Christmas Quotes

The purpose and cause of the incarnation was that He might illuminate the world by His wisdom and excite it to the love of Himself.
- Peter Abelard, as quoted in The Abelardian Doctrine Of The Atonement (1892), published in Doctrine and Development : University Sermons (1898) by Hastings Rashdall, p. 138

Ach, könnte nur dein Herz zu einer Krippe werden,
Gott würde noch einmal ein Kind auf dieser Erden.
- [Could but your heart become a manger for his birth,
  God would again become a child upon this earth.]
- Angelus Silesius, Der Cherubinische Wandersmann 2:53

Let us remember that the Christmas heart is a giving heart, a wide–open–heart that thinks of others first. The birth of the baby Jesus stands as the most significant event in all history, because it has meant the pouring into a sick world the healing medicine of love which has transformed all manner of hearts for almost two thousand years… Underneath all the bulging bundles is this beating Christmas heart.
- George Matthew Adams in The Christmas Heart

I have often thought, says Sir Roger, it happens very well that Christmas should fall in the Middle of winter.
- Joseph Addison in The Spectator (January 1712)

In the old days, it was not called the Holiday Season; the Christians called it ‘Christmas’ and went to church; the Jews called it ‘Hanukkah’ and went to synagogue; the atheists went to parties and drank. People passing each other on the street would say ‘Merry Christmas!’ or ‘Happy Hanukkah!’ or (to the atheists) ‘Look out for the wall!’
- Dave Barry in Christmas Shopping: A Survivor’s Guide

I’m dreaming of a white Christmas
- Irving Berlin White Christmas (1942)

And is it true? And is it true,
This most tremendous tale of all,
Seen in a stained-glass window’s hue,
A Baby in an in ox’s stall?
The Maker of the stars and sea
Became a Child on earth for me?
- Sir John Betjeman (1954)

There’s nothing sadder in this world than to awake Christmas morning and not be a child.
- Erma Bombeck in I Lost Everything in the Post-Natal Depression (1970)

[The Christmas story] is as simple as was the Man himself and His teaching. As simple as the Sermon on the Mount which still remains as the ultimate basis … of the belief of free men of good will everywhere.
- Hal Borland in The Wonder

And so, this Christmas season may our hearts with gladness glow, As we read the blessed story That took place so long ago.
- Alpha L. Buntain in The First Christmas

During the beautiful and holy season of Christmas, our hearts are filled with the same wonder, gratitude, and joy that led the psalmist of old to ask, When I consider Thy heavens, the work of Thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which Thou hast ordained, What is man, that Thou art mindful of him? And the son of man, that Thou visitest him?” At Christmas, we, too, rejoice in the mystery of God’s love for us – love revealed through the gift of Christ’s birth. Born into a family of a young carpenter and his wife, in a stable shared by beasts of the field, our Savior came to live among ordinary men. Yet, in time, the miraculous nature of this simple event became clear. Christ’s birth changed the course of history, bringing the light of hope to a world dwelling in the darkness of sin and death. Today, nearly 2,000 years later, the shining promise of that first Christmas continues to give our lives a sense of peace and purpose. Our words and deeds, when guided by the example of Christ’s life, can help others share in the joy of man’s Redemption.
- George H. W. Bush, Message on the Observance of Christmas,” December 18. 1989

Now once again, we celebrate Christmas in a time of testing, with American troops far from home. . . . It is worth recalling the words from a beautiful Christmas hymn. In the third verse of Oh Holy Night” we sing, His law is love, and His gospel is peace. Chains ye shall break, for the slave is our brother. And in His name all oppression shall cease. . . . We fight so that oppression may cease, and even in the midst of war, we pray for peace on Earth and good will to men.
- George W. Bush, Remarks on Lighting the National Christmas Tree,” December 6, 2001

Throughout the Christmas season our thoughts turn to a star in the east, seen 20 centuries ago, and to a light that can guide us still. . . . The story of Christmas is familiar to us all, and it still holds a sense of wonder and surprise. When the good news came first to a young woman from Nazareth, her response was understandable. She asked, How can this be?” The news would bring difficulty to her family and suspicion upon herself. Yet, Mary gave her reply, Be it unto me according to Thy word.” The wait for a new king had been long, and the manner of his arrival was not as many had expected. The king’s first cries were heard by shepherds and cattle. He was raised by a carpenter’s son. Yet this one humble life lifted the sights of humanity forever. And in His words we hear a voice like no other. . . . We don’t know all of God’s ways, yet the Christmas story promises that God’s purpose is justice and His plan is peace. At times this belief is tested. During the Civil War, Longfellow wrote a poem that later became a part of a Christmas carol, Hate is strong and mocks the song of peace on Earth, good will to men.” That poem also reminds us that hate is not the final word: Then pealed the bells more loud and deep, `God is not dead, nor doth He sleep, the wrong shall fail, the right prevail, with peace on Earth, good will to men.”‘
- George W. Bush, Remarks on Lighting the National Christmas Tree,” December 4, 2003

