With thanks to видовдан.орг

Patriarchal Nativity Encyclical 2011

5. January 2012 – 12:46

The Serbian Orthodox Church
to her spiritual children at Christmas, 2011

+IRINEJ

By the Grace of God
Orthodox Archbishop of Pec, Metropolitan of Belgrade Karlovci and Serbian Patriarch, with all the Hierarchs of the Serbian Orthodox Church to all the clergy, monastics, and all the sons and daughters of our Holy Church: grace, mercy and peace from God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, with the joyous Christmas greeting:

Peace from God! Christ is Born!

“But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son…”

Gal. 4:4

With the genealogy of Jesus Christ, “the Son of David, the Son of Abraham” (Matthew 1:1), dear brothers and sisters, begins the Gospel of Christ, God’s blessed and joyous news to mankind.

On this day of the joyous Feast of the Nativity of Christ all Christian hearts throughout the world are filled with the song of the angels of God, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men”. (Luke 2:14) This Day is a great joy for the entire world “for there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord”. (Luke 2:11)

The birth of the Son of God is a great mystery of God’s love. One is never closer to another than today, on Christmas day. Adults and children are never closer to each other than on this day. A person never feels a greater need to reconcile and become closer to others than on this day. From this comes the need and custom of our people to forgive and exchange “God’s-peace” on this day, to forget personal quarrels with a wish that all those around us may come together in brotherly unity and in the spirit of love and God’s peace.

The angelic song in honor of Christ’s birth is a truth-filled song which fully tells the essence of His message, the content of His Gospel and the mission of the Holy Church which He, the Incarnate Son of God, has established. The glorification of God, peace and good will among men represent the most holy triptych of the Christmas message. In glorifying God, man lifts up and glorifies himself at the same time. By preaching God’s peace, Christ’s peace, peace without fear and violence, man contributes to the building up of God’s Kingdom here on earth. It is only with good will, in the unselfish giving of oneself to God and to those around us, that it is possible to attain true human solidarity and true unity in solving all problems and in achieving moral and material progress.

With His coming, Christ witnesses an essential Union, a new union of heaven and earth, of Creator and creation, and with His mouth He reveals a great Mystery which God incorporated into man as a pledge from the moment of his creation, and this mystery comes down to one truth: that man is the most important creation under the sun. Of course, man is the most important, precisely because God in Christ became Man. According to Saint Irenaeus of Lyon, man is called to be the reflection, the glory, the light of God on earth. We can understand this only if we take the God-Man, the Lord Christ, as the proper and true measure of all beings and all events on our planet.

Each day, we meet temptations, misfortunes and suffering, caused by others or by ourselves. Afflictions in our homes, suffering in schools, cities and villages, suffering in different countries and between nations, attest to a deep division in the world, a division which cannot be overcome with human efforts. These divisions have such a deep effect that even our God-reflecting personhood is split into soul and body, conscious and unconscious, and on and on.

Oftentimes it seems that chaos is the originator and basis of our society. However, chaos is actually present only where a consciousness about the true measure of everything and everybody is lost, and that measure is love. Actually, Christ attests with His coming to this world that love has conquered the world of evil and hate, and that love always conquers it. Love is from God. God is the source of all-encompassing love. “He who does not love does not know God, for God is love”. (1 John 4:8)

Born in a manger in Bethlehem, Christ has stopped time in His Person and around Himself, or more exactly: in Himself He has gathered all those who long for love and eternity. Manifesting Himself in the world, He is the only One who brings true and eternal joy.

Christ’s birth has brought peace into the world and has connected time with eternity. Peace and eternity will never again leave the world, regardless of all temptations and tribulations that might come along. As a bearer of His peace and eternity Christ has established His Church. The Church is the Pillar and a Bulwark of truth, a ship by which we safely sail into the peaceful harbor of our salvation.

Through the Church God heals every sickness and every human infirmity. In the Church harmony is established between heaven and earth, between the created and the uncreated, between the eternal and the temporal, between the spirit and the body. The healing which the Lord grants in the Church is not understandable if it is not comprehended and experienced as God’s love which is manifested in Christ Born, Crucified, Resurrected and Glorified for us and for our salvation. The Lord loves everyone and desires that all should be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. He calls us to participate in the work of our salvation by coming to know Him in the Church, that is, by being gathered and united in the Church and as the Church, by living in her and by her. The measure of spiritual life on earth is the Church because she is the body of Christ. Through her the Lord heals us, for He wishes that all will become participants in eternal life and eternal love.

We call all our spiritual children throughout the world to never forget that the Lord entrusted salvation to the Church, and that in her is given the only true way and direction by which we should go. The measure of spiritual life is not given to individuals, but rather it is given by the Holy Spirit to the Church as a whole, so that all may grow into perfection in harmony and peace.

The Eternal God on that long-ago, first historic Christmas, was born as a poor Child so that we might be enriched by Him, by His divine perfection as by eternal wealth. With this He teaches us and all human generations not to separate ourselves from each other, but to bear each other’s burdens, to love each other, to help the weak and the poor, to share as brothers and sisters the blessings which God has bestowed upon us, and so fulfill the Law of Christ and in a Christian way fulfill our human calling.

Every separation, dissension, animosity and tearing down of unity is in opposition to the Holy Spirit and to the spirit of the Church, or we cannot at the same time “drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons,” and we cannot “partake of the Lord’s table and of the table of demons”. ( I Cor. 10:21)

Christmas is the Feast Day when we feel the fullness of goodness and the mercy of God, shown towards mankind by God sending His Only-Begotten Son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. God’s love, manifested mysteriously in Bethlehem’s cave, touches all of us on this great Day.

The celebration of Christmas is not simply a custom, a tradition, a habit, or a day of receiving and giving gifts. Christmas is the gift above all gifts, the day in which is revealed the only new thing under the sun, the day in which eternal divine youth flows into the very being of heaven and earth and into our limited, transient human nature and brings eternal youth to all.

Unfortunately, brothers and sisters, we must admit that our spiritual peace has been disquieted, and as a result our joy is not complete. It is overshadowed with fear and worry about everyday events in the world, and especially because of the tragic events in our crucified Kosovo and Metohija. These events cloud the harmonious singing of angelic song and they threaten to change peace and patience into unrest and intolerance.

We counsel our dear faithful flock, the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, to be persistent and to stay in their homesteads, with their Church and their holy shrines, in the land of their ancestors. The Church, as a caring Mother, is always with them and always will be with them. Without suffering there is no resurrection. May our Lord be our measure even in our suffering!

We appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters, to safeguard the sanctity of marriage, to care for and look after your children, especially to care for their religious and moral upbringing and their education. Religious classes in our public school system are a great help, but they are not the only way of educating our youth and by themselves they are not enough. This is why parents and a warm family home are a holy community and a place of growth into the stature of Christ, growth into the fullness of the Divine-Child’s love. Faith and love are taught in parents’ homes first, in the family environment. They are taught imperceptibly, just as the mother tongue is learned. God gave parents an exalted role that through the birth and raising of children they may ennoble the world and so make it better and more beautiful.

Unfortunately, many marriages are still entered into without the blessing of the Church, and there are also divorces, which are a true calamity for our Church and for our nation. Marriage is a vow before God, and it is a Holy Mystery of our Church. Man has no right to separate that which God has brought together, says Christ the Lord (Matthew 19:6).

Christ’s Birth has shown upon the world the light of knowledge and of divine knowledge. With His entry into the world a new beginning of time has dawned, the end of the pagan era and the beginning of the era of the knowledge of Christ through the Church which He founded with His precious blood.

This Day is celebrated by experiencing everything that is most beautiful and most exalted. This Day reminds man of his dual origin, heavenly and earthly. It teaches man his duties toward both his heavenly and earthly family. This Day reminds us that it is necessary to give back to our Heavenly Father and to our heavenly family in order to achieve blessings and happiness in our earthly family.

Open your hearts, you, our dear spiritual children, who are gone to far away countries, and celebrate with joy the Divine Infant, for the earth is the Lord’s everywhere, and God is everywhere and in every place. In the Church of Christ, in this holy Divine-Human community, we celebrate together with you all these joy-filled Christmas Holy Days, and we are not far away from each other.

Let us lift up our hearts, all without exception, dear brothers and sisters! This is the day which the Lord has given us that we too may be spiritually born and reborn through Christ the Lord. May the Light of the Holy Spirit, of the Spirit of the Divine Child Christ, the Spirit of God, shine in our souls and our homes!

To live a spiritual life means to work out our salvation, to be healed, to run away from sin and to seek after love. A love which is of this world does not lead anywhere but to death; only the love of the Divine-Child Christ brings life and leads to life eternal. That is why we need to love all those around us and to witness our Hope to all, as the Holy Apostle Peter says (I Peter 1:3; 3:15). Without love everything in this world of ours is condemned to sorrow, and without the Love of God Incarnate, Who is the New-Born Christ, everything is condemned to nothingness.

Worshiping the Young Child, the Eternal God, in this and all the days of our life, let us, dear brothers and sisters, forgive each other and with brotherly and sisterly love greet each other with the holy greeting:

PEACE FROM GOD – CHRIST IS BORN!
INDEED HE IS BORN!
A BLESSED AND HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012!

Given at the Serbian Patriarchate in Belgrade at Christmas, 2011.

Your intercessors before the cradle of the divine Christ-Child:
Archbishop of Pec,
Metropolitan of Belgrade-Karlovci and
Serbian Patriarch IRINEJ
Metropolitan of Zagreb and Ljubljana JOVAN
Metropolitan of Montenegro and the Coastlands AMPHILOHIJE
Metropolitan of Dabro-Bosna NIKOLAJ

Bishop of Sabac LAVRENTIJE
Bishop of Zvornik-Tuzla VASILIJE
Bishop of Srem VASILIJE
Bishop of Banja Luka JEFREM
Bishop of Budim LUKIJAN
Bishop of Canada GEORGIJE
Bishop of Banat NIKANOR
Bishop of New Gracanica-Midwestern America LONGIN
Bishop of Eastern America MITROPHAN
Bishop of Zica CHRYSOSTOM
Bishop of Backa IRINEJ
Bishop of Great Britain and Scandinavia DOSITEJ
Bishop of Bihac and Petrovac CHRYSOSTOM
Bishop of Osijek and Baranja LUKIJAN
Bishop of Central Europe CONSTANTINE
Bishop of Western Europe LUKA
Bishop of Timok JUSTIN
Bishop of Vranje PAHOMIJE
Bishop of Sumadija JOVAN
Bishop of Slavonia SAVA
Bishop of Branicevo IGNATIJE
Bishop of Milesevo FILARET
Bishop of Dalmatia FOTIJE
Bishop of Budimlje and Niksic JOANIKIJE
Bishop of Zahumlje and Hercegovina GRIGORIJE
Bishop of Valjevo MILUTIN
Bishop of Ras and Prizren TEODOSIJE
Bishop of Western America MAXIM
Bishop of Gornji Karlovac GERASIM
Bishop of Australia and New Zealand IRINEJ
Bishop of Krusevac DAVID
Retired Bishop of Zahumlje and Hercegovina ATANASIJE
Vicar Bishop of Hvostno ATANASIJE
Vicar Bishop of Jegar PORFIRIJE
Vicar Bishop of Moravica ANTONIJE
Vicar Bishop of Lipljan JOVAN
Vicar Bishop of Remezijan ANDREJ
THE ORTHODOX ARCHDIOCESE OF OCHRID:
Archbishop of Ochrid and Metropolitan of Skoplje JOVAN
Bishop of Polos and Kumanovo JOAKIM
Bishop of Bregal and locum tenens of the Diocese of Bitolj MARKO
Bishop of Stobija DAVID

[Path of Orthodoxy translation]

Божићна посланица Српске Православне Цркве

5. Јануар 2012 – 12:43

СРПСКА ПРАВОСЛАВНА ЦРКВА СВОЈОЈ ДУХОВНОЈ ДЕЦИ
О БОЖИЋУ 2011. ГОДИНЕ

И Р И Н Е Ј
МИЛОШЋУ БОЖЈОМ ПРАВОСЛАВНИ АРХИЕПИСКОП ПЕЋКИ, МИТРОПОЛИТ БЕОГРАДСКО-КАРЛОВАЧКИ И ПАТРИЈАРХ СРПСКИ, СА СВИМА АРХИЈЕРЕЈИМА СРПСКЕ ПРАВОСЛАВНЕ ЦРКВЕ – СВЕШТЕНСТВУ МОНАШТВУ И СВИМА СИНОВИМА И КЋЕРИМА НАШЕ СВЕТЕ ЦРКВЕ: БЛАГОДАТ, МИЛОСТ И МИР ОД БОГА ОЦА, И ГОСПОДА НАШЕГ ИСУСА ХРИСТА, И ДУХА СВЕТОГА, УЗ РАДОСНИ БОЖИЋНИ ПОЗДРАВ:

МИР БОЖЈИ – ХРИСТОС СЕ РОДИ!

A када дође пуноћа времена, посла Бог Сина својега…
(Гал 4, 4).

Родословом Исуса Христа, „сина Давидова, Авраамова сина” (Мт 1, 1), почиње, драга браћо и сестре, Јеванђеље о Христу, Блага и радосна вест Божја роду људском.

