Why we still need Christmas...

Amidst all my complaining about Christmas, I stumbled on a Christmas song I've decided I love. We've all heard the first verse to "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear," but most of us probably haven't heard these verses:

Yet with the woes of sin and strife
The world has suffered long;
Beneath the angel-strain have rolled
Two thousand years of wrong;
And man, at war with man, hears not
The love-song that they bring;
O hush the noise, ye men of strife,
And hear the angels sing.

For lo, the days are hastening on,
By prophets bards foretold,
When with the ever-circling years
Comes round the age of gold;
When peace shall over all the earth
Its ancient splendors fling,
And the whole world send back the song
Which now the angels sing.

Of course, these verses will never be played on the radio and even more unfortunately, probably won't be sung in most churches. In fact, I have been in church nearly Christmas Eve of my life and cannot remember ever hearing these verses. Ah, the church could offer something relevant to a world filled with war, but would rather ponder the deep philosphical issue of whether or not Mary knew Christ would one day die on a cross when she first held him in her arms (see "Mary, Did you know?"). I would guess she didn't, but who cares?

And man, at war with man, hears not
The love-song that they bring;
O hush the noise, ye men of strife,
And hear the angels sing.

I could handle more of that this Christmas.