Regarding public Christmas displays: At some point, someone who worked at Rockefeller Center must have said, Boys, I have a great idea for Christmas. Let’s kill a beautiful tree that’s been alive for seventy-five years and bring it to New York City. We’ll stand it up in Rockefeller Plaza and conceal its natural beauty by hanging shiny, repulsive, man-made objects on it, and let it stand there slowly dying for several weeks while simpleminded children stare at it and people from Des Moines take pictures of it. That way, perhaps we can add our own special, obscene imprint to Christmas in Midtown. –
- George Carlin, When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops? (2004), p. 88

Christmas has a special meaning for those of us who are Christians, those of us who believe in Christ, those of us who know that almost 2,000 years ago, the Son of Peace was born to give us a vision of perfection, a vision of humility, a vision of unselfishness, a vision of compassion, a vision of love.
- Jimmy Carter, Christmas Pageant of Peace Remarks on Lighting the National Community Christmas Tree,” December 15, 1977

In the first Christmas, the people who lived in the land of the Jews were hoping for a Messiah. They prayed God to send them that savior, and when the shepherds arrived at the place to see their prayers answered they didn’t find a king, they found a little baby. And I’m sure they were very disappointed to see that God had not answered their prayers properly, but we Christians know that the prayers had been answered in a very wonderful way. God knew how to answer prayer.
- Jimmy Carter, Christmas Pageant of Peace Remarks on Lighting the National Community Christmas Tree,” December 18, 1980

Virginia, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the scepticism of a sceptical age. They do not believe except they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men’s or children’s are little. In this great universe of ours man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus! It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias. There would be no child-like faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished. Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies! You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if you did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that’s no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world. You tear apart the baby’s rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived, could tear apart. Only faith, fancy, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, Virginia, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding. No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives, and he lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.
- Francis Pharcellus Church in Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus

Christmas is a time to expand our giving encompassing the friendless and needy … near and far. Christmas is sharing. – Patricia Claffor in Christmas

The beloved Christmas story itself is a story of light, for, as the Gospel of John tells us, Jesus came into the world as the true Light” [John 1:9] that illumines all humankind. Almost 2,000 years later, that Light still shines amid the dark places of our world.
- Bill Clinton, Message on the Observance of Christmas,” December 22, 1997

Saint Matthew’s Gospel tells us that on the first Christmas 2000 years ago, a bright star shone vividly in the eastern sky, heralding the birth of Jesus and the beginning of His hallowed mission as teacher, healer, servant, and savior. . . . His luminous teachings have brought hope and joy to generations of believers. . . . His timeless message of God’s enduring and unconditional love for each and every person continues to strengthen and inspire us. . . . Love, peace, joy, hope – so many beautiful words are woven through our Christmas songs and prayers and traditions.
- Bill Clinton, Message on the Observance of Christmas,” December 21, 1999

God rest ye, little children; let nothing you afright,
For Jesus Christ, your Saviour, was born this happy night;
Along the hills of Galilee the white blocks sleeping lay,
When Christ, the child of Nazareth, was born on Christmas day.
- Dinah Craik in Christmas Carol, St. 2

I do come home at Christmas. We all do, or we all should. We all come home, or ought to come home, for a short holiday — the longer, the better — from the great boarding-school, where we are forever working at our arithmetical slates, to take, and give a rest.
- Charles Dickens in A Christmas Tree

Once upon a time — of all the good days in the year, on Christmas Eve — old Scrooge sat busy in his counting-house.
- Charles Dickens in A Christmas Carol

A merry Christmas, uncle! God save you! cried a cheerful voice. Bah! said Scrooge. Humbug!
- Charles Dickens in A Christmas Carol

At this festive season of the year, Mr Scrooge, said the gentleman, taking up a pen, it is more than usually desirable that we should make some slight provision for the poor and destitute, who suffer greatly at the present time. … We choose this time, because it is a time, of all others, when Want is keenly felt, and Abundance rejoices. –
- Charles Dickens in A Christmas Carol

Out upon merry Christmas! What’s Christmas time to you but a time for paying bills without money; a time for finding yourself a year older, but not an hour richer… If I could work my will, said Scrooge indignantly, every idiot who goes about with ‘Merry Christmas’ upon his lips should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart. He should!
- Ebeneezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

I am sure I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round — apart from the veneration due to its sacred name and origin, if anything belonging to it can be apart from that — as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time: the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys. And therefore, uncle, though it has never put a scrap of gold or silver in my pocket, I believe that it has done me good, and will do me good; and I say, God bless it!’
- Charles Dickens in A Christmas Carol