Песмом анђела Божјих – „Слава на висини Богу, и на земљи мир, међу људима добра воља” (Лк 2, 14) – на данашњи дан радосног празника Рођења Христовог испуњена су широм света сва хришћанска срца. Овај Дан je за цео свет велика радост „јер вам се данас роди Спас, који je Христос Господ, у граду Давидову” (Лк 2, 11).

Рођење Сина Божјег јесте велика тајна љубави Божје. Никада човек није тако близак човеку као данас, на Божић. Никада одрасли и деца нису толико блиски једни другима као данас. Никада човек не осећа тако снажно потребу да се мири и зближава са другим људима као данас. Отуда је у нашем народу потреба и обичај да се на данашњи дан прашта и „мирбожи”, да се заборављају личне размирице, са жељом да се све око нас зближи и збратими у духу љубави и мира Божјег.

Анђелска песма у част Рођења Христовог јесте истинска песма која нам језгровито исказује суштину Христове поруке, садржај Његовог Јеванђеља и мисију свете Цркве, коју је Он, Оваплоћени Син Божји, основао. Слављење Бога, мир и добра воља међу људима представљају најсветији триптих божићне поруке. Славећи Бога, човек уједно уздиже и прославља себе. Проповедајући мир Божји, – мир Христов, мир без страха и насиља, – човек доприноси изградњи Царства Божјег на земљи. Једино добром вољом, у несебичном давању себе Богу и ближњима, може се постићи истинска људска солидарност и право заједништво у решавању свих проблема и остварити морални и материјални напредак.

Својим доласком Христос сведочи о суштинској Заједници, новој заједници неба и земље, Творца и творевине, и Својим устима открива велику Тајну коју је Бог као залог унео у човека од самога његова стварања, а она се своди на истину да најважније створење под сунцем јесте управо човек. Наравно, човек је најважнији зато што је Бог у Христу постао човек. По речима Светог Иринеја Лионског, човек је позван да буде одсјај, слава, светлост Божја на земљи. То можемо схватити једино уколико Богочовека Господа Христа узмемо за право и истинско мерило свих бића и свих збивања на нашој планети.

Свакодневно се сусрећемо са искушењима, недаћама и патњама, изазваним од стране других или од нас самих. Патње у нашим домовима, патње у школама, патње у градовима и селима, патње у државама и међу народима сведоче о дубокој подељености у свету, подељености која се не може превазићи људским напорима. При том поделе иду тако дубоко да се и сама наша боголика личност дели – на душу и тело, на свесно и несвесно, и тако у недоглед.

Често се учини да је неред покретач и носилац нашег друштва. Неред је, међутим, присутан само онде где је изгубљена свест о истинској мери свега и свих, а то је љубав. Управо Христос сведочи, Својим доласком у овај свет, да је љубав победила свет зла и мржње и да га увек побеђуј e. Љубав је од Бога. Бог је извор свеколике љубави. „Који не љуби, не познаде Бога; јер Бог је љубав” (1. Јн 4, 8).

Рођен у јаслама у Витлејему, Христос је зауставио време у Својој Личности и око Себе – још тачније: у Себи – сабрао све оне који су жељни љубави и вечности. Јавивши се у свету, Он нам једини доноси истинску и непролазну радост.

Рођење Христово је унело мир Божји у свет, а време повезало са вечношћу. Мир и вечност неће више никада напустити свет, без обзира на сва искушења и недаће које га могу задесити. Као носиоца Свога мира и вечности Христос је установио Цркву Своју. Она је Стуб и Тврђава истине, брод којим сигурно пловимо у тихо пристаниште нашега спасења.

Господ кроз Цркву исцељује сваку болест и сваку немоћ људску. У њој се васпоставља склад између неба и земље, између створеног и нествореног, између вечног и временог, између духа и тела. Исцељење које Господ у Цркви даје није разумљиво уколико се не схвати и не доживи као љубав Божја која се пројавила у Христу, Рођеном, Распетом, Васкрслом и Прослављеном нас ради и нашега спасења ради. Господ љуби свакога човека и жели да се сви људи спасу и дођу у познање истине. Он и нас позива да учествујемо у делу нашега спасења тако што ћемо Њега познати у Цркви, то јест бити сабрани и уједињени у Цркви и као Црква, живети у њој и њоме. Мерило духовног живота на земљи јесте Црква јер је она Тело Христово. Кроз њу нас Господ исцељује јер жели да сви буду причасници вечнога живота и вечне љубави.

Позивамо и сву нашу духовну децу широм света да никада не забораве да је Господ Цркви поверио спасење и да је у њој дат једини истинити пут и правац којим треба да идемо. Мерило духовног живота није дато појединцима већ се Духом Светим дај e Цркви у целини, тако да се све складно и у миру Божјем усавршава.

Превечни Бог се на онај давни, први историјски Божић родио као пуки сиромашак да би нас обогатио Собом, Својим божанским савршенством као вечним богатством. Тиме Он и нас и сва људска покољења учи да се не одвајамо једни од других него да једни другима бремена носимо, да љубимо једни друге, да помажемо слабе и сиромашне, да братски делимо добра којима нас je Бог обдарио и да тако испунимо Закон Христов и на хришћански начин остваримо cвoje људско призвaњe.

Cвaкa деоба, раздор, нeприjaтeљcтвo и разарање заједништва супротни су Духу Божјем и духу Црквe. Jep, не можемо иcтoврeмeнo „пити чашу Господњу и чашу демонску”, не можемо „учествовати у трпези Господњој и у трпези демонској” (1. Kop 10, 21).

Божић је Празник кад осећамо пуноћу доброте и милости Божјe, показане према роду људском тиме што је Бог послао у свет Сина Cвoга Јединороднога, Господа нашега Исуса Христа. Божанска љyбaв, која се чудесно показала у витлејемској пећини, прожима и све нас на oвaj вeлики Дан.

Прaзнoвaњe Божића није просто обичај, традиција, нaвикa, дан примања и дaвaњa дaрoвa. Божић je дар над дaрoвимa, дан у којем ce открило оно што je jeдинo ново под cyнцeм, дан у којем ce вeчнa божанска младост улила у биће нeбa и зeмљe и у oгрaничeнy, пролазну људску природу и cвe подмладила вeчном младошћу.

Нажалост, браћо и cecтpe, морамо признати да je наш духoвни мир прилично помућен, тe ни радост наша ниje потпуна. Она je oceнчeнa страхом и бригом због cвaкoднeвниx збивања у cвeтy, a пoceбнo због трагичних збивaњa на нaшeм распетом Kocoвy и Meтoxиjи. Ta збивања мyтe складни пој aнђeлcкe пеcмe и прeтe да мир и cтрпљeњe прeтвoрe у нecпoкojcтвo и нетрпeљивocт.

