h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Suppose, just suppose, that instead of spending billions of dollars worldwide on the customary trappings of Christmas, we instead used that money to feed the poor and house the homeless.

Instead of assuaging our conscience by tossing a couple of quarters in the Salvaton Army kettle on the way into the mall to max out our credit cards buying things people want but don't need and justifying it because the wise men brought gifts to the baby Jesus, suppose we made it our mission to provide everyone on the planet the genuine necessities of life, every day of the year, not just on Christmas.

If you are a practicing Christian, then suppose, just suppose, you discarded the Old Testament and all of the New Testament except for the teachings of Jesus found in the four gospels. Forget your particular denominational dogma, forget what Paul and the apostles wanted, forget what the Popes and reformers wanted you to believe, forget prophesies and miracles. Just follow the actual teachings of Jesus, putting them into the context of the times in which he lived, and applying them as best as you can to the 21st century. Practice tolerance and charity.

If you were never a Christian or have rejected Christianity, if you realize that Christmas is a jumble of pagan celebrations and that Jesus certainly wasn't born on December 25, I want to remind you that you can reject Christianity and other organized religions without rejecting the teachings of Jesus, the Buddha and other great spiritual teachers. Living a life of tolerance and charity has nothing to do with organized religion and everything to do with personal growth and social responsibility. You don't have to believe that these teachers are divine in order to appreciate them and use them as models.



My grandmother used to subscribe to a magazine called Ideals. It was filled with poetry and short stories, generally corny. Anyway, she particularly enjoyed the Christmas issues. The following poem was one printed in Ideals that she liked. I managed to find the poem, but am not sure when it was written. My grandmother died in 1960, so it was before then. It was written by Madeline Morse.

"Let Christmas not become a thing
Merely of merchant's trafficking,
Of tinsel, bell and holly wreath
And surface pleasure, but beneath
The childish glamour, let us find
Nourishment for soul and mind.
Let us follow kinder ways
Through our teeming human maze,
And help the age of peace to come
From a Dreamer's martyrdom."

I wish all of you contentment. Merry Christmas.

That was beautifully put, Hypatia.

Thank you for sharing the thought. I wish you peace, contentment, and the joy of the season.

Well said Hyp!

Never I say..... NEVER.....

Indeed well spoken, Hyp. Merry Christmas to you, too.

It's quite common in Ireland for well-off people to send a goat or cow to Africa instead of giving a present to a loved one. You get a certificate saying the goat has been sent, and you present this to the person instead of a gift.

My father-in-law used to regularly give us these "goats". There are quite a few organisations that look after sending the goats, teaching the people at the receiving end how to care for them. You can also send camels, bees, rabbits and so on.

I got a flyer in the mail last month offering that service. I'd never heard of it before and found it quite odd at first, but it did seem like it could be a helpful charity.

I got one, too, BG. I seriously considered it for my staff members. That would have gone over like a lead balloon, so I scrapped the idea.

Thank you, Hypatia, that was just beautiful and inspiring

My daughter gave me a voucher to go to kiva.org to loan $25 to one of the international participants there. It is really neat; I get to choose who to lend it to and once they pay it back I can loan it to someone else if I want

What a lovely gift idea, Clare. Thanks for sharing it.

What a cool idea, Clare! I wondered about that the other day, when I was reading something about a microloan programme somewhere.