The New Advent

Here it is:  only the second day of Christmas, and the Christmas music on Sirius XM is already over.  I cannot begin to say how horribly disappointed I am over this.  It makes me really wonder how much all of the signs and symbolism of the Christmas season affects most people in this largely pagan society we live in today, despite that so many love to celebrate Christmas, and in spite of the systematic efforts to purge this holiest of religious holidays from the public sphere by so many.

This systematic effort is actually quite interesting to observe.  As I mentioned, today's society is largely pagan:  we bow down and worship all the wrong things, including sex, drugs, alcohol, money, work, family, and all manner of objects.  And while we do not want the Christian message intruding on our daily lives, all of the signs of Christmas (old English from "Cristemass' - literally "Christ's Mass" or the birth of the Christ) - are still there.  You may not get the words to "Oh Come, All Ye Faithful," and yet the meaning is still presented subconsciously in the music alone.

You see, no matter how much this systematic effort at purging Christ from Christmas is, it quite simply cannot be done.  Our society cannot celebrate the holiday of Christmas without the meaning behind it.  Even by eliminating the phrase "Christmas," and replacing it with "winter festival," "winter holiday," "the holidays," or some other such nonsense, does not remove the broad and long history associated with this time of year.  And yet society continues to try.  Society can force Christmas into the four walls of the church, but the meaning and purpose are eternal and will never disappear.  When the meaning is gone from the public sphere, there is nothing to celebrate, and the sentimentality and the symbolism in the season have no real purpose or impact any longer.

I for one would love when all the Christmas music is played throughout December, that the meaning behind it is not lost on the millions of listeners who love these songs this time of year.  It's serious business for sure.  One can't listen to the music for sentimentality only. 

Truthfully, it's high time that Christians recapture the season of Christmas, and stop following the pagan society's lead of celebrating Christmas in the WRONG season (Advent) and ending Christmas just when it is beginning:  on December 25.  This means light your trees until Epiphany (Jan 6), and keep the outdoor lights up and burning.  Let the birth of Christ be more than just a single day.  We build up to it for four weeks in December!  It's a shame that we should so quickly put an end to it once it begins!

The signs of the truth of the Gospel are there.  They are all around us.  May the truth and the meaning behind the day - and season - of Christmas stand in stark contrast to the pagan world that wants all of the emotion of the day without the meaning behind it.  May we as Christians never forget that Jesus is indeed the reason for the season.