Нашим драгим верницимa, Србима на Kocoвy и Метохији, прeпoрyчyjeмo да буду истрајни и да остану на својим огњиштима, уз cвojy Цркву и уз cвoje cвeтињe, на зeмљи cвojиx дeдoвa и прaдeдoвa. Црквa, као брижна Мати, yвeк je са њима и yвeк ћe бити са њима. Бeз страдања нeмa ни вacкрceњa. Господ тека нам cвимa бyдe мерило и у страдањима!

Молимо вac, браћо и cecтpe, да светињу брака oчyвaтe, да ce бринeтe и cтapaтe о cвojoj дeци, a нарочито о њиxoвoм верском и моралном вacпитaњy и oбрaзoвaњy. Beрoнayкa у oбрaзoвнoм cиcтeмy у нашим школама јесте вeликa помоћ, али ниje jeдинa и ниje дoвoљнa; зато су рoдитeљи и топли породични дом cвeтa зajeдницa и мecтo узрастања у меру раста виcинe Хриcтoвe, у пуноћу љyбaви Бoгoмлaдeнцa. Jep, вepa и морал ce yчe нajпрe у рoдитeљcкoм дому, у породици. Учe ce нeoceтнo, исто онако како ce учи и мaтeрњи jeзик.

Бог je рoдитeљимa дао yзвишeнy улогу да кроз рађање и васпитавање дeцe oплeмeњyjy cвeт и да га чине бољим и лeпшим.

Нажалост, још je yвeк много брaкoвa cклoпљeниx бeз благocлoвa cвeтe Црквe, a и рaзвeдeниx брaкoвa, који су прaвa несрећа и за нашу Цркву и за наш народ. Брак је завет пред Богом и у исто време црквена Света Тајна. Човек нема право да раставља оно што је Бог саставио, каже Христос Господ (Мт 19, 6).

Христово Рођење је обасјало свет светлошћу знања и богопознања. Његовим уласком у свет настаје почетак новог доба, крај незнабожачке ере и почетак ере христопознања, кроз Цркву коју је Он основао Својом часном крвљу.
Овај Дан се прославља доживљавањем свега што је најлепше и најузвишеније. Он човека подсећа на његово двоструко порекло – небеско и земаљско. Он учи човека дужностима и према небеској и према земаљској породици. Овај Дан нас опомиње да је потребно претходно се одужити Оцу небеском и нашој небеској породици да бисмо могли стећи благослов и срећу у земаљској породици.

Отворите срца и ви, децо наша духовна, који сте отишли у даљину и туђину и прославите у радости Богомладенца, јер је свуда земља Господња, а Бог је свуда и на свакоме месту. У Цркви Христовој, у овој светој богочовечанској заједници, славимо, са свима вама заједно, радосне божићне празнике и нисмо далеко једни од других.

Подигнимо горе срца, сви без разлике, драга браћо и сестре! Ово је Дан који је дао Бог да се и ми духовно рађамо и препорађамо кроз Христа Господа. Нека светлост Духа Светога, Духа Христа Богомладенца, Духа Божјег, засија у душама нашим и у домовима нашим!

Живети духовним животом значи спасавати се, исцељивати се, бежати од греха и трагати за љубављу. Љубав која је од овога света не води нас никуда до у смрт; једино нас љубав Богомладенца Христа оживљава и води у живот вечни. Зато треба да љубимо све око себе и свима да сведочимо Наду нашу, како каже Свети Апостол Петар (1. Пет 1, 3 и 3, 15). Без љубави, у овом нашем свету све је осуђено на тугу, а без Оваплоћене Љубави Божје, Која је Христос Новорођени, све је осуђено на ништавило.

Клањајући се Детету младом, Превечном Богу, ових и свих других дана нашега живота, опростимо, браћо и сестре, једни другима и са братском, односно сестринском љубављу поздрављајмо једни друге светим поздравом:

Мир Божји, Христос ce роди!
Ваистину ce роди!
Благословена нова 2012. година!

Дано у Патријаршији српској у Београду, о Божићу 2011. године

Ваши молитвеници пред колевком Богомладенца Христа

АРХИЕПИСКОП ПЕЋКИ, МИТРОПОЛИТ БЕОГРАДСКО-КАРЛОВАЧКИ
И ПАТРИЈАРХ СРПСКИ ИРИНЕЈ

Митрополит загребачко-љубљански ЈОВАН
Митрополит црногорско-приморски АМФИЛОХИЈЕ
Митрополит дабробосански НИКОЛАЈ
Епископ шабачки ЛАВРЕНТИЈЕ
Епископ зворничко-тузлански ВАСИЛИЈЕ
Епископ сремски ВАСИЛИЈЕ
Епископ бањалучки ЈЕФРЕМ
Епископ будимски ЛУКИЈАН
Епископ канадски ГЕОРГИЈЕ
Епископ банатски НИКАНОР
Епископ новограчаничко-средњезападноамерички ЛОНГИН
Епископ источноамерички МИТРОФАН
Епископ жички ХРИЗОСТОМ
Епископ бачки ИРИНЕЈ
Епископ британско-скандинавски ДОСИТЕЈ
Епископ бихаћко-петровачки ХРИЗОСТОМ
Епископ осечкопољски и барањски ЛУКИЈАН
Епископ средњоевропски КОНСТАНТИН
Епископ западноевропски ЛУКА
Епископ тимочки ЈУСТИН
Епископ врањски ПАХОМИЈЕ
Епископ шумадијски ЈОВАН
Епископ славонски САВА
Епископ браничевски ИГЊАТИЈЕ
Епископ милешевски ФИЛАРЕТ
Епископ далматински ФОТИЈЕ
Епископ будимљанско-никшићки ЈОАНИКИЈЕ
Епископ захумско-херцеговачки ГРИГОРИЈЕ
Епископ ваљевски МИЛУТИН
Епископ рашко-призренски ТЕОДОСИЈЕ
Епископ нишки ЈОВАН
Епископ западноамерички МАКСИМ
Епископ горњокарловачки ГЕРАСИМ
Епископ аустралијско-новозеландски ИРИНЕЈ
Епископ крушевачки ДАВИД
Епископ умировљени захумско-херцеговачки АТАНАСИЈЕ
Викарни Епископ хвостански АТАНАСИЈЕ
Викарни Епископ јегарски ПОРФИРИЈЕ
Викарни Епископ моравички АНТОНИЈЕ
Викарни Епископ липљански ЈОВАН
Викарни Епископ ремезијански АНДРЕЈ

ОХРИДСКА АРХИЕПИСКОПИЈА:
Архиепископ охридски и Митрополит скопски ЈОВАН
Епископ полошко-кумановски ЈОАКИМ
Епископ брегалнички, местобљуститељ Епархије битољске МАРКО
Епископ стобијски ДАВИД

Also see:

• Enjoy a Beautiful Serbian Christmas (January 7, New Calendar)
• Orthodox Christmas Music for the Nativity of Our Lord
• Serbian Royal Family Visits Pennsylvania for Christmas (January 7, 2011)

What the mainstream media doesn’t want to tell you…

Muslim Father Aziz Yazdanpanah Honor-Massacres Entire Family . . . in Texas

I watched this story more than a dozen times on the news over the past couple of days. I didn’t see a single program that noted the obvious honor-killing elements of this massacre. Yazdanpanah had lost control of his family. His wife had left him. His daughter was dating a non-Muslim. And he killed them all.

