AlO-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, December 19, 1998
The Christmas Story
And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a
decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be
taxed. (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was gov
ernor of Syria.) And all went to be taxed every one into his own
city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of
Nazareth, into Judea, unto the city of David, which is called
Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David;)
To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with
child. And so it was, that, while they were-thcre, the days were
accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought
forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes,
and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them
in the inn.
And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the
field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And. 10. the angel
of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone
round about them; and they were sore afraid. And the angel said
unto them, Fear not; for behold, I bring you good tidings of
great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is bom this
day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And
this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in
swaddling clothes lying in a manger. And suddenly there was
with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God,
and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace
good will toward men.
And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them
into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go
even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass,
which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with
haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a
manger. And when they had seen it, they made known abroad
the saying which was told them concerning the child. All they
that heard it wondered at those things which were told them.by
the shepherds.
The people that walked in darkness have seen a great lignt;
they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them
hath the light shined.
Foe unto us a child is bom, unto us a son is given; and the
government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be
called Wonderful. Counselor. The mighty God. The everlasting
Father, The Prince of Peace.
Sunday, Ditcijilrt 20
Monday. Dixchilh-i- 21
Act 6 Nutrient Management Certi
fication and Plan Writing Semi-
fication and Plan Writing Semi
nar, Gratz Community Center,
Sunday. December 27
Monda\, December 2X
luesda\, December 29
Wednesday. December JO
OPINION
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♦ Farm Calendar ❖
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Solanco Young Farmer Pesticide
Recertification, Solanco High
School, 7:30 p.m.
Eastern Pa. Turf Conference and
Trade Show, Valley Forge Con
vention Center, King of Prussi-
Fatnily Heritage Restaurant,
Franconia.
Fannsßisks and Management
Seminar, Penn State Campus,
Persistence is important to al
falfa growers. The longer a field is
productive, the less it costs to
grow, according to Robert Ander
son, Lancaster County Extension
Agronomy Agent. Many things
affect the longevity of an alfalfa
field. These include variety,
weather conditions, soil fertility,
harvest management and pests.
Some variables affecting the
alfalfa plant, the farmer cannot
control. The farmer cannot control
severe temperature changes which
adversely affect the stand as it gets
ready to go into winter dormancy
or break winter dormancy.
Winters without snow cover
coupled with extremely cold
weather and wind will reduce the
plants winter survival rate. Pro
longed periods of standing water
or ice during the winter will re
duce the atmospheric gases which
reach the plant and reduce the al
falfa's ability to survive.
To help stands last as long as
possible, farmers must control
those variables within their con
trol. These include weed and insect
pests, fertility and harvest inter
vals.
To Close Credit Card
Accounts
Dr. Robert Thee, Lancaster
County Extension Financial Man
agement Agent, asks if you have
ever opened a credit account at a
store to receive a 10 to 20 per cent
discount? Have you ever accepted
gifts with your favorite team logo
on it for just completing an appli
cation for a credit card while at
tending a game 9
Do you have credit cards you
are not using? Review your credit
card accounts and close any ac
counts you do not need after mak
ing sure you have paid the account
in full.
Holy Bible
*,» * ‘
<“ * V*
Contact the company and ask
them to close the account because
you do not plan to use it in the
future. Ask for written confirma-
Mercer County Extension,
11:30 a.m.
Schuylkill County DHIA Banquet,
Dairy Days.
Franklin County Dairy Day,
Kauffman Community Center,
9 a.m.-2;45 p.m.
Dairy Facilities Tour, Dave Stuck
Farm and Irvin Hostetler Farm,
10 a.m.-Noon.
Northeast Tomato Growers’ Meet-
ing, Thompson’s Dairy Bar, 9
a.m.-3 p.m.
Vegetable Growers’ Association
of Delaware 1999 meeting, Jan.
7 Kent County Cooperative
Extension, Dover, 9 a.m.-4
p.m.; Jan. 8 Carlisle Fire Com
pany, Milford, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.;
Jan. 9 Laurel High School
Auditorium, 8:30 a.m.-Noon.
Computer Basics for Farmers, Ful-
To Increase Alfalfa
Stands Life
(Turn to Page A 46)
tion that the account has been
closed.
Why should you close these
accounts? Cutting up the card does
not close the account. Unused
credit accounts may prevent you
from receiving a desired loan. As
long as the account is open, you
may make charges on the account.
Most lenders do not automati
cally close accounts that are paid
in full, even when they have not
been used for a long time. You
must request that credit accounts
be closed if you do not plan to use
them anymore. After closing ac
counts, order a copy of your credit
report to check its accuracy.