Somehow he gets thoughtful sitting by himself so much, and thinks the strangest things you ever heard. He told me, coming home, that he hoped the people saw him in the church, because he was a cripple, and it might be pleasant for them to remember upon Christmas Day, who made lame beggars walk, and blind men see.
- Charles Dickens in A Christmas Carol

Then Bob proposed: A Merry Christmas to us all, my dears. God bless us! Which all his family re-echoed. God bless us every one! said Tiny Tim, the last of all.
- Charles Dickens in A Christmas Carol

It was always said of him, that he knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge. May that be truly said of us, and all of us! And so, as Tiny Tim observed, God Bless Us, Every One!
- Charles Dickens on Scrooge after his visitations, in A Christmas Carol

A song was heard at Christmas
To wake the midnight sky:
A saviour’s birth, and peace on earth,
And praise to God on high.
The angels sang at Christmas
With all the hosts above,
And still we sing the newborn King
His glory and his love.
- Timothy Dudley-Smith in A Song was Heard at Christmas

Christmas is an awfulness that compares favorably with the great London plague and fire of 1665-66. No one escapes the feelings of mortal dejection, inadequacy, frustration, loneliness, guilt and pity. No one escapes feeling used by society, by religion, by friends and relatives, by the utterly artifical responsiblities of extending false greetings, sending banal cards, reciprocating unsolicated gifts, going to dull parties, putting up with acquaintances and family one avoids all the rest of the year…in short, of being brutalized by a ‘holiday’ that has lost virtually all of its original meanings and has become a merchandising ploy for color tv set manufacturers and ravagers of the woodlands.
- Harlan Ellison in No Offense Intended, But Fuck Xmas! (1972), The Harlan Ellison Hornbook

I’d like a stocking made for a giant,
And a meeting house full of toys,
Then I’d go out in a happy hunt
For the poor little girls and boys;
Up the street and down the street,
And across and over the town,
I’d search and find them everyone,
Before the sun went down.
- Eugene Field in A Christmas Wish.

As we gather here before our Nation’s Christmas tree, symbolic of the communion of Americans at Christmastime, we remind ourselves of the eternal truths by which we live. . . . In our 200 years, we Americans have always honored the spiritual testament of 2,000 years ago. We embrace the spirit of the Prince of Peace so that we might find peace in our own hearts and in our own land, and hopefully in the world as well.
- Gerald Ford, Remarks at the Lighting of the National Community Christmas Tree,” December 18, 1975

… and now Christmas is for shoppin’ and the shoppin’ god is everything …
- Matthew Good – ‘The Future Is X-Rated’, from his 1999 album, ‘Beautiful Midnight’

Christmas will always be in the hearts of God’s children everywhere as they extend a helping hand to a friend in need … as they go about reflecting God’s goodness in the little quiet and unheralded expressions of a loving heart … as they share the light of the world with those who live in darkness .
- Jane Hillsmen in Christmas

The happiness and love on this one day
Bring thoughts which warm and cheer.
May we keep Christmas in our hearts
Through every day of all the year.
- Gertrude B. Holman in The Little Things at Christmas

Your annual Christmas service . . . is a dramatic and inspiring event of national interest. It symbolizes and vivifies our greatest Christian festival with its eternal message of unselfishness, joy, and peace.
- Herbert Hoover, Message to the Nation’s Christmas Trees Association,” December 25, 1931

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulders; and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.
- Isaiah 9:6

We were taught by Him whose birth we commemorate that after death there is life. . . . In these last 200 years we have guided the building of our Nation and our society by those principles and precepts brought to earth nearly 2,000 years ago on that first Christmas.
- Lyndon B. Johnson, Remarks at the Lighting of the Nation’s Christmas Tree,” December 22, 1963, Lyndon B. Johnson’s Christmas Eve Radio and T.V. Broadcast

In a few days we shall all celebrate the birth of His Holiness on earth. . . . We shall acknowledge the Kingdom of a Child in a world of men. That Child – we should remember – grew into manhood Himself, preached and moved men in many walks of life, and died in agony. But His death – so the Christian faith tells us – was not the end. For Him, and for millions of men and women ever since, it marked a time of triumph – when the spirit of life triumphed over death.
- Lyndon B. Johnson, Remarks at the Lighting of the Nation’s Christmas Tree,” December 15, 1967

The star of Bethlehem was a star of hope that led the wise men to the fulfillment of their expectations, the success of their expedition. Nothing in this world is more fundamental for success in life than hope, and this star pointed to our only source for true hope: Jesus Christ.
- D. James Kennedy in Following the Star from Christmas Stories for the Heart

Now out upon you, Christmas !
Is this the merry time
When the red hearth blazed, the harper sung,
And the bells rung their glorious chime ? . . .
I saw an aged woman turn
To her wretched home again —
All day she had asked charity,
And all day asked in vain. . . .
Is this the curse that is laid on the earth ?
And must it ever be so,
That there can be nothing of human good
But must from some evil flow ? . . .
Then out on the folly of ancient times—
The folly which wished you mirth :
Look round on the anguish, look round on the vice,
Then dare to be glad upon earth !
- Letitia Elizabeth Landon, The London Literary Gazette, 14th January 1832, ‘Christmas’ (extracts)

