Christmas. Night Beat Style

Christmas isn't really Christmas until you've heard Linus. Now I love Linus Van Pelt, and you can never go wrong with simply reading the Gospel of Luke, but there is more to the story. When politicians blather on about the Christmas story being about homelessness, you know there is a lot of ignorance out there. In the meantime, enjoy the clip

In the Spirit of Joe Friday, and with respect to Harry Morgan (Bill Gannon)--Just the facts. Mary and Joseph were not homeless. They had a home, it was in Nazareth, not Bethlehem. They had come to Bethlehem for the Census Bureau and a meeting with the IRS. "That all the world should be taxed". Because Joseph was a procrastinator he didn't consult with Travelocity beforehand, and as a result, when they got there, "there was no room at the inn." No Vacancy means No Vacancy, it doesn't mean that he didn't have money. He was there to pay taxes after all. A good hearted innkeeper most likely volunteered use of the stable. (As and aside, the Christmas Song "No Room" is wrong "There's no room...no room to lay your head, If you were wealthy we might find you a bed, but there's no room in here for you". The Bible is plain, No Room, not no room but if. And Apologetix is wrong to with their Eagles parody "Hotel Can't Afford Ya". The stable was all there was, and it was probably on the down low and off the books. I doubt a rental agreement was drawn up.


The best part, which should appeal to all us Tea partiers and fellow conservatives, The three wise men brought gold (money) and Frankincense and Myrrh, both valuable spices/perfumes that could be sold for more gold. Money answers all things. One aside on that. To all the Christmas Card makers out there, I am sorry to burst your bubble, but the wise men arrived approximately two years after Jesus was born, not at the same time. Actually the cards are wrong regardless, because most of them have the Shepherds there as well, and even the Catholics/Orthodox have a twelve day space between the two events. But back to the Wise Men. There were probably more than three, plus servants and other attendants. Whether Kings, Magicians or Astrologers, they had Klout (not the website) in their nation. There were only three types of gifts. There were probably tons of each. And best of all, since Joseph had already seen the IRS agent, this new infusion of Cash was Tax free. There was no being able to go back seven years for an audit back then. Oh for the good old days. Plenty of money for a Palace on the Nile. Hey you didn't think they just brought Jesus one gold coin. Most likely it was bags upon bags. Money fit for a king, from a king. For reference, check out 1 Kings 10:10 for a gift to Solomon. If not for his whole life, at least for his youth things were most likely very good. Jesus was most likely from an Upper-Middle Class Business owner family in the Construction business.

Some would say that both events had to happen at the same time. That once the Shepherds announced the birth Herod would have been on the warpath. But remember, Shepherds announced his birth. From what I can gather from the Bible a lot of cultures simply looked down on Shepherds. I doubt Herod believed them. Now the Magi. He believed them. God Was a good Father, he made sure his Son was provided for in Royal Style. No scrimping here. To the OWS, a newsflash, Jesus, and his disciples, were in the 1%, or pretty close to it.

The rest of the Story.


Merry Christmas to all from The Night Beat.