The Exeter Times-Advocate, 1974-12-23, Page 4Drawn by Valerie Finkbeiner
Stephen Central School
50 Years Ago
Mr. J. Pryde and son Tom and
Mr. Campbell Wares who have
been at Deer Lake, Nfld. working
on a large waterpower
development returned home
Monday.
Mrs. W.H. Jones, of Regina and
Mrs. Samuel Schroeder of
Saskatoon are spending a couple
of months with relatives at Grand
Bend.
Arnold Marchand, a former
Exeter jeweller and manager of
the telephone office has opened a
jewelry business in Otterville.
Mr. R.G. Gillies, who has been
with the Canadian Bank of
Commerce at Hamilton has been
transferred to Niagara Falls
branch and with Mrs. Gillies and
son have moved to that place.
25 Years Ago
The Centralia church choir
under the leadership of Mrs. G.F.
Penwarden presented its can-
tata, "The Chorus of the Skies".
The Exeter Wolf Cub pack held
its annual Christmas party on
Wednesday evening at Trivitt
Parish Hall. Tile cub master is
Eric Sutherland and assistant
Mel Anderson.
A 19 year-old student pilot
confessed to low flying over
London and St. Thomas, thus
freeing the entire training course
at RCAF Centralia who were
confined to barracks until the
guilty one was found.
The Kirkton postmaster, G.H.
Burgin states this has been one of
the heaviest years for Christmas
mail.
15 Years Ago
Hensall council decided to
combine four village positions
when it replaces its retiring
clerk-treasurer P.L.
McNaughton next year.
Applications are being called for
an official who will serve as clerk,
treasurer, tax collector and
assessor.
Garnet Hicks has been ap-
pointed Usborne Township's
representative on the South
Huron District High School
board. He replaces William
Ellerington.
A well-lighted Christmas scene
including boy choristers, on the
front steps of the home of Mr. and
Mrs. Eugene Beaver, Andrew
Street, won first prize in the home
decoration contest sponsored by
town council this week.
Drawn by Ballerina Smith
awn
Precious Blood School
WARFASKAM.M.
10 Years Ago
Doug Rickert, a teacher at SH-
DHS was appointed Emergency
Measures Officer for Exeter this
week.
Sandra Skinner, a grade six
student at Usbo,rne Central
School, won top honours in a
public speaking contest. Her
topic was "The assassination of
President J.F. Kennedy."
J.T. McCauley, field officer for
the Ausable River Conservation
Authority reported Wednesday it
would cost $10,000 to repair the
south dam wall at Riverview
Park in Exeter.
Mr. and Mrs. William Musser,
Edward Street have again been
declared winners in the Exeter
contest for decorated homes
conducted this week.
Stars beckon
to new King
By KATHY MARTENS
Grade 8
Huron Centennial
Bright yellow stars all shining
above,
And joyous animals with hearts
of love,
And shepherds whom the angels
will bring,
All sing praises to the New Born
King.
Mary and Joseph look down at
their child,
The innkeeper watches Him, so
quiet and mild,
And the Three Wise Men who
followed the star,
Give their presents they brought
from afar.
They proudly gave gold and
frankincense and myrrh,
And the lamb gave the warmth of
his soft woolly fur,
And the cow gave his manger
while others gave their love
To the New Born King of the
Lord above.
Times Established 1873
Advocate Established 1881 Amalgamated 1924
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March 31, 1974, 5,309
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By REV. WILFRED (BIFF) JARVIS
Caven Presbyterian Church, Exeter
The season leading up to Christmas is a season of waiting. Little
children are waiting for that day of all days, Christmas Day when
they will finally find out what all their gaily wrapped presents are.
How many of us have heard our children say? How much longer will it
be? How many more days? I can hardly wait.
The excitement mounts with each day as Christmas Day draws
closer and closer. Now it is less than two weeks. Now it is only a week.
