Sometime in the 5th century, when the Church decided to settle on a day to celebrate Christ’s birth, it’s interesting to see the date they chose. They chose the time of the year when the nights, at least in the Northern hemisphere are at their very longest & coldest. When the world is dark, and when everything in it is nearly frozen & dead. It's then that the words we hear from Isaiah the prophet make their most sense: The people who walked in darkness will see a great light; those who dwell in a land of deep darkness, on them a light will shine.