Xmas Karols and Kris Kringle,
Credit Extremes and Turkey Bloat,
Family fights and too much Jingle,
Good-will rammed down your throat?

Surely there is more to Christmas than that?

So Christmas has come.  And, for some people, gone.   

Yes, the shops were full of tinsel and fake reindeer with plastic smiles and red noses.  Strains of Xmas Karols bombarded our ears.  And then there are the snowmen...  in Australia?  In summer??? 

It's all just hype and show and spending money!

On the other hand, there was all that religious stuff - Jesus, Mary and Joseph, and those wise men.  Or were they Kings?   Well, whatever.  The star, don't forget the star.  It's all just a load of swaddling for the gullible isn't it?  The shops want our money and the churches want our souls? 

If it were that simple then religion would have died a death years ago.  For centuries (well, about two of them!) the birth of a man impacted people so profoundly that it is still being celebrated.  (And sell-ebrated too.)

Could a simple story about the birth of a child really engage people so much if it was just a story? 

The simple answer is no. 

NO!

For the birth of a child to be celebrated all these years later, that child had to be something special.  It had to be more than just a 'miracle' birth in a world where all birth and all conception are miracles.  To stand the test of time, that child had to speak to the heart of us all. 

Christmas is all about a message. 

That message is not about tinsel and train sets.  It is not about Santa and Presents.  It is not about 'happy holidays' or elves or reindeer or Christmas pudding or even chocolate santas.  (Although there's much to be said for chocolate santas...)

And it is not a message about a day.

You see, Christmas is not a single day on the 25th of December.  Rather it goes on every day of the year.  Christmas, you see, is not about the birth of Christ so much as the birth of Man.  In Christ we are re-born to become truer, fuller, better human beings than ever we were before.

Christmas, then, is ultimately a message of hope, blessings, and love.

It is the story of the greatest gift God could bestow on mankind – the offer of a restoration of a relationship between us and God. Without this offer, all humanity would have remained under the cloud of judgement as no one stands without fault before the judgement seat of God.

Does that sound like a bunch of tinsel and coloured lights, to be brought out once a year and stored safely away for the other 11 months?

Christmas is God showing how much he loves the world; so much so that he refused to leave it in darkness. Rather, begining and ending with the birth of Jesus, God gave the world hope that, for those who believe in the Christ (being the Messiah long promised) his life, death, and resurrection complete the path to forgiveness, healing, and ultimately a relationship of love between each believer and their creator.

Christmas then is not about giving gifts, relaxing, rushing around, or spending more than we can afford. Christmas is about relationships, building friendships between others, extending peace, and bringing love into the world. For Christians, this love begins with God and flows from there out to all family, friends,  neighbours and ultimately everyone, without exception.

There is always a place in a Christian household for love, for amusement, for friendship, for laughing, for celebration.  There is always a place in a christian household for Christmas.  Not in a coloured tree - at least, not ONLY in a coloured tree - but rather in the ongoing celebration of Christ Mass.  The ongoing, 365 days a year recognition that God loves us and Jesus is our perfect indication of that love.