Just as the Ft. Hood Massacre was attributed to “Post Traumatic Stress Disorder” and “Workplace Violence,” you can expect this massacre to be attributed to “Holiday Blues,” “Depression,” “Stress,” etc.

GRAPEVINE — Aziz Yazdanpanah seemed to be losing control of his life in recent months — his wife left him, his house was in foreclosure, and his 19-year-old daughter was dating a young man he didn’t like.

Even so, the 58-year-old former real estate agent from Colleyville seemed to be holding it together. Neighbors say he would smile and wave as he drove through his middle-class neighborhood. Recently, he was seen raking leaves in his yard.

“He was very friendly, a very good neighbor,” said Carrie Stewart, who lives across the street. “He was out here often doing yard work and he even watched our house for us when we went to Colorado.”

Yazdanpanah, a volunteer high school debate coach described as a doting father, is the focus of suspicion a day after a Christmas morning massacre in which a man dressed as Santa Claus killed six relatives and then committed suicide.

Grapevine police arrived at the Lincoln Vineyard Apartment Homes a few minutes before noon and discovered bodies sprawled among opened presents and wrapping paper. The victims were ages 15 to 58. . . .

Read it all.

The only point of agreement between Occupy and the Tea Party is that both consider bailouts to be politically unwise and morally corrupt.

Occupy Protesters Fight On Christmas Day Nashville NewsChannel5.com

Click here to view the embedded video.

Uploaded by mikebeaulieu96 on Dec 26, 2011

I don’t recall ever having gotten into any knock-down, drag-out brawls on Christmas Day. Or even witnessing fisticuffs at holiday gatherings. But then, I’m with the Tea Party, not Occupy.

For the sake of the next generation, shouldn’t a pregnant woman avoid situations that might devolve into violence? Just askin’.

You probably won’t see the Tea Party out in the streets at the moment. Right now, Tea Party organizations are busy helping to get voters informed and motivated for the 2012 US elections. Some contact information is on our blogroll page.

More here:

• Gateway Pundit
• Jawa Report
• Breitbart

Please go here and read the article.

Also, please read the comments.

Peanut’s ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas – Jeff Dunham

Click here to view the embedded video.

Uploaded by jeffdunham on Dec 5, 2011
Season’s Greetings! This is the first video in our series of extended clips from Jeff’s Very Special Christmas Special.

Christmas with Bubba J – Jeff Dunham

Click here to view the embedded video.

Uploaded by jeffdunham on Dec 6, 2011
This is the second video in our series of extended clips from Jeff Dunham’s Very Special Christmas Special. This one features lovable red-neck Bubba J talking about Christmas at home and his latest encounter with Santa.

Achmed is Santa – Jeff Dunham

Click here to view the embedded video.

Uploaded by jeffdunham on Dec 7, 2011
The third and final video in our series of extended clips from Jeff Dunham’s Very Special Christmas Special. This one features Achmed the Dead Terrorist…disguised as Santa Claus.

Jeff’s latest stand-up special Controlled Chaos: http://amzn.to/ugXn4r
Controlled Chaos Tour Dates: www.jeffdunham.com
Jeff’s Very Special Christmas Special: http://amzn.to/vl153t
Twitter: www.twitter.com/jeffdunham
Facebook: www.facebook.com/jeffdunham
Website: www.jeffdunham.com
Store: www.jeffdunham.com/shop

I was doing some surfing and found this from our good friend, Don Feder.
Don Feder is a huge defender for the Serbian cause.

The Jewish Case for “Merry Christmas”

By Don Feder
posted December 8, 2006

You may find the title confusing. After all, religious Jews don’t celebrate Christmas. So why should a Jew care if a store clerk says “Merry Christmas”? Why should the public disappearance of Christmas matter to the Jewish people?

Patience. All will be explained in due course.

In the meantime, ‘tis the season to be politically correct – a coast-to-coast harkening-free zone and the tyranny of hypersensitivity.

The increasingly successful effort to purge Christmas from our culture (correctly called the War on Christmas) proceeds apace – municipal Christmas trees are re-christened (no pun intended) “holiday trees,” schools ban Christmas decorations and the singing of Christmas carols during holiday programs. Christmas – excuse me — holiday parades are excluding Santa Claus, and, everywhere, stores (which derive 20% of their annual revenue from Christmas sales) are in Grinch overdrive.
[...]
What’s the alternative — an America dominated by the twisted theories of Planned Parenthood, the ACLU, Michael Moore and George Clooney? Instead of the red and green of Christmas, how about an America where chador black is the dominant color?

So, what do you prefer to saying “Merry Christmas”? “Workers of the world unite?” Or “Allah Akbar”?

Read it all here.

Ezra Levant & Mark Steyn: Christmas

Click here to view the embedded video.

Uploaded by SDAMatt2a on Dec 23, 2011
Ezra Levant & Mark Steyn discuss the war on Christmas and the Jewish gents who wrote many of the great Christmas songs.

It’s Called ‘Christmas,’ Stupid

It’s a Christmas tree, not a holiday tree. It has always been a Christmas tree, and you can call it a holiday tree, but every two-year-old knows it’s a Christmas tree. No one is being fooled. Those afraid to mouth the word “Christmas,” as if it were some sort of obscenity, just appear foolish…

Read it all.

With thanks to our friends and colleagues at 2.0: The Blogmocracy.
Visit Blazing Cat Fur for even more videos!

Walking Christmas Tree at the Staten Island Ferry Terminal

Merry Christmas from David and Sam

Click here to view the embedded video.

Uploaded by Acts17Apologetics on Dec 24, 2011
http://www.answeringmuslims.com/

Christmas in Eurabia

Click here to view the embedded video.

Uploaded by LatmaTV on Dec 22, 2011

A White House Christmas

Click here to view the embedded video.

Uploaded by georgeBinfidel on Dec 19, 2011
funny spoof of Barack Obama Christmas songs parody commercial

2011 – Mannheim Steamroller – Celebration

Click here to view the embedded video.

Uploaded by grodq on Dec 3, 2011
For more information visit www.NeverEnoughLights.com.
80000 Christmas lights synchronized to Celebration utilizing 224 Light-O-Rama channels.

Trans-Siberian Orchestra – Christmas Eve Sarajevo – 12 24

1. By: mariokarlsson
2. Categories Music & Dance
3. Views 12,762
4. Added: 06-Dec-09

Puppy Christmas

Click here to view the embedded video.