A very Merry Christmas
And a happy New Year
Let’s hope it’s a good one
Without any fear.
War is over, if you want it
War is over now.
- John Lennon and Yoko Ono in Happy Xmas (War is over) (1971)

Late on a sleepy, star-spangled night, those angels peeled back the sky just like you would tear open a sparkling Christmas present. Then, with light and joy pouring out of Heaven like water through a broken dam, they began to shout and sing the message that baby Jesus had been born. The world had a Savior! The angels called it Good News, and it was.
- Larry Libby in The Angels Called it Good News from Christmas Stories for the Heart

It was the Yuletide, that men call Christmas, though they know in their hearts it is older than Bethlehem and Babylon, older than Memphis and Mankind.
- H.P. Lovecraft in The Festival

Off to one side sits a group of shepherds. They sit silently on the floor, perhaps perplexed, perhaps in awe, no doubt in amazement. Their night watch had been interrupted by an explosion of light from heaven and a symphony of angels. God goes to those who have time to hear him — and so on this cloudless night he went to simple shepherds.
- Max Lucado in The Arrival from Christmas Stories for the Heart

Were it not for the shepherds, there would have been no reception. And were it not for a group of stargazers, there would have been no gifts.
- Max Lucado, God Came Near

There is far-reaching appropriateness in the fact that the world’s immortal baby story, that of Bethlehem, should be a story of turning things upside down — for that is a baby’s chief business. It is a gross slander on babies that their chief passion is food. It is rearrangement. Every orthodox baby rearranges all that he sees, from the order of importance in the family to the bric-a-brac and window curtains. The advent of every baby completely upsets his little world, both physically and spiritually. And it is not one of the smallest values of the fact that the Saviour of the world came into it as a baby, that it reminds men that every baby is born a savior, to some extent, from selfishness and greed and sin in the little circle which his advent blesses.
- Halford Edward Luccock, in Essay XXXV : Everything Upside Down, in Fares, Please!: And Other Essays on Practical Themes (1915); 1916 edition, p. 185

Christmas turns everything upside down. This is the central truth of the incarnation — Immanuel, God with us. – The upside of heaven come down to earth. The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, . . . full of grace and truth. – Men miss the entire meaning of Jesus when they see in him the highest upreach of man; he is God reaching down and making common cause with man’s struggle. The meaning of Christmas puts down the mighty things in men’s minds from their seats — place, riches, talents — and exalts the things of low degree — humility, simplicity, and trust.
- Halford Edward Luccock, in Essay XXXV : Everything Upside Down, in Fares, Please!: And Other Essays on Practical Themes (1915); 1916 edition, p. 185
- Variant, :
- The central core of truth is that Christmas turns everything upside down, the upside of heaven come down to earth. The Christmas story puts a new value on every man. He is not a thing to be used, not a chemical accident, not an educated ape. Every man is a V.I.P., because he has divine worth. That was revealed when Love came down at Christmas.” A scientist said, making a plea for exchange scholarships between nations, The best way to send an idea is to wrap it up in a person.” That was what happened at Christmas. The idea of divine love was wrapped up in a person.
  Christmas is good news in a world of bad news. … Christmas brings hope to a dark world.
  - Halford Luccock, in Whoops! It’s Christmas (1959) a re-working of his 1915 essay, published in The Abbott Christmas Book (1960) edited by Herbert W. Luthin

Charles Lamb, in one of his most delightful essays, sets high worth on the observance of All Fools’ Day, because it says to a man: You look wise. Pray correct that error! Christmas brings the universal message to men: You look important and great; pray correct that error. – It overturns the false standards that have blinded the vision and sets up again in their rightful magnitude those childlike qualities by which we enter the Kingdom.
Christmas turns things inside out. Under the spell of the Christmas story the locked up treasures of kindliness and sympathy come from the inside of the heart, where they are often kept imprisoned, to the outside of actual expression in deed and word. … It is the vision of the Christ-child which enables all men to get at the best treasures of their lives and offer them for use.
- Halford Edward Luccock, in Essay XXXV : Everything Upside Down, in Fares, Please!: And Other Essays on Practical Themes (1915); 1916 edition, p. 185

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 the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men…
- Luke 2:9-14

Have you any old grudges you would like to pay,
Any wrongs laid up from a bygone day?
Gather them now and lay them away
When Christmas comes.
Hard thoughts are heavy to carry, my friend,
And life is short from beginning to end;
Be kind to yourself, leave nothing to mend
When Christmas comes.
- William Lytle in When Christmas Comes

Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, saying, where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.
- Matthew 2:1 – 2

