Christmas

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Give a Stranger $100 in the Spirit of Christmas


I have always believed in the spirit of Christmas from the time I came to understand it until today. For most of us, we will spend the day with family, opening presents and having a feast. But this is not true for all Americans and I am here to emplore all of you who read this to give $100 to a person in need.

But how will I do this, you ask. Actually, it is very simple, particularly in small town America, but city people can easily do it too. First, you must go to a grocery store that serves the poorer people of the community. Find one or two things that you need and put them in a basket. Then you must go around and wish everyone you come across and very merry Christmas. But you must add one more sentence. ”And I hope you have a very festive day.” Just by the expression on the person’s face, you should know if that is what is truly in store for them. Another way to do it is to hang around the cash registers with your basket and two items and watch as people check out. At some point you will see someone who will ask the clerk to restock an item. At that point you need only step in and offer to pay for their groceries and also give them the $100. And when they ask you name, do not reveal it. Simply tell them that you are a friend. Then either buy the two things your have or leave.

I seen during the year where a person has asked the clerk to restock something and have simply stepped and given them the money they actually need.

Once you have done this, you will have visited upon them “the miracle of Christmas.” Plus, you will have a really good feeling inside you.

You may not find such a person on your first foray, but do not stop trying. Unfortunately, there are far to many, particularly the elderly, who are in desperate need of any help they can get. Be that helping hand!

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The Spirit of Christmas


Once a year, on December 25th, about 1/3 of the world stops to recognize and celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. The story of the birth is one of humbleness (The Three Kings kneeling before Him), giving (the gifts of the Magi) and family, Mary and Joseph. It is a tradition that began then and continues to this day.

Jesus was born into tremendous political discord and yet that merits only a sentence in His story because it is the story of something much larger. It established that on at least one day we put aside our labors, give thanks for our friends and family. It requires that we look upon one another with love.

For example, during World War 1, the British and German soldiers, who were of course mortal enemies, on Christmas day rose up from their respective trenches and walked towards each other bringing gifts to their enemy and celebrating this one day as tradition expected, as they expected. On December 25, 1915/6/7, they were brothers who had the strength of character to put down their rifles, if only for a day, and wish happiness and good cheer to those who shot at them the day before.

This year, in America, and in other countries, political discord and upheaval has brought out the worst in many. But on this day, I would implore all who find someone despicable, whom they say they hate, to look at that person and at the very least forgive them the perceived transgression and wish them happiness and good cheer, as is in keeping with the Christmas spirit. It is good to remember, you have a choice, you can be right or you can be happy, yours to choose, but you cannot choose both.

If you happen to be out on the street walking today, and there is a stranger walking towards you, just before they pass you by, say “Merry Christmas!” and keep on walking. You will most likely make their day and will have fulfilled our duty as human beings to love one another, wishing them the best.

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People You Forget to Remember at Christmas


In December 1968 I was in the United States Army and stationed in Korea. I was a green 19-year-old spending his first Christmas away from home.  Korea, of course, is a Buddhist country and does not celebrate Christmas.  There are Christians there but they are such a small percentage of the population.

I the late 1960s Korea was still a war zone near the DMZ. Even though a truce had been called in 1953 the animosity between the two countries was palpable and armed conflict still erupted from time to time.  Sometimes it was in the form of infantry but mostly it was an exchange of artillery fire.  American soldiers stationed on the DMZ became caught in the crossfire and lost their lives.

That was the first of four Christmas I spent away from home while in service to our country. The next three were while I was station in Italy.  Of course Christmas there, as here, is a big event.  But still, we were away from our families at a time when family togetherness is so important.

Christmas of 2015 will once again see 100s of thousands of soldiers and sailor stationed away from their homes and loved ones. Some will be in the warring countries of Iraq and Afghanistan.  Their Christmas is particularly tough as has been true throughout our country’s history for every soldier who found himself on a battlefield at Christmastime.  For this part of my little diatribe, I ask that you take a moment to remember the men and women who have donned our countries uniforms and taken post in faraway places, away from their families.  Their gift to us is insured freedom.

While in Korea I was tasked with visiting an orphanage which was support by the military group I was stationed with. We were a small convoy of a couple of trucks with a jeep mounted with a 50 caliber machine gun in the front and rear of the trucks.  Each of us also were require to take our M-16 rifles along, just in case.  But besides the men who were in the trucks we also brought food and presents for the children of the orphanage.  The exact location of the orphanage was kept secret from us for reasons we were never given.  I do know that it sat right on the DMZ in northwestern South Korea.

We arrived at a single story cinder block building which housed the children and who were looked over by Catholic nuns. I do not think there were more than 25 or 30 children present but my memory them is that of expectancy, wonder, and sadness.

