Christmas. It comes and goes; every year, and although it sounds sacrilegious to say here and now, to grow up this packet and that tall, decorate a tree and the pump and the ceremony, the buying and the selling, the giving of every child to his toys with its bright colored lights, its gay wrappings, its tinsel and its glitter, its “Santa Claus” above all, its embodiment in a jolly old man in a red suit and a beard, its ho-ho-ho and its “Merry Christmas” – is that all it means?
What is the point of Christmas? To bring families together for one day in the year? To give us at least one certain opportunity to overeat? To take in detail the sales?
Is that all?
If that is all, then is it worth it? Is it worth being the one day in the year which takes the highest death toll on the highways? Is it worth being the one day of the year which has the highest daily occurrence of shoplifting in the nation? Is it worth the tremendous strain on families for travel gifts – when all are and people are groveling in the dust of financial worries for the rest of the year?
And if it isn’t worth it, then why do we continue to observe it? Is it because we are afraid of being different, of being out of step, of being lost?
Surely, when something develops into a habit, it becomes something which is taken for granted. It is established. It is lost. It has been so long since the establishment of which, is lost, holiday that few have forgotten why it was established.
Christmas comes down to a historical event in time. The birth of a child named Jesus in Bethlehem, Judea, of humble parents. The birth of this child was the beginning of what makes the birth of that baby so meaningful to those of the Christian faith. For Christians, the birth of Jesus was a gift given by Him to all mankind. In the year 33 A.D., by the order of Pontius Pilate, this man was crucified on a cross. Three days later, the Christians believe, He arose from the dead. This familiar, poignant story celebrates the victory of light over darkness, of life over death. It is the central belief of the Christian one, since Christians consider Christ as the light of the world.
Since that time, Christians have celebrated the birthday of Jesus. In the first century, there was no set date. The Son was given to us some 2,000 years ago, and if you want to celebrate His birth, it is a gift He has already given. You can give it to Him or not. It is His gift to you to give.
This is not to say to throw out all the traditions which have become a part of us, to insist in loose traditions the real giving.
When we exchange gifts, when we speak of Santa Claus, when we gather around to decorate a tree, let us remember the real reason for the season. The greatest gift we can ever give to each other the greatest gift we can offer – ourselves.