Christ, kings, camels, and coins

Kings in those days
were haughty, bold,
and cruel . . .

slow to pardon and
-- like Herod --
quick to kill.

*

But not long ago,
a Child brought to their knees
three such imperial souls!

Warned not to go back to Herod,
they returned by another route,
because, says St. Gregory,

"Having come to know Jesus
we are forbidden to return
by the way we came."


*

Over 35 years ago,
-- haughty, bold, and cruel --
I, too, stepped into a manger
and was pressed into service
by that newborn King.

Since that day,
I've proclaimed His name
in millions of Catholic books.

*

God knows
I never chose this life.

Too often, I've tried to find my way
back to what I was before, but
the Child won't let me return
by the way I came.

Child?

Pause a moment
to consider this image
and gauge the power
He wields!

A mighty sovereign,
He presses into service
rogues and royalty,
commoners and kings,
demanding all we have,
all we are . . .

. . . and then He drives us back into the desert to get for Him what we don't already have!

With banks failing
and thousands unemployed,
He's just thrust me out the door,
demanding I raise money to proclaim
His name in the coming hard times.

*

Where can I turn?
Wall Street's busted;
Congress won't help.

So my desert trek
leads me to your door.

*

Let me show you what
I've got in my saddlebags,
to give the Newborn
just after Christmas:

Fresh from the printer, these are
the kinds of holy Catholic books
that lead kings and commoners
(and you and me!)
to kneel before Him
in humility and awe
. . . as we ought.

*

But there's
a problem.

*

The troubles that broke
the banks and may doom Detroit
have torpedoed book sales,
slashing our income.

Next month, $40,000 in printers' bills
come due, plus the $35,000 in loans that
kept us publishing these past few months.

Can you help?

Can you help with a
Christmas donation today?

*

Frankly, it's lonely out here.

I've trudged these desert wastes for decades,
seeking help to publish Catholic books . . .
and never once encountered a King
-- Christian or otherwise --
to write a big check.

Out here, there's just you and me.
What I don't raise from you,
we won't have.

*

I know you can't contribute
the $75,000 we need
. . . nor half of it,
nor even a tenth.

But could you use this button
to send $100 today,
or even $50?

Let it be your gift
to the Newborn King,
sleeping here below!

Thank you,
and please pray for me.

John Barger, Ph.D.
Publisher, Sophia Institute Press

1-800-888-9344 www.sophiainstitute.com

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