There is something about sitting by a fireplace lined with stockings, sipping a cup of eggnog, turning up Frank Sinatra on Magic 101.9, and staring at the evergreen in the living room surrounded by colorfully wrapped gifts that gives rise to a special kind of comfort and happiness. No matter our age or background, Christmas is a time that is immediately recognizable, evokes a familiar and often needed emotional change in the daily routine of life, and serves as a reminder of the connections we have with friends and family.
For many years Christmas has taken shape through expanding traditions, marketing strategies, cultural shifts, and materialism and consumerism. The preparation time has lengthened, the gifts and décor have become increasingly extravagant, and quite frankly people seem to look more forward to Christmas now than ever before. This is great, right? More Christmas means more fun, right? So what is the problem?
Well, truth be told, despite all of the increases I have mentioned, Christmas is also decreasing and losing popularity at an alarming rate at the same time. Wait! What? What are you talking about? How can Christmas both expand and decrease at the same time? I speak of course of the spirituality of Christmas. A very vast transformation has taken place in the way many view Christmas; this transformation has gone from viewing Christmas as a liturgical season, to now viewing it as a vacation. Less and less people in recent years seem to know the spiritual side of Christmas, how it came to be, and why we celebrate it. Gift giving, time off, and secularization, have taken priority in the lives of many over a true spiritual celebration and self-examination. Catch phrases like “Season’s Greetings” and “Happy Holidays” have replaced the traditional “Merry Christmas.” People line up for hours for special sales and hot items in the stores and spend tons of time shopping online, but spend next to no time praying and reflecting. Christmas programs often promote “sharing” and “generosity” in a very broad and generic sense rather than mentioning why it is we share and are generous during Christmas. Christmas Mass has become very secondary as people treat it more like a yearly tradition, satisfy Grandma time, or something to get over with quickly. Yes, my fellow Christian brothers and sisters, we are indeed losing the spirituality of Christmas.
With all of this in mind, it is obvious we as Christians can be doing something better. Something needs to change if we are to save Christmas as a spiritual season and tool for prayer and evangelization. But how? Is it too far gone already? I don’t think so; in fact, with the right enthusiasm and use of resources, I believe we can turn around the secular trend Christmas has taken with very little effort. The key to this lies with the very things that are pulling us away from a spiritual Christmas. We as Christian brothers and sisters must make the material spiritual. None of the aforementioned increases in materialism are bad in and of themselves; in fact, they can be very valuable tools to help us in our duty to promote the spirituality of Christmas. I have come up with five steps to help us Christians in embracing the spirituality of Christmas and promoting it to all that we encounter.
Step One Teaching: Christmas is about a birth, not just any birth, but the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is not, however, merely a story, rather a living reality every day of our lives since the moment the Blessed Virgin Mary conceived Christ and carried him in her womb. Christmas is not only the celebration of a birthday; it is the celebration of the birth of our salvation. At the moment of Adam and Eve’s first sin, God put into place our salvation history, manifesting itself to us on Earth with the incarnation (God becoming man). With his glorious birth, our very faith began with Christ as the church and we as its members. We are responsible to teach this reality to the nations. Our mission as Christian faithful is to preach the Gospel message and evangelize the good news to all that we encounter. Thus, utilizing Christian programs that tell the Gospel story (movies, videos, books, audiobooks, the Gospel itself, etc.) rather than only resorting to secular Christmas programs, will certainly boost our spiritual knowledge this Christmas.
Step Two Music and Décor: Sure, you can put out all the Christmas lights, Santa Clauses, trees, ornaments, and tacky blowups you can muster. Sure, you can sing Jingle Bells and Frosty the Snowman at the top of your voice while driving to City Park and Christmas caroling. There is no problem with any of these decorations or songs. As a matter of fact, I love them all; however, every single Christian household should include a Nativity scene in the decoration ensemble, likewise Christmas hymns of liturgical nature should be sung. I recommend making the Nativity a priority and the focal point of all decorations. If you want others to take the faith seriously, they must see it as priority. If your Nativity scene is hidden and secondary, it suggests your faith is hidden and secondary. Put Christ in the manger for all to see as a reminder of the true spiritual nature of Christmas. Remember to include hymns like Oh Holy Night, Silent Night, Oh Come Emmanuel, etc., to remind you constantly of the true joy of Christmas. These small steps will add a special spiritual note to your Christmas celebrations.
Step Three Christmas Wishes: Say “Merry Christmas!!!” ‘Nough said … .
Step Four Gift Giving: Give till your heart’s content, there is no limit to generosity so long as it doesn’t exceed responsibility. It is important; however, in your gift giving that you remind those to whom you give of Christ’s love, the epiphany, and how the spirit of giving started with the generosity of the Three Wise Men. Include prayers with your gifts (write them down on notes and cards), express the need to pay generosity forward, and give to the poor this Christmas. Remember that our generosity should extend to all brothers and sisters throughout the world as a reminder to be thankful for all gifts given, spiritual and material. Taking these steps will increase your example to others, as well as serve to remind yourself of why we go through the trouble each year to find that perfect something for that special someone.
Step Five Mass and Prayer: Why is it Grandma has to remind us of the Mass tradition each year? Are we not obligated to go to Mass every Sunday and on Holy Days of Obligation? Why does Christmas all of a sudden become that one time we just get it over with and satisfy a dated tradition? Mass is so much more important than this; it is a celebration of the Life of Christ every time we attend. Christmas is very special; in fact, “Christ Mass” is the very name Christmas comes from. We must not only make Mass a priority this Christmas, it must become the center of Christmas as it is the best way we can possibly reveal our devotion to Christ and his beloved birth. Lastly, pray and pray some more. Pray for your loved ones, pray for the impoverished, pray for the church, and pray in thanksgiving for salvation. If we can spend hours trying to buy a trinket in a store, we can give 10 extra minutes each day this Christmas season in prayer for the benefit of the world.
Merry Christmas! And, God bless you this wonderful season!
(Father Paul Birdsall is the administrator of Annunziata Church parish in Houma.)