Do you struggle to get into the Christmas spirit? Do you dislike all the trappings of the season and cannot bear its crass materialism? This book is written by a theologian who feels that way too. As an antidote, Ben Pugh tries to take us back to that very first Christmas as described in the Gospels. Particular moments in the story are vividly brought to life and paralleled with the present day. Using good scholarship, Pugh tries to get the reader to imagine actually being there, and suggests a simple prayer of response at the end of each chapter. The chapters are short, the book is small, and the therapy it offers might be just what you need.

Ben Pugh first trained as an artist with the University for the Creative Arts in Farnham, UK, and still has a love for creative endeavors, especially in written form. After becoming a Christian at the age of nineteen, his love of writing combined with a newfound love for the Bible and a growing interest in Christian doctrine, especially the life-changing truth that we are justified in Christ. In time, this interest in theology led to an MA from Manchester University and a PhD from Bangor. His first full-time academic role was as Director of Postgraduate Studies at Mattersey Hall College which, at the time, could boast of having the largest graduate school of its kind in Europe. However, Ben longed for more time in the classroom engaging with students, and, of course, more time to write theology. Along came the offer of the position of Lecturer in Theology at Cliff College, Derbyshire, where he has been happily employed since 2012. Ben is blessed to work at a desk in what was once Victorian country house from which he can look out across the second most visited national park in the world--Peak District.