The Problem With Christmas #1

#1: Believers

What?! Of all the things I've mentioned so far, how could true believers in Jesus Christ be the number one problem with Christmas.

Think about it. If there's a problem with something faith-related, who else can we blame it on? We have an infinite, infallible God, we have our Savior, the Son of our infallible God, and we have the Bible, which is the message written to us by our infallible God.

Thanks to Rowan for the pic.

So we're pretty much stuck with the human element: us. There are believers who constantly complain about all the things that are wrong with Christmas. The plays, and nativities, and the commercialism bother them, but what do they do about it? Nothing, but rant and rave and hope people are listening.

Wait, who am I talking about? Could it be? Could I be part of the problem? You bet, I'm tossing myself right in there too. We complain and we complain, but what do we do the rest of the year to counteract the problem? Do we focus our energies on prayer, and study, and making it easier for the Spirit to make us more like Jesus? No, we fuss and we curse those around us, we cheat, we lie, we give Jesus a bad name. Then, when Christmas comes around, people like me want to sit around and type up series of blogs about all the things that are wrong with Christmas.

Most of all, we're what's wrong with Christmas. We have to get our act together, shape up. If you think about it, if we could do that, if we could fix this one problem, ourselves, the domino effect would take over and a lot of the other problems would be fixed automatically.

If we spent more time talking, really talking to people about Jesus, maybe the true meaning of Christmas would come shining through, and people wouldn't care so much about toys and TV specials. If people were thinking more about Jesus and grace at Christmas time, maybe they wouldn't threaten their kids with no presents when they act up. If that happened, kids wouldn't be working to earn their gifts, and Santa Claus would become nothing more than a fun Christmas story.

Of course, if believers would shape up and learn to relate more to non-believers, maybe we could all forget this whole war on Christmas, and learn to all remember that Christmas isn't about all our human traditions. We'd also probably be able to correct all the inaccuracies in those nativity scenes and Christmas plays and finally make some Biblical, truly moving Christmas art.

So then, the problem really lies with us, doesn't it? We can complain all we want and talk about doing the right thing and changing the world, but unless we pray and work for it, we're just blowing smoke.

We're are the responsible ones. We're Christ's representatives here on Earth, after all, and, like I've said before, it's really time for us to start acting like it.

The Problem With Christmas #2

#2: Commercialism

Most people, young and old, believer and non-believer will probably tell you that this is the biggest problem with Christmas today. But not me. Now, I know it may seem like, because this one falls right down the alley with Kinda Kitschy, that I would make it number one. What can I say? You're right: Kinda Kitschy is about the horrors of faith-infused commercialism. But even more, Kinda Kitschy is about how commercialism impairs believers to do the things they're suppposed to be doing on this Earth.

So I promise you, number one will fall right in with that theme. Have I ever let you down?

That being said, let's get down to brass tax; it's time to rant.

Let's just say it and get it out of the way: Jesus is the reason for the season!

Sometimes, as I go around during Christmas time, I feel like Luke 2:10-11 should be re-written thus:

But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today, in the town of David, toys have been bought for you. Christmas trees at closeout prices! TV specials and last minute sales! Don't forget that Tickle-Me Elmo! Your child will hate you if you do!"

Today, it's absolutely impossible to seperate the idea of Christmas from all the must-do hullabaloo of the season: picking out a tree, Christmas shopping, made for TV movies.

What is the idea of Christmas? I've said it over and over again for the last five posts: God the Father sent His Son, His only Son, to become a man; to love us, teach us, and die, so that our sin, that foul nature that kept us from Him, could be taken out of the way.

Charlie Brown: Isn't there anyone out there who can tell me what Christmas is all about?

Linus Van Pelt: Sure, Charlie Brown, I can tell you. Lights, please.
[a spotlight shines on Linus]

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the fields, keeping watch over their flocks by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the lord shone round about them, and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not, for behold, I bring unto you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you this day is born in the City of Bethlehem, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; you shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel, a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God, and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth peace, good will toward men'".

That's what Christmas is all about, Charlie brown.

The Incarnation, Jesus, Mary, Joseph, that inn, that manger, and those shepherds are all connected irrevocably to the Cross.

But we don't have time for any of that. What with finding one of those oh-so popular Wii's, throwing the perfect Christmas party, and Rudolph, Frosty and Santa, who can find time to remember that all of it, every last bit, meant absolutely nothing to Christ on that night in Bethlehem? He came for us; we were what mattered.

None of the things I've mentioned so far, Christmas trees, TV specials, buying gifts, Christmas parties, giving gifts, are bad, insofar as they hold they're proper place, which very few of us allow them to do. They tend to run us over.

