We were driving to the shops to continue the annual safari of hunting for Christmas gifts for our family. I was commenting on how much I love Christmas, a disposition formed by many happy childhood memories and the joy of our children on Christmas Day over the years. To me Christmas is still magical, I love carols and trees and decorations and lights, and we jokingly realised that not only is Christmas my favourite time of year, it's my favourite pagan holiday!
I actually couldn't care less about the origins of the various Christmas traditions, even the timing of the celebration. I'm interested because it's history, but I don't care, it doesn't make any difference to me - I love Christmas! And it isn't because I'm about to say that it's all about Jesus' birthday (although it is) because let's be honest, that really doesn't mean too much to most people. I know many churches will be packed with people they haven't seen since last year, and although we would like to see them more often, it's actually good that they recognise the core reason we adopted this pagan holiday and many of the traditions in the first place.
I think one of the reasons I continue to love Christmas is because of what it means and does for most people. Christmas reminds us of the importance of family and friends, it brings us together, it causes us to think beyond our own wants and consider what other people would like. Yes, I think it's too commercial; yes, I think we all spend too much; yes, there is often a competition about who spends the most; yes, there are a lot of people in our society who miss out and find Christmas a particularly difficult time of year. Consider this, however, that on this one day of the year, right across the globe, people are pausing in their lives and planning to take the time to enjoy a meal with the ones they care about.
This is a good thing. The miracle of the first Christmas was that a baby was born who would restore relationship (fellowship, communion) between God and humanity, this miracle continues to bring people together (in fellowship, communion) whether they believe in, celebrate or care about the birth of that child or not.
I was spoiled as a child. I was the only child of upper-middle class parents who enjoyed buying me presents almost as much as I enjoyed receiving them. I don't ever remember a Christmas lunch at home. I remember going to a restaurant every year with other families, eating beautiful food, singing around a tree and getting presents from Father Christmas (we never called him Santa Claus, that wasn't British). I remember presents under the tree Christmas morning, a spread my Mum prepared for Christmas tea (that we would continue to enjoy for a couple of days after), and my Dad's anticipation of Mum's trifle (which I find a particularly disgusting dessert).
I remember leaving out biscuits and either port or sherry for Father Christmas (which probably explains his big belly and red face); I remember my Dad relaxing when we got home after lunch with a cigar or his pipe and a glass of brandy before the obligatory afternoon nap; I remember snow; I remember the carols and Christmas songs playing and Mum and Dad humming or singing along as the day unfolded; I remember the smell of the real pine Christmas tree and the annoying needles it would shed; I remember going to sleep Christmas night full and happy and wishing the day would last forever.
I remember some of my expensive presents, but not many. My memories revolve around the time spent with my parents, around food and laughter, around the simple joys of stopping to be family. We didn't attend church, we didn't even say grace. My parents believed, after a fashion, but although they knew the 'reason for the season' (an expression so overused it irritates), the meaning of Christmas was family, and a thankfulness for all we had, especially for each other.
I love Christmas because I live in a society that has largely forgotten or rejected the cultural Christianity we inherited from previous generations. To be honest I think that might actually be a good thing, there are some aspects that needed forgetting or rejecting, but in Christmas the heart of God to bring people together, to foster meaningful relationships, to inspire love and joy and peace and hope and generosity is seen in homes everywhere.
When I think about that I sometimes wonder where God is most likely to be experienced at Christmas, where he is most likely to be at work. Is it where people gather to sing and remember that baby born in Bethlehem? Probably, those are good things to do. But might it not also be at the other times, the more attended and less obvious times when we share our Christmas meal and in our own way appreciate what we have?
Whatever you do and wherever you are this Christmas I hope it will be a happy day full of joy and laughter. I hope you will embrace the ones you love and give thanks for the good things in your life. And I hope that like me, Christmas will remain or perhaps become, your favourite pagan holiday as well!
Merry Christmas!!
A couple of days ago I attended a very special graduation ceremony as my wife completed her Bachelor's degree complete with an award for academic achievement after three years of hard work, a impossibly steep learning curve and numerous lectures, tutorials and assignments. The ceremony was marked by tradition and pomp as the classical music played and the various deans and other faculty, garbed in their gowns and hoods and hats of different colours, entered the auditorium. One staff member carries the mace (apparently also known informally as the Qudditch stick) representing the leadership of the chancellor and the authority of the University.
