To object
indignantly to the commercialization of Christmas and
to bemoan the loss of the true meaning of Christmas has
become a cliche. So I risk being trite when I choose to
discuss "the true meaning of Christmas."
I would not have chosen this topic if I did not think
that the true meaning of Christmas has become obscured.
But it is not the materialism and commercialization of
Christmas that I want to oppose here. My objection is
to how the "true meaning of Christmas" popularly
offered in its place obscures the true meaning of Christmas.
If
we read the clues in our culture--Hollywood Christmas
stories, casual comments, Christmas cards, even some sermons--it
becomes apparent what the "true meaning of Christmas"
is supposed to be. Christmas is the celebration of love,
generosity, benevolence, kindness, brotherhood, and familial
bonding, and the celebration of the joy, peace, and security
that those things promote. The true meaning of Christmas--according
to this way of thinking--is a kind of Hallmark sentimentality
about a world where there is no strife, no anger, no hatred,
and no criticism; a world in which there is no warfare
in any of its forms.
Is
that, in fact, the true meaning of Christmas? No, it is
not. The true meaning of Christmas is not about man loving
man--or, if you were confused, human loving human. The
true meaning of Christmas is about God loving man. It
is about God giving the most amazing and spectacular gift
to a certain chosen few. It is about God giving us the
promise of the coming Kingdom and a salvaged heart out
of which to desire it.
As
I see it, three concepts are meant to capture the true
meaning of Christmas as popularly understood: peace, joy,
and love. It would be instructive to look at all three
of these concepts, but I will look at only one to see
if it accurately captures the true meaning of Christmas.
Let's look at "peace."
As
popularly understood, Christmas means the coming of peace
between men. If we could simply imbibe the spirit of Christmas,
there would be no more war or strife or hostility between
us and other fellow-humans. If we could simply grasp the
meaning of Jesus' life, Jesus would eliminate the hatred
and cruelty that exists between people.
But
is this true? Not exactly. Jesus himself said, "Do
not think that I came to bring peace on the earth. I did
not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to set
a man against his father and a daughter against her mother,
and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a
man's enemies will be members of his household."
God's gift to us, in part, is a transformed heart--a transformation
of our deepest being. It is a transformation that leads
us to know and to love our creator. But such a gift makes
us outcasts in this world. It makes us misunderstood and
hated and persecuted. It does not bring peace; it brings
antagonism and strife. It does not bring us happiness
in human relationship; it brings us sorrow and grief.
Ah,
"But the angels," you say. The angels sang,
"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth
peace among those men who are the objects of God's choice."
They did sing of peace, but they did not sing of peace
between men; they sang of peace between a man and his
creator. For those few who have been chosen to receive
life in God's kingdom, the birth of Jesus brought about
the end of their alienation from God. It brought about
reconciliation. This reconciliation to God is the peace
of which the angels sang.
But
peace between men? Jesus did not come to bring that. He
came to bring war. He came to wage a decisive battle in
the war between good and evil, and he came to bring the
hope of victory to those of us who are in the midst of
that battle. Christmas does not mean peace; it means victory.
Christmas does not mean the cessation of strife; it means
the encouragement to continue the strife. The day will
come when we can lay down our arms--when the war is over
finally and permanently. But that day lies ahead--in the
coming Kingdom. It is not now. In the meantime, the true
meaning of Christmas is that our heroic captain has come
to us in the midst of the battle for our lives and souls
and has sent the enemy fleeing. That is the true meaning
of Christmas. That is why we celebrate. Christmas does
not make life any easier, nor any smoother. Life is full
of hardship, the hardship and sacrifice of the battlefield.
Our joy is not the joy of going home when the enemy has
been subdued. Our joy is the joy that comes as we are
engaged in combat and see our enemy turn and run. Our
joy is the joy of the hope of victory. Good will triumph
over evil. The Kingdom of Heaven will be secured. My soul
will--once and for all--be delivered from the evil that
has held it captive all my life. There will be freedom.
There will be liberation. Rejoice! Our King and conquering
Hero has come!
As
the magi and the shepherds and Mary and Joseph looked
down on a baby lying in the manger, what brought them
joy was not the vision of a world where everyone was as
gentle and innocent as a baby. What brought them joy was
the vision of the final and ultimate defeat of sin and
death. They did not see a gentle baby; they saw a fierce
warrior, a mighty king--a king who would subdue every
enemy, conquer every foe, and bring about total and unfailing
allegiance to God and the goodness which He is. He would
bring about peace between people; but only after a long,
hard, protracted struggle in which we must fight. The
more immediate meaning of Christmas is not the joy of
PEACE ON EARTH; it is the joy of the
promise of VICTORY OVER EVIL.
Jack
Crabtree, who holds a Ph.D. in philosophy, is a tutor
at Gutenberg College and has been a teacher at McKenzie
Study Center since 1981. His teaching at MSC focuses on
interpretation of the biblical texts and biblical philosophy,
the history of philosophy and theology, religious epistemology,
and hermeneutics.
Copyright
December 1994 by McKenzie Study Center
