RNS Morning Report: Christmas Edition

Good morning, Friend. With six days left in the year, readers like you have helped bring our nonprofit newsroom about two-thirds of the way toward our $60,000 year-end fundraising goal. In these final days, we’re sharing a few short notes from readers about why they chose to support this work, because their words say more than we ever could. Here’s one from Marsha in Missouri: “Your reporting helps me understand the beliefs and actions of others.” Support from readers like you helps RNS bring depth and context to stories about religion, belief, and public life. It also keeps this reporting free to read and share. With just a few days left, would you consider making a year-end gift to help us reach our goal? We’re deeply grateful for your support at this time of year, and every gift, no matter the amount, helps carry this work forward. With gratitude, the Religion News Service team Now, on to today’s Morning Report — our Christmas edition. Top Stories Churches deliver Christmas to immigrants detained, deported and in hiding (RNS) — Clergy, churches and other religious organizations wrestle with how to mark one of the most important Christian holidays while also serving an immigrant population in crisis. Photos of the Week: Christmas celebrations (RNS) — This week’s photo gallery includes Christmas celebrations and more. ‘There is no Christmas for separated families’: Pastors tend to immigrant families in crisis LOS ANGELES (RNS) — As Los Angeles pastors lead congregations and preach about the meaning of Christmas, they’re facing the emotional devastation of families struggling to cling to hope. Are you a Christmas-only Catholic? What you need to know before going back to church. (RNS) — 'The important thing,' said a Dominican friar, 'is to let your heart be engaged and let God love you sacramentally.' Santa Claus or the ‘red rabbi’? How Christmas lost its taboo for some Jews in Israel. JERUSALEM (RNS) — Being Jewish in the Diaspora at Christmastime is very different from being Jewish in Israel. Lobster Jesus: Sacrilege or the most New England Nativity ever? (RNS) — Inspired by Cape Cod cuisine and a beloved holiday movie, the Lobster Nativity portrays the characters of the Christmas story as crustaceans. Christmas celebrations return to Bethlehem after 2 years of war in Gaza BETHLEHEM, West Bank (AP) — While a shaky ceasefire holds in Gaza, Palestinians hope the festivities are a step toward a more peaceful future in a region shaken by tragedy. Opinion Keep Christ in Christmas? First, keep Christ in Christian (RNS) — Empathy is not a soft substitute for holiness; it is the pulse of the Christian, and the Christmas, story. Born out of national division, ‘O Little Town of Bethlehem’ is a balm for Christmas (RNS) — A century and a half after Phillips Brooks wrote this haunting carol, there is much once again to lament, fear and grieve. Merry Jewish Christmas: How Chinese food and the movies became a time-honored tradition for American Jews (The Conversation) — What do you do on Dec. 25 if you don’t celebrate Christmas? For Jewish Americans, the answers range from takeout to filling a shift for Christian colleagues. Support Our Work As a nonprofit newsroom that covers all faiths, RNS sits uniquely at the intersection of freedom of the press and freedom of religion. News tips or feedback? Email comments@religionnews.com. Like the Morning Report? Share it with a friend. Forwarded this newsletter? Subscribe here. We rely on reader donations to power our reporting. Donate here. Or send a check to: Religion News Foundation PO Box 1808 Columbia, MO 65205

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