Emphasis Preaching Journal

The Cherry Tree Carol is a tale that imagines that when the Holy Family was enroute to Egypt in their flight from Herod they were famished and thirsty. They came upon a cherry tree whose fruit was too high for them to reach. However, when the infant gestured to the tree, it bent over so the Holy Family could pick its fruit.

Another such tale informs us that enroute to Egypt the Holy Family was accosted by two highway robbers who would have taken from the threesome the costly gifts the Wise Men had given them. However, one of them was touched by the presence of the Holy Child and restrained the other so that the travelers were set free. Many years later the two robbers were the very same who were crucified with our Lord, and from their crosses they engaged in the same kind of dialogue as on the highway.

Many such fanciful yarns were spun almost two thousand years ago, much like the short stories in your favorite family magazine and Sunday magazine section. Now as then people find delight in building romantic stories on their dreams of what they think the Holy Child was like. In these final Advent days we are reminded that the New Testament writers did not indulge themselves in such light motifs.