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Speaker 1: Christmas in Bethlehem by Edwin S. Wallace. During the Christmas season,

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when the thoughts of the civilized world turn to Bethlehem,

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many will wonder how the people there keep this greatest

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religious holiday. Very few American children can ever visit the

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little city among the Judaean hills. Yet a number of

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travelers from America and Europe come to the Holy Land

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every year to be among those who are on Christmas

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Day crowd the streets of the little city, Nestled among

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its fig trees and olive orchards. It is a little

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city and it does not take many people to crowd it.

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But besides being the birthplace of Jesus, it is the

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birthplace of Israel's great warrior King David. Bethlehem to day

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has barely eight thousand inhabitants, and in appearance is not attractive.

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The streets are too narrow for vehicles. In fact, there

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is but one street in the town wide enough for carriages,

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and it is so very narrow that they cannot pass

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each other in it. The streets were made for foot travelers, donkeys,

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and camels. Bethlehem is about five miles south of Jerusalem,

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leaving the larger city by the Jaffa gate. We take

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a carriage and ride rapidly over the fine road built

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but a few years ago. The carriage we are in

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and those we meet are wretched affairs. The horses are

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to be pitied, first because they are not well cared for,

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and second because their drivers are regular jihous, who drive

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them furiously up hill and down. In less than an hour,

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we are in the market place of Bethlehem, in front

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of the Church of the Nativity. Let us suppose we

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have arrived on Christmas Eve in time to wander about

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and to become acquainted with the little city. Of course,

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it has changed in appearance since the time of the

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birth of Christ. It is larger and better built. Now

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as then, the houses are of stone, And as cities

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and customs change but little in the east, we may

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safely infer that modern Bethlehem houses are much like those

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of nineteen hundred years ago. Perhaps some of the old

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buildings that were in existence so long ago may still

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be standing. Of course, the great Church of the Nativity

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was not then erected, nor were any of the large

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religious buildings we see. These are the memorials of a

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later date, built in honor of him whose earthly life

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began here. One would have to be unmindful of his

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surroundings and very unimaginative not to wonder what the place

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was like on that night, the anniversary of which we

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are celebrating. We know that then, as on this December

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twenty fourth, it was filled with people. But those people

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had come for a different purpose. Augustus Caesar, the master

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of the then known world, had issued an imperial decree

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ordering a general registration of all his subjects. This was

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for the purpose of revising or completing the tax lists.

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According to Roman law, people were to register in their

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own cities, that is, the city in which they lived

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or to which their village or town was attached. According

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to Jewish methods, they would register by tribes, families, and

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the houses of their fathers. Joseph and Mary were Jews

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and conformed to the Jewish custom. It was well known

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that he and Mary were of the tribe of Judah

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and family of David, and that Bethlehem was their ancestral home. Accordingly,

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they left the Nazareth home in the territory of Zebra

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and came to day that's own city in the territory

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of Judah. They came down the east bank of the Jordan,

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crossed the river at Jericho, and came up among the

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Judaean hills and valleys till they reached Bethlehem. It was

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a long journey and a wearisome one, and on arriving

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a place of rest was the first thing they sought.

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Evidently they had no friends living in the place, or

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if they had, their houses were already filled. It was

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necessary that shelter be had, and immediately in the khan

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or inn there was no room, so there was nothing

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to do but occupy a part of the space provided

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for cattle. It was not an unusual thing to do,

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and is often done to day in these eastern villages.

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In fact, they were about as comfortable there as in

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any khan. At a khan one may procure a cup

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of coffee and a place to lie down on the floor,

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but each guest provides his own bed and covering. This

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was all Joseph and Mary could have obtained in the

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inn had there been room for them. And here in Bethlehem,

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in a stable or a cave used for stabling animals,

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Jesus was born, and Mary wrapped him in swaddling clothes

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and laid him in a manger. There is one short

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walk we should take before entering the Church of the

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Nativity and the cave beneath it. This is to the

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field of the Shepherds, about a mile east of the church,

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and the traditional place where the shepherds were watching their

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flocks on that momentous night. This may not be the

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exact place where the angels appeared, but there is no

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reason why we may not accept the tradition which has

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placed the event here. It has often been wondered why

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the shepherds had their flocks out all night in the

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winter time, and the wonder is easily satisfied when we

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know that these were not ordinary flocks of sheep, nor

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ordinary shepherds. These flocks were those specially selected for sacrifice

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in the temple at Jerusalem at the Great Passover season,

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and were kept in the fields all the year. The

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shepherds were specially appointed. Sometime during that winter night, the

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shepherds were dazzled by a light more brilliant than the stars,

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and roused by voices not of earth. The Christ, whose

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future sacrifice their flocks were to symbolize, was born, and

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the angels were singing the good tidings. These shepherds were

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the first to hear and to spread the marvelous news.

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Because of the event the angels were heralding. Men have

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built the Great Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, and

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indeed all the great Christian churches and cathedrals of the world.

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It is because of this that people from every country

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in Europe and America will join the throng of native

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Christians in the City of the Nativity and rejoice in

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memory of the Angel's song. It is because of this

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that there is today so much of peace on earth

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and good will toward men. And now we return in

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time to see the procession of bishops, priests and people

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that is forming in the square in front of the church.

