Yesterday I listened to a radio station that was playing Christmas songs. Amid the mix of secular tunes and religious carols, there were two songs that particularly caught my attention: Burl Ives’ version of “Holly Jolly Christmas” and Andy Williams singing “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.” In the first song, Burl sings, “It’s the best time of the year.” Then, Andy follows with the lyrics: “It’s the most wonderful time of the year.”
But is it? Is Christmas (or the Christmas season) the best, or the most wonderful, time of the year? When the second song ended, it was time for the news. One of the news stories reported on a recent medical study which found that Christmas is the worst time of the year when it comes to heart attacks. According to their findings, the most dangerous time – when more heart attacks occur than any other time during the year – is at 10:00 pm on Christmas Eve.
Considering that I often preached at 10 pm at our church’s Christmas Eve services, it’s a good thing I retired when I did! As the saying goes, I “dodged a bullet” by getting out alive!
The report surprised me, because I’ve always found Christmas to be a very special season and one of my favorite times of the year – although growing up in Wisconsin I also looked forward to the summers. I mean, singing about Frosty was fun, but building snowmen in April was a bit much, so summers were always welcome.
In a way, I shouldn’t have been surprised at the report, because we know about the stresses this season puts on people: cleaning the house, shopping for presents, decorating, entertaining, and meeting various social obligations. On top of that, several million people suffer from S.A.D. – Seasonal Affective Disorder – a kind of depression caused by changes in a person’s body chemistry due to winter’s reduced sunlight. Most difficult of all, many people have lost loved ones at this time of year. While such a loss is felt and grieved at any time of year, it can be especially hard at Christmas when everyone is singing about being “happy and gay” (old definition), and the expectation is to have a wonderful, joyous time. The persons grieving see all the (real or contrived) cheery faces around them and their own grief is harder to take. Such losses are felt not only when they occur, but again every year when the “joyful” season returns.
Wow; I’ve just talked myself out of having a happy Christmas! There seem to be more reasons not to have a good time than there are to be happy. No wonder heart attacks peak on Christmas Eve!
But do not despair! Christmas can be, and should be, a wonderful season, especially for Christians. The key question to ask is, “What are we celebrating?” When we consider the various answers which people give, we find both the reasons for people’s disappointments, and the “formula” for true joy and happiness. So then, what are the various “reasons for the season” and how do they affect us?
The key question to ask is, “What are we celebrating?”
- Christmas is a celebration of winter! Sure, Christmas is celebrated on December 25, just a few days after the winter solstice. And sure, some pope from centuries ago set that date, apparently to co-opt the festival that pagans were observing at the same time. In a way, he “baptized” a pagan feast and made it a Christian one, which is what Christ does for all of us in our baptisms. But you can see a number of problems with that when it comes to making us happy. For one thing, what if we don’t have a wintry holiday? What if, like in Sacramento, there’s no snow? What if (unlike in Wisconsin) there are no Frosty snowmen, sleigh rides, or “Jack Frost nipping at your nose”? No question: a forest of snow-covered pine trees is beautiful, but what if you expect a “white Christmas” and only get slush and fog? Your anticipation can let you down when your postcard image doesn’t come true.
And then there’s that S.A.D. thing. Maybe the reason for the pagans having a holiday when they did, was that they were facing a bleak time of year. Maybe that pope could have picked a cheerier time for Christmas . . . like at the summer solstice.
On top of all this, there’s the fact that we don’t know what day Jesus was born (or even which year, though we number our calendars based on his being born in 1 AD). Based on the shepherds watching their flocks by night (Luke 2:8) out in the fields, scholars believe Jesus was born just before the Passover, at the start of Spring. The reason for the flocks at Bethlehem was to supply the sacrifices for the Temple at Passover . . . anyone see any connection here to another Sacrifice offered at that time?
Finally, regarding Christmas as a winter holiday: what about those poor people living south of the equator? Their Christmas is celebrated at the start of summer, so if they based their enjoyment of that day on having “a sleigh ride together with you . . .” they would always be disappointed!
2. Christmas is a celebration of family! Yes, this is the theme of just about every TV Christmas movie which purports to teach us “the real meaning of Christmas.” It also is part of the richness of the holiday, that families come together and share their love in words and in deeds. And, certainly, families are important in our lives and in the health of our society as a whole. But if that is the core of Christmas, then we set ourselves up for disappointments and even sadness.
What about the people who don’t have a family? Plenty of people will find themselves alone at Christmas. They see the smiling faces of families in public or on TV, and feel left out of the fun. They may be alone due to divorce or the death of their spouse, or maybe never married. Others hear about the joy people have in seeing Christmas “through the wondering eyes of their children,” but don’t experience that themselves because they are childless. This familiar expectation is hard when Christmas was the time you lost a close loved one – parent, child, spouse, or sibling – and yet you hear about the joy of family.
Even when you have a large, fully intact family with whom to celebrate Christmas, there can be conflicts and disappointments when those real people get together with all their quirks and “issues.” For some families, the only time happier than the arrival of family is their departure!
3. Christmas is a celebration of gift-giving . . . and getting! Oh boy! It’s time to get that new (fill in the blank) thing I’ve always wanted! Or at least, wanted since I saw it in a commercial two weeks ago. Kids fill out lists for Santa, and adults drop hints to family or special friends to “help” them make informed choices when they buy gifts.
I still keep a list for Santa, but I have to keep updating it when I find I am always behind the curve when it comes to what I ask for. I had to cross off: a Zune, a Palm Pilot, an 8-track tape player for my car, a new typewriter, some nice bell-bottoms, and an AMC Gremlin (like I used to own!). As you can tell by my list, things I would have been happy to get once, would no longer excite anyone to get now. Such is the fickle nature of what will make us happy. At least, candy canes haven’t changed!
Yes, I keep a list for Santa, but unfortunately, Santa keeps a list, too, so I doubt I’m getting anything from him . . .
Gifts are nice, and can be a lot of fun. And the gift-giving spirit does reflect the generosity of our Lord who gave us the most precious gift of all: his own Son (Matthew 7:11, John 4:10, Acts 2:38, Romans 5:15-17, Romans 6:23, Ephesians 2:8). This gift-giving was mirrored by the magi, who brought gifts to the Christ-child (Matthew 2:11). But when the giving or getting of material possessions defines our Christmas celebration, we are setting ourselves up for disappointments.
Can I get the right gift? Is the store sold out? Can I afford it? Will the recipient really like it? Will it break within hours, will the child get bored with it in a couple days (and play with the box it came in instead)? Will I find the precious gift I gave at Goodwill a week later? What do I do with this “white elephant” someone gave me but I don’t like at all? I wonder if they ever shop at Goodwill . . .
4. Christmas is a celebration of Jesus Christ, our Savior. Okay, there we go. Finally, a Reason for the season that won’t disappoint us. No matter who we are, where we live, what time of year it is, what our family is like or if we are alone, whatever our financial resources or accumulation of stuff might be, or whatever disappointments or losses we experience at this time of year, there is one constant fact that cuts through everything and makes all the difference, and that is the birth of Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah, the Savior of the world. Or as Isaiah put it,
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6)
When that is our focus, when HE is our focus, we can truly rejoice with the knowledge that our Creator loves us and gave himself for us, that we might be reconciled to God and have eternal life. There is no greater reason to celebrate Christmas than that, nor is there any reason more rewarding.
The most wonderful time of the year? When we celebrate the coming into the world of the Wonderful Counselor, it most certainly is!
Have a merry and joyful Christmas!
Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.
Read: Isaiah 9:2,6-7, Romans 5:12-21, Ephesians 2:8-10