During today’s conversation on Back Porch Theology, Alli and I are still neck-deep in all things Advent but the itinerary we’re taking to the Christmas creche is much more scenic than Waze would route you. We’re going all the way back through the family tree of Jesus to a little boy named Obed, who was also born in a little town called Bethlehem, in the Old Testament. The New Testament gives us two accounts of the genealogy of Jesus – Matthew starts with Abraham and works forward, while Luke works backward from Jesus to Adam. But neither of these Gospel writers gives us as many redemptive details as the Book of Ruth. She and Esther are the only two women who have an entire book of the Bible dedicated to them and Ruth’s story reads like a colorful prelude to the miracle of Christmas, complete with a baby born in Bethlehem, the House of Bread. Surely, you’ve sung about this little town and how still we see it lie, but today you’re going to find out why a tiny village in the Middle East means that you don’t have to spend Christmas alone, ever. So grab a cup-a-joe and your Bible – unless you’ve got both hands full of popcorn and fresh cranberries because you’ve watched too many episodes of Little House on the Prairie or have spent way too much time on Pinterest! – and come prop your feet up on the porch with Alli, Dr. Howard, and me!