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Each is dressed in his most gorgeous robes. Turkish soldiers

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line both sides of the street to keep the way

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open for the procession to pass. The Latin Patriarch of

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Jerusalem has just arrived. The procession of priests, carrying banners

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and immense candles, meets him, then turns and all go

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into the Latin chapel through the main entrance. Following, we

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are surprised to find the main entrance so small it

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can admit but one at a time, and that one

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must stoop to enter. From the masonry, it can be

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seen that the entrance was once much larger. The reason

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for the change was that the Mohammedans at one time

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did all in their power to injure and annoy the Christians,

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and even used to ride on horseback into the very church.

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The door therefore was made small to protect the church

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from this sacrilege. Once inside, we see we are in

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a very ancient structure. Part of the masonry dates from

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the time of Constantine, who built a magnificent basilica on

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this site about the year three hundred thirty of our era.

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All we can see of the oldest work, however, probably

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dates from not later than Justinian's time about five hundred

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fifty a d. In any case, the church is a

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venerable building, and it has witnessed some stirring scenes In it,

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Baldwin the Crusader was crowned King of Jerusalem. It has

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been repaired a number of times, and once when it

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needed a new roof, King Edward the fourth of England

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gave the lead to make one. This was about the

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year fourteen hundred eighty two. The lead roof did good

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service for about two hundred years, and might have lasted

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much longer had not the Mohammedans melted it up to

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make bullets. However, another roof was soon provided. Inside the

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building consists of a nave and double aisles. The isles

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are separated by two rows of columns made of red limestone.

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These columns have plain bases and are surmounted by Corinthian capitals.

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They are nineteen feet high, and at the top of

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each a cross is engraved. The church is now owned

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by the Latin, Greek and Armenian Christians. Religious services will

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be held all night in the Latin chapel of Saint Catharine.

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At midnight, a solemn Mass will be said by the

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Patriarch of Jerusalem. The chapel is full of people, many

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of whom are sitting on the floor. Before the procession

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descends into the grotto of the Nativity, we make our

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way there so as to have a better view. Originally

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it was simply a natural cave in the limestone rock.

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Now little of the native rock is seen. Marble slabs

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cover the floor and line the walls. The ceiling, which

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is about ten feet high, is resplendent with thirty two

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brass lamps. Their light enables us to examine the many

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pictures portraying scenes in the life of Jesus which the

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devotion of Christians has hung about the walls, but these

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pictures are generally very poor as specimens of art. At

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the east end of the cave, there is a small

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recess in the rock, before which hang fifteen lamps. In

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the floor of this recess, a bright silver star is

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in left. It is nearly all worn away by the

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constant kissing it receives. Around the star is an inscription

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in Latin which tells us that here of the Virgin Mary,

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Jesus Christ was born. Turning just a little to the

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right from this place of the star, and descending a

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few steps, we are in a small chamber called the

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grotto of the Manger. The original Manger is of course

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not here. It probably never was preserved, and many stories

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about it are inventions of a much later date. Here

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also is a little altar, or the place where the

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wise men from the east prostrated themselves before the infant Jesus.

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These three, the places of the birth, the manger, and

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the adoration, are all in what is called the Chapel

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of the Nativity. Passing out of this chapel by the

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steps leading into the Greek Church of Saint Mary, we

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are again in the streets of Bethlehem. It is a

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relief to get away from the glare of lamps, the

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smoke of candles, and the heavy odors of burning incense,

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and to breathe again the fresh air blowing over the

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Judaean hills. The streets are very quiet, for all not

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in the church have retired to their homes. Occasionally people

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leave the church and are driven away in their carriages

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to Jerusalem, though most visitors remain all night. We can

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wander through the streets and over the neighboring hills, for

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the clear moon makes it almost as bright as day.

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How peaceful it all is. Indeed, it seems a most

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suitable place for the coming to the world of the

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Prince of Peace. Faint streaks of the dawn are beginning

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to show in the sky above the hills of Moab.

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Rapidly they grow longer and brighter, and soon it is daybreak,

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and we know that it is Christmas in Bethlehem. But

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we miss much of the accustomed joy of the day.

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At home, there would be good cheer, the companionship of

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loved ones, and the giving and receiving of gifts. Here

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there is little of this. The home life of the

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people is so different from ours. Christmas Day in Bethlehem

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is not the Christmas day we know. It is full

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of religious ceremonies, and when these are over, young and

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old go back to their accustomed life. The faces of

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the boys and girls I saw in Bethlehem last Christmas

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were not such faces as I should have seen in

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any city or village in America. And I knew the reason.

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It was because Christmas to them was much the same

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as any other day of the year. And so it

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requires more than Bethlehem to make Christmas what we like

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to have it. It requires loving home life and the

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presence of the spirit of the Christ Child in the heart.

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And yet, who would not be glad to spend one

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Christmas Eve and day where he who made the glad

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day possible was born and of Christmas in Bethlehem. By

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Edwin S. Wallace