“Contents,” Ensign, Dec. 1998, 1 Ensign December 1998 Volume 28 Number 12 Contents First Presidency Message: What Is Christmas?President Thomas S. Monson Nourishing the SpiritElder Dallin H. Oaks Life—the Gift Each Is GivenElder Alexander B. Morrison Sharing the Fire of Our FaithRichard Davis “God Setteth the Solitary in Families”Maria Cristina Santana Gift for a StrangerDonavene Ahier Jaycox Sealing Families, Strengthening a WardPaul VanDenBerghe Australia: Coming Out of Obscurity Down UnderChristopher K. Bigelow Trust—Etched in GlassPat Kohler Warren Place of HonorJan Tindall Tasting the Bread of LifeSherrie Johnson I Have a QuestionWho were the Maccabees, and how did they influence Jewish history? Gaye Strathearn Mormon JournalWhat Present Could I Give? Marilou D. Paderanga IdosThe Art of Perspective Laura Russell BunkerStockings Filled with Love Henry CopierAn Angel in Deed Amanda RoweJust a Few Stamps Short Wanda Daines Hammond Vetterli Random Sampler The Visiting Teacher: Observing the Law of Tithing Portraits News of the Church Annual Index On the cover: The Arrival, by Michael Albrechtsen, oil on canvas, 16″ x 20″, 1998. Courtesy of Dennis Morganson. Inside front cover: Mary and the Christ Child, by Robert T. Barrett, oil on board, 18″ x 24″, 1993. Inside back cover: Gray Day of Winter, by LeConte Stewart, oil on board, 24″ x 30″, 1931. Courtesy of Museum of Church History and Art. A peaceful winter scene with its horse-drawn sled, wooden barns, and simple homes depicts rural Farmington, Utah, during the Great Depression.