We were told that all the children were of one of two types: those born to prostitutes who of course could not keep them and those who were Asian-American, born of Korean mothers and American fathers. Theirs was the worst fate of all as they would never be accepted by Korean society simply because of their obvious differences.

We were all gathered into a single room where the children were introduced to us and we to them. As I looked around the room my eyes fell upon this one little girl with blond hair and blue eyes.  Her only language, of course, was Korean, and even if all the other orphans had even a slight chance in Korean society, this little girl certainly had none.  It broke my heart to see her and she haunts me to this day.  I wanted more than anything to get her back to the United States where at least she’d have something of a chance.  I actually looked into it but was inform that a married couple would have to be found and then it would be a prolonged affair to actually have her adopted.

The point is, those Korean orphans were all the result of a war. They are the casualties of war that go unreported, are pushed into the background and out of sight.  As I sit here this evening I have no doubt that similar conditions exist in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Orphans in those countries undoubted outnumber the ability of the country to care for them.  You might ask “what can we do for them?”  There actually is an answer, UNICEF, the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund.  They have a website at unicef.org and are always in need of donations.

It only seems appropriate at this time of year here in the United States where we have so much that we remember the children who have nothing.

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Christmas For Christians and non-Christians Alike


What is Christmas? It is the celebration of the birth of Jesus. But how would you feel if you were born on February 15 but no one celebrated your birthday until September? Well, that is exactly what happened to Jesus. He was actually born in the spring, no one really knows the actual date but the Bible itself hints at this plus historians know that the census Joseph and Mary were participating in happened in the spring. But the early Christian church had a problem, well, actually it had a lot of problems but with regard to the birth of Jesus they would have had to place his birth around the time of Easter. And how would that work? Celebrating the birth and death of Jesus in the same month, maybe even the same week? Their resolution was to take over the old Roman holiday of Saturnalia which was on December 25. This was done to displace one of the many pagan holidays with Christian holidays.

But Christmas as a holiday was really an invention of the 17th Century Christians. But not all Christians! The Puritans of America considered the holiday as blasphemous and did not participate.   And even with those who did celebrate it, it was ill-defined. An English tradition called wassailing was imported to America. In late 18th Century Boston bands of boys would go around the city banging on doors and demanding food. Needless to say, the gentry of Boston thought Christmas just a nuisance. And even in Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, Scrooge was simply uttering the feelings of many Englishmen of the day, that Christmas was just an excuse for workers to get a day off. Similar sentiments were held in America.

But as the 19th Century rolled on, the first Christmas Card was invented, a minister wrote The Night Before Christmas for his children and the sentiment of good will and giving was born. The first American Christmas carol was written by Phillips Brooks of Andover Massachusetts in the 17th Century. That carol is Oh Little Town of Bethlehem. But most carols were written in the late 19th Century and 20th Century. The words of these carols usually speak of the nature of Christmas.

That said, I suggest that even though Christmas was born in the Christian tradition, it is no longer a strictly religious holiday celebrated only by Christians. Many people who do not believe in Jesus as a messiah or deity, celebrate the date none-the-less. Many in the American Jewish community will have both the menorah and Christmas tree in their homes. And if not the tree, then Christmas ornaments. It should be noted that the idea of bringing greens into the household is also an old Roman tradition that went with Saturnalia.

For those who are not Christian they can still celebrate the spirit of Christmas. The old idea and ideal of peace and good will should easily transcend all beliefs to be embraced by people of any religion or of no religion at all. The idea of selfless giving at this time of year can be practiced by anyone. It is my hope that this year when Americans consider the people of Islam they look upon them using the spirit of Christmas, good will to all. And this spirit should be extended to everyone of any belief.

 

 

 

 

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Christmas Reconsidered


I am going to start this with a disclaimer.  I have absolutely no intention of saying Jesus was not the Messiah or the son of God.  Those things are a matter of faith.  And faith is something you have particularly when science and logic fails you.

The world 2000 years ago was such a different place from now.  That is not news.  But it is worth noting that the overwhelming majority of people were illiterate.  Until the invention of the printing press was invented by Johannes Gutenberg in 1450, history was largely kept by story tellers.  In the day of Jesus it was an actual job that people paid for.  These people could also be traveling musicians, merchants traveling to buy and transport goods, and, of course, military men.  For those most important events, leaders in the world at the time of Jesus employed scribes to write down things such as contracts, messages, and in the case of the Jews, the Bible.  It is likely this latter form of communication was used in the writing of the Gospels of the New Testament, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.  These men were themselves likely illiterate but they recognized the importance of communicating what they saw.  And even so, the earliest writings of these Gospels in our possession today was not written for at least 50 years after the death of Jesus.  That means the likelihood of a witness passing of first-hand knowledge is quite unlikely.  But does that mean the information is unreliable?  Of the four gospels only two deal with the birth of Jesus, Matthew and Luke.  Is is curious that Mark and John did not write on this subject.  Or is it a case where their transcription of the event have been lost?  It would seem a very important event that all proponents of the new religion would relish and talk about at some length.  But nothing should be implied from this lack of information.