The ceremony is long, and seems longer. There are so many graduates, and being a courteous sort of person I wanted to applaud each one as I also expect others to applaud my wife. I did the same with my daughter, I will do the same with my son. That's fine when their award is an early one and their name begins with an early letter of the alphabet. In our case there were many other awards before they got to my wife's, and we are 'Ws', so my applause tapered off a little and my interest became engaged by the attempts to pronounce some of the names and the graduates who were too nervous or too busy showboating to remember to 'doff' their cap to the Deputy Chancellor.
During the ceremony there were three speeches, one by the Deputy Chancellor, one by an invited dignitary, and one by a graduating student. The first two were ok, the one by the student was excellent, but what was of interest to me, and occasioned this post, was a common theme in all three addresses.
Naturally they all recognised that the many graduates were intending for a rewarding and successful career in their chosen field. In the same way that it's improbable we will ever hear anyone answer the question, "And do you (whoever) take (the other one) whom you hold by the hand...." with, "I'll give it a go and see how it works out"; it's also unlikely (although not impossible) that any of the graduating students intend to take their expensive and hard earned degree and immediately retire to their couch an spend their time watching Oprah, Dr. Phil and Days of our Lives.
All three speeches, however, also reminded the graduates that with the privilege of education comes the responsibility to give back, to use the gifts, talents and opportunities they have to be of benefit to the wider community. Did you get that? All three speeches articulated an important aspect of the Christian message - find fulfilment, look after your family, and do something for others!
The biblical value of not just living for yourself but using what you have for other people and the wider community (particularly the poorest, the hurting, the oppressed and the excluded) is an overflow of the Trinitarian love that welcomes humanity, in all our lost and fallen state, and redeems us, transforms us, and embraces us in fellowship. As we enter the Christmas season the idea of a God that is for 'others' to the degree that he became human in order to redeem his creation is so clearly imaged in a baby in a manger. This is the God who came, who lived and suffered and died, who gave his life for others - for us.
Right now you might be skeptical. Come on Jeremy, the idea of community and service are pretty trendy right now. And what about the motivations? Don't they come into it? Just what's you point?
Here's my point: God is at work. To sit in the audience of a secular university, one that is actively opposed to spiritual issues (well, Christian spiritual issues anyway), and hear three people exhort the graduates to not live just for themselves but for others as well reminded me that God is at work in his world. Wherever there is love, wherever there is forgiveness, wherever there is mercy, wherever there is justice, wherever the poor are cared for and the hurting find healing - God is at work.
Right throughout the Bible we are reminded that this is God's world. The one who created it in the Genesis story hasn't abandoned it but is intimately involved in it. In our scientific age we might reconsider the 'facts' of, "He provides food for the cattle and for the young ravens when they call," (Ps. 147:9) and, "Look at the birds of the air; they do not reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them" (Matt. 6:26), but the truth of those verses isn't about how animals are fed, but that God is involved in his creation.
In Acts 17 Paul encourages the Athenians that he can tell them about the God they have unknowingly been seeking and affirms, "...he is not far from any one of us." In fact most of the New Testament gospel message to Gentile audiences took the theme of, "Look around, God is at work, let me tell you his story."
Sometimes we forget that God doesn't need us, doesn't only work through us or through the church, and that he is constantly at work by his Spirit throughout the world. Jesus explained it like this in John 3, "The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it has come from or where it is going." The context here is, of course, the issue of the Spirit 'birthing' followers of God who were not born Israelites and the need for Jews to be 'born again'. There is, though, the implicit truth that God is at work where and when we don't expect and in places and ways that we are completely unaware of. God is at work in his world.
This thought informs every aspect of my life. It creates an awareness and expectancy to see God in this world, not in a weird way, like some Christian version of spiritist folk-religions, but in a healthy way that recognises God's presence, activity and care for his creation. It sees the admittedly flawed, broken and distorted and yet still present image of God in acts of mercy, justice and generosity; and it yearns for the clearer and more explicit expression of that image through his followers by his Spirit.
This thought sees the activity of God bringing forth the promised redeemed and transformed creation guaranteed by the resurrection of Christ. This thought fills me with hope and a desire to join with him and be an active part of the process.
It also poses this question: Where is God at work in my world, in my life?