Only a few more days. Now it is the day before Christmas. Each hour
seems to be about two days long.
Finally it's bedtime. Well I'll go to bed early and go right to sleep
and then it will be morning. But somehow in spite of all efforts those
eyes won't stay shut. They keep popping open again and again. Will
Christmas morning never get here?
Almost two thousand years ago, people in the land of Palestine
were waiting for something to happen or more exactly for someone to
come. When will he come? was the question they were always asking
one another. Will it be next year? Will he come in five years? Is he
already on the way?
They were waiting for someone and when he came they would
call him Messiah. If they spoke the Greek language they would call
him Christ. The people thought he would be a great King.
They had one king already. His name was Herod, the Great. But
Herod was not the kind of King that they wanted. Herod was hard
and cruel. He did away with anyone who stood in his way or who
made him angry.
The Messiah when he would come would be a good king. He
would be Jewish (Herod was not Jewish), and a friend of the Jewish
people. One of the prophets said that he would be like the shpherds
of Palestine who watched over their sheep day and night, who carried
the small lambs in their arms.
Many believed that the most important thing that the Messiah
would do would be to drive Caesar and his armies out of Judeau.
Caesar! How they hated that name. He was the Emperor of Rome.
Some years before the Romans had occupied the country and began
to rule it. Herod was king in name, but he did what he was told to do
by Caesar. Everybody took orders from Caesar. The Jews were not a
free people any longer, Those of us who prize freedom know how im-
portant it is and how the Jews must have felt under the heal of the dic-
tator, under a foreign power.
Everywhere in Palestine Roman armies were marching. Their
shields flashed in the sunlight and when they were on the march they
carried golden eagles which stood for Caesar's power.
It wasn't that the Romans didn't try to rule the country well. They
knew that everyone would get justice and fair play. But the Jews knew
that intentions were not enough. They groaned under the burden of
heavy taxation. Their people were whipped with scourges and some of
their criminals were crucified by Rome often for, petty crimes.
• They thought that the Messiah would take care of the Romans.
He would gather an army together from the East and West and North
and South. Men from all over the world would respond to his call and
rise up.
The Romans would go back to Rome and Judea would be free
and peaceful and happy and rich again. The Messiah would rule
Judea and Israel and make them one great kingdom, bigger and
more powerful than the Roman Empire had ever been.
They would no longer be the conquered but the conquerors. They
believed that everyone would then worship God.The Messiah would
be king of all the nations on earth. If only he would come.
It was hard to wait so long. They had waited for a long time and
THE:: <ING
Drawn by Franky Verbeke
Precious Blood School
7.•
their fathers and grandfathers had waited for Him, too. Every once in
a while a false Messiah would come amongst them and they would
get ready to drive the Romans out of Palestine. But it always turned
out to be a mistake and they would be disappointed and shake their
heads and say "Will he ever come?"
But when they grew discouraged they would remember what
was written in their Holy Scriptures. For it was surely written that the
Messiah would come some day. There could be no mistake about that
someday He would come.
And so it was that it went on month after month, year after year.
The people worked and dreamed, and hoped and prayed. As the
farmers went about their work, as the fishermen fished they dreamed
about the Messiah. Then the crops would come, the catch would be
totalled for the year and the Romans were still there, marching
through the country. Still there was no Messiah. The farmers thought
that He might come before the next harvest.
And so the hope went . Some believed that the sky would open
and that a great light would blaze from heaven. An Army would
come marching out of the sky, led by a shining warrior whose face
was as bright as lightning. From His eyes would shoot flames of fire.
His arms and His hands would be like polished brass or gold and
when he spoke his voice would be like the shouting of a thousand
men.
The cry to drive out the Romans would go up. Then the dream
would fade away and once again they would find themselves walking
along one of the dusty roads of Palestine with the ever present
Romans never far away. There they were as large as life and the
Messiah had not yet come. Would he ever come? Again the scriptures
reminded them that he would come, but when?
