Christmas

"I have systematically read the best Christmas books, but this is the one I have been waiting for. Rather than addressing just the cultural or theological aspects, Emily Hunter McGowin brilliantly connects them. For those who sometimes feel uncertain about how to navigate the holiday season, Christmas: The Season of Life and Light illuminates a faithful, Yuletide lane with the festive glow of twinkling lights."

-Timothy Larsen, editor of The Oxford Handbook of Christmas

"I've wanted to make Christmas more spiritual without nagging about nonreligious symbols or being an impolite guest while partygoers sip champagne to the melody of 'Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire.' Thank you, Emily, for showing the way! Christmas: The Season of Life and Light both reveals the history and mystery of the birth of Jesus and shows us how to celebrate it in truly spiritual ways."

-Todd Hunter, founding bishop of the diocese of Churches for the Sake of Others and author of What Jesus Intended: Finding True Faith in the Rubble of Bad Religion

"As a pastor I used to dread the Christmas season, in fear that the church had lost the narrative. In Christmas, Emily Hunter McGowin masterfully blends her theological mind and her pastoral heart and goes a long way toward reclaiming the story and its meaning. She breaks the knot of syrupy sentimentalism and rampant commercialism, not with a snub nor judgment but with a generous resanctification of our traditions that creates space for us to experience the life and light of this treasured time of year. With this book in hand, I can't wait to enter into the next Christmas season!"

-Jin Cho, Anglican priest and cohost of The Micah Podcast

"Emily Hunter McGowin's Christmas is a beautiful guide through a rich season in the church calendar. With grace and wisdom, McGowin unpacks history, metaphor, tradition, and contemporary illustrations of the holiday in a way that is both profoundly insightful and delightfully readable. This is a great companion for laypeople, Christian educators, pastors, and students alike, written with an invitational spirit of discovery. I'll be recommending Christmas far and wide!"

-Courtney Ellis, pastor and author of Happy Now

"This book is a gift. As Christians, we have all experienced the challenge of navigating culture while living a liturgical life during the Christmas season. Emily McGowin's volume on Christmas for the Fullness of Time series offers a faithful way through by distilling some of the most important biblical and theological insights of what is revealed to us about God from Advent to Christmas. In this beautifully written book, McGowin offers a discerning and insightful guide for deepening Christian faith and practice during the season of Christmas."

-Jennifer Powell McNutt, Franklin S. Dyrness Associate Professor in Biblical and Theological Studies at Wheaton College

"Theologically rich, historically anchored, liturgically alert, socially alert, wide ranging, culturally connected, and all this always with an eye on the church—such expressions reveal the value of this small, timely, and wonderful book about Christmas. Buy it during Advent, wrap it up under the tree, and give your friends or family a gift that will stimulate their faith during Christmastide. The gift of Christmas will be made more generous by the gift of this book."

-Scot McKnight, professor of New Testament at Northern Seminary and author of The Jesus Creed

"Emily McGowin's Christmas has something to offer everyone: longtime Christians, people who are new to the faith, those who worship in liturgical spaces, Christians in nondenominational spaces, even non-Christians. It is a beautiful reminder of what Christmas is about at the core. McGowin's personal stories about faith and family plus her knowledge of theology and church history make a book that is enjoyable, educational, and full of hope. It's the perfect book to read on your own or with a group in preparation for the season of Christmas."

-Kimberly Deckel, priest and executive pastor at Church of the Cross Austin

"Those of us who are tired or cynical at Christmastime need this book by Emily McGowin, who gives Christmas back to us without stinginess or sentimentality, inviting us to wonder at the Word made flesh. McGowin brings the wisdom of the theological adept, the pastoral heart of the priest, and the tenderness of the disciple to help us understand what it means to worship a newborn king."

-Beth Felker Jones, professor of theology at Northern Seminary and author of Practicing Christian Doctrine

"The seasons of the Christian year have been a wonderful discipleship tool that the church has used to celebrate the major events of the life of Jesus and the kingdom of God for centuries. Christmas is my favorite season of the Christian year. I love the colors, sights, and smells of the season. Emily McGowin has written a wonderful book that reminds us of the beauty and the mystery of the virgin birth of our Savior Jesus Christ."

-Winfield Bevins, author of Liturgical Mission and director of church planting at Asbury Theological Seminary