Christmas according to Jennifer

At the risk of offending everyone I know, I'm going to take a couple of blog entries to explain how I feel about certain Christmas traditions, and why. My point of view on this issue is really ever evolving. I don't feel the way I did 15 years ago, and I'll probably feel even differently in another 15 years. And I want to state up front here that I feel this way for me, not for you. You can do whatever makes your family strong and healthy and helps you please God and raise righteous children. After all is said and done, that's the ultimate goal, right? So, let the offending begin.

I love Christmas. It is a fabulous time of the year, an opportunity to get in touch with emotions and events we have a hard time accessing throughout the year just because life is so busy. I think having a celebration of Christ's birth is perfectly appropriate. I am glad for the chance to spend a little more time focusing on the events surrounding the Nativity, to look in earnest for opportunities for charity that I may miss in the hustle and bustle of daily life, to be able to show love in a little more abundance by giving gifts and remembrances to those I care about. I think it's a blessed time. However, I also think that many of the traditions we indulge in this time of year actually serve to pull us farther from Christ rather than bring us closer. Extensive gift giving is one of these practices, which I blogged about last year. This year, I'm focusing on other traditions.

When the Catholic Church was spreading Christianity across the whole of Europe, certain concessions were made, perhaps out of necessity. Groups of people, entire countries even, were converted, often by force. In an effort to keep those peoples compliant, Catholic leaders tried to allow for some of their traditions to remain. Pope Gregory I told his missionaries "not to stop such ancient pagan festivities, but to adapt then to the rites of the Church, only changing the reason for them from a heathen to a Christian impulse." (Arthur Weigall, Paganism in our Christianity, Kessinger Pub., 1928) Thus we have traditions that have endured: the Christmas tree, which is actually a remnant of tree worship; the hanging of holly and evergreens, descended from the ancient Roman custom of hanging holly to adorn the temples during Saturnalia (a midwinter festival celebrating Saturn, the god of agriculture); and mistletoe, which the druids of Britain believed held magical powers and protected against demons and spells. And of course there is the Santa Clause myth, loosely based on a fourth-century bishop in Turkey. (I'll share my view of Santa in my next blog entry. Won't that be fun?) These traditional trappings of Christmas, especially the tree and Santa, make up the majority of our focus during the Christmas season here in America. And yet, their origins are not Christian at all, and have nothing whatsoever to do with Christ. They existed before their practitioners ever heard of Christ, and only continue to exist as sort of a pap for people who couldn't let go of their old traditions because they were forced to become Christian and not because they experienced a true, heartfelt conversion.

Those of us who profess to be followers of Christ today are not in the same position as these ancient Europeans. If we truly believe in the Christ of the Bible, then we have undergone a heart change that compels us to follow the teachings of Christ because we have faith in him, because we truly believe in him, and not because we will be jailed if we don't. We should seek for truth wherever it exists, both inside and outside our respective religions. (And believe me, the LDS faith has not got the corner on truth in this world. Even if you believe we do have the true priesthood and the true ordinances, there are many people in the world, both past and present, who truly follow Christ, emulate him and strive for a truth-filled life, who are not LDS. Conversely, there are many latter-day saints who merely parrot the "truth" they see around them without ever trying to ascertain it veracity, and even those who go through the motions of conformity all the while embracing deception and sin in their hearts.) I believe when we seek for the truth, we can and should lay aside the traditions of our fathers that do not serve the truth and search for those traditions that truly allow the light of Christ to shine through them.

There are many holiday traditions that are based on Christ and the Nativity. The candy cane was invented purely as a tribute to Jesus Christ. Gifts were given by the wise men to the young Jesus and his family. A star shone in the sky to lead the wise men to Bethlehem. Christ himself is the light that leads our way. Our family tries to decorate with those symbols I can directly tie to Christ, and not those descended from other traditions. We decorate with nativities, with stars and candles and candy canes. We hang Christmas lights in the windows. We give gifts to each other, and to those we hold dear. As a family we try to find worthy causes to support with some of our family resources. These traditions are ones I can feel good about. I feel like they are pure, scripture-based, and not distorted by being drawn from other beginnings and then twisted to fit Christian precepts.

People have pointed out to me that modern prophets have not quibbled with these symbols, that Joseph Smith embraced the tradition of the Christmas tree, and that Temple Square is filled with these symbols throughout the holiday season. All true. And I would never presume to say that any of them are wrong. I would say, however, that prophets are not perfect, meaning that just because a prophet engages in an activity, that does not necessarily mean it is needful for our personal good, nor even that it is a perfectly good activity. I am certain that Christmas as it was celebrated in Joseph Smith's time differed strikingly from the month long hoopla-filled celebration we engage in today. And Temple Square is a missionary tool, bringing together LDS and non-LDS to celebrate. I will admit that these traditional symbols bring some people closer to the true meaning of Christmas. But I will add that I think they are not needed to achieve those ends, that we can (maybe should) find more direct ways to relate the reality of Christ and his miraculous birth, his eternal nature,and his admonitions of charity to our holiday celebrations.

So, in a nutshell, I'm searching for Christmas traditions to use in my family that allow for a clear view of Christ and his gospel. And I think that paring away the traditions that are not based directly in the scriptures will allow me to bring my family closer to Christ without compromising the beauty and joy of the Christmas season.

(Post-script - As I read this I realize it may sound a little bombastic, which I did not intend. I don't believe that Christmas traditions are salvation busters. I don't believe having a Christmas tree will keep you out of heaven, or that decorating with holly means you don't believe in Christ. I'm just expressing my view on how to live life a little closer to God. That's all.)