I am always interested by those who say they are not religious but who love the carols and Christian symbols used at Christmas.
And while I’m on the subject of Christian symbols at Christmas – I was interested to see on a TV programme the other day (it was a BBC effort to show Christmases of the past but which left us all feeling a little dissatisfied – at least it left everyone I know dissatisfied) that after putting up some outside lights and standing back to look at them there was a comment about how there were not any Christian symbols – let me clear up what there was:
- A star – obviously the star of Bethlehem that the wise men followed, a Christian symbol.
- A Christmas tree – a Christian symbol started by Martin Luther
- Father Christmas – a Christian saint (St Nicolas)
- Candy canes – a Christian symbol invented by a candy maker in the USA (shepherds crook with white for purity/Jesus and red for the blood of Christ)
No Christian symbols??? It was nearly all Christian symbols but they were too ignorant to know it.
Anyway, I understand that some folks might like the feeling of listening to music, giving presents, eating, etc. but it always seems to me that carols, and the other Christian celebrations, offer something much more than you will ever get with just the Seasons Greetings stuff. It is all very well being jolly and talking about goodwill but you need the words of hope that only the birth of Jesus Christ can give to offer any real meaning. Otherwise it is just sentimental mush and how is that going to help anyone? The point of a Christian Christmas is NOT a sentimental wishy washy vague hope that things might get better if we keep grinning but that God has sent his son and so we can, at last, put our trust and hope in something concrete. If you remove Jesus all you have is a sentimental selling fest where we are all persuaded to spend obscene amounts of money on stuff we don’t need with limp talk of peace and happiness with nothing to back it up but with Jesus there is so much more. With Jesus in Christmas the lonely, the sick, the abused, the poor, the suffering are offered hope but take Jesus away and you have nothing to give them but glitter and mulled sentiments which are all, in the end, useless to anyone.
No, you cannot have a true Christmas without Jesus – if you try you are just conning yourself.
Have a very happy – Jesus filled – Christmas.