The Swaddling Cloth

Christmas Greetings! It's a quiet morning here in Austin, Texas. I am preparing some pecan tassies to deliver to my husband's co-workers later in the day and the air is full of anticipation for tonight's meal and gift opening. (Yes, we open gifts under the tree on the 24th, per family tradition relating to our mixed heritage of Swedes, Germans and Danes).

As you know I love reading the account of Jesus' birth every year. I especially love Luke's detailed account. He states in Chapter 1 Verse 3 how he took extreme care and investigated each detail, handling the text with meaningful and orderly arrangement. Those attention to details tend to accompany someone with the skill set of a physician. Luke was also educated in Greek culture and as the original text indicates wrote the book in the Classical Greek language.

Let me take a side step here and mention something that caught my attention when I was reading an article about Jesus' birth. It stated that the swaddling cloth mentioned in Luke chapter 2, verse 7 and 12 was a foreshadow of the event of Jesus' death and burial. I thought this interesting and decided to research a little more into this claim. There are many events where prophetic events can have two meanings in the Bible. I could see how this could be true but I couldn't take it at face value. I had to see what the Greek word Luke used for 'cloth' was in this passage. Something I think Luke would have done.

The Newborn King By: Waiting For The World

I'm glad I did. The term Luke chose and undoubtedly chose, in my mind, due to his historian's skeptical eye, was 'SPARGANOO'. This word means to CLOTHE in strips of cloth. Burial 'clothes' uses different terms entirely. 'ENTULISSO' and 'SINDON' refer to the wrapping of a body for burial.

Some state that 'Sparganoo' could still lend to the meaning of grave clothes meant for burial. I tend to disagree with this statement due to the fact the custom of wrapping newborns was detailed as a normal part of the birth process in an Old Testament passage referring to the detailed procedure of newborn care including, wrapping a baby in cloths. Ezekiel 16:4. (The Hebrew term for swaddling in this passage is Chothemeth , it is feminine (to close-up, to seal) connotes security. (NOTE: This particular verse is referring to the city of Jerusalem and used to make a point.)

I'm not sure the extent of Luke's experience in his occupation but I would assume he had working knowledge of the customs surrounding child birth.  I also have to take into consideration Luke's pointed effort to make it very clear in the beginning of his historical account that he took great pains to ensure the validity of the writing so Theophilus (to whom he wrote) may know with CERTAINTY the things he was taught.

It was a known custom for NEWBORN babies to be swaddled in cloths in the past and most people practice this in the present.

For instance, Luke used the term 'Entulisso and 'Sindon' when he wrote about Jesus' death and burial in Chapter 23, verse 50. Why wouldn't he have used these terms in Verse 7 and 12?

I love the specific details God gave the shepherds through His Angel. "Do not be afraid, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for ALL people. TODAY in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

It says the Shepherd's HURRIED off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger after hearing this news. (In the same day or within a few days of hearing the news, I do know it was within the first 8 days of Jesus birth that the Shepherds found him. Luke 2:21)

When they saw Him, they spread the word concerning what they had been told about this child and all who heard it were amazed.

I just have to take Luke's statement at its' beautiful, simplistic, accurate value. The Savior of the world was wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.

To God be the Glory this Christmas Season!

Reading For Thought:

Were Jesus' Swaddling Clothes Actually Grave Clothes?

What does it mean that Jesus was wrapped in swaddling clothes?

Interesting: According to Midrash,  the cloths could be a foreshadow of his burial. (Myrrh, a spice is used as an anointing for burial and was given to Jesus at His birth.) I may have missed the deeper meaning. I got the peshat (simple) but not the pesher (deeper) til now. (2-12-18). I'll have to make sure by asking someone educated in this area...

My Holiday Bete Noire

Ahh, Christmas Carols. Some love them, some love to hate them. Some are superb others absurd. They are overplayed, re-made, re-mixed and regurgitated every year. There is one Christmas Carol in particular that fits all of the above descriptions and grates on my nerves no matter which way the spin doctors of Christmas music try to polish the message.

It brings the sarcastic Scrooge out in me and my verbal rants spew their dissatisfaction on the piece every time I hear it. When the offending carol plays on the radio it has caused me to fly down the stairs at lighting speed to mute the clatter, with my family's eyes opened wide asking, "what is the matter?"

"Oh, I'm glad you asked, for I'm willing to share why The Little Drummer Boy is the bane of my Christmas Holiday.

My Sentiments Exactly

First, this whole song is an anachronism of great error.  Do you remember a drummer boy in the account of Jesus' birth?

Of course, I know one can write any scenario they want in the great realm of music creativity. We have a gamut of imaginary carols in the whole Holiday music library; Rudolph, Santa, Frosty the Snowman but the Little Drummer Boy sneaks his way into the Greatest Story Ever Told and it chaps my hide.