The Messiah they dreamed of did not come. They had mis-
understood the scriptures, the Prophets had said.
"Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son and shall call his
name Immanuel (God with us) Isaiah 7:14
But thou. Bethlehem Ephrafah though thou be little among the
thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall come forth unto me that
is to rule my people Israel Micah 5:2."
And they had interpreted this militarily. The Messiah came. It
wasn't a very kingly entrance into the world. His mother was a pea-
sant woman. He wasn't born in a royal ,palace with a retinue of ser-
vants to welcome Him amid a blare of trumpets. He wasn't raised by
teachers and governors who met his every need and every wish. He
was born in a stable (with no department of sanitation to protest the
unsanitary conditions), He was raised by peasant parents whose
greatest riches were their love for Him.
He did not come bounding out of the sky as some had thought
He would. No flames shot from His mouth. His arms were not like
polished brass or gold. He looked very ordinarily human, He grew up
and apprenticed with Joseph as a carpenter. There He spent•the first
30 years of His life bronzed by the mideast sun and strong in body
from His physical labour.
When He made known who He•,;vas to,His townsfolk He did not
proclaim Himself in a military way. Rather- He read from Isaiah.
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me
He has anointed me to preach the
Good News to the poor
He has sent me to proclaim
liberty and the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind
To set free the oppressed
To announce the year when the Lord
will save His people: Luke 4:18 (See Isaiah 61:1&2)
(Good news for Modern Man Translation)"
After He closed the book he declared
"This passage of scripture has come true today as you heard it
read: Luke 4:21 !bid'
When his townsfolk heard itla murmur rippled through them;
"Is this not Joseph's son?Luke 4:22'"
As if to suggest that being a local boy whom they all knew his
claim was absurd. He did not fulfill the dreams of what a Messiah
should be.
As His ministry progressed some began to recognize Him as the
Messiah but many still misunderstood. They dreamed of vengeance on
their enemies especially their current enemies, the hated Roman's.
What was this they heard Him saying?
Ye have heard that it hath been said an eye for an eye and a
tooth for a tooth. Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou
shalt love thy neighbour and hate thine enemy. But I say unto
you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to
them that hate you, and pray for them that despitefully use you
and persecute you; Matthew 5:38,43 & 44.
This was not what some had expected of the Messiah. Did He
mean they were actually to love those awful Romans. Surely not, but
then what He said there was pretty straight forward. They had
something else in mind for the Romans, not love.
On one occasion they tried to force kinship on Him but He
slipped out of their grasp. Even as He declared, "My kingdom is not
of this world , they did not grasp what he meant. It was only slowly,
and more particularly after His resurrection that they realized His
Messiaship was not political, but that His Kingdom began in the minds
and hearts of people as their lives were changed and influenced by
Him. An unknown writer has put it well.
Here is a man who was born in an obscure village, the child of a
peasant woman. He grew up in another obscure village. He worked in
a carpenter shop until He was thirty, and then for three years He was
an itinerant preacher. He never wrote a book. He never held an of-
fice.
He never owned a home. He never set foot inside a big city. He
never travelled two hundred miles from the place where He was born.
He had no credentials but Himself.
He had nothing to do with this world except the naked power of
His divine manhood. While still a young man, the tide of popular opi-
nion turned against Him. His friends ran away. One of them betrayed
Him. He was turned over to His enemies. He went through the mockery
of a trial. He was nailed upon a cross between two thieves.
His executioners gambled for the only piece of property He had
on earth while He was dying — and that was His coat. When He was
dead He was taken down and laid in a borrowed grave through the
pity of a friend.
Nineteen wide centuries have come and gone and today He is
the centerpiece of the human race and the leader of progress. I am
far within the mark when I say that all the armies that ever marched,
and all the navies that ever were built, and all the parliaments that
ever sat, and all the kings that ever reigned, put together have not
affected the life of man upon this earth as powerfully as that One
Solitary Life.
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