It’s very cold this morning, very cold, but the forecast is for moderation by midweek, certainly by the end of the week. The stars are brighter in this cold weather, even in a city where there are streetlights. And we are now past the Winter Solstice with the earth rotating so each day we have more light, even if just a smidgen.
In our centrally heated homes we brace for the cold when we go out. By the time most of us are going to Christmas Eve services, it won’t be as cold, but cold enough. It is shameful that even in a country as rich as ours, there are so many without warm places to sleep while we celebrate the birth of a child for whom there was no room in the inn.
Clearly, we need to make our inn bigger to include those who are outside the door. Tax policy might be a good place to start, including the ultra-rich who can sell and buy homes for millions and corporations with their shameful profits. Consider how many could be sheltered with their fair share of taxes, then there would be room at the inn.
Prayer or the Day
Now in a season of wonder and expectation, we shiver in the cold,
And we cannot help but wonder, O God, about those not in the inn;
Our windows frosted by the north wind, we peer through the ice,
For the morning sun is just coming over the horizon.
Open the doors of our hearts expanding our welcome
To include all who need rooms in warm places.
In the name of the One for whom there was no room in the inn,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.
Thoughts for the Day
There is a lot that happens around the world we cannot control. We cannot stop earthquakes, we cannot prevent droughts, and we cannot prevent all conflict, but when we know where the hungry, the homeless, and the sick are, then we can help.
- Jan Schakowsky, U.S. Representative, Illinois
A homeless veteran should not have to stand at a freeway exit with a cardboard sign. That’s not okay.
- Joe Walsh, American guitarist, singer, songwriter
God executes justice for the oppressed; gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets the prisoners free; the Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous.
The Lord watches over strangers, and upholds the orphan and the widow,
But the way o the wicked, he brings to ruin.
Psalm 146: 7-9