Uploaded by devinsupertramp on Dec 18, 2011

The music for this video was composed by my friend Elton Luz.
He also did the music for my fire knife dance video.

Film was made by Devin Graham. Check out my blog on the making of this video!

My friend Xan Baker donated all 4 of her puppies for the filming of this video! Xan who also owns the puppies has a couple more left for sale. You can contact her at her youtube channel. Just shoot her a message there. She is based in Salt Lake City, Utah. And for those who have asked what kind of puppies they are, the puppies mom was half yorkie, half pomeranian, and the father was full maltese!

My friend Devin Dyer let us use his house for the filming of this, so super thanks to him and his family for helping make that happen.

I also had several friends who came and helped out on the filming of this, they were…
Grant McCarty
Jordan Nash
Kyle Meeks

My business partner/friend Jacob Schwarz color corrected the video.

On a technical note, we filmed this video with a Canon 5D Mark II and Canon 7D.
As far as lenses we used:
Canon 16-35mm F/2.8 L series lens
Canon 70-200 F/2.8 L series lens
Canon 8-15mm F/4 L series lens

Also as a last friendly reminder, make sure to follow me on Twitter and Facebook, it’s the cool thing to do these days

For more info on the making of this video and the rest of my videos, make sure and check out my blog, and while you’re at it, you might as well follow that too

Film directed and edited by Devin Graham
For job enquirers ONLY you can contact me at dpdevin@gmail.com (my email I use daily).

Christmas Laser Beam Cats

Click here to view the embedded video.

Uploaded by klusmanp on Dec 22, 2009
Cats with laser beams shooting out of their eyes. For the holidays. Music is Carol of the Bells purchased from Shockwave-sound.com.
Cast: Oscar, Ginger, Darth Zoey, TJ Wingard, and Paul Klusman
Special thanks to production assistant Christie Kidd!

Christmas Kitty Song

Click here to view the embedded video.

Uploaded by stevecash83 on Dec 10, 2010
Download this MP3 free from http://www.stevecash83.com/download.html
A jingle bell themed song from a kitty cat’s point of view on Christmas.

Merry Christmas
and Happy New Year
to you and yours!

From: Мирјана Петровић
Sent: Sunday, December 18, 2011 11:19 AM
Subject: [sn-vesti 90546] Fwd: Pomoc srpskoj deci na Kosovu i Metohiji / Appeal to help Serbian children in Kosovo and Metohija

Ponovo saljem apel za pomoc nasim ljudima na Kosovu.

———- Forwarded message ———-

Молимо за помоћ браћо Срби / Appeal for your help

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

In our first round of fundraising to help Serbs in Kosovo this October, we’ve raised $800, from about 20 donors. These funds are now utilized to help Serbian families in Northern Kosovo.

This is a plea to all of you to take a moment and help the second round of our fundraising effort. You may note which beneficiary you would specifically like to support or you may leave it for the funds to be equally divided to help the following:

• Village of Miloševo near Obilić (located 7miles from Priština). Miloševo is an enclave of 30 residents and few homes, inhabited largely by children and elders. The funds raised will be used to purchase food (flour, salt, oil, rice), school supplies, firewood, and medicine.
• Schools and children of Northern Kosovo whose families continue to fearlessly defend Serbian homes, as well as freedom and history of all Serbs. The raised funds will be used for food, school supplies, and firewood.
• Purchase modest Christmas gifts for Serbian children in Kosovo, consisting of essential school supplies.

All raised funds are sent via verified and trusted channels. The reports, receipts, and photo documentation of purchases made with these funds will be provided back to our church.

To those who have already given, thank you for your generosity!

Please be generous and please do not delay. You help is needed now.

While we wait others act. Note that all donations are tax-deductible.

Checks should be directed to our Church at: St. Archangel Michael Orthodox Church 18870 Allendale Avenue, Saratoga, CA 95070, with memo “Kosovo”.

Credit card and donations through your bank account can be made as follows:

• Go to our church website www.samichael.org,
• Click on the “Donate” button (in the top right corner of www.samichael.org),
• Enter the amount you wish to donate (it will say “ref: building fund” but you can later note that your donation is for “Kosovo”),
• Click on “Update amount”,
• Enter your Paypal login and password (setting up a Paypal account is quick and free),
• Type “Kosovo” or related note when you click on “Write in here if you have a special note”,
• Select payment method (credit card, etc), and
• Click on “Donate $ amount now”.

Thank you all and may God bless you!
Please contact me or pomocsrbima@gmail.com with any questions.

Mirjana

• Christians in Kashmir, India Increasingly Fearful
• Russian humanitarian convoy banned from entering Kosovo (h/t: Fr. Nektarios Serfes)
• The Specter of Jizya Returns to Egypt
• Philippines: Muslims Plotted to Bomb Mosques and Blame Christians
• Malaysian Christians Fearful of Muslim Backlash This Holiday Season
• Dr. Manfred Gerstenfeld Interviews Dr. Justus Reid Weiner: Christians Fleeing Palestinian Authority to Any Country Willing to Take Them In
• Shock as Three Christian School Girls in Indonesia are Beheaded

How much longer will we remain free to celebrate Christmas?

It’s Christmas In America

Click here to view the embedded video.

Uploaded by thehermancain on Dec 12, 2011

Take a moment and watch our Christmas video message, from myself, my family, supporters, and friends across this great nation of ours. As we experience the joys of Christmas this year, let us not forget the birth of Christ and what it means to mankind. I urge you to seek out and offer help and kindness to family, friends and those around us who are less fortunate, perhaps hungry and struggling through these harsh economic times. And a special prayer goes out to our brave soldiers, some far away from home this holiday season, and our hopes they return safely to their families. It is their sacrifice which has ensured all Americans the gift of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; and we could not be more in debt, nor appreciative of their service. This is our family’s favorite time of year and we wish you and your loved ones all the best in this lovely, forgiving and peaceful season. Have a great holiday and fantastic New Year. Sincerely, Herman Cain

Zilla has the story.

In this holiday season, it’s time to support the causes that you hold dear. If you value the work of conservative bloggers – particularly the smaller, independent bloggers who present an outlook that you can’t get from the mainstream media or the major conservative columnists – please consider making a contribution to at least one of the bloggers that you particularly like!

Sponsor your favorite bloggers by running an ad!

If you have a business to promote, or perhaps a book or some art work or T-shirts to sell, please consider running an ad on the sites of your favorite blogger(s). Zilla accepts ads, and so do we. If you want to run an ad on 1389 Blog (our rates are reasonable), please contact us by email, or leave a comment on this blog post, and we will respond promptly.

Donate to 1389 Blog via PayPal here:

HD Multitrack Singing by Vance Perry

Click here to view the embedded video.

