Christmas! It’s fast approaching, all around us and unavoidable. The usual cultural trappings of Christmas make out that it’s the season to be jolly, that everyone is happy and the icing on the (Christmas) cake is to have a white Christmas - now that would be just the thing! But truth be told, Christmas is often a time of the year when sadness, madness and badness all rear their heads because the real reason for the season has been lost.

Josh Moody delves into the real meaning and purpose of Christmas, exploring, through 10 brief chapters each addressing a particular question about a commonly held notion about Christmas, and each with a short anecdote at the end, how the coming of Jesus Christ heralded the dawn of redeeming grace which is what makes Christmas truly special; He says ‘Christmas is not sentimental but instrumental’ (p14) in bringing radical hope and change to our lives. This is a great little book which addresses many questions such as ,’how can Christmas make me happy forever?’, ‘what is the magic of Christmas?’, and ‘Did it really happen?’ It would be a thought provoking gift to give someone who may be asking some of these questions; equally it could be used as a tool for study either individually or in a small group. The layout of the chapters is such that they need not be dealt with chronologically but rather topically.

This book is available to purchase from Christian Focus.

Colin Macleod, Gairloch, Kinlochewe & Torridon Free Church