Football – the beautiful game- For Christmas
Saint Luke, Chapter Two and its numerous verses tell of what Christians refer to as the Nativity – the story of the birth of the Christ Child. After a matured Joseph had overcome grave doubts about Mary’s pregnancy and his dubious then gracious role relevant to the pending Birth. There are other accounts but St Luke spent much time chronicling this bedrock of Christian belief and faith. It is also beautiful story-telling.
Now here am I, with these lines, by no means an activist believer, loving the literary creativity of Luke, one of the saintly apostles. There are different approaches to Holy Biblical accounts even among devout Christians – those who merely accept the word and many who question or analyse elements of their theology. My task here is to invite celebrants to eschew/reject the more bacchanalian commercialisation of the Festival and spend more moments to consider the history of a grand spiritual experience and event.
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According to the historian St. Luke
After the Immaculate Conception the primary elements of the Divine Birth were associated with the collection of money from all concerned residents! Hopefully for national development.
St Luke provides details: Emperor Caesar Augustus decreed that it was time to tax all citizens from Galilee and Judea with their primary cities being Nazareth and Bethlehem. Carpenter Joseph thus journeyed to Bethlehem with his virginal teenaged pregnant wife Mary to obey the taxes summons.
Of course, as Luke records her time had come and she delivered in a cow pen/manger as all the hotels were filled with tax-paying guests. For Christmas, Christians should wonder/find out: why was that particular teenaged maiden Mary chosen and why was her baby named Jesus.
The angels heralded the birth by proclaiming that “for unto you a saviour the Christ is born; glory be to God and on Earth Peace and Goodwill toward men.”
Good loyal Christians should now therefore ask: did mankind enjoy united peace and goodwill since?
As you grapple with the Promise of the Birth and the overwhelming reality of centuries of sin manifested by man.
Eat, drink, and upgrade your homes, be merry but spare moments to consider the history and spirituality of the season. Agreed?
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Can I compliment the Government?
I would how many will denigrate me for daring to shower kudos on the PPP government today? Don’t they do anything good?
Look, I realise/appreciate that any administration must be scrutinised, criticised, held accountable. But it is rare to see the letter-writers, the editorials, the analysts commending good deeds of the government: (Of course now and then government surrogates submit praise but the rabid critics hold sway and newspaper, Facebook space daily!)
So I congratulate the government on their (insufficient) salary increase; removal of taxes imposed by the Granger coalition; the agriculture massive support for Rupununi; massive drainage works for Alness/Bloomfield, throughout the Corentyne; highways and by-passes from East Coast to East Bank Demerara.
That very partial listing never-the-less indicated development, including of employment and future comfort for citizens. Even as the World Bank and Forbes magazine tell of our country’s poor economic ranking and devastating migration to more developed places.
Naturally the opposition and surrogates will relentlessly criticise. That is its “job” but frankly speaking all the current ills besetting us are not two years-plus old. Press for even more but enjoy what you have.
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Football for Christmas 2022
Even though I’ve long abandoned actively celebrating Christmas at a personal level, I still appreciate the deeper meaning of the Festival of Birth and the joy and generosity it heralds.
If any game would have been popular during Jesus’ childhood it would have been football. As in soccer. It is now the world’s most popular global sport. Soccer/football is today played in every country including Egypt and the Middle East where Jesus dwelled. For Christmas for me football in Qatar is my greatest gift this year.
Consider these elements of the “Beautiful Game” going on right now: true sport is trumping the woeful negatives surrounding Qatar’s preparations; thousands paid millions to journey to Qatar as fans for their teams; ladies are well-represented; soccer referees are the most physically-fit fellows on earth; floods, wars, terrorism, bombings all can’t nullify the sporting joy of FIFA’s World Cup – at least for the time being. Hail football!
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Lots to ponder…
1) Man, the Stabroek News Editorial “Government and the GPSU” (Sun Nov 20 last) really beat me to it. As I’m not given to daily letter-writing. My thoughts exactly as I witnessed a president announcing salary increases for every level of the police force. Politically necessary?
2) GPSU and the entire trade union “movement” have been long emasculated. Don’t you-all know when that started?
3) Do we still have an active Ombudsman?
4) Whatever happened to one-time PPP Powerhouse Dr Roger Luncheon?
5) How will Oil Revenues be dispensed in budget 2023?
`Til Next Week!