Huey Freeman: Look, Granddad, it’s clear from the scripture that Jesus was not born in winter. The shepherds, who saw the angels announcing his birth, would not have been out in their fields in December. The Palestinian winters are too cold. If you believe in that sort of thing. The truth is, Christmas evolved from the Roman holiday Saturnalia, a winter festival where men gave gifts to each other. They also would get drunk, have sex with each other and beat their wives. People would act so crazy on Christmas, the holiday was outlawed by the Protestant church until the 1800s.
- Aaron McGruder The Boondocks (TV series) A Huey Freeman Christmas

There is no ideal Christmas; only the one Christmas you decide to make as a reflection of your values, desires, affections, traditions.
- Bill McKibben in Hundred Dollar Holiday: The Case For a More Joyful Christmas

The outdoor Christmas lights, green and red and gold and blue and twinkling, remind me that most people are that way all year round — kind, generous, friendly and with an occasional moment of ecstasy. But Christmas is the only time they dare reveal themselves.
- Harlan Miller in Better Homes and Gardens

Stille Nacht! Heilige Nacht!
Alles schläft; einsam wacht
Nur das traute hochheilige Paar.
Holder Knabe im lockigen Haar,
Schlafe in himmlischer Ruh!
- Silent night! Holy night!
  All are sleeping, alone and awake
  Only the intimate sacrosanct pair,
  Lovely boy with curly hair,
  Sleep in heavenly peace!
- Josef Mohr, original German lyrics and translation of Stille Nacht (Silent Night). These have traditionally been altered to:

Silent night! Holy night!
All is calm, all is bright
round yon Virgin Mother and Child,
Holy infant so tender and mild,
sleep in Heavenly peace!

We hear the beating of wings over Bethlehem and a light that is not of the sun or of the stars shines in the midnight sky. Let the beauty of the story take away all narrowness, all thought of formal creeds. Let it be remembered as a story that has happened again and again, to men of many different races, that has been expressed through many religions, that has been called by many different names. Time and space and language lay no limitations upon human brotherhood.
- The New York Times (25 December 1937)

As you chose the lowly, the outcasts, and the poor to receive the greatest news the world had ever known, so may we worship you in meekness of heart. May we also remember our brothers and sisters less fortunate than ourselves in this season of giving. Amen.
- Karen L. Oberst (Light Came at Christmas: Services for the Advent Wreath)

Forasmuch as the feast of the nativity of Christ, Easter, Whitsuntide, and other festivals, commonly called holy-days, have been heretofore superstitiously used and observed; be it ordained, that the said feasts, and all other festivals, commonly called holy-days, be no longer observed as festivals; any law, statute, custom, constitution, or canon, to the contrary in anywise not withstanding.
- Puritan legislation in the British Parliament, abolishing the festival celebration of Christmas and other holidays (June 1647); as quoted in The History of the Puritans (1837) by Daniel Neal

I hear that in many places something has happened to Christmas; that it is changing from a time of merriment and carefree gaiety to a holiday which is filled with tedium; that many people dread the day and the obligation to give Christmas presents is a nightmare to weary, bored souls; that the children of enlightened parents no longer believe in Santa Claus; that all in all, the effort to be happy and have pleasure makes many honest hearts grow dark with despair instead of beaming with good will and cheerfulness.
- Julia Peterkin in A Plantation Christmas (1934)

At this special time of year, we all renew our sense of wonder in recalling the story of the first Christmas in Bethlehem, nearly 2,000 year ago. Some celebrate Christmas as the birthday of a great and good philosopher and teacher. Others of us believe in the Divinity of the child born in Bethlehem, that He was and is the promised Prince of Peace. . . . Tonight, in millions of American homes, the glow of the Christmas tree is a reflection of the love Jesus taught us. . . . Christmas means so much because of one special child.
- Ronald Reagan, Address to the Nation About Christmas and the Situation in Poland,” December 23, 1981, Reagan’s Christmas Address from the Oval Office

In this holiday season, we celebrate the birthday of One Who, for almost 2,000 years, has been a greater influence on humankind than all the rulers, all the scholars, all the armies and all the navies that ever marched or sailed, all put together. He brought to the world the simple message of peace on Earth, good will to all mankind. Some celebrate the day as marking the birth of a great and good man, a wise teacher and prophet, and they do so sincerely. But for many of us it’s also a holy day, the birthday of the Prince of Peace, a day when God so loved the world” that He sent us His only begotten Son to assure forgiveness of our sins.
- Ronald Reagan, Remarks on Lighting the National Community Christmas Tree,” December 16, 1982

Many stories have been written about Christmas. Charles Dickens’ Carol” is probably the most famous. Well, I’d like to read some lines from a favorite of mine called, One Solitary Life,” which describes for me the meaning of Christmas. [He then read the full story.] . . . I have always believed that the message of Jesus is one of hope and joy. I know there are those who recognize Christmas Day as the birthday of a great and good man, a wise teacher who gave us principles to live by. And then there are others of us who believe that He was the Son of God, that He was Divine. If we live our lives for truth, for love, and for God, we never need be afraid.
- Ronald Reagan, Remarks on Lighting the National Community Christmas Tree,” December 15, 1983

