So I haven't talked to y'all for a while (at least via blog), and a lot of things have happened. But that's not why I'm here (although in short: Grad School and Chicago are both a lot of fun and a lot of work- not always happy, but fulfilling which is what is important.). I'm writing today because like every other Catholic-Christian in the United States, I feel compelled to tell the world the "reason for the season"- that is, that we prepare for and celebrate during this time of the year, the Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ into, not only "human vesture", but human totality so that He might redeem the world. This is the fundamental root of the "spirit of Christmas" that people talk about that makes this time of year extra special.
To a large degree, I can appreciate and understand the bemoaning of the manipulation and twisting of this spirit, with little mention (and often very little coherence with) the coming of Christ and the good news He is. Lord only knows, but the swarms of people who seem to aggressively invade- not an overstatement- the various malls and markets for Black Friday are most likely not doing so with the idea of spreading the love and joy of Christ in mind. The fact that many of the stores moved their "celebrations" to Thanksgiving day itself (a time for, in ascending order, football, food and family) only further affirms these suspicions. Even jolly Old St. Nicholas more closely resembles the oh-so-facile unofficial mascot of Macy's who hasn't dished out a lump of coal since the Great War, than the 4th century bishop from Asia Minor who gave coins to small girls so that they didn't have to be sold into slavery (translate: prostitution). The current understanding of Christmas, is seemingly becoming increasingly secular, and (something more problematic) less consistent with the message from which it originated.
And yet, somehow I can't help but think that this phenomenon is extraordinarily consistent with the event which we Christians celebrate on this day (or twelve days, but who's counting). After all, Christ does not come as a superior to the humanity of His day- rather He enters into it, elevates it, and (eventually) redeems it. He isn't born in a nice clean palace, before his royal subjects clothed in purple and gold. Rather, he is born in a filthy manger (or a cave- it doesn't necessarily make the conditions any more amiable), before some smelly shepherds (or magi- who after a long journey probably are in no better condition), clothed in swaddling cloths. He enters not into the height and the glory of humanity, but in its lowest form. He does not come into the world as a great king, with strength and knowledge beyond measure, but as a baby- small, weak, vulnerable, and lowly.
Christ enters into the world in the same anti-climatic fashion today as he did 2,000 years (ish) ago- not in the holy and pure spiritual form we wish we were but in the lowly and broken state we are in. He does not enter into our hearts in a transformative way, but rather he enters into us in all our brokenness, in all our error and sin and transforms us, elevating our weaknesses into strength. More often than not, consumerist, materialistic, commercialist ideals dominate our lives. Thankfully, Christ does not simply erase these faults, but rather enters into them and elevates them. He takes our materialism, and transforms it into something centered not around ourselves, but oriented toward the self-gift of others.
Now, assuredly, we should not remain in our broken state. We should continue to strive to live a life more in accord with Christ and with his teaching- valuing the material goods we have not as an end, but only as a means to better serve others and (ultimately) serve Christ. Indeed, "keeping the Christ in Christmas" can only be truly achieved, when we seek to keep Christ in our lives the other 364 days out of the year. However, despite the brokenness of humanity, the spirit of Christ enters into us the way we are and elevates it this time of year to something beyond itself which still points to the Incarnation of Christ. And to that, I say "Merry Christmas"!
God Bless,
No comments:
Post a Comment