The answer to that is a qualified no.  The qualification goes to the language of the Jews of that day, Aramaic.  The Aramaic language had roughly 5000 words in its entire lexicon.  Compare that to the roughly 250,000 words in today’s English language and you can begin to understand that there were innate limitations to the descriptions offered.  One such limitation comes with the use of the word “virgin” when referring to Mary, the mother of Jesus.  The word is “almah” which in the Hebrew tradition meant “a young girl worthy of marriage.”  It was the Greeks who translated that version into their word “parthenos” which means virgin.  I am not suggesting that Mary was not a virgin, but simply the liberal translations that were made from Hebrew/Aramaic to Greek.  Another such example exists relative to Mary’s husband, Joseph.  He is referred to as a carpenter but considering the lack of wood in the area he was more likely a mason, or some similar trade.

No one knows from certain how old Mary was at the time she was pregnant but Hebrew theologians suggest that she was between 12 and 14 as those were the years fathers married off their daughters.  This was a matter of financial expediency as women did not help keep the household clothed and fed.  That practiced was continued even into 19th Century America when New England farmers sent their daughters to work in the textile mills and send money home.  But fathers of those days in Israel were equally interested in a son-in-law who might help provide for the family.  This usually meant the daughter married a man considerably older than she.  Again, this is thought to be the case for Joseph.  He was an older and successful craftsman.

Theologians and historians generally agree that Jesus was likely not born in December but more likely in the late winter or early spring.  The reason for this is the mention of there being lambs at the birth.  Sheep bear their lambs in the later winter and early spring.  But also, it is known that Cesar Augustus had called for a census which happened in the early spring of the year Jesus was born.  Likely the early church did not like having Jesus being born and dying at the same time of year, so they co-opted the Roman holiday of Saturnalia and assigned it to the birth of Jesus.  There are numerous occurrences of this happening in the history of the Christian church.

Another tradition that was adopted by Christianity was that of lights being an important part of the Christmas tradition.  In Roman times, as Saturnalia was celebrated, they lit candles to symbolize the coming of more light at the darkest day of the year.

And so Joseph leaves Nazareth for Jerusalem with his pregnant wife Mary in tow.  These people were absolutely poor.  It is unlikely they had any intent of paying for a place to stay in Bethlehem, if such a place even existed, it was there for people of greater means than Joseph.  That Augustus had called for a census made available lodging extremely rare and undoubtedly Joseph knew he would need an alternative, but what was it?  That he may have tried to find room at an Inn only to be turned away is quite understandable under the circumstances.  Joseph, being an attentive and a newly wed too, likely desired the best for his new wife but knew his attempts would fail.  He likely noted where herds of sheep or goats were kept and knew he could likely get out of the elements with people of a social standing similar to his own.

If you look at a map you will discover that Bethlehem is a little south of Jerusalem.  But where were Joseph and Mary coming from?  Nazareth?  Nazareth is almost 70 miles from Bethlehem, a journey that would have taken several days at least, and particularly in Mary’s condition.  It is not a reach to consider that this great distance travel, and on a donkey as some like to view, would have been particularly hard on Mary and could possibly have induced her into giving birth.  The fact is, we do not know if Jesus was born immediately upon their arrival or a week after their arrival.  Remember now, this story could only have been related by Mary and Joseph, undoubtedly illiterate, to the story tellers to pass it through the ages.  But this also means that time elapsed time between the birth of Jesus and the earliest telling of the story is at least 100 years, probably more.  Like any event, the first retelling of the event is the most important as that is when it is freshest in the mind.  It is likely the first retelling of the story did not happen until Jesus started his ministry, some 30 years after his birth.  This is supported by the fact that we know virtually nothing of those first 30 years of His life.  There is only a single mention of him as a young boy, and even that is very short on detail, Jesus talks with the rabbis.

Scientists believe the “star of Bethlehem” was actually a comet, misinterpreted by an unsophisticated people as a star.

And what about the three wise men, the magi?  Sometimes they are referred to as the 3 kings.  But what is generally agreed is that they were likely astrologers from Persia and had come to Jerusalem to sell their wares, gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  They may well have been wealthy merchants who would have seemed like kings to the Jews of the day.  Their knowledge of astrology translated as wisdom.

That the actual events surrounding the birth of Jesus likely are vastly different from what was written does not diminish from the story as told at all.  My guess is that the actual story is likely far more interesting and lively from what we have today.  An a historian, I am compelled to question source material.  That we have no first hand accounts of the birth only serves to reinforce the impact the birth of Jesus had on the people of the day.  The absolute charisma and importance of the man makes the case for the miracle of just how much was related for future generations.

