Oak Ridge Today

Christmas Stroll in downtown Clinton

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A Clinton Christmas Stroll this month will feature photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus, horse-drawn carriage rides, food trucks, a nativity scene, and a silent auction to benefit the Education Foundation.

“Additionally, the brick-and-mortar shops will be staying open late for shopping on this Small Business Saturday,” a press release said.

The Christmas Stroll, a new event, is scheduled from 5 to 9 p.m. Saturday, November 27, in Historic Downtown Clinton.

The live nativity scene will be held in the Hoskins Park on Market Street. It will feature live animals, caroling, cookies and cider, and a kid’s craft. The horse-drawn carriage rides are $20 per family, and the carriage can hold up to six people at a time, the press release said. The ride will start on Freddy Fagan Way and go behind Shabby Remakes and then circle around down Market Street.

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Guest column: ‘More than true’…Christmas matters

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I had a talk not too long ago with a very intelligent person about Christian Christmas stories. He asked, “Surely you don’t actually believe that the Christmas story you preach really happened?” It was a question that I settled long ago, although it reminded me that many people still struggle with their faith around the holidays.

Even though there are probably some good reasons to ponder the “reality” of the Nativity story over the holidays, I honestly don’t even think about it anymore. I once read a quote that went something like, “The question is not always whether it is real, but whether it matters…the things that matter most become reality.”

Atheist Sam Harris has written about “tiny lies” and the cost they have on our culture. He even discusses Santa Claus, taking on a popular non-religious Christmas tradition as a form of deception. I see Harris, much like my friend, in a very “stuck” place. When we bring the wrong question to the table, we often feel the need to “force feed” answers. No one likes being force-fed.

When it comes to Santa, the question for families is not so much whether or not he and his reindeer troop are real; rather the question is whether or not he matters. Because if he matters, every family finds a way to make him real during the season. [Read more…]