I’ve been reading a lot of children’s Christmas books to my 2-going-on-3 year old this season, but this one stood out.
It’s the story of a mouse with a problem: an uncomfortable and dusty hole; he wants a new home.
He finds a new home in the manger the family has put out for Christmas, displacing the “statues” in the process.
Then, he hears the family tell the story of Mary and Joseph, and how there was no room for them in the Inn. He hears about Jesus being born and placed in the feeding trough.
He realizes he can’t take this home away from them, and that it belongs to Jesus.
Now, the writer’s solution is to have him find a new home at this point (the gingerbread house). Cute. It’s a sweet story about making room for Jesus. I dig it.
But as a theological thinker and someone who writes Christian allegory, I think there’s an alternate ending: what if he stays? What if he joins with the shepherds in worshipping the baby Jesus?
And what if we can do the same: not just say, “oh, what a cute baby,” but, “what a miracle! The Son of God, come to earth!” And to worship Him.
As the song says, “o come let us adore Him, o come let us adore Him,” with the shepherds and wise men.
If you’re into Christian allegory, I’ve written a couple of books (and have a third in unedited form). The series is “Adventures in Eridu”.
The first is The Land in the Woods.
The second is The Forgotten Scroll.
Classic Reads 