Guest Blogger Larry:

The Strangeness of Christmas Carols by Larry

I grew up when Christmas carols were an integral part of Christmas. There were manger scenes in all the public places of Toledo, Ohio blasting "Oh Little Town of Bethlehem" etc. morning, noon, and night. They were sung in the school system and if you didn't join in you were considered weird. We were not a religious family but we did go to a Unitarian Church. That's the place where you get the ethics without the dogma.

However, since my childhood, I have grown out of a need for an established religion. In fact you might say I have grown in the opposite direction and have become a critic. At the present time, I am writing a book called the Shape of Nothing. It's two parts are science and religion. In the religion section, I present a reasonably accurate historical presentation of the true roots of Christianity originating within the political and religious systems of the Roman Empire and Judaism. In this regard, the New Testament becomes more of a political document of the times than a God given revelation of the teachings of Jesus Christ.

However, sometime around the first of December we start playing our small collection of discs of Christmas music. They're interspersed with Santa Baby, Santa Claus Is Coming to Town, and I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus but most are hard core religious Christmas carols. Strangely, I find myself completely immersed in the celebration of their joyful simplicity. In fact, I have a more intense prejudice against Shakespeare and opera than Christmas carols. Go Figure!