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THERESE NELSON

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Christmas Stopped The War + A True Story

Wed Dec 28, 2011 10:47 AM EST
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By Therese Nelson

German and British soldiers

German and British soldiers fraternize – Christmas 1914

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Christmas Stopped The War + A True Story

 

This article is about the True Spirit of Christmas, on December 7, 1914, the newly elected Pope Benedict XV asked for a truce to the fighting in recognition of the Birth of Christ, Christmas. Many scoffed at this request as ignorant and naive, yet the Pope of the Catholic/Christian Church did not resign from his request. The warring countries refused to create any official cease-fire, but on Christmas the soldiers in the trenches declared their own unofficial truce.

 

There are books detailing the letters of the Christmas Truce in WWI that chronicled the unheard of peace and joy that the soldiers felt on the battlefield when they embraced Christmas and the promise of God becoming man and Peace on Earth to men of good will.

 

One of the books is called "Silent Night" by the author Weintraub, there are multiple pictures,letters sent home with references of those who experienced the unthinkable, the Spirit of Christmas can stop a war, even World War I.In Weintraub's book on page 25, the British soldiers saw the Germans placing Christmas trees all along their trenches with candles and heard the German's shouting in English "We no shoot if you no shoot" (pg 25) The remarkable truth is,  the gun fire stopped over the miles and miles of German trenches. This was followed by the Germans were actually coming out of the trenches toward the British and the British soldiers returned in kind and rose out of their trenches to meet them. This happened on Christmas Eve, the "enemies" laid down their arms to celebrate Christmas and the unthinkable happened, they exchanged chocolates and cigars and although the officers on both sides tried to stop the Christmas Peace with threats of court-martial or of being shot the men mixed together and sang Christmas Carols and laughter in the Name of Christmas, the Birth of Christ.

 

The book "Silent Night" reviewed the diaries of the German and British soldiers and their embracing the Christmas spirit, the officers on both sides deferred as the men went out in No Man's Land and exchanged Christmas wishes with their enemy officers. The dead were buried together, with both sides assisting and all the wounded were taken away that by Christmas morning there was an vast land the size of two football fields separating the British and German trenches. The opposing soldiers, again, emerged on Christmas morning and began singing Christmas carols, like the beloved "Silent Night" and sharing the Scripture, Psalm 23, together. These former combatants then engaged in playing games of soccer and football. The joy of Christmas ensued with the sharing of gifts and meals prepared in the open with both sides participating.

 

This Christmas miracle has been told by many and the above references were from the book "Silent Night" by Weintraub.

 

I do think it is curious that there is phenomena that many in the press is calling "The War on Christmas". Fox News and Catholic/Christian Bill O'Reilly has covered many stories of atheists who denounce the Christmas Story or the Spirit of Christmas. There are many who have actually attacked any signs of the American Federal Day as offensive. There are many stories of law suits and Grinch's from the courts to public servants who want to stop the Christmas Spirit and denounce the validity of the day that we celebrate God becoming man, Christmas.

This story of the Roman Catholic Pontif, Pope Benedict XV asking for a truce in the midst of World War I to celebrate Peace among men is truly inspiring. The Christmas Truce, a truly silent night.

 

I will post a link for reference to the history of the Christmas miracle of Christmas, 1914.

 

http://www.history.com/topics/christmas-truce-of-1914

 

 

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Therese Nelson

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The book "Silent Night" reviewed the diaries of the German and British soldiers and their embracing the Christmas spirit, the officers on both sides deferred as the men went out in No Man's Land and exchanged Christmas wishes with their enemy officers. The dead were buried together, with both sides assisting and all the wounded were taken away that by Christmas morning there was an vast land the size of two football fields separating the British and German trenches. The opposing soldiers, again, emerged on Christmas morning and began singing Christmas carols, like the beloved "Silent Night" and sharing the Scripture, Psalm 23, together. These former combatants then engaged in playing games of soccer and football. The joy of Christmas ensued with the sharing of gifts and meals prepared in the open with both sides participating.

  • 4 votes
Reply#1 - Wed Dec 28, 2011 10:49 AM EST
vol fan in chatt, tn

nice seed, Therese. So much negativity these days...geez, just look at the comments below. Some people never see the good in ANY situation, how sad.

  • 2 votes
#1.1 - Wed Dec 28, 2011 10:44 PM EST
Reply
Therese Nelson

Article in part and link where Bill O'Reilly takes on those who promote "War on Christmas"

+http://www.theblaze.com/stories/bill-oreilly-takes-feisty-annual-stand-in-the-war-on-christmas/

Bill O‘Reilly Takes Feisty Annual Stand in the ’War on Christmas’

Zealot secularists take cover, the no spin zone has begun its annual crusade against pinheads from party-poopers who want to Ban Santa to anti-theists who look to take the “Christ” out of Christmas and the “Christmas” out of Christmas Tree. The popular Fox News personality Bill O’Reilly kicked off his annual war against the “War On Christmas” this Friday, for the 15th year.