We do not know the exact moment the Christ Child was born, only what we would have seen if we’d been standing there as we stand here now: Suddenly, a star from heaven shining in our eyes, shining with brilliant beauty across the skies, a star pointing toward eternity in the night, like a great ring of pure and endless light, and then all was calm, and all was bright. Such was the beginning of one solitary life that would shake the world as never before or since. When we speak of Jesus and of His life, we speak of a man revered as a prophet and teacher by people of all religions, and Christians speak of someone greater – a man Who was and is Divine. He brought forth a power that is infinite and a promise that is eternal, a power greater than all mankind’s military might, for His power is Godly love, love that can lift our hearts and soothe our sorrows and heal our wounds and drive away our fears. . . . If each of us could give but a fraction to one another of what He gave to the whole human family, how many hearts could heal, how much sorrow and pain could be driven away.
- Ronald Reagan, Remarks on Lighting the National Christmas Tree,” December 12, 1985

It is not even the beginning of Christmas unless it is Christmas in the heart.
- Richard Roberts in Contemporary Christ

Around the Manger of the Babe of Bethlehem all Nations and kindreds and tongues” [Revelation 7:9] find unity. . . . The spirit of Christmas breathes an eternal message of peace and good-will to all men. We pause, therefore, on this Holy Night and . . . rejoice that nineteen hundred years ago, heralded by angels, there came into the world One whose message was of peace, who gave to all mankind a new commandment of love. In that message of love and of peace we find the true meaning of Christmas. And so I greet you with the greeting of the Angels on that first Christmas at Bethlehem which, resounding through centuries, still rings out with its eternal message: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good-will to men.”
- FDR, Christmas Greeting to the Nation,” December 24, 1935

In the happiness of this Eve of the most blessed day in the year, I give to all of my countrymen the old, old greeting – Merry Christmas – Happy Christmas.” . . . Let us rather pray that we may be given strength to live for others – to live more closely to the words of the Sermon on the Mount and to pray that peoples in the nations which are at war may also read, learn and inwardly digest these deathless words. May their import reach into the hearts of all men and of all nations. I offer them as my Christmas message:

Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

- FDR, Radio Christmas Greeting to the Nation,” December 24, 1939

There are many men and women in America – sincere and faithful men and women – who are asking themselves this Christmas. . . . How can we meet and worship with love and with uplifted spirit and heart in a world at war, a world of fighting and suffering and death? . . . How can we put the world aside . . . to rejoice in the birth of Christ? . . . And even as we ask these questions, we know the answer. There is another preparation demanded of this Nation beyond and beside the preparation of weapons and materials of war. There is demanded also of us the preparation of our hearts – the arming of our hearts. And when we make ready our hearts for the labor and the suffering and the ultimate victory which lie ahead, then we observe Christmas Day – with all of its memories and all of its meanings – as we should. Looking into the days to come, I have set aside a day of prayer.
- FDR, Christmas Eve Message to the Nation,” December 24, 1941

Here, at home, we will celebrate this Christmas Day in our traditional American way – because of its deep spiritual meaning to us; because the teachings of Christ are fundamental in our lives; and because we want our youngest generation to grow up knowing the significance of this tradition and the story of the coming of the immortal Prince of Peace and Good Will. [He then led in a prayer for the troops] We pray that with victory will come a new day of peace on earth in which all the Nations of the earth will join together for all time. That is the spirit of Christmas, the holy day. May that spirit live and grow throughout the world in all the years to come.
- FDR, Address to the Nation,” December 24, 1944

No one can celebrate a genuine Christmas without being truly poor. The self-sufficient, the proud, those who, because they have everything, look down on others, those who have no need ever of God — for them there will be no Christmas. Only the poor, the hungry, those who need someone to come on their behalf, will have that someone. That someone is God, Emmanuel, God-with-us. Without poverty of spirit there can be no abundance of God.
- Salvadoran Archbishop Óscar Romero, as quoted in Dionne, E J (Dec. 24, 2004). Washington Post (Washington, DC): p. A17.

