A recent posting on the excellent blog of Touchstone Magazine has generated some lively discussion in our home. On the subject of Christmas cards, Marci Segelstein writes:"In a few days, my mantlepiece will be filled, not with reminders of the gospel story of Jesus’s birth, but with professional photos of children or entire families adorning cards with inoffensive messages like “Peace and Joy.” In my neck of the woods, there seems to be a little competition going for whose children can pose the best for these annual mailings. Frankly, I don’t care. And I have a little reality check for the church-going believers out there who send these photo cards: Christmas isn’t about your lovely, smiling children or your beautifully posed family. It’s about the Son of God taking human form to save your souls. Maybe putting Christ back into Christmas starts at home."
OUCH! As you can see, our card features our "lovely, smiling children." But does she make an important point? Christians complain every year about how secularized the Christmas season has become, but are we not contributing to it by focusing on ourselves?
You can read the entire post here. Your thoughts?
6 comments:
You are so right we complain about the mass merchants taking Christ out of Christmas or should I say the holidays...We are probably more guilty then the merchandisers as we know better and we are to be a light to the world. May we take a moment to remember why over 2000 years ago Christ left His father's side to come to this world!
I agree with the concerns about getting too commercial during Christmas and forgetting about the real reason for the season, as they say.
However, I'm an advocate for the photo cards. Not because I always get them sent, in fact I'm very inconsistent with my Christmas cards. I love receiving them as a way to stay connected with friends and family we don't see often. It's such fun to see how kids have changed, etc.
So, I'm guilty too!
Yes, Christmas is about the birth of Jesus. It's about the birth of the man who one day became the saviour of mankind. However, in his birth, there is the forming of a family.
Christmas is about celebrating his arrival, and about enjoying and celebrating our time together as families. It's about togetherness, happiness, thankfulness and family.
And while I my self have never been involved in the making of one of those family photo cards - simply because it's not really common place in new Zealand - I see nothing wrong with it. It in itself is celebrating family and love - something that the birth of Jesus is about, right?
I don't think it adds to the commercialisation of Christmas. It just adds some extra happiness to the season. What makes Christmas more plastic, and less about it's true meaning, is the holiday songs that have nothing to DO with the purpose of the holiday, being played from mid November onwards. The $1000's spent of toys and gifts that don't have any meaning.
Cards, whether store bought and with 'Peave and Joy' written on them, hand made with love, or displaying a smiling picture of your family, are all gestures of peace, joy, happiness and togetherness.... Isn't THAT the meaning of Christmas?
Hmm... You know that I grew up in the country where religion was forbidden. But we were so happy celebrating New Years with the decorated tree, Grandfather Frost and small gifts to children! When we came to the States I was so sad to learn that New Year is not the main holiday, and not everyone decorates a tree because Christmas is a religious holiday. I was also shocked to see how much money people spend on the gifts, and the fact that you have to give the gifts to everybody.
Fast forward 11 years, I just love the Christmas season. We still don't spend a lot of money on the gifts, preferring to give extra money to charity, but I love connecting with people during the holidays, getting and sending the cards. It's so nice to get a card with pictures from the friends and family I don't see often. Isn't it great to know that other people think about you? Isn't it joyous to see how other people's children grow up? So I'm all for the happiness that these cards bring to us. We don't exist for religion, religion exists to help us live our lives better (just my opinion, please don't be offended!)
P.S. I just love your Christmas card!
Send me all photo cards!
I love to see the happy smiling faces of the adoring children that GOD placed on this Earth!! To me they are all reflections of God and Jesus and they are what Christmas is all about!!
Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!
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