The Problem With Christmas #6

#6: Nativities

Number six on the "What's Wrong With Christmas" list suffers from the same maladies as the previous entry. For an easy guide to what's wrong with Nativities, head on over to Going Jesus and take a look at the Cavalcade of Bad Nativities. Hopefully, Sara, who runs Going Jesus, won't mind me stealing one of her pics as an example.

So take, for instance, the Inflat-O-Tivity!

As Sara comments, "Of course it lights up!" There are nativities with ducks, dogs, snowmen and everything in between. And, just like those darned Christmas plays, they make us look at the Incarnation and go "Awwwwe! Look at the cute cuddly-umpkin puppies!" if that is the horrible nativity you happen to have chosen this year. I feel sorry for those kids in the moment that they wake up one Christmas morning, years from now, look out on their lawn, and realize, in abject horror, what a mistake they have made.

Also, many, many nativities suffer from the same misreading of the Bible as Christmas carols. Ride around town and look at the nativities, and there are those damn wise men again. People just can't resist shoving those magi in with Jesus, Mary, Joseph, and the veritable barnyard parade of animals, which is again, bad exegesis.

So why, you ask, is this number six on the countdown, instead of thrown in with seven? Because, unlike Christmas carols, this is a purely visual stimuli, which usually has a more powerful impact. Also, you may see one, maybe two Christmas plays this year, or none, if you're lucky.

But how many nativities will you see? Well, depending on what kind of town you live in, you might see one on every other lawn you drive past. So, then nativities seem to be a much more noticeable problem than carols or Christmas plays. That's why they are number six on the "What's Wrong With Christmas" countdown.

It's true that a visual reminder of Jesus birth can help us retain the preciousness of that moment, but, dear God, don't let it be with Precious Moments. Jesus birth is powerful, not cute, so if you want a nativity under the tree, or on the lawn, or roof, or wherever, find one that communicates that. And for all our sakes', leave the magi out of it.

The Problem With Christmas #7

I've been tossing around the idea of doing a Christmas series for a few weeks. I didn't know what to do because I felt it would just turn out being a rehashing of what I've been doing except with nativities, or Christmas tree ornaments, or drunk Santas.

Always the believer that freshness is better than beating a dead horse, I decided to take a slightly more serious route. I want to take the next week to talk about some things I find wrong with Christmas and the whole season in general.

Now, before someone gets up in arms about my personal blasphemy in saying something could be wrong with Christmas, read this post about Christmas over at Think Christian. Maybe it will give you a little perspective about how God might feel about Christmas.

Protest or Celebrate?

So, without any further ado:

#7: Christmas Plays and Carols

What could possibly be wrong with all those cute little Christmas plays, and the carols we love so much? On a list of things wrong with Christmas, it's last for a reason, but it's still on there.

The less egregious error from a scholarly standpoint, but perhaps the more insidious one is committed by Christmas plays every year. I, myself, once starred in a Christmas program, for a church, with a sheep as a main character. It was a comedy of course. Diesel over at Mattress Police recently had the pleasure of attending a school Christmas play which starred Elvis, James Brown, and Garth Brooks as the three kings. Cool, huh?

Linus as "The Shepherd"

What's the problem with these things? Well, generally they accomplish little more than to make Christmas seem silly to us. It becomes a game and something fun to do after school. These funny little productions deaden us to the beautiful message of God become man. We're talking about the Incarnation here, people, not an ABC Christmas special.

Coating your front walk in ice is usually an effective deterrent.

So, what about Christmas carols? They, along with the Christmas plays, present more of a danger for cultural Christians and the unbelieving public than for committed believers. Unfortunately, many people who have not read the Bible get a lot of their information from really bad sources, Christmas carols included. Many Christmas carols, and plays, commit the sin of bad exegesis. Here are just a few examples:

We Three Kings: The Gospels never speak of kings coming to visit Jesus. Matthew speaks of magi, or wise men. The plays really mess it up when they show the wise men visiting Jesus on the night of His birth. The Bible never reveals when the magi came, although Herod's decree to kill all male children under two years of age, suggests that Jesus could have been as old as two years before the men came bearing their gifts.

Away In A Manger: Although Luke says that "[Mary] wrapped Him in cloths and placed Him in a manger" (Luke 2:7), it does not say that he was born in a barn, as the line "the cattle are lowing" would imply.

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing: Despite this song being one of my favorites, it really isn't Biblically correct in its discussion of those herald angels. Then again, neither is the majority of the Western world. We practically worship the created servants of God.

Anyway, back on track. The angels weren't singing. After being told by an angel of the Lord about the infant Christ born in the town of David, "a great company of the Heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom His favor rests.' " (Luke 2:13-14)

I know it seems like I'm making mountains out of molehills here, but when it comes to Scripture, it's important to get the details right.

So, please, don't think that I don't want you to enjoy singing those Christmas carols. They are a lot of fun. Just keep in mind what's correct and what is Christmas myth as you go from door to door. Help keep people from building their theology from carols.

Oh, and put a little thought into the Christmas pageant this year. Remember that we're talking about very serious, world-shattering stuff here. If the play can communicate that, you're on the right track.

The Case for Kitsch

I have to give props to Lee Strobel. He started beating his own personal dead horse a good four years before Rick Warren got his Purpose-Driven Cult under way. That may be a little harsh, but when you have a library with more volumes and sheer material than The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, things have reached epidemic proportions.

Anyway, back to Lee Strobel. You might remember a little piece of "investigative journalism" (I use that term lightly) called The Case for Christ. I read it a couple of times, back when I was a new Christian, and if I remember correctly, it was basically a catalogue of a bunch of scholars giving evidence for the existence of the Biblical Jesus. The reason I think calling it "investigative journalism" is dubious at best is because journalism, ideally, is done objectively. This book was anything but.

Anyway, back to Lee Strobel. You might remember a couple of follow-ups to The Case for Christ, namely The Case for Faith, and The Case for a Creator. Well, guess what. He's done it again! Did you ever have any doubt?

Normally, I would be pained to call any book kitsch. I have a great respect for the written word and for anyone with ambition enough to write a book and get it published. However, apparently, Strobel's writing skills are so limited that he's forced to do the same thing over and over and over again. A word of advice to you, Lee: cut it out! Do something new! Maybe it'll fail, but who cares, as long as it doesn't start with "The Case for..."?

Then again, The Case for Lee Strobel's Talent might be a bestseller.

---

By the way, I'm still looking for ideas for what to do for Christmas. I'm thinking about "12 Days of Kitschmas", and doing the twelve days leading up to Christmas with a Christmas kitsch extravaganza. But that might be a little cliche, and possibly sacreligious. What do you think? Or do you have any ideas, ya slackers? Am I getting started on Christmas too early? (For evidence, see: Gregory's mySpace)

Yes, that page belongs to me. Don't make fun of me...I'm not a teeny bopper.