All the Whos down in Whoville liked Christmas a lot,
but the Grinch, who lived just north of Whoville, did not.
The Grinch hated Christmas — the whole Christmas season.
Oh, please don’t ask why, no one quite knows the reason.
It could be, perhaps, that his shoes were too tight.
Or maybe his head wasn’t screwed on just right.
But I think that the best reason of all
may have been that his heart was two sizes too small. – Dr. Seuss, The Grinch Who Stole Christmas

And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled ’till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store? What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more? – Dr. Seuss, The Grinch Who Stole Christmas

At Christmas I no more desire a rose
Than wish a snow in May’s newfangled mirth;
But life of each thing that in season grows. – William Shakespeare

Christmas … is not an external event at all, but a piece of one’s home that one carries in one’s heart. – Freya Stark

This is the Christmas that a war-weary world has prayed for through long and awful years. . . . We meet in the spirit of the first Christmas, when the midnight choir sang the hymn of joy: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” Let us not forget that the coming of the Savior brought a time of long peace to the Roman World. . . . From the manger of Bethlehem came a new appeal to the minds and hearts of men: A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another.” . . . Would that the world would accept that message in this time of its greatest need! . . . We must strive without ceasing to make real the prophecy of Isaiah: They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning-hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.” In this day, whether it be far or near, the Kingdoms of this world shall become indeed the Kingdom of God and He will reign forever and ever, Lord of Lords and King of Kings. – Harry Truman, December 24, 1945

Since returning home, I have been reading again in our family Bible some of the passages which foretold this night. . . . We miss the spirit of Christmas if we consider the Incarnation as an indistinct and doubtful, far-off event unrelated to our present problems. We miss the purport of Christ’s birth if we do not accept it as a living link which joins us together in spirit as children of the ever-living and true God. In love alone – the love of God and the love of man – will be found the solution of all the ills which afflict the world today. – Harry Truman, December 24, 1949

At this Christmastime we should renew our faith in God. We celebrate the hour in which God came to man. It is fitting that we should turn to Him. . . . But all of us – at home, at war, wherever we may be – are within reach of God’s love and power. We all can pray. We all should pray. . . . We should pray for a peace which is the fruit of righteousness. The Nation already is in the midst of a Crusade of Prayer. On the last Sunday of the old year, there will be special services devoted to a revival of faith. I call upon all of you to enlist in this common cause. . . . We are all joined in the fight against the tyranny of communism. Communism is godless. Democracy is the harvest of faith – faith in one’s self, faith in one’s neighbors, faith in God. Democracy’s most powerful weapon is not a gun, tank, or bomb. It is faith. . . . Let us pray at this Christmastime for the wisdom, the humility, and the courage to carry on in this faith. – Harry Truman, December 24, 1950

Through Jesus Christ the world will yet be a better and a fairer place. This faith sustains us today as it has sustained mankind for centuries past. This is why the Christmas story, with the bright stars shining and the angels singing, moves us to wonder and stirs our hearts to praise. Now, my fellow countrymen, I wish for all of you a Christmas filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and many years of future happiness with the peace of God reigning upon this earth. – Harry S. Truman, December 24, 1952

For centuries men have kept an appointment with Christmas. Christmas means fellowship, feasting, giving and receiving, a time of good cheer, home. – W. J. Tucker

At Christmas be merry and thankful withal,
And feast your poor neighbors, the great and the small. – Thomas Tusser

Are you willing to forget what you have done for other people, and to remember what other people have done for you … to remember the weakness and loneliness of people who are growing old … Are you willing to believe that love is the strongest thing in the world — stronger than hate, stronger than evil, stronger than death — and that the blessed life which began in Bethlehem nineteen hundred years ago is the image and brightness of the Eternal Love? Then you can keep Christmas! But you can never keep it alone. – Henry van Dyke

Gloria, Gloria! they cry, for their song embraces all that the Lord has begun this day: Glory to God in the highest of heavens! And peace to the people with whom he is pleased! And who are these people? With whom does the good Lord choose to take his pleasure? The shepherds. The plain and nameless — whose every name the Lord knows well. You. And me. – Walter Wangerin Jr.

So here comes Gabriel again, and what he says is Good tidings of great joy … for all people. – … That’s why the shepherds are first: they represent all the nameless, all the working stiffs, the great wheeling population of the whole world. – Walter Wangerin Jr.

I love the Christmas-tide, and yet,
I notice this, each year I live;
I always like the gifts I get,
But how I love the gifts I give!
‘Tis blessed to bestow, and yet,
Could we bestow the gifts we get,
And keep the ones we give away,
How happy were our Christmas day! – Carolyn Wells

To perceive Christmas through its wrapping becomes more difficult with every year. – E. B. White

I like the Christmas that fulfills my needs … to be forgiven from greed and selfishness, to fill my empty soul with peace and compassion, for hope and faith and charity, for myself renewed and hope restored in an erring world. – Robert D. Wigert

When Christmas bells are swinging above the fields of snow,
We hear sweet voices ringing from lands of long ago,
And etched on vacant places
Are half-forgotten faces
Of friends we used to cherish, and loves we used to know. – Ella Wheeler Wilcox

God’s visit to earth took place in an animal shelter with no attendants present and nowhere to lay the newborn king but a feed trough. … For just an instant the sky grew luminous with angels, yet who saw the spectacle? Illiterate hirelings who watched the flocks of others, nobodies who failed to leave their names… – Philip Yancy

