Christmas' purpose lost in festivities
Day's meaning rooted solely in religious aspects, not simple celebrations
Christmas is not a pile of gifts with glittering bows. Christmas is not a children's pageant. Christmas is not joy, peace, charity or even family togetherness. These are all lovely side effects, but if we get too preoccupied with them, we risk missing the point entirely.
Christmas is the celebration of a child's entry into our world. Let's review the facts.
He was the son of a carpenter and a virgin teenager. His parents were turned away from all the hotels in his father's hometown. He was born in a backwoods shack and had no cradle but a feeding trough.
And he was the Son of God in the flesh.
Most of us have seen nativity scenes-neat sets of pewter figurines with picturesque backdrops. They tend to omit some details, though. Anybody who has witnessed childbirth can attest to the fact that it is not a serene, tidy process. If this child was in fact born at night, then it was no "Silent Night."
Picture this: Mary screamed. Joseph did the manly thing and let her squeeze his hand until his knuckles cracked. And assuming he was a healthy child, Jesus' first noise was a gasping, wailing cry.
And let's not forget their surroundings. These people were staying where animals slept. The hay was stiff and scratchy; wind blew through the chinks; the livestock were no doubt perturbed at their unexpected guests.
And what of the stench? Jesus was born in the midst of grunting, flea-ridden, spitting, snorting creatures. They did not smell like gingerbread.
And if we are to believe the popular legend of a winter birth, then this child did not have a pleasant first glimpse of the planet. The trees were dead, the landscape was bare and the frigid air made his cheeks burn and his nose drip.
There is no doubt in my mind that, contrary to the lyrics of "Away in a Manger," baby Jesus cried. How could he not? He couldn't have had a colder reception. And yet this was all too appropriate an entrance.
I cannot say whether he knew it at the time, but this baby was born into a darkened, brutish world. Like all of us, he was bewildered by life from the very start.
However, while he was fully human, he also hailed from the throne room of Heaven. And he chose to descend into the world he had witnessed from the dawn of creation, full of sobbing mothers, hateful kings and unwavering cynics.
One of the first Christmas presents must have disturbed Jesus's parents: myrrh, a perfume used for embalmment. The man who gave it must have known that this was a child born to die.
This December, decorate your tree. Hug your parents. If you can, build a snowman.
But in the midst of all our holiday comforts, let's not forget the child at the root of it all. Christmas is our chance to give that child a warmer welcome.