The National Memo: The Simple, Clear, And Still Radical Meaning Of The Christmas Story

The story of Christmas is not a political parable but an allegory of light brought into a dark and suffering world, on a date that coincides not accidentally with the winter solstice. Its newborn prophet is a harbinger of divine love for all, most emphatically including the sinners, the impious, the unclean, the unaccepted, the foreigner, the stranger, and the impoverished.

I have this thing about Christmas. I actually try hard every year to celebrate it. For me, that often means I call it “Incarnation Day” instead of Christmas. It means that we actually do “stockings” in our house on St Nicolaus Day (Dec 6) instead of the 25th. It means while we have a traditional Christmas dinner, while we dine we talk about poverty, not gifts. We talk about presence, not presents.

Incarnation Day for me, means welcoming the stranger — not assigning them a scarlet letter, or a star on their jackets, or a special ID card based on their religion.

Source: The National Memo

Author: Matt Cromwell

I'm the founder of Roots & Fruit, a fractional Chief Growth Officer practice for product companies that want growth to feel deliberate—not reactive. I help founders and teams turn customer feedback into clear product priorities, align marketing, product, and customer experience around shared goals, and build operating systems that support steady renewal revenue without burning out teams or customers. I co-founded GiveWP and grew it through an eight-figure acquisition, then led marketing and customer experience at scale across StellarWP brands including LearnDash, Kadence, and The Events Calendar. Over more than a decade in product-led growth, I've focused on connecting what customers feel with how teams build—and turning that alignment into meaningful, measurable results. I also co-host WP Product Talk, where product founders share what actually works in building sustainable software businesses. View all posts by Matt Cromwell