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*h:CTION 3 PAGE EIGHT THE NEWBERRY SUN THURSDAY, DECEMBER 26, 1957 May there be music in your hearts A Wertz Music & Appliance Co. MRS. CLARA D. WERTZ Mrs. Mabel Slaton David Bowers Edward Lominack Herman Nally Maeberta Bobb Larry Danielsen A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A s A A A A % $ A A A A A A fjrisitmag iopsi to our f rienbs... ! M»y the gentle eplrlt of the I’rlnce of Peeee gledden the heart* end home* of ell our many A ft ft ft ft ft ft ft ft ft ft true friend* end A f I s I 1 A ft » i s A SHEALY • LONG Tractor and Implement Co. “FERGUSON SYSTEM w NEWBERRY. 8. C. Now it is again the season of the year that we call Christmas, the most joyful and most tmiversally celebrated of all our holidays. The observance of Christmas may differ among nations and peoples which stretch from the lands of snow and ice to the sunny Southern hemisphere, but in every corner of the world the true meaning of the holiday is ever the same. As our world has changed through the centuries since the first Christmas, so have we taken the customs of Christmas and adjusted them to our changing environment. The origin of many of these cus toms have been lost in the passing of time to the extent that today many burn candles in the window ami adorn firesides and homes with holly and mistletoe without a passing thought as to why we use candles rather than kerosene lamps and holly or mistletoe in preference to other winter greenery. It is custom, and we believe in following cus toms, in one fashion or another. Customs have their place in the scheme of things, so let us keep them and, if need be, give them new meanings of our own. Yet, with it all, let us remember that customs and traditions are only a part of the observance of Christmas. We do not keep the Christmas merely because we observe the customs. Let us keep Christmas in our hearts. Let us remember that it is a religious holiday, a time of joy and peace and faith and hope. More particularly, it is a time to be humbly grateful for mankind’s greatest birthright—the hope of eternal salvation. Such was God’s gift to the world that night at Bethlehem. With the spirit of Christmas in our hearts we shall find deep and significant meanings in the customs and traditions we associate with this great holiday. Although America haa contributed more than its share, our Christ mas carols, both old and new, have come down to us from many lands. Our early settlers brought with them the carols of Europe. Perhaps the most universal carol is •'O Come, All Ye Faithful” (Adeste Fidefis) which has been translated into hundreds of languages and dialects and belongs to no one nation. Germany was responsible for Luther’s hymn for children, "Away in a manger, no crib for a bed ...” England provided “God Rest You, Merry Gentlemen ...” And from France came the beautiful "Cantique de Noel” or "O Holy Night.” Three of our greatest carols were written by Americans. "It Came Upon A Midnight Clear” was written by Edmund H. Scars, a Massa chusetts Unitarian minister, in 1849. Dr. John Henry Hopkins, Jr., Episcopal rector from Williamsport, Pa., composed the words and music for "We Three Kings of Orient Are.” Author of "O Little Town of Bethlehem” was Phillip Brooks, a young Episcopal minister who later become bishop of Massachusetts. He was inspired to write the poem after a trip to the Holy Land. Although non-religious, the rollicking "Jingle Bells” also came from the pen of a churchman, John Pierpoint, almost a century ago. He So Loved . . . He Taught the World to Love l od (tort so loved the world that lit- i;avo Ills only begotten Son . . . How fni'.iningful are these words (oday. neai ly two thousand years afl<M tbe lunnblo beginning of that Ono Great Life at Bethlehem. How holy and purposeful was this life upou earth that it comes to us again and again in the spirit of Christmas to remind that the real joy and the real goodness of life lie not in riches and gold, or self attainment, but in thoughtful and unselfish service and love. For He so loved the world that He taught the world to love. Through one. great and wonderful life upon earth, He set down for all mankind and for all time the supreme example of tlje good life. In His every deed and action He portrayed the qualities of love and faith and kindness. These qualities and more—are all a part of the Christmas. But, by His example, they are qualities that should abound in our lives throughout the year. In thankfulness to God, for all His goodness and love, we should keep the Christmas in ita trua and joyful meaning, the apiritual occa sion of the birth of Chrtal And tt we can truly keep the Chrlatmaa, then perhaps we can keep the splr* it of Christ within our hearts throughout the year. BOARS HEAD Turkey dominates the American holiday dinner menu but back in the days of Medieval England it was the boar’s head which occu pied the spot of honor at the Yule- tide feasting table. •During late September or Octo ber, bands of hunters using trained boar-hounds pursued the ferocious boar. Once cornered by the hounds, the wild animal was surrounded and killed by spears or driven into a net and captured. Chasing the boar was a danger ous sport for the animal was pos sessed of a nasty temper and very sharp teeth with which he could easily wound and sometimes kill the hunter and his dogs. But the fruits of the chase were worth the effort and the bolder the boar, the louder were his praises sung as his steaming head was home to the Christmas tablo* \* Modern Santa Strictly American Conception Within recent years some of our religious and educational leaders have expressed the belief that Santa the Saint has been lost in Santa the Sugar Daddy, inferring that the whole Idea of the Santa Claus myth Is bad psychology or just not good horse sense. The modern concept of Santa, of course. Is 99 per cent fiction and strictly American, In Europe, Saint Nick was a tall, angular man who rode a bony gray mare, He acquired his whiskers, his pipe and his paunch In America and traded his hay burner for a speedier means of transportation. Santa's Spirit While there Is no doubt that the Santa Qaua Idea has been sbused and somewhat over • commercial ised at time*, down under it all Santa still typifies a spirit of gen erosity and thoughtfulness. It is no reflection on Santa himself that many children who eagerly await his. arrival each Christmas Eve have never heard the story of the Holy Child from their parents. So let us not blame Santa, nor the children, U the central idea of Christmas, the birth of Jesus, suf fers from neglect. The fault lies with those of us whose duty it is to load aad guide and taach and •how tha way.