As with, I suppose, many other end of the Baby Boom children - particularly the ones whose parents opted out of "church" - my first introduction to the manger story came from Linus in A Charlie Brown Christmas. "And Lo the angel of the lord came upon them, and the glory of the lord shone round about them, and they were sore afraid."
And as with, I suppose, many other people of every age in Western culture, my mental image of an angel has been railroaded a wee bit beginning with European art and later transmogrified by Hollywood into any sort of vaguely human figure with optional bird features, weaponry, and glowing head.
All well and good, yes, but my favorite conjuring up of the Gospel According to Luke Christmas narrative is from songwriter Bruce Cockburn's song Shepherds:
They wake up suddenly in the night
There is light
And figures dancing in the sky
Clothed in more colours than the world can contain
Must have really been something for those in the same country shepherds to see...
Merry Christmas, 2017
