Spiritual Hiccups - Get Rid of Christmas?

We're only one week away from Christmas Eve, and so you'd think the Daily Lectionary would get with the program and have readings that are a bit more seasonal.  Who cares about the Assyrians.  Let's hear about something that promises a Messiah.

The Lectionary seems uninterested in our Christmas fervor, but then again the Bible seems similarly uninterested.  The "Christmas Story" barely makes it onto the pages of Scripture.  But we have loaded up Christmas with all sorts of freight and expectations.  For retailers, Christmas determines whether or not it will be a profitable year.  For students, Christmas provides an extended break from school.  For many in the Northern hemisphere, Christmas is supposed to inject a bit of joy and brightness into an otherwise dreary time of year.  For others, Christmas brings the hope of family get-togethers and Norman Rockwell moments.

I don't suppose there is anything inherently wrong with any of these expectations, but for the most part, none of them are related to Jesus and his message.  And because Christmas has taken on so many layers of meaning for so many different people, it is easy to invoke Christmas in all sorts of cultural fights.  People get upset over "Happy Holidays" in place of "Merry Christmas" as though the birth of Jesus is primarily about seasonal decorations and shopping malls.  Currently one Republican legislator is objecting to a possible session of Congress from December 26-30 as an "insult" to Christmas.

Sometimes I think the Pilgrims and Puritans got it right when they decided to ban Christmas.  Well into the 1800s, there was a law in Massachusetts that forbid celebrating Christmas.  Taking a day off for Christmas, except on a Sunday, was illegal.  The Pilgrims decided that Jesus' birth should not be connected to holiday revelry and people ceasing from their productive labors to join in that revelry.

Too often, Christmas becomes the worst sort of religious veneer in America.  We can feel self righteous about insisting people "keep Christ in Christmas" without actually feeling the need to do much that Jesus commands.

On his show last night, Stephen Colbert handled this topic with much more flair than I can.  I think that this blog post might have been greatly improved if I simply said, "Nothing to say, but watch this."  So hear it is.  And if you are unfamiliar with Colbert, he is a real person, but his persona is a comedic character who is a parody of conservative talk show host Bill O'Reilly. He's a bit over the top and sometimes crass.  But even if you're not a fan, this is well worth the watch.

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