TUESDAY, Dec. 7, 8pm
A Charlie Brown Christmas
ABC In this 1965 “Peanuts” special, Linus recited St. Luke 2:8-14 (King James Version), including the verses, “And the angel said unto them, ‘Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.’”
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 8, 10am, live
Homage to Our Lady
EWTN, CATHOLICTV On the feast of the Immaculate Conception, Pope Benedict XVI will lead the traditional Homage to Our Lady at Rome’s Piazza di Spagna, site of the Spanish Steps. CatholicTV will air the homage at 8pm.
THURSDAY, Dec. 9, 11pm
Herod’s Lost Tomb
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC CHANNEL Herod the Great (73-4 B.C.), murderer of the Holy Innocents, built mammoth projects such as the Second Temple, the port of Caesarea, the fortresses at Masada, Antonia and Herodium, and a palace complex that held his own tomb. Re-airs 10am Saturday.
SUNDAY, Dec. 12, noon, 9pm
Guadalupe Festival
CATHOLICTV This three-hour telecast (and live streaming on CatholicTV.com) airs the Guadalupe Festival held in Glendale, Ariz., Aug. 8, 2009. Attendees venerated a relic of the tilma (cloak) of St. Juan Diego, prayed the Rosary, and heard from actor-producer Eduardo Verástegui and Rwanda genocide survivor Immaculée Ilibagiza.
THURSDAY, Dec. 16, all day
The Andy Hardy Series
TURNER CLASSIC MOVIES Mickey Rooney (real name Joseph Yule Jr.) starred as teen Andy Hardy in this series of comedies that audiences in the late 1930s and the 1940s loved for its portrayal of family life in small-town America. Titles in today’s slate of 14 films include Judge Hardy and Son and Love Laughs at Andy Hardy. TV-G.
FRIDAY, Dec. 17, 9pm
Modern Marvels:
Made in the USA
HISTORY This new “Marvels” episode profiles a venerable flag manufacturer and makers of toys, athletic shoes, “alternate transportation” and food products.
SATURDAY, Dec. 18, 8am
Nestor, the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey
ABC FAMILY In this 1977 animated special from Rankin Bass, a donkey with unusually long ears, Nestor, endures rejection and sorrow until he meets an angel, Tilly, who guides him to Bethlehem. There, wayfaring St. Joseph and Mary are given Nestor; and, guided by his mama’s voice and angels whom his special ears let him hear, he wraps Mary in his warm ears and takes the holy travelers through a sandstorm to the stable where Jesus is born. Advisory: Nestor’s mother gives her life for him.
Dan Engler writes from Santa Barbara, California.