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as "the true meaning of Christmas," with no mention of Jesus Christ, I worry. I'd rather have unabashed commercialism than a half-baked pretense of "religion" at Christmas - at least you know what you're getting!
I wonder how much we, as Christians, are complicit in, and confused by, the "re-paganization" of Christmas? I don't think there's anything wrong with a little "Santa Claus" at Christmas, just as long as Christ is kept at the heart of the season. But are we so overcome and burnt out by shopping, cooking, partying, that we have no room in our inns for the Christ-Child? Do we honor the Christ-Child by maxing out our credit cards in an orgy of excessive gift-giving and party-hosting while Christ is hungry and homeless in the poor? Are we so captivated by sentimentality at Christmas that we forget that God was born in human flesh in a place that was occupied by soldiers, and that much suffering followed His birth?
I know some Christians don't like to hear the generic greeting "Happy Holidays" in public, out of deference to non-Christians. I appreciate the concern to "keep Christ in Christmas," but I'm not sure this is such a bad trend--it might help us to do just that! Maybe it wouldn't be so bad a thing if the secular world lost interest in "Christmas." Maybe it would give us as the Church an opportunity to reflect on what Christmas is truly about - The Word made flesh, who sanctified our humanity. Maybe it wouldn't be the worst thing if we weren't pressured to give gifts beyond our means, to indulge in a materialism that is harmful to our souls, and to cling to false hopes of political and military peace, family reconciliations, only to be overcome with despair when those hopes don't bear out.
In what ways might we re-claim Christmas as a Christian holiday? I have a few ideas. What if our gift exchanges were simpler? What if we spent more on gifts to the poor, and less on the "political" gift exchanges in our social networks? What if we eliminated just one party, one holiday concert, or one shopping marathon, and made service at a homeless shelter or feeding ministry a tradition in its place? (Hopefully, it would be more frequent than an "annual tradition"). What if we kept Advent as a solemn time to fast, and to pray for the Lord's Coming, rather than as a time to rush our celebration of Christmas, so that when we celebrate Christ's birth among us, we may do so with great joy and feasting, without being burnt-out, confused and let down?
Is the Christ-Child at the heart of your Christmas? What things threaten to "paganize" your Christmas celebration? Are you afraid that the problems in your life will make Christmas not be all that it should? Remember that Christ was born in the midst of the world's darkness, and it did not go away just because He came. Much suffering was to follow, from the slaughter of the Holy Innocents to Jesus' own passion. The good news of Christmas is that the Word is made flesh and dwells among us. The good news is that He comes to you, and to our sin-sick world in its darkness, and He is among us still today. Let's not celebrate this Joyous Day in a "paganized" way that raises our expectations for a false happiness that Jesus never promised. Instead, let us use Advent to solemnly await, and prepare for, the Lord's Coming. And when Christmas comes, let us celebrate one thing among all others -- even though the war in Iraq continues to wage, homes are foreclosed upon and jobs are lost in Michigan, families continue to be divided and homes broken - amidst these and all our other darknesses -- let us celebrate that Christ is our Light, that God has broken into human existence, and that the darkness will not hold out against Him!
Christ is Born! Glorify Him!
Pastor Bill+
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