Our grandsons are five months old today. Elliott (left) has two bottom teeth now and weighs in at a whopping 16 pounds, while Samuel (right) is maintaining his one pound deficit at 15. Samuel’s hair, when the light hits it just right, looks like a Mohawk. Elliott is working hard on a way to shove his entire fist into his mouth. And they’re both laughing and giggling or making other happy noises almost all the time. What a delight! These boys continue to bring me so much joy!

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Dietrich Bonhoeffer sent a Christmas card to his parents from his cell at Tegel Prison in Berlin on November 28, 1943. The front of the card pictured this above nativity scene painted by Albrecht Altdorfer in 1513. In the card, Bonhoeffer says this is his favorite depiction of the nativity:

“One sees the holy family huddled around the manger amidst the rubble of a collapsed house. This is really contemporary.”

At the time, this painting was 430 years old. I’m sure it reminded Bonhoeffer of the destruction in his own country, the bombed out houses and buildings in his own hometown. This picture could have been painted almost anywhere in Europe in the middle of World War II. And what Bonhoeffer wrote about it during Advent 1943 could have been written today during Advent 2025:

“The celebration of Advent is only possible to those troubled in soul, who know themselves to be poor and imperfect, and who look forward to something greater to come. We can and should celebrate Christmas despite the ruins around us. In fact, we must do this even more intensely now.”

Lord, come quickly.
Allan