(Japan: pine trees, zelkova trees, cedars, and a volcano north of the Tokyo Area)Something Reliable Altogether
Santa Claus is not from Rome, Istanbul, or Jerusalem. He is apparently from the Scandinavian Peninsula or Jutland. But why? Why did the Vatican approve such a legend being revered all over Europe or specifically in the north of the Alps? It must be telling a kind of secret of the Vatican and the European history.
Anyway, the year 2009 has now only one week left exclusively 2009, a year of coping, enduring, and surpassing for President Mr. Barack Obama and Prime Minister Mr. Yukio Hatoyama of Japan as well as their friends.
SECTION I: Japanese Politicians - Prime Minister
Japan's Prime Minister Mr. Yukio Hatoyama has broken a record, since he travelled overseas seven times in the first three months after his accession to the office of premiership.
In September, he launched a series of diplomacy heading for America to join the U.N. and the G20 Meetings; in October, he flew to Thailand (ASEAN), Korea, and China; in November, he attended the APEC meeting held in Singapore; and in December the prime minister hurried to the Bali Democracy Forum in Indonesia and the Copenhagen Conference, Denmark.
This is very unusual. It is not so desirable basically, though he might be contributing to enhancement of Japanese international presence.
Indeed, while Prime Minister Mr. Hatoyama was flying to America, Asia, and Europe, his domestic approval rating has fallen from 70% to 55%.
(The most possible next prime minister of Japan would be Deputy Prime Minister Mr. Naoto Kan of DPJ in any case of an unpredictable crisis occurring in the Hatoyama Cabinet.)
SECTION II: Japanese Politicians - LDP Members
Former Chief Cabinet Secretary Mr. Ysuhisa Shiozaki complained that the Japan-U.S. relationship could be damaged by the Hatoyama Administration. Lower House member of the LDP Mr. Shiozaki boasts his own international association, including Former Secretary of State Mr. George Shultz, but thinks that mutual trust between the Prime Minister Mr. Hatoyama and President Mr. Barack Obama has vanished, if ever any.
On the other hand, Upper House Member of the former ruling party, the Liberal Democratic Party, Mr. Hiroshige Seko is busy manipulating a cell phone for Twitter communications, discussing how great "The West Wing" is. There seem to be many fans among Mr. Seko's supporters of this American TV drama featuring the White House.
Mr. Shiozaki and Mr. Seko tried this fall to boost up Mr. Taro Kono, an LDP lawmaker, to presidency of the LDP to succeed former Prime Minister Mr. Taro Aso. They failed after challenging big bosses of the party, but Mr. Kono has been busy traveling to Washington D.C. this December. Mr. Kono even visited a balcony of the Russel Bldg. once occupied by Edward Kennedy.
(http://www.taro.org/2009/12/post-672.php)
Finally, Ms. Yukari Sato who lost her seat in the Lower House on the 2009-8-30 general election worried about the future of the LDP, especially after the next national election. Qualified economist Ms. Sato seems to be preparing for the next chance to come back to the National Diet, though she appealed in the last election to a constituency in Tokyo that voters should vote for liberalism but not for socialism the Democratic Party of Japan, an incumbent ruling party, aims at actually.
(http://www.y-sato.org/index.html)
In the early summer of 2010, the next year, the Upper House (House of Councilors) election is to be held in Japan as U.S. State Department officials in charge of Japan must be well aware of.
SECTION III: Miracles by Christmas
It is of course a Pope that decided that December 25 should be celebrated as the birthday of the Lord Jesus Christ, though it was more than 300 years after the death of Jesus Christ.
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In 350 A.D. Pope Julius I decreed that from that time forth the 25th of December would be acknowledged as the date of the Nativity. All of Christendom accepted that decree except for the Armenian church. To that denomination, the Nativity is celebrated on January 6 each year. It should be noted that Julius I's decree came only thirty-seven years after Emperor Constantine issued the Edict of Toleration which effectively legalized the Christian religion. Prior to that time anyone who professed the Christian religion were persecuted. In 303 A.D. the Nativity was "celebrated" by Emperor Diocletian by having nearly 20,000 Christians burned to death.
http://www.motherbedford.com/Christmas.htm
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What should be noted is that Xmas was stipulated by the early Vatican during the reign of the Roman Empire.
The New Testament and Xams are two major instruments that connect a Europe after the fall of the Roman Empire to the Roman Civilization, thus providing bases for authority of the Vatican.
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Through the Medieval and Dark Ages, roughly between the 5th and 11th Centuries, the Christian and pagan traditions mingled...
Legend tells us that it was on a Christmas day that Merlin, the reknowned magician of Camelot, called together all of the various leaders of the realms of Britain. Merlin announced that on His birthday, the Lord would reveal to them who would be the rightful king to rule over the entire British Isles. The sign which the Lord gave to the assembled feudal lords and knights was a sword embedded in an anvil. Arthur was the only one who could draw the sword from the "stone" and to him was given the title of the first King of England. The epic story, Le Morte d'Arthur, written in the 15th Century by Sir Thomas Malory, was largely responsible for promoting the legend of Arthur as the heroic Briton who defended the Christian Faith against the hordes of Angles and Saxons who invaded the Isles. Despite the legends of Arthur's prowess in battle, the British Isles were indeed invaded by Germanic peoples who brought with them their particular form of Celtic traditions.
http://www.motherbedford.com/Christmas.htm
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As Anglo-Saxons came from the place today called Denmark or so, King Arthur was not Anglo-Saxon. Anglo-Saxons had no tradition to celebrate Xmas. They were Christianized after invading the Great Britain.
As there is an evidence that the Vatican itself diminished to very local religious power after the fall of Rome, Xmas should be reviewed in this historical context.
In my theory, while the Vatican almost gave up hope of recovery from helplessness it had suffered with the fall of Rome losing ancient glory in the darkness of the Dark Ages, those Northern Europeans who accepted Christianity gradually accumulated power and wisdom to establish their own kingdoms so as to respect and revere a Pope still subsisting in the ancient city Rome.
Xmas must have worked as a vehicle for the religion to spread among Northern Europeans who experienced volkerwanderung, since a ritual is always a core of any human community.
Even Anglo-Saxons must have loved Xmas festivity and naturally came to respect the Bible written in Latin.
One of key factors to understanding the Dark Ages, from 500 to 1000, is Christmas.
It is so, since Christmas was so modified to well appeal to Anglo-Saxons and other Northern Europeans, uncultivated tribes before 1000.
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2009 XMAS EXTRA:
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SquareTrade Research's ranking of Notebook PC makers in terms of reliability:
1. Asus (Taiwan)
2. Toshiba (JAPAN)
3. Sony (JAPAN)
4. Apple (USA)
5. Dell (USA)
7. Levono (China)
8. Acer (Taiwan)
9. Gateway (USA)
10. HP (USA)
http://www.squaretrade.com/pages/laptop-reliability-1109/
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In addition, I recently purchased a new printer made by HP...
(With a record snow falling in America and Europe while Copenhagen Conference was in a showdown turmoil, Santa Claus has come...so that I chose one for you among 12 versions of the Santa Song.
http://xmas-count-down.com/10_/12santa2/stclaus6.mid
Source:http://xmas-count-down.com/10_/12santa2/santa2town.htm)
Mat 12:20 A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory.
Mat 12:21 And in his name shall the Gentiles trust.