It is rehearsed almost to the point of irritation that there was 'no room for them in the inn'. And I write that as the chair of a charity that helps the homeless and lonely. The near irritation derives from the patently obvious fact that it is far more significant that Jesus died deserted than that he was born 'not in the inn' though the latter is admittedly a portent of his greater rejection.
Unfortunately most Christmases are darkened by world events and it is also a cliched truth that Jesus's family were forced to flee their country. Again, it was not general world politics but actual human hatred directed at king Jesus that is reason for the story, but it still reminds us that Christ is more easily seen in the tents than in the palaces.
Anyhow, welcome to my latest Christmas Card Mystery. Mystery No 6 had disappearing shepherds. This card catapults Christ beyond the experience of a humble birth and a toddler refugee experience: it makes him an orphan. It's great news for Barnardos fundraising department. Less good for the Catholic devotion to BVM* who it seems, with Joseph, has left the kid in the hay in the open air to be rescued by passing shepherds and wise men.
And you thought parenting in 2016 was bad?
*Blessed Virgin Mary for the non-liturgical reader
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