Uploaded by vanceperry on Dec 4, 2009

Carol of the Bells – HD – Barbershop Multitrack
FEATURED ON DALLAS RADIO STATION, KLUV 98.7 http://kluv.radio.com/ ON DEC 15, 2009!

Merry Christmas friends and family!

I started to pick out the parts to this one by listening to the great Gas House Gang quartet. I got confused after the first key change so I wrote David Wright, the arranger of this tune, and probably the most prolific and famous barbershop arranger in the world. In my opinion, he is the best. You can view a list of his arrangments at http://www.harmonize.ws/DavidWright/. He also arranged the song for my video, Joshua http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DiItILWODNo

So here it is, my rendition of Carol of the Bells!

Merry Christmas and thanks for listening!

*** DISCLAIMER: I don’t own the rights to this song. No third party recording was used to make this video. No copyright infringement intended. ***

A Christmas Story – Journey Of The Angels/Silent Night by Enya

Click here to view the embedded video.

Uploaded by inousch on Nov 15, 2011

You can also watch/download this video
on my website: http://www.ine-pps.nl/
http://www.facebook.com/ine.braat
Christmas is approaching!
I composed this clip: “A Christmas Story”
with wonderful images out of the
the beautiful movie: “Eight Below”(Walt Disney)
It’s really worth to watch the whole movie again,
when you’ve some free time in the Holidays.
It’s an amazing story of friendship.
On 5:39 min. the images are really “MAGIC”
and on 11:00 min. “TOUCHING and HEARTWARMING….”
Music by Enya: “Journey Of The Angels”".
and “Silent Night.”
Another beautiful story for Christmas: “The Path Of My Wolf” click:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bXtPlNy1kc
With this videoclip
I’m sending my warmest Christmas wishes
to you and your family.
May your Christmas be filled
with peace and love…Ine♥´¯`•.¸¸★°•.☆.•°
__*
__/\
_/**\
_/***\
_/****\
/______\
__[_]
☆☀☆Merry Christmas
☆☀☆Joyeux Noël
☆☀☆Vrolijk Kerstfeest
☆☀☆Feliz Natal
☆☀☆Buon Natale
☆☀☆Frohe Weihnachten
☆☀☆Wesołych Świąt
☆☀☆Boldog Karácsonyt
☆☀☆Feliz Navidad
☆☀☆Vesela Koleda
☆☀☆Kala Christougenna
☆☀☆God Jul
☆☀☆Noeliniz Kutlu Olsun
☆☀☆Selamat Natal
☆☀☆Souksaan Wan Christmas
☆☀☆Ulihelisdi Danisdayohihvi
☆☀☆Miilaad Majiid
☆☀☆Shèng Dàn Kuài Lè
☆☀☆Nollaig Shona
☆☀☆Felix Dies Nativitatis
☆☀☆Miilaad Majiid
☆☀☆Nollaig Chridheil
☆☀☆Merii Kurisumasu

Journey Of The Angels lyrics:

Somewhere
in a winter night
the angels
begin their flight;
dark skies
with miles to go,
no footsteps
to be lost in snow.

They fly to you
Oh, new-born king
They fly to you
Oh, angels sing

one is sorrow
one is peace
one will come
to give you sleep
one is comfort
one is grief
one will take
the tears you weep

New star
in a midnight sky
in heaven
all the angels fly
soft wings so true
and all things
they will give to you

Somewhere
in a winter night
the angels
begin their flight

Tonight
all sing
Oh, angels,
a new-born king
Tonight
all sing
Oh, angels
a new-born king

Marche des Anges

Quelque part
dans une nuit d’hiver
les anges
commencent leur vol;
ciel sombre
avec des miles à parcourir,
pas de traces
d’être perdu dans la neige.

Ils volent de vous
Oh, le roi nouveau-né
Ils volent de vous
Oh, les anges chantent

on est la douleur
on est la paix
viendra
pour vous donner le sommeil
on est le confort
on est deuil
on prendra
les larmes que vous pleurez

nouvelle star
dans un ciel de minuit
dans le ciel
tous les anges volent
ailes souples si vrai
et toutes les choses
ils vont donner à vous

quelque part
dans une nuit d’hiver
les anges
commencent leur vol

Ce soir
chantons tous
Oh, les anges,
un roi nouveau-né
Ce soir
chantons tous
Oh, les anges
un roi nouveau-né

Serbian royals to visit Aliquippa

(h/t: NoThreat2U)

By: Bill Utterback – Beaver County Times
Tuesday January 4, 2011 10:05 PM

ALIQUIPPA — The most creative minds at Disney have never imagined a more improbable script: A prince and princess who live in a royal palace in Europe will celebrate Christmas in Beaver County this week.

Crowned Prince Alexander II of Serbia, son of Yugoslavia’s last king, grandson of the a past king of Greece, and godson of Queen Elizabeth II of England, will participate in Christmas Eve activities Thursday at the St. Elijah Serbian Orthodox Church in Aliquippa.

The prince, the man who would have been king of Yugoslavia had the 20th century unfolded with less turbulence, will be accompanied by his wife, Crowned Princess Katherine.

Although Prince Alexander and his family returned to the royal palace in Belgrade in 2001 after a 60-year exile, he has no governmental authority.

“When we told the Sunday school kids that a real prince and princess were coming, their eyes lit up … They were transfixed,” Brian Hayden, a Sunday School teacher who is coordinating the Christmas Eve activities said. “The kids are excited. Their parents and grandparents are excited. We’re all excited to have this opportunity to share Christmas with them.

“We’re very proud of how we have continued the traditions our grandparents and great-grandparents brought from Europe.”

Hayden said the royal couple will be visiting Pittsburgh this week and were seeking a Serbian-American church where they could celebrate Christmas. They were directed to Aliquippa, where 300 to 400 people gather annually on Christmas Eve.

“They wanted a place that represented a traditional Serbian Christmas,” Hayden said.

Hayden said the prince and princess are expected to arrive at 4 p.m. for the cutting of the yule log, and attend a children’s program at 4:30 p.m. They will leave by 7:30 p.m. to attend another engagement in Pittsburgh.

The Prince has asked to address the congregation, and to “meet and greet as many people as possible”, Hayden said.

Prince Alexander, in a Serbian newspaper last week, urged his nation to someday adopt a constitutional monarchy similar to Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Belgium, Spain, the Netherlands and Luxemburg.

Hayden said Prince Alexander, while not in power, remains an important figure in Serbian-American churches, where Serbian history is embraced.

Advertisement “Absolutely,” Hayden said when asked if children knew of the prince. “We teach a lot of our history and tradition at church, and he’s part of the royal family. It’s a well-known part of our history. We’re Serbian-Americans and were proud of both sides of the hyphen.”