If you feel things getting too commercial for your tastes, just remember what the Grinch said. Yes, the Grinch:

It came without ribbons! It came without tags!
It came without packages boxes, or bags!
And he puzzled and puzzled, till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before!
"Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store.
Maybe Christmas… perhaps… means a little bit more."

It does. It means a whole lot more; it means our sin forgiven, our hearts repaired, and eternal life with the God who provides our every need.

The Problem With Christmas #3

#3: The Nice List

While this post could be geared toward parents who choose to let their children believe in Santa, I'm not just talking about Santa's nice list, I'm talking about the general idea of the nice list.

I know of parents who tell their kids to be good in anticipation of Christmas, to imply that better behavior warrants more, or better, gifts. This really is a diabolical system, not in line with what Christ would have for us at all. Why?

Because all the time we're telling our children to be good, they think that those brightly wrapped packages under the tree will be gifts. But they won't be. No, after our children have worked so hard to keep from talking back, to share with their brothers and sisters, and take out the trash, those crisp, colorful boxes and bags are rewards, not gifts.

And there is a distinct difference between a gift and a reward.

When God sent His son to us, to love us, teach us, and die for our sins, that was a gift, the greatest gift ever. We didn't do anything, not a damn thing, to deserve that:

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)

Not only were we without merit deserving of Christ's sacrifice for us, but we were actually at enmity with God. God gave the greatest gift ever to people that hated Him.

A reward, however, is something that someone works to earn. If you tell your children to be good or Santa will give them coal, or that they might not recieve such a myriad of gifts, be sure to tell them that you're not giving them presents simply because you love them.

Make sure to tell them what you're really doing is paying them.

The Problem With Christmas #4

#4: Santa Claus

I love watching "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" every year around Christmas time. I love the entire Santa mythos. I think that he is a great reminder at this time of year of humanity's better moments: moments of kindness, charity, and love.

But, as Christians, we have to admit that there's something amiss when during the season where we should remember the Incarnation, our kids are more concerned with a fat old man in an elf suit. They're more concerned with toys.

The story of God becoming a man, coming into this world, is far more exciting than a big jolly elf who delivers toys once a year. God's gift of His Son is the greatest gift anyone has ever received, and shouldn't we want to make that more real to our children? Santa is at this spot in the list because he draws focus away from the true reason of Christmas: Christ.

I don't think he's diabolical, or threatening our children's faith, but at least with the previous entries they were looking in the right place. I'd rather my kids be mistaken and thinking about Jesus during Christmas than having a one-track mind for Santa and the toys he brings.

I think we should let Santa's stories be a fun part of Christmas, but let them be just that: stories. However, if you choose to let your kids believe in Santa, that's your choice, but please, please don't let Jesus get lost in the scramble for fun and toys.

The Problem With Christmas #5

#5: The War On Christmas

We've heard it for years. Retailers barring Salvation Army bell ringers, employees who aren't allowed to say "Merry Christmas", holiday trees.

Political conservatives have been trying to convince us forever that there's some sort of secular-progressive war on Christmas. I say heartily that there is not, or rather, what is being done to "secularize" or "pluralize" Christmas hardly amounts to a war at all, and we really shouldn't be as preoccupied with it as we are.

What we, as Christians in the west, need to realize is that whether we like it or not, we live in a multi-cultural, pluralist society. Around us every day are Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, and Atheists who probably don't celebrate Christmas. Businesses, being what they are, have to be sensitive to this. This war on Christmas is primarily an American concern, rather than a Christian concern. Conservative Americans, who primarily call themselves Christians, are terrified of losing their previously dominant identity, and so they make it about Jesus, but it's really not.

Christmas isn't even really based on Christ's birth. He wasn't born in December. Some of the ancient Christians chose to celebrate the Incarnation at this time to oppose some pagan festivals going on at the same time.

Even if there were a war on Christmas, what would we really be fighting for? Our true, Christian beliefs, or our identity, our traditions? And haven't we, traditionally, thrived under persecution anyway? Yes, but it wouldn't matter, because we've been on top for a while, and we like it here. Then again, I go back to the point that it's not really us, but the American Christian identity.

Why do I feel like the War on Christmas is something negative about the Christmas season, rather than just misinformed? Because it causes us to focus our energies in the wrong places. We get all worked up for stupid reasons, which culminate in protests and hard feelings on all sides. We could be focusing them into productive things like caring for people who will not only have no gifts to give their children, but no tree to put them under, and no food for Christmas dinner.

We could be doing the work of Christ during the Christmas season, but instead we're protesting, doing the work of the average American and the conservative pundits. Instead of focusing on loving our traditions, let's remember what Christmas is really about:

Loving others.

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.