[OBW]

This is one of those things that Lee used to rail on so thoroughly. He had everyone disdaining it completely. Some of us did manage to slip away from Christmas eve conferences (and eventually the trainings if you were in Anaheim or Irving) to have a late time with family. But never talked about it with any of the “saints.”

Hard to understand how “saints” could be such a condemning bunch of people.

But it is hard to say a lot in a positive way about a heavily secular holiday in which you are encouraged to spend more money than you should so that you can “give” to others, while buried in songs of the season (Winter more than Christmas) and parties that tend to be more about obnoxiousness than anything else.

In 2018, my younger son texted everyone about a new challenge. The last one to hear “Simply Having a Wonderful Christmas Time” would be the winner. The song is happy and upbeat, is well-done, and is fitting (in the secular sense) even if a bit trite. But it has been so overplayed that avoiding it as much as possible has become a thing. Like avoiding “My Heart Will Go On” from the movie Titanic (also very overplayed). In 2018 I won. This year I was not so lucky and was out before Thanksgiving. I was in the car and changed stations on the radio to a little-selected progressive rock station that was (unknown to me) undergoing a transformation and just playing Christmas/seasonal music until January while they make the transition. And there it was.

I will agree that it is probably unlikely that Caesar would send the Roman world on journeys during the colder part of the year, but not impossible. And all of the secular hoopla does drown out the impact of a poor Jewish couple having a baby while away from home, and it would appear away from any significant family since there was nowhere to stay besides the stable.

But it seems that the whole "assault on Christmas" mantra of late is just a more extreme example of Evangelical/fundamental Christianity being anything other than loving of their neighbors. Just proof that we are more interested in making the world behave like good Christians while the allegedly good Christian behave like Banana republic despots or Roman jailers.

(BTW, I have always been part of groups that are legitimately Evangelical — and sometimes a little fundamentalist. But it is wearing on me. I am beginning to take a look at the idea of at least spending part of my worship time in an Anglican or Lutheran assembly. Go figure. It is not about doctrines, but about practice. Evangelicals don’t practice — they mainly blunder along.)

For me, the hoopla of Christmas is too much. But the core of the Christian celebration is worthy of keeping. Probably needs to be more like the Anglican/Lutheran/RCC traditions where there is Advent for four weeks, then Christmas comes. Not a whole lot of Christmas for 4 weeks or more (or starting in October like some department stores).

Low-ley the decorations. Forgo the “season” songs in favor of those that speak to the hope of the coming Messiah, and the wonder of his arrival. Remember that there was no hoopla then. Yes, a few shepherds got quite a display — briefly. But they were the only ones. Bethlehem didn’t know. Jerusalem didn’t know.

A Christmas Eve service with scripture concerning the need for the Messiah, the prophecies of his coming, and the story of his arrival, coupled with hymns that speak to each part. The choir (if there is one) primarily to support the congregational singing. No orchestra. Ditch the praise band. Go unplugged — piano, maybe an acoustic guitar, violin if there is a member who plays, maybe an organ if desired. None of the trite songs of donkeys, reindeer, snow, camels, ships, trees, or even drummers. A short sermon/homily speaking of the darkness into which this light is born, and the birth of that life in each of us. And a quiet exit as we consider the importance of this one birth to the world — even the world that does not believe.

Remember, at one point the Kingdom was likened to leaven placed into a lump of dough until the whole was leavened. No, the leaven was not the world, but the kingdom. It does not make the whole world “Christian,” but it cannot avoid the impact of that “leaven.”

Peace on earth!