For some years, each Christmas I focused on a different perception of the season. I selected characters from the Christmas story. The various series seemed to be productive for increased devotion. One year I conjured the thoughts of Joseph, on another the shepherds, on another Mary, then the innkeeper and the Magi. Some years I returned to a person I had studied years earlier. This year I took ideas from Christmas songs based on selected phrases without serious regard for their contextual lyrics. Some were found in enduring Christmas hymns, while others were lifted out of songs popularized by the season. Some were basically secular in nature, but intended to catch the spirit of the Holidays (Christmas) – whatever that is. One of these was in a song recorded by Bing Crosby decades ago: May I suggest that the secret of Christmas is not the things you do at Christmas time, but the Christmas things you do all year through. The statement ought to mean more than sentiment. What a magnificent statement it is.
Exchanging gifts was always a festive time in our home. We had four children, plus others we took in from time to time. We had great fun, especially on Christmas Eve, keeping traditions which have commonplace even among cultures that do not affirm Christianity. We are reminded that some of the traditions have come down from ancient winter solstice celebrations that looked forward to the return of the Sun to warm the earth. Persons tend to accept these as part of the Christmas festival. As the solstice gave way to Christmas, the secularists would like to get it back.
Our celebration usually included some textual reading and remarks about the true meaning of Christmas. The Magi gave gifts to the Child, Jesus, as we offer gifts to each other in a spirit of thankfulness for one another and the entrance of Christ into our personal lives and family. On Christmas Eve, 1949, friends prevailed upon me to act out Santa Claus, a concept I do not hold highly in the materialistic role given Santa in society. But, I did it, arriving at the house door in full uniform, with proper Ho-hoes, and a disguised voice. The children responded with the energies of childhood, except for a bit of reticence in our eldest, Sharon, five years of age. When Santa left, the children were asked by their mother what they thought of the visit. Sharon’s response was that she thought it was fine, but that: Santa had Daddy’s shoes on. Even at her age, Sharon was becoming either a skeptic or a searcher for truth.
As I fondly recall, my wife’s response to inquiries about our manner of keeping Christmas went something like this: We exchange gifts at Christmas, but the gifts seem practical and really not so special in themselves. I believe it is because we believe we have no need for an excuse to give. My husband takes me shopping for shoes and a purse in the Spring. He gives me an annual week-end, and we enjoy going away for a couple of days, right in the middle of the busiest part of the year. If I dare say that I want something, he insists that we go and get it. In several ways we have Christmas all year round. (I really did not need to be generous, because she asked for so little.) She is gone now, just a while until I catch up. But the memories linger, for all the years through. What a gift – to celebrate each other. What it means is that our blessings come from God, but they have someone’s shoes on. Christmas for the Christian is first of all a reason to put dimensions on the meaning of the incarnation of God – Immanuel, God with us. But, it is also a time to put shoes on, all year through, so ministry becomes meaning. *Mark W. Lee, Sr. — 2016, 2020