I remember a letter to the editor I wrote one time when I was a teenager. I was quite indignant and angry about the "commercialization of Christmas," and how everyone seemed to be forgetting the real reason for the season.
I thought about that letter this morning, and had to laugh...comparing the holiday season of even just thirty years ago to today would probably be like comparing the lifestyle of the Amish to Miley Cyrus (or Donald Trump, perhaps, for those of you who haven't heard of Miley). Christmas is not only commercialized, I think I would say Christmas IS a commercial. One big, long, bloated, garish commercial encouraging us to spend our way into happiness.
(And yes, by the way, I did say "holiday season," rather than Christmas season. The holiday season includes Thanksgiving, Christmas and the celebration of the beginning of the new year. "Happy Holidays" was previously and should continue to be a perfectly acceptable greeting for everyone, Christians and non-Christians, and I think we should all get over being offended by EITHER phrase!)
I also believe we should maybe even stop saying that Jesus is the reason for the season...we don't know the exact date of his birth, and scripture doesn't set any particular precedent for a celebration regarding it. It's not that I think it's a bad idea to celebrate the birth of Christ - in fact, I think it's a pretty good idea - it's just that I think we're not doing it, for the most part, in an appropriate way. (Christmas has been a manmade holiday pretty much from the start, with a majority of the most beloved traditions coming directly from pagan holidays.)
The truth of it is, there are MANY reasons for the holiday season, and quite frankly, a good chunk of them don't have that much to do with Jesus. It's up to all of us to celebrate the life of Jesus EVERY DAY, not just one day of the year, by living our lives in a manner pleasing to him: loving God, loving others and believing Jesus is who he says he is and that he will do what he says he will do.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not anti-Christmas, but I have to say I am anti-commercial.
Wonderfully written Terry!!!! I enjoy ready your stories and post all the time
ReplyDeleteIm like u I see nothing wrong with saying Happy Holidays in fact I use Happy Holiday to my friends and customer from December 1st till the week before Christmas Then after that I wish them Merry Christmas!!!!