According to his official online biography, Prince Alexander was born in London after his father, King Peter II of Yugoslavia, was forced into exile after refusing to ally with Nazi Germany in 1941. Alexander’s mother was Princess Alexandra, daughter of King Alexander of Greece. At the time of the prince’s birth, Winston Churchill declared Suite 212 in the Claridge Hotel to be Yugoslavian territory. The prince was baptized at Westminster Abby with his godparents, King George VI and Elizabeth II of England, standing with him.

Alexander, according to his biography, decided not to use the title of king after his father died in 1970, but “made if very clear that he was not renouncing his title, or the dynastic right to the throne.”

Read the rest.

CROWN PRINCE ALEXANDER II CHRISTMAS AND NEW YEAR MESSAGE JULIAN CALENDAR

The Public Relations Office of HRH Crown Prince Alexander

Belgrade, 5 January 2011 – His Royal Highness Crown Prince Alexander II extends his Christmas and New Year’s message to the citizens of Serbia who celebrate Christmas according to the Julian calendar.

Dear Citizens of Serbia,

The past year brought us both, encouragements and disappointments. Neither disenchantments should discourage us, neither success should please us.

I hope and I expect in the following year to find that people will achieve their dreams and wishes or at least to find enough reason for optimism that is essential for overcoming difficulties.

We should all aspire to continue building a democratic, stable and prosperous society, for the benefit of our country, our families and all citizens of Serbia regardless of religion or ethnic origin.

My family joins me in wishing all citizens of Serbia a good and prosperous New Year for 2011.

Merry Christmas!

Christ is born!

Also see:

• Official Website of The Serbian Royal Family
• Yule log tradition burns bright in Aliquippa
• St. Elijah Serbian Orthodox Church in Aliquippa, PA
• Enjoy a Beautiful Serbian Christmas (January 7, New Calendar)
• Patriarch +Irinej: Christmas Encyclical 2010

I have taken the liberty of mirroring this post from Jihad Watch, because they have done a far better Christmas blog post than I could ever do!

I recommend that all 1389 Blog readers either visit Jihad Watch every day, or subscribe to the Jihad Watch RSS feed. If you have a blog of your own, you can easily use this RSS feed address to post Jihad Watch headlines in the sidebar of your blog. You and your readers can click on them to get the latest counterjihad news stories.

Merry Christmas to all Christian Jihad Watchers

The Byzantine icon above is the work of the 16th-century iconographer Theophanes the Cretan. Many Muslims around the world today would consider it offensive and insulting to Islam. Muslims in the Balkans just a few years ago have entered churches and destroyed icons like this one for precisely that reason.

How does this icon insult Islam? In many ways, including these:

1. It depicts human beings, which violates the traditional Islamic prohibition of images and would be considered idolatrous and blasphemous on its face.

2. It depicts Jesus not as a Muslim prophet, as this does:

Instead, it depicts Jesus in the traditional Christian manner, as the incarnate Son of God: his halo reads ο ων, the One Who Is, a title of divinity derived from the name of God that God gives to Moses in Exodus 3:14), in violation of the oft-repeated Qur’anic injunction that Allah has no Son (4:171; 9:30; 25:2; 39:4; 72:3; etc. etc.).

3. In line with #2, it depicts what Muslims would consider to be idolatry, as the holy child’s mother kneels and adores him.

4. In the beam or spear coming from heaven down to the child in the cradle, it depicts the activity of the Divine in the world, assuming the doctrine of the Trinity, which is rejected somewhat imprecisely in Qur’an 4:171 and 5:116.

5. The cradle resembles a casket, foreshadowing the core and heart of Christianity, the redemptive death of Christ, which is denied in Qur’an 4:157.

Now, whether you are a Christian or not, and whether or not you believe all or any of these things, the question that is before us with particular urgency this Christmas is whether or not people should be allowed to believe these things freely, without being brutalized or discriminated against, if they live in, say, Iraq, or Egypt, or Pakistan, or Gaza, or Indonesia, and whether free people of all creeds and perspectives should defend their right to do so.

In those countries, as well as in the Philippines and Nigeria where jihad attacks just took place today, Christians are being kidnapped, imprisoned, wrongly arrested, beaten, and murdered not because of anything they have done, but because they have dared to believe some of the things I have adumbrated above — beliefs that are considered blasphemous in authoritative Islam. And it is hardly better elsewhere in the Islamic world: nowhere in majority-Muslim countries today do people who believe these things enjoy full equality of rights with Muslims.

We see this at Jihad Watch every day. We see jihadists attacking Christians with increasing fury. We also see the world largely yawning and indifferent as all this goes on. Christianity is a large and multifaceted thing, with so many different and various manifestations, but in the mind of the opinion makers of the West it is Western, white, suburban, wealthy, comfortable, oppressive, and oppressing. Christians are, in the little dramas that play out in mainstream media stories every day, a bit cracked, a bit sinister, a bit dangerous, a bit grasping, and sometimes fanatically jingoistic and xenophobic. They are never victims. Muslims, by contrast, are in the daily mainstream media playlets always cast as non-Western, nonwhite, poor, wise, serene, and oppressed. (The Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf and Daisy Khan have recently been featured repeatedly in these roles.)

And so when it comes to the specter of non-Western, nonwhite Christians being persecuted by Muslims, the mainstream media’s circuitry explodes. They can’t handle it. They have no paradigm for doing so. It violates every rule in their playbook. So they either ignore it or mask the identity and/or motives of the perpetrators, and try to cast the focus elsewhere.

And so remember this Christmas: those Christians who are being persecuted in Iraq, and the Philippines, and Nigeria, and Egypt, and Pakistan, and elsewhere in the Islamic world, are standing in your place. The jihadis would just as soon attack you as well, and will eventually if they get the chance. Remember that the Islamic supremacist program has you on its list. You may not be a Christian. You may not be a Jew. You may not be a Hindu. You may not wish to pay attention to the jihad at all. But the jihad is universal, and relentless. And you are on its list.

So this Christmas, may all of us whose conversion, subjugation, or death is envisioned by the adherents of Sharia stand together. Let us stand together as Jews, Christians, Hindus, Buddhists, atheists, secularists, what have you, and stand up against those who would kill us or subject us to institutionalized discrimination because they find our beliefs offensive.

For be assured: if we do not stand together, they will prevail. And if they prevail, then all the richest manifestations of the unfettered human spirit, from Theophanes the Cretan above to the fashioners of the Buddhas of Bamiyan, from the Hagia Sophia to the temple of Keshava Rai at Mathura, from the works of Socrates and Aristotle to those of Moses Maimonides and Dante Alighieri and Winston Churchill and Oriana Fallaci, will be trampled into the mud, destroyed, exploded, ruined, effaced. We will all be the poorer. Our children will be the poorer.

It is time to fight for our life.

Merry Christmas to all Christian Jihad Watchers who celebrate the Feast on this day.