Where is the space that allows me to slow and reflect and really see where he is present and speaking and working?
God speaks in many ways, he is working in unexpected places, he is found in unanticipated events - where is he at work in your life? In your world? What is he saying? What is he doing? And how can you join in?
If you were asked to explain the Christian faith, how would you reply?
I recently read a suggestion that the best way to understand what Christianity is all about is to read/study the epistles of Paul. Some people would discuss the values and ethics that are important to the faith, or the positive social justice initiatives that they are involved in. Others would talk about their church or faith community and the sense of welcome and connection they find there. Some would tell of their personal experiences with God and his presence in their lives. Or, perhaps, some would bring up the gospel (a really misunderstood term) and the 'plan of salvation' (whatever that really is) and how we are all lost but can live in heaven forever if we 'accept Jesus.'
What would you say? I'm not suggesting that any of these things are bad, but it seems to me that often we manage to explain Christianity without real reference to, well, Christ. I mean how can we recommend Romans or Galatians or Ephesians to explain the faith instead of Matthew, Mark, Luke or John? How is it we can seek to explain something that revolves around the life, death and resurrection of Jesus without telling his story?
In his excellent book The King Jesus Gospel, Scot McKnight describes one prominent Bible teacher who asked the question, "Did Jesus preach Paul's gospel?" Thankfully the answer is 'Yes', but that's not the issue. As McKnight points out, shouldn't the question be, "Did Paul preach Jesus' gospel?" Is it possible that Jesus is such a radical, difficult, challenging, hard to box and even irritating person that it is much easier to deal with Paul than Christ himself? Is it possible, and I suggest this with great trepidation, that we explain Christianity without much reference to Jesus and all he said and did because he doesn't fit into the box that is the Christian world today?
Christianity is about Jesus. It's the story of the God whose love for his creation was so expansive that he walked with us as one of us, displayed what it means to connect with the kind of life he always intended for us to live and promise the possibility of this life - kingdom - breaking into our reality and touching and redeeming every facet of our soul, every element of our existence, and every corner of our planet. Ultimately God, enfleshed in the person of Jesus, suffered with and for all of creation and died to experience the extreme of exile and the assault of evil, hate and injustice. It's the story of him rising from the dead to vindicate all that he said, to proclaim victory over all that separates humanity from our God, and to validate his promise of a new kingdom and new creation. It's the reality of living into that promise now by the enabling of the Spirit and a willingness to walk the difficult path to personally and corporately embody the continuing presence of Jesus and his redeeming work in our world.
I think the only way to explain Christianity, and indeed that elusive term 'gospel' is to tell the story of Jesus. He said things and behaved in a way that was uncomfortable and socially unacceptable for his culture. He disturbed those in power (political, cultural, religious, economic and military) and questioned their beliefs and values. He befriended people he shouldn't, crossed social boundaries he wasn't supposed to, welcomed those that were unacceptable and called for justice and mercy to those no one wanted to associate with.
And then it hit me as I typed the previous paragraph - my life doesn't look like that! Is it possible that we avoid including the story of Jesus as the core of how we explain Christianity because our stories don't look like his? Is it possible we describe this faith in terms of theological concepts or religious/spiritual practices or moral values or propositional truth because we are comfortable that our subjective experience connects with those descriptions and not so much with the gospel record of his radical call to discipleship?
I am deeply committed to my faith, and love the church Jesus founded, but am more and more aware that this story that we are called to live into presents a disturbing challenge to the contemporary experience of Christianity. I read the gospels and reluctantly ask if God really expects me to try and reflect that kind of life. And to my dismay there is a quiet, "Yes," in my spirit, "but I'll help."
I was discussing some of these issues with a friend of mine this week, a deeply spiritual and thoughtful young man, who truly seeks to follow Jesus in this walk of discipleship. He commented to me that in his job he meets all sorts of people from all sorts of places and all different walks of life. Recently, in conversation about spirituality and faith a few have remarked to him, "You're not like any Christian I've ever met!"
There it is. I want to be that person. I want to be different to what people expect and for my life to look different to what is anticipated. Jesus wasn't like anyone that you would ever meet or ever anticipate encountering, and I don't think we should be either.
So what I want is that when people ask me what Christianity is all about (assuming my life gives them reason to), that I can tell the story of Jesus - without being embarrassed...
