In college, I sang in an interdenominational chapel choir, and therefore attended church every Sunday. Singing sacred music brought me closer to God than any other experience I have had. I still feel closest to God at Christmas time.
Maybe that's why two recent events bothered me so much. They seem to show how far from the true essence of Christmas our society is drifting.
- The first was an advertisement on the local radio station: A gun shop is inviting us all to their Christmas sale! Now I am not a gun control fanatic; I was a member of the NRA for a few years. I recognize that the sporting use of firearms is a pleasure enjoyed by many. But to me, Christmas is, among other things, a celebration of PEACE. It seems both blatantly commercial and totally incongruous to suggest that we buy Dad some ammunition for his Glock, or buy Junior an AK-47 for Christmas.
- The second event was an item in the local paper: The Directors of the Chrystal Cathedral cancelled it's annual "The Glory of Christmas" pageant. With revenues decreasing, the church has not paid many of the bills for last year's pageant. The founding family of the C. C. paid their own generous salaries, however. They each take home hundreds of thousands of dollars, but they do not pay the person who cleans the costumes for the pageant, or the one who provides the horses, camels, and other animals.
Because Christmas is a season of peace and good will toward men, it can be embraced and enjoyed by everyone, even those who are not Christians. But Christians especially should live up to the tenets of their faith. And merchants should certainly not stain the holiday with the promotion of fire arms. If those who celebrate Christmas do not abide by its basic premises, then it is they, much more than the atheists and the politically correct "happy holidays" idiots, who are mocking and debasing Christmas.
For Bonnie and me, Christmas is more a secular holiday than a religious one--a time to be with family and to enjoy the process of giving. I sometimes have a hard time "warming up" to the Christmas spirit, but in spite of the above unspirited events, I am looking forward to Christmas more than usual this year, being a little more charitable, and listening with special love to the music of the season. So, have a Merry Christmas everyone!
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