The First Christmas

 

On December 25th, we celebrate one of the most important days in the history of the earth - the birth of Jesus.  One third of the world's population believes that Jesus is the son of God and has chosen to follow him.  Over the last 2000 years, we have added a lot to the celebration - Christmas trees, gift giving, card sending, Santa Claus and eggnog to name a few.  It's easy for even the strongest believers in Jesus to become distracted, or even overwhelmed, by the accoutrements.   David Cunningham is a film producer and recently released a project called "The First Christmas" with Kevn Costner hosting.   David starts with the text found in the Bible, but then weaves it together with historical facts to help paint a picture of what the first Christmas may have actually been like.  Jesus was born into a brutal world that desperately needed to be saved.  The First Christmas is streaming on Hulu and Disney+, and is also available with commercials at ABC.com.  If you are interested in finding out more about the project, you can watch an interview with David here.  I would love to hear what you think if you choose to watch.  Merry Christmas.

Sounds Like Christmas

I love the Christmas season for a lot of reasons, but I particularly love the part that music plays in it for me.  This week, I got to go see my grandson, Levi, play the trumpet in his middle school band's Christmas concert.  The finale was Sleigh Ride, which my wife and I played when we were in the band together in high school.  Tonight, I get to go see two of my granddaughters sing in their school's Christmas production.  Listening to these groups perform warms my heart knowing the hours of preparation that was required to present something that is meaningful and well done.  I don't have recordings of their performances, but I do love to return to one of my favorite Christmas songs, "Mary Did You Know?" every Christmas.  This arrangement is amazing.  The voices are near perfect, and the message of seeing the birth of Jesus through Mary's eyes helps me to focus on the reason for all the celebrations this time of year.  I hope music is a part of your Christmas this year.

Artist Skyrocketing

If you follow the Christian music charts, you probably noticed there is a new artist skyrocketing to the top.  Solomon Ray, from Mississippi, holds the top spot for new single with, "Find your rest".  Most of the reviews are positive, but some have complained that even though the songs are promoted as soul music, Solomon has no soul.  And that would be technically correct.  You see, Solomon Ray is an artist whose image and music are completely generated by AI.  Of course, AI is exploding into every part of our lives.  You can choose to use it or not use it (sometimes), but there is no debate that it is here to stay.  The ethical debates about how far it should go are here and escalating.  While many have commented that it is not right for AI generated music to potentially reduce demand for music from real people, Solomon's creator disagrees.  Christopher Jermaine Townsend is the soul behind the avatar, and he feels like Solomon is just an extension of his creativity.  I think there is a lot to work out, but if Solomon/Christopher can deliver a message to someone in need of it, I think God can find a way to bless it.