SHOULD CHRISTIANS CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS?

Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. – Eph 5:16

Let’s face it, Jesus was not born on December 25. Nobody can seriously say He was. It’s kind of an open secret that the Catholic Church around 400 A.D. chose the day as the day for the Feast of the Nativity in order to give Christian meaning to existing pagan rituals, (many pagan cultures had festivals that revolved around the winter solstice, which occurred near December 25).

Of course, we now see from the perspective of historical hindsight that the Catholic Church’s hope to draw pagans into its religion by allowing them to continue their revelry while simultaneously honouring Jesus failed woefully. It only eventually turned the church into another pagan religion.

Now, some contend that pagan origins or not, the “Mass of Christ” has come to symbolise something greater and spiritually richer. Others, however, insist that we cannot ignore its Christ-less roots, especially considering that its celebration seems to emphasise all the Christian faith positively shuns: carnality, sensuality and crass commercialism.

I believe a better perspective on Christmas can be gotten from another, more overtly pagan, holiday: HALLOWEEN.

Halloween, the visibly demon-themed holiday in which children dressed as witches, vampires and demons knock on doors begging for candy used to irk me in no small measure (despite the fact that it’s not practiced in Nigeria). I felt it was the act of the highest spiritual insensitivity for Christians to smile at ‘witches’ knocking on their doors.

I was sobered up, however, when one American pastor pointed out that Halloween is just about the only time unbelieving children come to you on their own. You spend the whole year trying to get to them: with fliers, fancy church programs, Christian TV, etc. But on this unique day, all you have to do is sit down while they line up to your door! Now, why on earth would any Christian want to pass such an opportunity up?

If the children know you to give out the BEST candies every year, regardless of what you tell them they will still come back next year – and they’ll spread the word around too! But if we get all grumpy about the theme and place a large “WE DON’T TRICK-OR-TREAT HERE” sign on our doors, we lose an invaluable opportunity to witness to the world.

So let’s be realistic, the world has always been carnal, sensual, and hedonistic, and will always have occasions of revelry. The Yuletide, however, is the only time of year when you can mention Jesus’ coming to earth over and over again without irritating them.

If we leave them alone to celebrate Christmas and lock ourselves up during this season, we miss a precious time window of slipping into their ears eternal truths that they really need to hear: that God is not mad at them, but loved them enough to send His Son to earth to die for their sins.

Just my thoughts.

More Blessings await you today; you’ll not miss them in Jesus’ Name.

GREG ELKAN