For more than 2,000 years, men and women have pored over the meaning of Christmas, as festival, as history, as humankind’s intersection with the divine. But for most people, today, as it should be, is really about a grandchild’s hug, a partner’s kiss, or the delighted smile of an old friend:
And so, as if re-enacting a parable, Christmas Day and the days around it demonstrate in generosity, warmth and, for believers, prayer, the responsibility we have for each other and, yes, the regard we are supposed to demonstrate even to those who try us. And in the giving of gifts, we mimic, in a small way, the giving of self that is common to the Judeo-Christian and Abrahamic traditions so many of us share, and which secular humanism, too, advances.
Accordingly, at this time of year -- otherwise, often cold and dark in Greater Cleveland, even more so this year, with an Arctic blast of bitter cold enveloping us -- tens of thousands of people brighten life by giving of themselves, by making donations or volunteering time to help advance good causes. That’s the meaning of Christmas.
What are 'greater clevelanders'? How about we focus on making our city the best city in the world for the people who live here?