Christmas 2006
It is nearing Christmas again, and most Christians all over the world are going ecstatic. There is only one problem:
if people actually bothered doing some research, they would realise that Christmas is pagan in origin. I have read arguments that would go "so what? All that matters is what it symbolises." Then really, what does Christmas symbolise? Joy to the world and peace to mankind? Let us examine how this is done today.
Adults are often indebted for long periods after Christmas because they buy gifts on credit. Christmas teaches and inculcates the value that happiness can be measured in material gains. Perhaps it is hoped that by re-defining "joy," joy to the world is much more attainable. This is, of course, assuming that your gifts are actually desired by the party you are giving the gifts to. Economists have proven that Christmas goes against a lot of economic models and in essence makes no economic sense. And of course, Christians who show that the Bible advocates giving clearly missed the bit about borrowing indiscriminately. Indeed, it is a nice gesture when one receives gifts. But something just does not add up when people are expected to give and others expect to receive.
In addition, it becomes very awkward when a celebration supposedly Christian in nature is celebrated by everybody, regardless of religion. And this degree of participation is different from the declaration of a public holiday in view of a religious festival. With a public holiday, people are made aware of other religions and their customs. With Christmas, people actually engage in the same rituals as Christians do. Of course, there will be those who say that it is the doing of the commercial world. This is the result of a profit-hungry commercial world that has hijacked the simple original message of Christmas: to give and make merry. Here then, I draw your attention back to the origins of Christmas. The same traditions kept during Christmas had been kept by pagan groups of people even before Yahshua was birthed, namely the celebration of Saturnalia.
Of course, I do not claim to be an expert on this issue. Yet, the concept of Christmas is filled with flaws, especially since the Bible does not depict the disciples ever having celebrated the birth of the Saviour. And in truth, it is to be expected that if such a celebration is significant at all, the disciples, in writing the gospels, would not be subtle about it.
posted by Jerome @ 3:32 pm
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