Christmas
means a lot of things to a lot of different people, and there’s a whole range
between the extremes of “It’s all about Christ,” and “It’s all about sales and
crass commercialism.” Actually, there’s a whole lot of meanings that don’t fall
anywhere on the line between those two positions.
I could
go on, I suppose, about the fact that it’s pretty much impossible that December
25th is the actual birth date of Jesus, or how Christmas is just a
Christian appropriation of pagan midwinter celebrations anyway with a modern
incarnation defined more by Normal Rockwell and the Coca Cola Company than any
religion, but I’m pretty sure we’ve all heard that before. My telling you about
it again isn’t going to give anyone any new insight. And if you have somehow
failed to hear about those things, there are people better qualified than I to
spell out the details who are just a Google search away.
No, the
purpose of this post is to talk about the Christmas I celebrate, and why I
celebrate it.
As I
mentioned in a previous post, I was raised in a Christian household. So, of
course, I was raised celebrating Christmas. We used to do the whole Christmas
Cantata thing, where my brother and I would participate in church productions
of the little play telling the Christmas story. We sang all the religious
carols. We set up an Advent wreath with the four candles, lighting one more
each Sunday leading up to Christmas. We decorated the Christmas tree, and gave
each other presents, and had a big Christmas dinner (which, as wonderful as it
was, still placed second behind Mom’s Christmas cookies for holiday foodstuffs,
as they are the best cookies in the known universe). Christmas from my
childhood holds nothing but happy memories for me.
And
really, that’s a big part of why I celebrate it: because it reminds me of happy
memories. And I would like to share those happy memories with my children and
help them form some of their own. Obviously, the religious symbolism (including
the symbolism of the huge number of pagan elements contained in the celebration)
is pretty much ignored, but the things they symbolize played little to no role
in my enjoyment of the holiday to begin with.
Another
reason I celebrate Christmas is that I happen to believe that the secular
notions that it has come to embody are very good things. Setting aside time to
be with your family and loved ones. Demonstrating love through the exchange of
gifts (and no, I do not accept the notion that doing so is inherently shallow
or commercial). Encouraging acts of generosity towards even total strangers. I
think those are good things to do, and to be reminded of.
And
finally, I happen to like tradition. That doesn’t mean I think tradition should
always be adhered to without examination. But at their best, traditions are
things that help to bind families and communities together through shared
experience, and Christmas traditions are generally pretty fun and positive. Our
family has a tradition of gathering at my parents’ house the first Sunday after
Thanksgiving to decorate the Christmas tree. It’s a time we have set aside
where everything else gets put away so we can get together in a loving
environment and each contribute our efforts to creating something together. I
love it.
So this
season, we will once again put up our Christmas tree, and hang our lights
around the house. And my wife and I will put in some late nights shopping and
wrapping up presents in secret. We’ll even hold back a stash to lay under the
tree Christmas night after the kids have gone to sleep, even though they know
the truth about Santa, because it’s fun and it’s tradition, and it contributes
to the whole magical feeling of the holiday. We’ll give to our charities, and
we’ll visit our families (and score some of Mom’s Christmas cookies!).
So for
those who celebrate it: Merry Christmas! And for those who celebrate other
traditions: Happy Holidays! And for those who don’t celebrate anything at all:
we love you too and wish you only the best!
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