Looking for some kind of Christmas

It occurs to me that the key to this season is not so much in choosing the right gifts, decorations, cards or tree, but in selecting the right adjective to put before the word "Christmas." Here's what I mean. We talk about wanting a simpler Christmas. Or we long for an old-fashioned or country Christmas. Irving Berlin dreamed of having a white Christmas (as in snow, not Caucasian.) Just think of all the adjectives we use to describe the kind of Christmas we need: Traditional. Merry. Quiet. Joyous. Meaningful. Perfect. Cheap. Family. Wonderful. Memorable. Happy. Uneventful. Unfortunately, some of us can only look forward to a stressful, sad, hard, or a blue Christmas. There are all sorts of ornaments that mark a baby's or couple's First Christmas, too.

What's your choice this year? I doubt if any of us would deliberately set out to have a commercialized (synonymous with store-bought) Christmas, but that's what we often end up with. We yield to the influence of television, advertising, and store displays. We believe the real meaning of Christmas can be purchased for only $19.95, plus shipping and handling. Some of us try hard to at least end up with a blended Christmas, combining the best of the sacred and the best of the secular. (The symbol for this is the Santa Claus figure kneeling at the manger of Christ. Or having reindeer next to the sheep in your nativity scene and the Grinch as one of the three wise men in the children's program.)

I suspect there are any number of churches out there who have decided on a Contemporary Christmas. Instead of angels, there will be a Praise Team. Most likely, they won't be singing "Glory to God in the highest!" but "Majesty, Worship His Majesty" or "Our God Is an Awesome God." At the very least, the multitude of the heavenly host won't be using hymnals. There won't be a Christmas pageant, just a skit and a film-clip from It's a Wonderful Life. The first visitors to the stable won't be shepherds, but the unchurched. The message from the angels will be given in power point. Jesus will be born in a multi-purpose room or family life center. Mary and Joseph will try to get into several churches and end up going to the one that has the sign out front, "Open Doors." Jesus will be placed in a car seat, one that is approved for use in an SUV. The sign for the seekers will be a billboard, with a message from God, "I told you I was coming down there! Signed, God." Mary won't treasure the shepherds' words or ponder them in her heart. She'll go to church and "share them" during the Joys and Concerns.

And a Contemporary Christmas surely won't do anything with Advent. That season on the Christian calendar has to do with patience and penitence. Nothing marketable about that.

At the very least, I hope you have a real Christmas.

The Rev. Bill Schwein is senior pastor at Sunrise at Geist UMC, Indianapolis. His column will appear in the new quarterly magazine, "Hoosier United Methodists TOGETHER" to be launched next March.

Last updated on 01/14/2004

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