Personal and Knowable

My Monday English conversation classes are held in Rosa's beautiful home. She was showing me her Christmas decorations. Growing up, they only had a (very elaborate) Nativity scene, but now she also puts up a tree for her grandchildren - commercialisation, she says. She also has lots of candles and greenery everywhere, plus the ubiquitous, here and in Spain, red banner out the front with  a crowned Baby Jesus and “Jesus Nasceu” (is born) in big letters.
 
I do appreciate how the Nativity scene is still, by far, the main decoration here - there are at least three public ones in Mourão that I've seen. And some of the private domestic ones are amazing, with lights, real water in waterfalls, backcloths, and all sorts of figures in scenes of daily life, with a moss-covered grotto in the middle somewhere, with Mary, Joseph and the Babe.
 
As I walked to the class, the bells were tolling for a young man, who died suddenly; we know his Mum quite well.
 
Mary's Voice: Holy is his name. (Luke 1v49)
Holy as in holistic - God's utter integrity.
Name - showing that God is personal and knowable, not an abstract philosophical concept.
Here, the video for this day, by Dr Amy Orr-Ewing.
 
Gratefuls:
-        Netty lending us her (much better than ours) strimmer, so Mike could get our growth down
-        Our wood burner; down to 1C tonight
-        Introducing Rosa to mince pies