Monday, December 30, 2013
372 - Wrapping Up the Christmas Story
Spirituality Column #372
December 31, 2013
Current in Carmel-Westfield-Noblesville-Fishers-Zionsville
December 31, 2013
Current in Carmel-Westfield-Noblesville-Fishers-Zionsville
Wrapping Up the Christmas Story
By Bob Walters
Another
chapter of annual Yuletide festivities is pretty much closed.
Along with the
lights, ornaments, trinkets and leftover giftwrap, we mostly shelve our personal
Christmas stories until next year. Baubles
sit silently in boxes while memories marinate softly in our subconscious. Emotions endure and details blur.
‘Til next year.
We’ll soon
enough revisit the sublime mystery of the season’s peaceful reflection and holy
meaning. We’ll soon enough marshal the
strength and fortitude necessary to outflank the mayhem of the season’s preparatory
demands.
But that is
months hence. For now, for the most
part, our stories rest.
As our emotionally-charged,
tradition-rich, personal and family Christmas stories go dormant, it’s as good
a time as any to take an academic look at the real story of Christmas. Just as holiday memories are often leavened
by emotion, many nativity facts don’t line-up with traditional Christmas hype. The truth, now, is less likely to disturb
anyone’s sternly personal seasonal “feelings.”
As for the
basics, we know that Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. Regardless, a huge swath of today’s culture
downplays, disparages and is often downright hostile to the “Jesus” thing. Of course, plenty of people were hostile to
the “Jesus” thing 2,000 years ago, too.
Nobody imagined mankind’s salvation would emanate out of a humble
peasant manger.
Were Mary and
Joseph really turned away at the “inn” and left alone in a stable or cave? Not likely.
Kenneth Bailey’s fascinating book “Jesus through Middle Eastern Eyes” discounts
that narrative as an errant confluence of long-standing biblical mistranslation
(“inn” actually means “extra room”), cultural misunderstanding (ignoring
routine Middle Eastern hospitality) and spurious ancient legend (second-century
folktales). Jesus likely was born in a peasant
home where at night animals were “stabled” inside for warmth.
Even if Mary and
Joseph arrived in Bethlehem unannounced, being “of the line of David” they
would be received as near-royalty in the “City of David.” Any pregnant woman would have been aided by
local mid-wives. The shepherds being “glad
at what they saw” (Luke 2:20) tells us the baby Jesus they visited was
well-attended to.
And Christmas
Day that we celebrate, December 25, is not the actual birthday of Jesus. Nobody knows the true date but scholarship suggests
early spring of 3-4 B.C. based on known political leaders (Caesar Augustus,
Herod, etc.) mentioned in the Bible.
Celebrating Christ’s incarnation (John 1:14) on December 25 was a
church-mandated over-write of the post-solstice Roman pagan feast of Saturnalia
which celebrated the lengthening of days: in other words – fittingly – increasing
light.
More light, of
course, wraps up the best part of the Christmas story.
Walters (rlwcom@aol.com) prays that the light of Christ will shine brightly on you and yours throughout
2014.
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