Who stole Christmas?

Every Christmas I seem to stumble across one article that forces me to grimace with disgust, yell at the author in my head, and then take a deep breath and try to formulate a logical, reasoned response. I hope you enjoy my take on the Christmas front of the so-called "culture war."

[link to the original article]

Whose Holiday?

While there are many positive suggestions for a meaningful Christmas later in the article, the first two paragraphs alone are enough to push all my buttons. It begins with a lovely image of the Christmas ideal: enjoyable time with friends and family, a time for good feelings, etc. However, we are informed that this holiday is in extreme danger! Why? Because according to Mackay, we just can't have these things without mangers and shepherds as well. According to her, gathering with family and friends without an explicitly religious theme is "dull, obscure" and "meaningless."

The mission of Christians, then, is to "restore Christmas to its rightful owner – Christ." Reading this, I began to wonder: would Christ really want us to fight for "his holiday"? How did it even become "his" in the first place?

The last time I checked, Christ was the subject of Christmas, not the owner. Christmas was not created by Jesus; it was made up by Christians. Therefore, Christmas is our holiday, not his! You may think I'm nitpicking - but by making this simple point, any defense of the Christmas Crusade crumbles away. Making up a divine mandate to protect a human interest is known in the Bible as taking the Lord's name in vain. Fighting for our "right" to mandate a religious holiday observance is cultural imperialism, not Gospel living.

A Different Gospel

Ironically enough, Jesus made a big deal out of a very similar issue, and it was part of what got him killed. Allow me to (over-)simplify and summarize:

The Pharisees were building a snazzy new temple. "This belongs to God!" they said. "Everyone has to worship here like we tell them to. Furthermore, anyone who opposes our agenda is really opposing God, and will be punished." Jesus, however, didn't agree. "That building has nothing to do with God and neither do your silly observances; and he's not very fond of you signing his name on to your pet projects and proceeding to beat other people down with them."

Isn't there just a bit of an echo through all the years? There's only one problem: Jesus is on the wrong side! Is it possible that Christ really has been removed from Christmas– not by the Secularists, but by the Christians who claim to love him?

A Really Christian Christmas

It should be clear to Christians that if Christ really were the centre of Christmas, it would not lead to the fuzzy-feeling, cozy holiday that Mackay describes and that we all enjoy. Jesus "did not come to bring peace, but the sword." In other words, Jesus does not intend to give us comfort and security, at least not before sacrifice, pain and trials. If our holiday merely reinforces a general sense of "good will to all" and warm fuzzy feelings, we can be assured that it is not Christian is any significant sense. Mackay unfortunately tries to have it both ways by fighting for a Christian holiday (supposedly for the good of Christians and non-Christians alike), when a truly Christian Christmas would by definition exclude those who are not part of that faith community... or at least seriously piss them off.

Of course there are many Christians, including me, for whom Christmas really is a Christian holiday, a time to reflect on the "image of God" as flesh and blood, beginning to the long road to the cross. For me it involves feelings of joy ("Can it really be true?"), doubt, ("Can I really believe it is true?"), and struggle ("How can I learn to follow him?") My question is this: how could we argue (or simply assume, as Mackay does) that this aspect of Christmas can have any relevance to the rest of the world? And without the core of obedient discipleship, what is the use of mangers and wise men?

Whether Christians choose to admit it or not, there has always been a "winterval Christmas": the family dinners, warm sweaters, trees and presents. There is also a "Christian Christmas," where those who want to follow Jesus take the oppourtunity to reflect on his arrival in our world. To force the rest of the world to take part in a religious Christmas is not only an affront to non-Christians, it is an injustice to those for whom Christmas does have spiritual value. It is one thing to use Christmas as a time to share with others the light of Christ: it is another to harass the Royal Mail for not putting Jesus on their stamps.

This Christmas, let's give up fighting to preserve a religious culture that is devoid of spiritual value, a culture that emphasizes form over substance, that misses the forest for the trees; the same religious culture that led Jesus to the cross. Let us embrace the "winterval" as a chance to live as Christians in fellowship with the unbelieving world on their terms, not ours, and let us also celebrate Christmas as the arrival of our Lord, as only humble Christians can.

Happy holidays,
and Merry Christmas,

Chris