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Remember Service Members At Christmas


We have today an all volunteer military.  Every single member chose to be in uniform with the understanding that it would mean being away from their family, and being stationed in places that require their presence through the Christmas season.  Many of them will being working on Christmas Day.  I have a lot of experience with this as I was away from home, my place of birth, for 10 Christmases.  It can be a very lonely time.

Most people know someone who is in the military and serving away from.  We tend to think of those serving in the war zones of Iraq and Afghanistan but we should also remember those who are serving in Germany, Korea, Japan, and many other locations including at sea.  For them, it has little to do with where they are serving but the fact that they are not at home at a time when families traditionally get together.  That can bring on a profound loneliness for the individual service member.

Most people know someone who is serving on active duty and is away from home right now.  I can tell you from personal experience, having served 10 Christmases in the military and away from home, that one of the best Christmas presents I got was a letter from home.  And that is not just from my family, but from anyone who cared to write.  This is particularly true for the unmarried soldiers but of course not limited to them.

My recommendation is that if you know of such a person get his address and send him a card.  Even if the only thing you can say in the card is that you are thinking of them at this time of year, that will mean more to them than you can know.  Being remembered is always a wonderful thing, and it really costs you nothing more than a few minutes of your time.

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How Are We to Take the Birth of Jesus?


I recently watched a documentary on the history of Christmas.  Little was said about the actual birth of Jesus in this program as it was more dedicated to traditions of the past 400 years or so.  But they did point out that there are two versions of his birth in the Bible, one in Matthew and a second in Luke.  Here is what it says in Matthew: Chapter 1, verse 18 “Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with child through the power of the holy spirit. 19 Joseph her husband, an upright man unwilling to expose her to the law, decided to divorce her quietly.  20. Such was his intention when suddenly the angel of the Lord appeared in a dream and said to him: “Joseph, son of David, have no fear about taking Mary as your wife.  It is by the Holy Spirit that she has conceived this child.  21 She is to have a son and you are to name him Jesus because he will save his people from their sins.”  But Matthew fails to give us any details whatever about the time and circumstances of the birth.

Now in Luke, Chapter 1, verse 26 “In the sixth mont, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee named Nazareth.”  Gabriel tells Mary directly that she is pregnant via the Holy Spirit with Jesus.  This announcement is made in the “6th month.”  Now if that is the beginning of her pregnancy, as it sounds, the birth could not have happened before March, when many theologians speculate it actually did happen.  But, if its meaning is that Mary was already in her 6th month of pregnancy, then we are again left asking when the birth actually happened.

One thing most Historic Theologians seem to agree upon is that the birth likely happened in the early springs because of the reference to lambs being nearby.  And lambs are usually born in the spring.  But Luke tells us also that Caesar Augustus made a decree ordering a census be taken.  This too lines up with the springtime as historians have been able to date just such a census in the spring of that year.

Jesus is often referred to as “the light of the world.”  The early Christian church was renown for co-opting pagan holidays into one of its own.  The Roman holiday of Saturnalia, along with several other cultures, celebrated the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year, as the beginning of the return of more light to each following day.  Out of the darkness and into the light, as we like to say.

One Christian tradition has a visit by “the Magi.”  Who were these people bringing gifts of all things?  The Magi were a well-known group who belonged to a religious following called Zoroastrians.  The word magi is Greek for magician.  We refer to them as the wise men but more likely they were performers of some sort, men who read the stars, practicers of Astrology and Alchemy.  In this sense they were thought wise.  Today, we would think of them just a bit differently.  They are also sometimes referred to as the three kings, though it is unlikely such was the case.  Tradition has it the brought gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  It is likely they were travelers from Persia carrying such goods as a normal part of their trade.

Jesus was born in a manger, or so it is said.  A most humble place as manger is a French word referring to the place where cattle and sheep eat.  But its structure would certainly have lent it to usage as a place to bed a newborn.  But more like, then as today, Mary probably held the new-born close to her own warm body for quite some time, not just to keep him warm, but also to feed him.

But firmly within the story is the tradition of gifting.  The Magi, whoever they were, are said to have left gifts for Jesus which is a strong statement unto itself.  It says; this is what a person should do.  The great thing about this tradition is there is absolutely no requirement that you are a Christian or need to believe in Jesus at all to do it!  It is the simple idea of giving without expectation of return.  I give something to you because I think it will make you happy.  And seeing you happy is reward enough for me, I need no more.  I really feel that, more and more.

How do we take the birth of Jesus?  The angel in the Bible, who announces the birth of Jesus, wishes peace to all men of good will.  I think that is a marvelous starting place for everyone regardless of religion.  While O. Henry’s short story, “The Gift of the Magi” has a new take on the original act, it does teach us something very valuable for this time of year.  We give what we can to those we love because we love them, and in return we only want their love.  And that is the meaning of Jesus, plain, simple, and easy.