  • 4 votes
Reply#2 - Wed Dec 28, 2011 11:21 AM EST
Spikegary

Very nice, though it won't fit the agenda of many Newsvine-istas. Merry Christmas, Therese!

  • 5 votes
Reply#3 - Wed Dec 28, 2011 12:00 PM EST
lifeisgood43

There is no war on Christmas. It is as big as ever. Bill O'Reilly needs to pick something else to focus on

  • 7 votes
Reply#4 - Wed Dec 28, 2011 12:35 PM EST
vol fan in chatt, tn

bahumbah!

  • 2 votes
#4.1 - Wed Dec 28, 2011 10:41 PM EST
Spikegary

Happy New Year, Vol. Yeah-some people don't get it-rather shoot the messenger.

  • 2 votes
#4.2 - Thu Dec 29, 2011 7:19 AM EST
Reply
MYOB-1251250

I didn't notice any machine gun nest at the mall.

  • 3 votes
Reply#5 - Wed Dec 28, 2011 1:08 PM EST
hhabilis

That's because you won't find Christmas at the mall, only its commercial trappings. No need for a machine gun where there is nothing to shoot at.

  • 3 votes
#5.1 - Wed Dec 28, 2011 2:04 PM EST
Reply
Colonial82

Therese,

I am a Christian too (a Roman Catholic to be exact) and I do not see any "war on Christmas". I found it really weird that I found pagan symbols in the Catholic Cathedral that I went for Christmas Mass. There were many Christmas trees at the doors and round the altar, but I can't understand why they would have a pagan symbol in my Christian Christmas celebration. Plus the historian in me wonders why Christmas isn't in April or May, when historians say Jesus would have been born (per when the census was taken every year and other items said in the Gospels).

The "War on Christmas" is just a boogie man created to get ratings and get people riled up. I have not issue when people say "Happy Holidays" because it is the holidays: Christmas and New Years.

Have a good day.

  • 4 votes
Reply#6 - Wed Dec 28, 2011 3:12 PM EST
Tyler Durden-330839

The miracle didn't stop the war for going on another 4 years.

  • 1 vote
Reply#7 - Wed Dec 28, 2011 3:39 PM EST
JACK DEATH

The miracle didn't stop the war for going on another 4 years.

There was NO miracle and as for the war it just got more brutal in 1915 with chemical weapons conceive by a German Jewish scientist.

  • 3 votes
#7.1 - Wed Dec 28, 2011 3:47 PM EST
ryoushi12

So true Tyler. What the "truce" was was a last gasp of Victorian naivete on the part primarily of Brits and Germans (there was NO Christmas "truce" between the French and German lines and nothing similar happened in the east) whose countries up until about 1900 were generally friendly, and thru 1914 were the two biggest trading partners on the planet. And, it didn't hurt that the royal family had strong cultural and familial connections to Germany and introduced many German traditions concerning Christmas to the Brits.

And, this NEVER happened again.

And, jack, I don't know what your point is on the chemical warfare issue AND pointing out that a "Jewish" scientist is (I suspect something most unsavory), but in fact chemical warfare in WWI started in 1914, on the Western Front, with the unsuccessful deployment of tear gas by the French against the Germans in August. The Germans tried a similar attack in October against the Brits, also unsuccessful.

Jack is correct that the first use of a lethal gas agent occurred in in 1915 and was promoted and developed with the help of Prof. Fritz Haber of Kaiser Willhelm Institut of Berlin (Note, a fellow German, and Jewish, scientist also at the institute outspokenly condemned Haber's work - his name, Albert Einstein). And, extensions of Haber's work would lead to the gasses used in the extermination camps under the Nazis.

On the other hand, part of the process that makes possible both the precursors of some of these gasses, AND is vital in the manufacture of high explosives for gun propellants and explosive shells, also forms the basis for the single most commonly used types of plant and crop fertilizer on the planet today. Estimates are that half of all the food grown on this planet uses fertilizer created thru Haber-Bosch process, which allows for the synthetic creation of nitrates from inorganic sources (previously, the ONLY source of nitrates for fertilizers was organic - that is the excrement of animals and birds).

So do we condemn Haber for his crime of introducing lethal gas and all that followed or praise him for keeping humanity from mass starvation up to this point?

  • 1 vote
#7.2 - Wed Dec 28, 2011 4:33 PM EST
JACK DEATH

So do we condemn Haber for his crime of introducing lethal gas and all that followed or praise him for keeping humanity from mass starvation up to this point?

That would depend on whether you were a gas chamber recipient or a food recipient.

On a side note muster gas is the grand daddy of napalm.

  • 3 votes
#7.3 - Wed Dec 28, 2011 4:38 PM EST
Reply
Therese Nelson

Jack Death,

This article states it stopped WWI, not that it "ended" WWI.

Christmas did stop the soldiers from fighting the war, WWI on Christmas.

You are wrong.

    Reply#8 - Mon Jan 2, 2012 6:55 PM EST
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