It turned on me. A few feet from the bottom of the steps. A possum. Or opossum, for more formal meetings. His beady eyes flashed as his pointy little teeth, bared by almost non-existent lips, glistened like razors through a smile that could never be trusted.. As he turned, his hairless dark pink tail slashed across the concrete like a leather whip. His coarse hair was mussed and grey and in need of a wash.
He was ugly.
No wonder he was in such a bad mood.
I have yet to begin decorating for Christmas. But it is on my mind. I am giving it some thought. And so, after my encounter with the possum, I wondered. Some might say I wandered. As I wondered.
You just don't see possums in nativity sets.
You see lowing cattle, woolly lambs, donkeys, camels, and occasionally some dove.
But no possums.
From the Latin translation of Luke: "And it came to possum . . . "
This oversight just doesn't seem consistent with the gospel of Jesus.
Ridiculous.
Not the absence of possums from nativity scenes. This discussion about that absence is ridiculous (although I hope entertaining and descriptive).
This particular Christmas season is filled with ridiculous discussions.
Exactly how much torture is acceptable? How much pain can be exacted without crossing the line?
Is killing by drone more moral than face to face combat? What about bombs and missiles? Snipers?
Why in the world are all those black men upset? A healthy percentage of them have free housing and meals at the state's expense. Why all the whining?
Why should those foreigners get to stay?
Why can't they do something about these homeless people lurking around everywhere? I hope they know to come to the Christmas meal at the church.
Why should my taxes pay for those freeloaders health insurance or their childrens' lunches? I hope they know to come to the Christmas meal at the church and that we got the kid's sizes right.
And on and on.
It is ugly. No wonder we are in such a bad mood.
And ridiculous.
And contrary to the gospel of Jesus.
Makes the whole possum in the nativity set discussion seem downright holy.
..
Possums are probably not included in nativity scenes because, as you pointed out, they are ugly! And they would scare the little kids. They sure scare the heck out of me when I happen upon one. And it sure scares the heck out of me when I focus on any one of the serious issues you named. That's when the nativity scene and the reason for it calms me down and helps me think things through. Thanks for pointing out how ridiculous the discussions can get...
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