Related articles and links |  1 of 8

Christmas:

• Somber services mark 'Blue Christmas' | There were no jolly Christmas carols at the Cannon Memorial Chapel. No brilliant poinsettias or festive branches of holly. No smiling faces or hearty wishes of happiness. (Associated Press )

• Charity offers animal donations as gifts | Instead of waiting in line with hundreds of others for a chance at nabbing the year's hottest Christmas gifts, Food Network chef Alton Brown decided on an intangible alternative for the people on his list — a donation to Heifer International. (Associated Press)

• Don't trim the tree with guilt | Now is the season to celebrate not just a birth in Bethlehem but also the joys of being a consumer (The Australian)

• Dreaming of a green Christmas | At Christmas, people go through tonnes of paper, packaging, food and trees in the name of celebration. (BBC News)

• In your name: Holiday donations on behalf of those with plenty | Are the mixed blessing of receiving the gift of a charitable donation on the rise these days? (The New York Times)

• Mixed-faith families celebrate the holidays together | The Christmas Tree or the Menorah? Or both? For about 2.5 million families of mixed-faith marriages, the holidays are about respecting each others' traditions and balancing the needs of their faiths. Audio. (NPR's Morning Edition)

• Queen's Christmas speech on podcast | Queen Elizabeth II's traditional Christmas speech will be available as a podcast this year for the first time. A download can be ordered in advance for free on the British monarchy's Web site http://www.royal.gov.uk, royal officials said Friday. (Associated Press)

• Rare Christmas carol discovered | A rare recording of a "carol plygain" - the traditional Welsh Christmas carol - has been found in the British Library in London. (BBC News)

• Their real name is Christmas | Don't bother making jokes. This family has heard them all. No, they don't communicate directly with Santa Claus. They don't celebrate the holidays year-round, and they certainly have some not-so-cheerful days. The smirks and the wisecracks are just part of life when your last name is Christmas, and especially so when two of your family members are named — no joke — Mary. (Associated Press)

• Young 'forget Jesus at Christmas' | Fewer than half of children aged seven to 11 think Christmas is about the birth of Jesus, a survey suggests. (BBC News)

• Bishop praises strong Christians | The Bishop of Dudley has praised those who stand up for their religion, in his Christmas message to parishioners. (BBC News)

International Christmas:

• Australia warns of Christmas attacks in Indonesia | Australia warned on Thursday of possible militant attacks in Indonesia over the Christmas and New Year period, mirroring a U.S. warning issued this week. (Reuters)

• Christmas cheer descends on tent city in Beirut | Three weeks ago central Beirut's most dominant fixture was the blue-domed Mohammed al-Amin mosque. Now, a 15-metre cheerfully adorned Christmas tree has sprung up among the thousands of tents just a few steps away. (Reuters)

• It's Christmas! Have a little more bat meat! |  Dogs, bats, Kentucky Fried Chicken and barramundi will grace dinner tables across the Asia Pacific this Christmas, a festival celebrated with lots of cheer, and very little turkey, in this mainly non-Christian region. (Reuters)

• Security boosted at Indonesian churches | Thousands of police will guard Christian churches across the world's most populous Muslim country over the Christmas holidays, officials said Monday, as the U.S. Embassy warned that terrorists could carry out strikes targeting Westerners. (Associated Press)

next page... |  1 of 8

December (Web-only) 2006, Vol. 50