“Christmas is for Christians.” our friend said. “They’ve taken God out of the schools and all public life, but we can’t allow them to take Christ out of Christmas!”
Our friend is protective of our favorite holiday, and she’s unwilling to share it with any except dyed-in-the-wool, bona fide, Bible believing Christians. She regards us as mildly heretical, but she knows how much we love Christmas, so she’s willing to give us the benefit of the doubt that our Christian credentials are bona fide. At least at Christmas time.
Like many of our fellow believers, our friend is genuinely alarmed by the growing use of “Happy Holidays,” rather than “Merry Christmas,” in seasonal advertising and, to a lesser extent, in common greetings. She’s not just putting on a show or making noise just to cause trouble. She’s genuinely upset and concerned.
She’s afraid that the Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, New Age seekers, atheists and secular humanists are trying to snuff out her religion. She’s afraid that those whom she regards as infidels are hell bent on highjacking one of Christianity’s great holidays. The consequence of this, she fears, will be dire for the country, the world and millions of souls who will be eternally lost. In addition to all of that, there’s the matter of it being out of her cultural comfort zone.
No doubt, many Muslims would like to snuff out Christianity, just like many Christians would like to snuff out Islam. Similarly, many conservatives would like to quash all progressive ideas, and Red Sox fans would like to silence all support for the Yankees. It’s the way some people are. It’s the way a lot of people are.
Intolerance abounds on all sides. We received some chain emails this week urging us to boycott businesses that use “Happy Holidays” in their advertising or store displays. On the other hand, we also received several emails urging us to boycott all businesses which use “Merry Christmas.” C’mon. This is all pretty goofy right?
Our dermatologist is Jewish. At this time of year he displays Jewish religious symbols in his office and posts a sign on the door that reads “Happy Hanukah.” He puts a few children’s books in his waiting room that feature stories about the Hanukah Man, a mythical holiday figure who very closely resembles Santa Claus—right down to the red suit. He’s sort of a mixed bag of holiday cheer. We’re pretty sure he harbors no malice for us or our faith, and we don’t feel at all like religious traitors because we let him treat a rash or sell us a tar shampoo. We don’t think the children of his Christian patients are at all harmed by taking peppermint sticks from the bowl he keeps at the front desk.
A recent national poll indicates that 22% of non-Christians take offense when someone wishes them a Merry Christmas. We suspect those folks aren’t really offended. We think they’re just faking it for effect. If someone tells us to go to hell, we take offense. If they tell us to have a good time, we don’t. We suspect it’s the same with everyone.
We are Christians. Not only do we believe in the Good News of the gospels as our friend understands it, we also believe in the Really Great News of universal salvation. News that every soul in all the world has been redeemed by Christ’s salvific act—salvation for every man and woman of every place and time throughout all the world, no matter which faith, if any, they now profess. Now, that is news worth celebrating!
This means that our Jewish friend Bernie is saved, our Muslim friend Ahmed is saved, our agnostic friend Julia is saved, and all of our Christian friends as well. We celebrate the birth of their Savior, and ours, at Christmas.
We appreciate that our optimistic theology isn’t shared by everyone. Like we said, our friend thinks us mildly heretical. Still, it is difficult to understand our friend’s need to possess Christmas for herself and her fellow believers. Like the Gospel itself, it is the spirit of Christmas that makes it so joyous—a spirit of goodwill toward men. All men.
Our friend is sweet, but at times she misses the point. Christmas really isn’t for Christians. Christmas is for Christ, and Christ is for all mankind.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all from Perkerson Park!
{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
It does not surprise me that my good friend Prentice (along with his guilt-by-association wife Mary Ann) has managed to pop Christ out of the very strictly constructed “religious” box of fundamentalism and open a can of worms all in one wonderfully written blog!
I can’t wait to read comments from some of your readers. Will the “real Christians” please stand up – or not?
