Site-Seeing with Jan Perry

As Christians prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ, this column pays tribute to the more solemn side of the season. And no matter what your faith or beliefs, in the spirit of the day, I wish you all a safe and peaceful holiday.

http://silentnight.web.za. I get requests for this site every year. When I first discovered it, they had 79 versions of ''Silent Night'' in nearly 60 languages. This year they offer 155 in 106 languages from Afrikaans to Zulu with American Sign Language and even interplanetary Klingon for those who understand it.

http://jabi.com/church/article0021.html. This site helps parents explain to commercialized kids ''why Christ is better than Santa'' in terms they can understand.

http://www.themains.org/christmas For families or church groups, this site contains a complete narrative play of the Christmas story. It dramatizes the birth of Christ Jesus and is written to be presented by a cast or read aloud by one person.

http:// www.backtothebible.org/christmas/12home.html. Another dramatic offering, this one available via RealAudio as well as text. ''The Twelve Voices of Christmas'' was written by Dr. Woodrow Kroll and is available in either English or German.

http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Valley/2895/lambgraphics.html. This is a long address, but if you have been looking for beautiful graphics to create a Christmas Web page or to use for your holiday stationery or your church bulletin, a visit to the Lamb's Grafix site is a must. Downloads are free and include borders and wallpaper for your personal use.

http://www.sunsetangel.com/holidays/christmas/index.html. This one also offers some amazing graphics and animations for holiday pages and newsletters.

http://www.joyfulheart.com/xmas. Christmas stories and articles for children and teens. Included here is a warm and wonderful lesson from 1997 called ''Burlap, Boys, and Christmas'' by Dr. Ralph F. Wilson. Read why boy shepherds in their burlap costumes com-

municate the Christmas story much better than girl angels in their white satin.

http://www.crossdaily.com. This Christian-based site will help you keep Christ in your live on a daily basis by keeping you in touch with others who share your beliefs.

Jan Perry is a freelance writer. Send questions or suggestions to her at SiteSeer2K@aol.com.