Let's just be frank here and talk about reality. I'll set the scene just to give a proper backdrop. Mary and Joseph have a baby, they are new parents, sleep is high on their priority list. The new schedule of having a newborn demands, feeding, bathing, hushing, burping and when the sweet baby is finally asleep the parents sigh in relief and are ready for bed themselves.

Along comes the Little Drummer Boy and rat-a-tat-tats his way into their life as a gift. Come on, no parent in their right mind would nod in approval as it says Mary does in the song. If I was Mary I would tell Joseph to go find out what all that racket was and shut it up as quick as possible.

And when Joseph found out the source of the headache creating 'pa rum pum pum pum' pulse beat, he'd be a smart husband and father to pay the poor boy off and tell him to scram.

Now that the anachronism part of the song lyrics are explained let's get to the actual song. I've about had it after the first chorus of 'pa rum pum pum pum.' What kind of writer makes you listen to that over and over again?

How about throwing in a few, 'da, da da dats', or 'crash, bang booms' for the variety!

OK, I've said my two cents, I've got it out of my system. I hope you can laugh at my little Holiday Carol 'bete noire'. Heck, maybe you've got your own Christmas song pet peeve and can relate.  I'd love to here about them.

I'll end this blog post with a little Drum Punchline

What Did You Make For The Holiday?

I am looking at my hands as I type the words for this blog and my dorsum looks a twin to a plucked chickens skin. My knuckles are creased and each appendage has differing nail lengths. I'd say they have seen a swab bucket or two in their lifetime. Part of me thinks I should tend to them a little more often than I do but to be honest that's low on my priority list.

We think it's important to work with your hands here at the Brown house. Whether it is getting them dirty working in the yard, preparing food in the kitchen, repairing parts on a vehicle, fixing used and abused household apparatuses; rough and tumbled hands are esteemed.

We used our hands this Holiday to create some fun decorations to help fill time but also satiate a need to make something beautiful. It was a healthy collaboration between heart and hands.

Festive Pine Cone Holiday Craft

Photo By: Alexandra Brown

Please enjoy this simple craft in your own home, made by your own hands. Put your own twist on it and see what transpires.

We made two types: A frosted snow and a sparkle, glisten style pine cone. A materials list for both types is listed below.

Materials List

• Small, Medium and Large Pine Cones
• White Acrylic Paint
• Paint Brush
• Glue
• Glitter
• Epsom Salts
• Bowl with Lid
• Ribbon
• Scissors
• Hot Glue Gun and Glue
• Newspaper

Directions: Frosted Snow Pine Cone

Protect your work surface with newspaper. Fill large bowl with about 1/2 Cup to 1 Cup of Epsom Salts. Paint tips of pine cone with white acrylic paint. Let dry. Apply glue over painted tips of pine cone, place the pine cone in the Epsom Salts bowl, place lid on top and shake. Remove lid, before removing pine cone, shake inside the bowl to remove loose salts. Set on newspaper to dry.

Directions: Sparkle and Glisten Pine Cone

Protect work surface with newspaper. Fill large bowl with glitter. (Have fun, choose any color you wish, we loved how silver looked.) Paint tips of pine cone and place inside bowl of glitter, apply lid to bowl and shake. Before removing pine cone, shake it gently inside the bowl to remove excess glitter. Lay on newspaper to dry.

Optional: Once your pine cones have dried. You can help secure the application by spray painting a satin lacquer on them OR you can just let them be. 

You can also spruce them up with bows and holly or just let them show off on their own. 

See the below pictures of where our pine cone craft took us. 

Photo By: Alexandra Brown

Photo By: Alexandra Brown

Photo By: Alexandra Brown

We hope your heart and hands create a beautiful array! 

Happy Crafting!

Remember all those bottle caps I've been saving for a crafting day escapade (archived blog post)... the craft epiphany finally made its' debut in the form of a Christmas Wreath.

YES, I'm proud!

Wreath Made and Photo By:
Chandra Brown

Let's Be Clear About Fresh Water

Have you ever had a moment when reading articles on a subject, something just doesn't sit right with you, so you read them again and stop to think about why they rubbed you the wrong way. Most of the time you can let it go and move on but this particular statement keeps nudging me in the side. It will even creep into my thoughts in order to spur me on in researching why I don't like it. So here goes my little rant on why the statement, 'fresh water is finite' irritated me enough to write about it.

First, I must clarify a few things to help give context to my reasoning on this issue. Let's start with the definition of finite.

Finite: Having limits or bounds. Synonyms: limited, determinate, fixed, restricted. "There is a finite amount of water in the system."

On the surface, the statement, 'fresh water is finite' is true. So why did these articles irritate me when they were discussing this fact.  After researching the water cycle and other science related facts about water, it hit me, it wasn't the actual statement that irritated me it was the context the statement was being used in.

