Merry Christmas to my Christian friends.

And despite the sadly imperfect and strife-torn condition of the world, let us do what we can to achieve peace on earth, and goodwill toward men.

Merry Christmas to my Christian friends.

And to all, let us hope and strive for peace on Earth, and goodwill to men. As the first of these is rather lacking at the moment, I have made a donation to provide medical aid in Ukraine, which would not be so much needed if Putin’s men were not waging aggressive war, and bombing hospitals and power generation facilities. A substantial number of the perpetrators would likely identify as Orthodox Christians, and their actions are blessed by Russian Patriarch Kirill.

Let us hope, whatever our beliefs in other respects, that justice, mercy, and love may prevail.

Merry Christmas to my Christian friends.

And to all of us, peace on Earth, goodwill toward men; these are things which we should hope for and strive for, however imperfect the results of our efforts are likely to be.

Merry Christmas to my Christian friends.

And for the rest of us, E.J. Dionne, a columnist with whom I don’t generally agree with about politics, had a column in the Washington Post today, including the words, “Christmas sketches ‘a picture of a cosmos capable of love.’ Even doubters and tepid believers would rather not abandon the possibility that this very large claim is true.”

Let us hope for, and work towards, peace on Earth and goodwill to men.

Merry Christmas to all my friends.