catholicsphere

As any Google News search for Christmas will testify this Christmas season has seen some interesting twists and turns in the world. From the fiasco of the Christmas trees and menorah at Sea-Tac Airport to Wal-mart returning to the practice of wishing shoppers “Merry Christmas” there have been mixed feelings over what this time of the year should mean, even though 95% of the American people are not offended by being wished a “Merry Christmas”.

The popularity and celebration of Christmas throughout the years may have been due, mostly, to its inclusiveness. Christians in the past would share their Christmas joy with the world. As Bill Murray’s character, Frank Cross, said in the movie Scrooged its the one time of year when “we all act a little nicer, we smile a little easier, we cheer a little more. For a couple of hours out of the whole year we are the people that we always hoped we would be.” At least it used to be that way…

Somewhere along the way, for some reason, there came the notion that we demand people “keep Christ in Christmas.” Don’t get me wrong, Jesus is the reason we celebrate Christmas, but the Christian spirit is what was contagious. People were able to see Christ, see the reason for our hope, without our demands that they acknowledge Jesus if they wanted to act in that same spirit.

Marketers may have sought to capture the gift-givers during this time, hoping to capitalize on the spirit of the season, but that hardly seems a reason to place religious requirements on those who wished to participate in the Christmas season. Instead, our Christmas joy should have been extended to those around us, to evangelize through relationships.

It was this shift, I believe, that resulted in the counter-demands that Christian symbols not be permitted in the public square. Each and every response that Christians attempted to offer to get back the prominence and understanding that was once part of society, was interpreted as further evidence of the exclusivity of Christmas. And so, the “war for Christmas” began.

If we look around, we may see Christmas making a comeback. However, it will be necessary for Christians to assess how they will share their Christmas joy in the public square. Most people do not object to Christmas, so that does give us the opportunity to talk about it, rather than demand its observance. This should give us the chance to foster better understanding, through relationships with our friends, family and co-workers, classmates, etc.

[tags]christmas, christian, evangelism, jesus, season, faith, hope, joy, love[/tags]