Many articles subtly discussed the issue as if the last drop of fresh water was literally at the end of the barrel and mankind was on the brink of extinction. Some even vaguely mentioned population control as being a solution to our water problem. Others were a little less dramatic but used an emotional based slant for their argument to save the world. I smelled an agenda at hand by using a surface truth to manipulate an outcome.  See this article for reference. Note: I do not reject the problem solving needed in order for civilization to be responsible users of natural resources, I can just do without the fear mongering and half-truths which make you feel bad about using what God created for our benefit. I like to remind readers that God made it very clear He RENEWS (this word connotes an ongoing process) the earth, something we should rejoice in and give due respect to.

Setting agendas and politics aside, let me explain why I call it a surface truth. I call it a surface truth because there is more to the story that goes beyond finite boundaries and shows a miraculous truth so encompassing we should sit in awe of it. It's simple in it's beauty, complex in its' vast details, it is observable and plain to see, so reliable yet we can easily loose our focus on the entire truth and just focus on the surface truth which tends to lead to stagnation.

Fresh water is limited but God made a water cycle so intricate it is renewed daily, monthly, yearly. In fact, it has kept decades and centuries of populations going despite its' mis-use and abuse. I always take a stance towards being responsible and smart with what God has given us, we should always be mindful of the errors finite humans tend to succumb to concerning the natural resources God provides without fail.

Notice how I said finite humans. Water may have finite attributes but God designed and provided the water system to produce exactly what is needed in the past, present and future. An infinite God made this 'finite' system work the way He did with precision and as God tends to do, with an element of need, so the finite humans will learn to trust and follow His ways. It really is a beautiful picture of His amazing love and mercy for humankind.

I have to go off on a tangent here. When I observe the many ways in which God's system delivers fresh water to the earth I am awed by the beauty He made sure to work into His plan. Look at the many ways he shows His glory; vapor, mist, rain, sleet, snow and ice through the processes of evaporation, condensation, precipitation and transpiration where the water goes through a filtration process and comes out clean every time.  I also think of Romans 1:19-20, which states God's truth is plain for all to see through what He made, yet this is suppressed and ignored (my translation). In our day and age of Science and Nature worship, the water cycle has been one of those truths that has begun to be mishandled for ulterior purposes.

Since propaganda has its' grip on the definition of water I'd like to extend what I think of as a less muddled, closer to the whole truth definition of water.  I hope this makes things clear.

Fresh water in its pre-determined quota is infinitely renewable (despite the plethora of variances it experiences through its cycle). Fresh water is a miracle.

The definition of the word miracle according to the WWW is, "an extraordinary event manifesting divine intervention in human affairs." Maybe it's a stretch to some people to call fresh water a miracle but I'll let you be the judge of that. Read this well written description of the water cycle by Jeannette Walls from her book Half Broke Horses, a memoir of her families life as Ranchers (Ranchers tend to know how nature works) and you make the call.

"Sometimes over supper, when Jim got home after a storm, the kids would describe their escapades in the water and mud, and Jim would recount his vast store of water lore and water history. Once the world was nothing but water, he explained, and you wouldn't think it to look at us, but human beings were mostly water. The miraculous thing about water, he said, was that it never came to an end. All the water on the earth had been here since the beginning of time, it had just moved around rivers and lakes and oceans to clouds and rain and puddles and then sunk through the soil to underground streams, to springs, and wells, where it got drunk by people and animals and went back to rivers and lakes and oceans.

The water you kids were playing in, he said, had probably been to Africa and the North Pole. Genghis khan or Saint Peter or even Jesus himself might have drunk it. Cleopatra might have bathed in it. Crazy Horse might have watered his pony with it. Sometimes water was liquid. Sometimes it was rock hard-ice. Sometimes it was soft-snow. Sometimes it was visible but weightless- clouds. And sometimes it was completely invisible-vapor- floating up into the sky like the souls of dead people. There was nothing like water in the world, Jim said. It made the desert bloom but also turned rich bottom land into swamp. Without it we'd die, but it could also kill us, and that was why we loved it, even craved it, but also feared it. Never take water for granted, Jim said. Always cherish it. Always beware of it."

Further Reading on Water

Green Builders Journal, Water-An Infinite Or Finite Resource? by Herb Gardner

Science in the Bible: The Water Cycle by Cheri Fields

Psalms 135:7

Ecclesiastes 1:7

Ecclesiastes 11:3a

Amos 9:6b

Jeremiah 10:13

Isaiah 55:8-11

Job 36:27-28

Job 37: 16

Job 38:16

Genesis 1:1

Remember how I mentioned humans were finite? Take this into consideration, our infinite God who designed the water cycle for beneficial purposes also designed humans for a purpose. Can you guess what that purpose is? If you read my blog, the word relationship may be a clue, a relationship with eternal benefits.

THIS IS AWESOME. GOD'S PEOPLE (ISRAEL) USING HIS RESOURCE WISELY!
Must Read: Let There Be Water