The Lucknow Sentinel, 1978-12-13, Page 39Imckeew Sesaike4 Werk►, ► 19711 --Port 7
Christmas sentimentality
A cartoon which appeared a
few years ago on the front page
of the Manchester Guardian
Weekly is a challenge to the
religious sentimentality some of
us indulge in at this time of the
year. There are two figures in
the foreground -- Santa Claus
and a small boy. Santa has been
reading to the boy from a book
which is identified on its cover as
"The Christmas Story". Santa
has a puzzled expression on his
face, and we can understand his
puzzlement when we read the
cartoon's caption which indicat-
es that the boy has just asked
him, "And how did it end?"
In the cartoon's background
we see the answer to that
question -- a large cross in
silhouette, with a man hanging
from it. Not a very Christmasy
drawing. Not the kind of thing
we put on Christmas cards, but
it does make the point that the
Christmas story should not be
isolated from the rest of the
story of Jesus Christ.
Christmas was not celebrated
in the Church before the second
half of the fourth century.
Apparently some Christian lead-
ers were uneasy about a festival
being established at the time of
the traditional pagan mid -winter
New child
benefits package
Many of you continue to.
write, saying how much you
appreciate receiving the Dec-
ember Family Allowances.
cheque ahead of the normal
delivery date. I am happy
that we have been able to do
so again this year.
May I reassure all parents
that you will continue to
receive your Family Allow-
ance (although at a slightly
reduced rate). As well, you
may also qualify for, an
additional .benefit called the
"Refundable Child Tax Cre-
dit". To see how this will
affect you, and what you
have to do in order to get the
new payment, please read
on.
FAMILY ALLOWANCES
Here are a few questions
you may be asking yourself.
Do I still get a Family
Allowance cheque?
- Yes, you will receive S20
per child per month, starting
January '79.
Will it still be indexed to the
cost of living?
- Yes, it will continue to be
indexed in future years.
Why halve you reduced my
Family Allowance?
- To do a better job, by
giving more money to those
in greater need.
THE NEW "CHILD TAX
CREDIT"
How are you going to do
that?
In addition to the Family
Allowance, you will receive a
new annual benefit of up to
$200 per child, if your family
qualifies.
Do I qualify?
- You are sure to qualify for
the full benefit of $200 per
child if you and your spouse
together earn less than
$18,000 per year. It doesn't
matter if you are on social
assistance or work part-time,
or receive any other source of
income,
What if your income is over
$18,000 per year?
- Many couples or single
parents with income over
$18,000 will qualify for a total
or partial payment depend-
ing on the number of child-
ren. The table shown here
will give you an idea. (The
form which you will complete
to get the payment will help
you to calculate the exact
amount of the benefit for
which you qualify.)
Family Income
SO to . S18,000
20,000
22,000
24,000
26,000
28,000
No. of Children
1 2 3
S200 S400 $600
100 300 500
O 200 400
O 100 300
O 0 200
O 0 100
Hemophilia Socie
raises $668
festivals, such as the Roman
Saturnalia. (Perhaps some of the
good citizens of Rome compiled
about the sneakiness of the
Christians in trying to =`religion-
ize" the Saturnalia)
Easter was the great central
festival from the earliest days of
the Church. It proclaimed that
the crucifixion did not mark the
end of the mission of Jesus, but,
rather, that it marked a new
beginning. There can be no
doubting that when Christmas
was adopted as a 'special cele'
bration of the Church it was
viewed in the light of Easter, the
festival of the resurrection of
Jesus.
It is not enough at Christmas
for Christians simply to concen-
trate their attention on the infant
Jesus, the Babe in the Manger_
They must also remember that
the man Jesus brought his
purpose and his mission into
final focus in his death on the
cross and in his resurrection.
Christmas isolated by sentim-
entality is, in the long run,
Christmas made irrelevant for
faith.
OTIAMMODAMMODAIMMODANAf
Late Somas'_
GIF7 \I4WES.0
The Lucknow, Goderich and Clinton areas,
of the Southwestern Ontario Hemophilia
Society, raised $668, in their fail appeal. -
These donations help the Society provide
hemophiliacs with better treatment and
health.
NO T10E
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