To Reduce Soil Erosion
According to Robert Anderson,
Lancaster County Extension
Agronomy Agent, there arc many
ways to reduce soil erosion. One
of the most significant ways is to
keep the amount of bare soil to a
minimum especially during winter
months.
The use of cover crops and
THE STAR ABOVE
THE FREIGHT TRAINS
December 20,1998
I have read that James V of
Scotland would from time to
time lay aside the royal robe of
king and put on the clothes of a
common peasant. In this dis
guise he moved around his
realm without anyone recogniz
ing him, making friends with
the common people, sharing
their difficulties and concerns,
appreciating their handicaps
and obstacles, and sympathizing
with them in their sorrows.
When again he sat upon his
throne, die was able to rule over
his kingdom with a fatherly
compassion and mercy.
Isn’t that what the birth of
Christ means to us, too: the
almighty, omnipotent God tak
ing upon himself human form so
that he might walk among us in
the most humble of circum
stances? The late Howard
Thurman in his book, Deep Is
The Hunger, writes, “It is pro
foundly significant to me that
the Gospel story in Luke reveals
that the announcement of the
birth of Jesus came first to sim
ple shepherds, who were about
their appointed tasks . . . the
birth of Jesus remains the sym
bol of the dignity and inherent
worthfulness of the common
man.”
HUMBLE
CIRCUMSTANCES
Perhaps we sometimes glam
orize the nativity story and we
forget that it is the story of a
king bom in the most humble of
circumstances. His mother and
father lived in a poor hill town of
dubious if any distinction.
Although later, Luke traced
Jesus’ lineage back through
King David to Adam, Joseph’s
family tree was an undistin
guished branch and Joseph was
a carpenter, a reputable but run
of the mill vocation. Because the
Bethlehem inn was overbooked,
Joseph and Mary had to place
their newborn son in the feeding
trough of field animals. His
birth was attested by a visit, not
of prominent authorities, but
simple shepherds who saw an
angelic vision while tending
sheep.
If God was going to send his
only Son to earth, don’t you
laving no
winter months are economica
ways to protect soil from erosioi
during winter months. In addition
buffer strips along roads and wate
courses helps to keep soil frort
farm fields getting into streams
Buffers work the entire year to re
duce the amount of soil whicl
gets into streams.
Environmental stewardship
should be a business goal of i
farm family who wants to stay u
farming. For that family, conserv
ing soil makes good business anc
environmental sense. Properlj
seeded cover crops and buffer areai
will reduce sediment in runoff up
to 75 per cent while removing nu
trients from the runoff. Covei
crops and buffer strips proteci
people, crops, livestock, wildlife
and roads from the effects of ero
sion.
Feather Prof, 's Footnote
"Nothing is so embarrassing as
watching someone do something
that you said could not be done "
think he would have planned it
a bit more grandly? Two humble
peasants—are these fit parents
for the King of Kings? A common
manger—is that anywhere for
the Savior to be born? Smelly,
simple shepherds—what kind of
a reception committee is that? A
helpless child in swaddling
clothes—is that any way for the
Messiah to make his grand
entrance? Yes, it is God’s way.
If we were writing the script,
we would write it differently,
wouldn’t we? We’d have his par
ents coming from somewhere a
little jazzier than Nazareth
We’d take over the whole inn for
Mary, Joseph and their baby.
We’d bring delegations of the
most important people.
SIMPLE, COMMON
PEOPLE
But God involved only the
most important people—simple,
common people. The
Incarnation did not, does not
conform to the norms and struc
tures of society, neither the one
into which Jesus was born, nor
the one in which you and I live
today. The Incarnation was con
sistent only with the Kingdom of
God. So, the angelic chorus that
startled shepherds made that
quite clear: “Be not afraid; for
behold I bring you good news of
a great joy which will come to all
the people” (2:10). I added the
italics above to highlight to all
the people, not the rich and pow
erful, the cultured and educated,
the nobly born and celebrities.
In his novel, The Harbor,
Ernest Poole tells of a lad m
Brooklyn Heights, NY, who fre
quented a secluded spot that
gave him a glorious view of the
harbor. Almost at his feet were
the tracks of the harbor railroad
terminal. Sometimes these
heavily laden freight trains
obscured his view of the harbor
Then one night he discovered by
lifting his eyes ever so slightly
he “could see the stars above the
freight trains.”
If we lift our Christmas gaze
ever so slightly above the chaos
and clatter of the season, we can
see the Star of Bethlehem above
the freight trains.
Lancaster Farming
Established 1955
Published Every Saturday
Ephrata Review Building
I E. Main St.
Ephrata, PA 17522
-by
Lancaster Farming, Inc.
A Stemman Enterprise
William J, Burges* General Manager
Everett R. NewAvanger Managing Editor
Copyright 1998 Lanctuler Farming