A Christmas Comment

Kris Kringle, St. Nicholas or St. Nick, Santa Claus, Father Christmas -- all terms for the same phenomenon that today is more often associatred with gifts for children than the original figure who is associated with adult feasting. According to on-line resources, a recognizable "image" of Father Christmas is found as early as Ben Jonson's "Christmas his Masque" (1616). But the popular image that dominates the English speaking world is based on the illustration of the Ghost of Christmas Present in Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" (1843).

But it is the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come that reveals what lies ahead -- want, poverty, illess, ignorance -- if people do not learn how to "live for" rather than only learn how to "die for." The latter is easy, but often does nothing to make life better for those who remain and experience those "Yet to Come" days.