The passing of more than two millennia attests to one of the great miracles of Christmas: the enduring power of its message. People worldwide will never stop praying for peace. We celebrate its occasional gifts, grieve its dark demise when outbreaks of violence descend upon us, then warm ourselves in the hope of its return.Peace transcends religious denominations just as surely as it transforms tribes. But most powerfully of all, peace crosses the limits of time.
Perhaps this timelessness of peace crossed the minds of John Hall and Johanna Hall several years ago when they co-wrote “New Star Shining,” a song popularized by Ricky Skaggs and sung by many other artists.
“New Star Shining” no doubt is a Christmas song, but even as the Nativity theme surrounds this song, there is no mention of “Christmas” in the lyrics. Nor is there any mention of three wise men; no description of a manger or stable. In fact, the lyrics don’t even include a single reference to a deity. Heaven and a star are mentioned only in passing.
Nonbelievers and cynics who scoff at the song’s glaring ambiguities will miss its magnificent message: Unlike many traditional Christmas songs, “New Star Shining” could describe a modern family just as easily as it describes the joy that engulfed Mary, Joseph and Jesus more than two millennia ago. Read the words closely. Rediscover the everlasting message of peace, brought to us by a mere child, born in the most humbling of circumstances.
