By Glenn Dromgoole

Christmas begins at the manger. It doesn’t end there.

If we don’t get beyond the manger, the wise men, the shepherds, the baby wrapped in swaddling clothes, we really miss the point of Christmas.

Christmas isn’t so much about the miraculous way Jesus of Nazareth was born as it is about the way he lived. And the way he died.

We celebrate Christmas because of what Jesus taught, because of the example he gave, because of the new way of living he prescribed.

We celebrate Christmas because that little baby at the stable grew up to be a man whose life and death changed our understanding of God, our relationships with each other, our view of eternity.

Two thousand years later, we still find ourselves trying to measure up to the standards he set.

Love God.
Love your neighbor.
Go the second mile.
Turn the other cheek.
Don’t be quick to judge others.
Feed the hungry.

That’s what Christmas is all about – what Jesus taught about how to live a more productive and more abundant life.

If we could fully grasp the meaning of what he said and how he lived and why he died, we would indeed sing out on that most special day, “Joy to the World!”

And the next day, when Christmas is over, we would go about our lives with a different spirit. The true Christ-mas spirit.