Shaping Families

Christmas Memories

Did you ever have a Christmas morning like this? “She was so sure [the handmade hobby horse] was hers that she gasped and hopped with delight before she discovered that the name on it was her younger sister Cathy’s. Debby did her best to cover her disappointment and took the horse willingly to her sister, who was thrilled.”

Listen - Transcript - Study Guide

BOOK: Frog Hollow Journal— Sam Heatwole reads from Frog Hollow Journal frequently on Shaping Families. Written by his father-in-law, James G.T. Fairfield, this colorful memoir is peopled with vividly drawn neighbors, family members, and a beloved dog. It is the story of one family’s quest to carve out a more authentic life amid the demands of modern society. Anyone, he proposes, can learn to live “Frog Hollow style,” practicing integrity, neighborliness, and indomitable faith.

CD: “A Cappella Christmas” –  Music of the internationally-renowned Mennonite Hour Singers. Original recordings digitally re-mastered.

Songs include: Joy to the World; Hark! The Herald Angels Sing; O Come, O Come, Emmanuel; While by My Sheep; Angels We Have Heard on High; It Came Upon a Midnight Clear; O Little Town of Bethlehem; Silent Night; Away in a Manger; O Come, Little Children; The First Noel; Brightest and Best; Rise Up Shepherd and Follow; The Star and The Wise Men; Go Tell It on the Mountain; Come All Ye Faithful; Sweet Little Jesus Boy; and more.

RELATED RESOURCE:
Shaping Families is produced by MennoMedia on behalf of Mennonite Church USA and Mennonite Church Canada, formed out of a July 2011 merger of Mennonite Publishing Network and Third Way Media. We invite you to check out the organizational website for MennoMedia, including a short video explaining the merger. You will also find for links to scores of books, CDs, DVDs, Sunday school and Vacation Bible school curricula and more.

Jewish Influence on Christmas

Burton Buller

Quite some time ago I heard a soft news piece about the influence of Jewish songwriters on what we today think about Christmas. In our religious experiences, we mostly stick to Christmas carols, songs written from a particular religious perspective. But once we leave the confines of the church yard, we are steeped in Christmas songs that idealize America and offer a particularly unreligious view of Christmas.

We have another special end-of-the-year program for Shaping Families coming next week as we look back through the year to some of our listeners’—and our own—favorite Shaping Families programs. It’s the two-year anniversary of Shaping Families—don’t miss it.

Gingerbread Cookies

Jodi Nisly Hertzler writes: "Every year in November, my kids ask if we can make gingerbread people, a request I used to dread. So often the dough requires refrigeration, and before we’re done rolling it out and cutting it into shapes, it’s sticking to everything and nearly impossible to work with, and we all end up frustrated. I finally found this recipe online (I’ve changed it a bit), and I’ll never use another one. The dough is amazingly pliable and easy to work with."

• Shaping Families Update - May 12
• Shaping Families Update - May 5
• Shaping Families Update - April 28
• Shaping Families Update - April 21

The Shaping Families free offer from this week’s program is no longer available. Visit our online store at www.MennoMedia.org/store if you would like to purchase the item offered. Some items are not offered on the store.