Wayne
Manning It is a
daunting thing, attempting to write about the “true meaning of
Christmas.” It is so overlaid with the many meanings our individual
experiences bring to it. We each have our own closely held feelings and
ideas and beliefs about this central Christian holy day, and we don’t
take kindly to somebody (like me) fiddling with them. But some fiddling is
necessary if we are to discover new nuances in the music, or perhaps whole
new melodies. As I thought about the question, I began with what Christmas
is not. Christmas isn’t about shopping
and presents and Santa. These can and do bring a great deal of joy to
young and old alike, but they don’t seem to add up to the true meaning
of Christmas. Christmas isn’t about cold
weather, snow, lights, and evergreen trees. These wonderful elements are
inspired by early Christmas celebrations in the cold, dark Decembers of
northern Europe. Beautiful and nostalgic, but not the heart of it. Christmas is more than family
gatherings, and singing songs of the season, and traditional worship
services, although these are nearer the mark. Christmas, ultimately, isn’t
just about Jesus, as strange and startling as that may sound. Surely it is
inspired by his advent on earth and by his continued spiritual presence
and power down through the ages since. But the true meaning of Christmas
transcends even the one for whom it is named, transcends even Christianity
itself, and points toward Jesus’ vision for the world. He had a great
regard for those who were peacemakers and those who could find a way to
love their enemies. The true meaning of Christmas is found, I think, in
what it means to be a peacemaker and the transforming power of love. Christmas is about the birth and
re-birth of hope and the yearning for peace and the capacity for love in
every human heart. While anchored in a particular birth, a bit over two
thousand years ago, the challenge for us today is to celebrate hope and
the yearning for peace in our own hearts, and to allow that same hope and
yearning to be present in those we call enemy. And to love them. We stand today on the brink of
another conflict of potentially global impact and ramification. It is
apparent that we don’t yet know a better way to resolve such
differences, or we would surely employ it. Even in the midst of such
madness as may lie before us, let us hold to the hope that is being born
anew in us, moment by moment. Let us believe that peace can be realized as
surely as light overcomes darkness. Let us struggle with the paradox of
loving those on whom we deliver blows, because of our ignorance and fear
and rage. Whatever God is ultimately like,
most of the people in the world have a God-concept that shapes their lives
and behavior. I am not certain of many things, but I am certain of this:
God is love. The essence of God is love. This is not a uniquely Christian
idea, but it is eloquently expressed in our New Testament: “God is love,
and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them.” (I
John 4:16) May God
abide in you, and you in God, this Christmas. And every day.
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