This Advent we look to the Wise Men to teach us where to focus our attention. We set our sights on things above, where God is. We draw closer to Jesus… When our Advent journey ends, and we reach the place where Jesus resides in Bethlehem, may we, like the Wise Men, fall on our knees and adore him as our true and only King. – Mark Zimmermann

I find Christmas very difficult. – Morrissey on stage at Earl’s Court

The mistletoe hung in the castle hall,
The holly branch shone on the old oak wall. – Thomas Haynes Bayly

And the Baron’s retainers were blithe and gay,
And keeping their Christmas holiday. – Thomas Haynes Bayly

No trumpet-blast profaned
The hour in which the Prince of Peace was born;
No bloody streamlet stained
Earth’s silver rivers on that sacred morn. – William Cullen Bryant

Christians awake, salute the happy morn
Whereon the Saviour of the world was born. – John Byrom

For little children everywhere
A joyous season still we make;
We bring our precious gifts to them,
Even for the dear child Jesus’ sake. – Phoebe Cary

It was the calm and silent night!
Seven hundred years and fifty-three
Had Rome been growing up to might
And now was queen of land and sea.
No sound was heard of clashing wars,
Peace brooded o’er the hushed domain;
Apollo, Pallas, Jove and Mars,
Held undisturbed their ancient reign,
In the solemn midnight,
Centuries ago. – Alfred Domett

How bless’d, how envied, were our life,
Could we but scape the poulterer’s knife!
But man, curs’d man, on Turkeys preys,
And Christmas shortens all our days:
Sometimes with oysters we combine,
Sometimes assist the savory chine;
From the low peasant to the lord,
The Turkey smokes on every board. – John Gay

What babe new born is this that in a manger cries?
Near on her lowly bed his happy mother lies.
Oh, see the air is shaken with white and heavenly wings—
This is the Lord of all the earth, this is the King of Kings. – Richard Watson Gilder

As I sat on a sunny bank
On Christmas day in the morning
I spied three ships come sailing in. – Washington Irving

High noon behind the tamarisks, the sun is hot above us—
As at home the Christmas Day is breaking wan,
They will drink our healths at dinner, those who tell us how they love us,
And forget us till another year be gone! – Rudyard Kipling

Shepherds at the grange,
Where the Babe was born,
Sang with many a change,
Christmas carols until morn. – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old, familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men! – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Hail to the King of Bethlehem,
Who weareth in his diadem
The yellow crocus for the gem
Of his authority! – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

What means this glory round our feet,
The Magi mused, more bright than morn!
And voices chanted clear and sweet,
To-day the Prince of Peace is born. -James Russell Lowell

Let’s dance and sing and make good cheer,
For Christmas comes but once a year. – G. Macfarren

Ring out, ye crystal spheres!
Once bless our human ears,
If ye have power to touch our senses so;
And let your silver chime
Move in melodious time,
And let the bass of Heaven’s deep organ blow;
And with your ninefold harmony
Make up full consort to the angelic symphony. – John Milton

This is the month, and this the happy morn,
Wherein the Son of Heaven’s eternal King,
Of wedded maid and virgin mother born,
Our great redemption from above did bring,
For so the holy sages once did sing,
That He our deadly forfeit should release,
And with His Father work us a perpetual peace. – John Milton

‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring,—not even a mouse:
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there. – Clement C. Moore

God rest ye, little children; let nothing you affright,
For Jesus Christ, your Saviour, was born this happy night;
Along the hills of Galilee the white flocks sleeping lay,
When Christ, the Child of Nazareth, was born on Christmas day. – Dinah Craik

As many mince pies as you taste at Christmas’ so many happy months will you have. – Old English Saying

England was merry England, when
Old Christmas brought his sports again.
‘Twas Christmas broach’d the mightiest ale;
‘Twas Christmas told the merriest tale;
A Christmas gambol oft could cheer
The poor man’s heart through half the year. – Walter Scott

At Christmas I no more desire a rose,
Than wish a snow in May’s new-fangled mirth. – William Shakespeare107

The time draws near the birth of Christ:
The moon is hid; the night is still;
The Christmas bells from hill to hill
Answer each other in the mist. – Alfred Tennyson

Christmas is here:
Winds whistle shrill,
Icy and chill,
Little care we:
Little we fear
Weather without,
Sheltered about
The Mahogany-Tree. – William Makepeace Thackeray

At Christmas play, and make good cheer,
For Christmas comes but once a year. – Thomas Tusser

The sun doth shake
Light from his locks, and, all the way
Breathing perfumes, doth spice the day. – Henry Vaughan

Hark the herald angels sing,
Glory to the new-born king. –
Peace on earth, and mercy mild,
God and sinners reconciled! – Charles Wesley

Blow, bugles of battle, the marches of peace;
East, west, north, and south let the long quarrel cease;
Sing the song of great joy that the angels began,
Sing the glory to God and of good-will to man! – John Greenleaf Whittier