliness and intense SUI.
fering. It 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 unerringly to Calvary, to
the tomb of Joseph Of Arimathea and
10 Inc 8SC0uS1OU. Ou6 mco1I6LcS Oh
the Christmas day and is lessons, and
thought follows the babe to youth and
manhood. 1t sees Him on the Mount
of Beatitudes, as He utters the grand
est sermon ever preached. It follows
Him in His journeyings, in which tho
dead are made alive and the blind are
made to see. It sees Him before PLATE,
and the scourging, the crown Of thorns,
the driven nails and the thrust spear
follow.
Yet Christmas IL q glad day and
should be q joyous one. The suffer-
ings Of the Christ are ended. He
brought glad tidings Of great Joy to all
the people. He introduced anew relig.
ion and q new and higher civiliza-
ton. He confirmed hope OF immor-
tally into sublime faith, and made the
world brighter and better and glad.
der.
NIGHT HAVE KNOWN BETTER.