I think I am a “real Christian.” I also think Prentice and Mary Ann (who I don’t know except through reading this blog) are real Christians. I am not at all sure that I believe in “universal salvation” as they do, but I do believe that Christmas and Christ is for everyone and I don’t think that any of us have all teh answers. And I do believe that we need to be respectful of those who do not believe as we do and realize that they are trying to serve God in the way that they believe is right. I am happy to say Happy Hanukah or Seasons Greetings or whatever is appropriate to the person I am greeting. I don’t believe that all who believe differently are lost but I do believe that Christ is the only path to salvation. Maybe that is what Prentice and Mary Ann are saying in this article. What I do appreciate about the article is the spirit in which it is written. Christmas is about Christ and Christ is for everybody.
For me, saying Merry Christmas is an affirmation of my faith. I am not attacking anyone else’s beliefs, just affirming my own.
When I wish you Happy Birthday, I am not affirming my belief in birthdays or the Julian calendar. I am expressing my wish that you might have a happy day on the anniversary of your birth. The wish isn’t about me in any way. It is a wish for you.
Similarly, if I offer someone a Merry Christmas greeting, I am expressing my wish that they have a merry time of it on Christmas Day. The wish isn’t about or for me. It is a wish for the person I am greeting.
A delightful article in the true spirit of Christmas.
Jesus did not teach universal salvation. Salvation is available to everyone who believes in him and keeps his commandments. It is not possible to be saved apart from him, so the Muslims and Jews and other religions are false and those who believe in them are lost unless they hear and believe the truth. Universalism is an idea that is an enemy of the Christian faith because it is a man made false doctrine.
Jesus the Nazarene, Anointed of God, is indeed for ALL people, regardless of whether or not they acknowledge Him as the Christ, Son of God and Savior (the “Good Confession” of we DoC folk). And so. . . the date the early Catholic Church chose to mark as His birthday is for everybody a day for celebrating that God loves us so much that He didn’t leave us in our sin but graciously became one of us in a baby born to a virgin teenage mom, whose first cradle was a borrowed animal feed trough! Marvelous story! Great Good News for everybody!
And our Sovereign God, Abba (“Daddy” in Jesus’ Aramaic tongue), loves us so graciously, that He even allows each one to CHOOSE whether she or he accepts the Good News about this baby who grew up to become Savior of the whole world. Universal salvation sounds good, and even has a hint or two in Scriptures (e.g. Romans 13:8, I think). BUT there will always be folk who refuse to choose anything to be First Priority in their lives above “me, myself & I”. And way too many Scriptures state plainly that those who CHOOSE the path of self & sin get the consequences they have chosen.
Oh, and of course Xmas isn’t for Christians only. Jesus really was NOT born on 25 December – the shepherds wouldn’t have been in the fields with their sheep on a cold Palestinian winter night; those sheep would have been safe in barns. No, most likely Jesus was born in April or October. And since the pagan Romans had Brumalia (I think) about 25 Dec. & the Anglo-Saxons had Yule. . .
. . .let the good times roll!
Oops! I was a bit off on the cited Scripture! The verse above has to do with avoidance of being in debt. The verse about God letting all humans disobey (sin) in order that He might have mercy on (save) all humans is actually Romans 11:32.
Furthermore, I was also off about the ancient pagan holiday. Brumalia was a classical Greek winter holiday. The Roman equivalent was Saturnalia; later another holiday imported from Mithraism celebrated Sol Invictus (“Unconquered Sun”) about 25 December as daytime began to lengthen following the winter solstice. To offer new or prospective converts an alternative to these festivities, the Catholic Church decided that this would be as good a date as any to celebrate the birth of Christ — even tho’ the date is never mentioned in the Gospels, nor is any remembrance of or order for a birthday celebration to be found in the New Testament or other early Christian writings!
Beyond the simple fact that Christmas is a celebration of the birth of Christ, its precise origins are altogether unimportant. That we have no instructions in scripture to celebrate Christ’s birth is equally unimportant. We do celebrate it on December 25.
There is more than ample scriptural support for the doctrine of universal reconciliation, but I am unconcerned with selected passages here and passages plucked from there. I am altogether convinced from the writings of St. Clement and St. Origen that such was the doctrine of the early church. But, more than that, it is the doctrine consistently taught by the scriptures when taken as a whole and the only doctrine that is consistent with the essential quality of the Divine nature—Love.
As I suspected this blog entry has created more than a few chuckles. God certainly does have a sense of humor or Prentice would not have such a talent of drawing out such an array of comments.