Let's All Get Nothin' for Christmas

I imagine that if I went into a room of eight-year-old Sunday School students on Christmas and asked them, “Why is this day different from all other days?” their first answer would be “PRESENTS!” Then, with a little prodding, they’d all probably be able to explain that Christmas is the day of the birth of Christ, who came into the world to save us.

Kids who are raised in the faith – and while I know there are exceptions, I think this goes for the majority of Protestant American children – they know what Christmas is supposed to be about by rote. But that’s not really what it’s about for them. And why should it be? It may be what they’re told by their churches and their parents, but it’s not what they see in their culture, or, in many cases, in the behavior of their families.

They see an American Christmas, whose central icons are Santa Claus and the Christmas tree. They sing Silent Night sandwiched between Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Santa Claus Is Coming to Town. They gorge on TV commercials telling them what their friends will be getting for Christmas. Television, radio and movies take for granted that children will wake up Christmas morning to piles of brightly wrapped, beribboned boxes under the tree. Children watch their parents stress about how many people are coming over for Christmas dinner, who they’ve forgotten to buy for, and what the credit card bill is going to look like next month. In church, they see the nativity on one end of the sanctuary and the Christmas tree on the other.

Now, I know that Santa Claus is supposed to have been derived from St. Nicholas, who was truly a worthy man who gave all he had to help the needy and the suffering. And I know many people say that the Christmas tree is a symbol of the evergreen love of Christ, the lights the host of angels, and the star atop it the Star of Bethlehem. Whatever these icons have been or have not been, in America today they have come to symbolize receiving, not giving, and certainly not Christ.

When I think of a Christmas tree, I think of presents. When I see an image of Santa Claus, I think of presents. And they’re not presents for other people. They’re presents for me. I’m not alone in that. Most of you, and most of your kids, and your neighbors’ kids, and your nieces and nephews, would probably have to say the same.

Our kids have learned that the American Christmas is a special season of the year when they are allowed and even encouraged to fixate on things they want but don’t need and to compare their spoils with those of others who may have more or less. It’s that special time of year when the worst imaginable crisis would be not getting that one, expensive, begged-for gift.

The saddest part about this is, I don’t have a good example of a solely Christian Christmas celebration to contrast with this. This American Christmas has become the Christian Christmas as well; though it may be diluted with Scripture and sentiment, the greed remains.

So what are we supposed to do if we don’t want our children to learn the ways of the American Christmas? The opposition is overwhelming. Everyone is in on it, Christians, non-Christians, family, friends, and we ourselves. I have always loved the “traditional” Christmas. In the face of all this, I say to myself, I can’t change anything. I can’t stop other people from buying too much stuff for my daughter. I can’t censor the references to greed that permeate everything we hear and see this time of year. I want my daughter to recognize that Christmas is not about getting stuff. But what can I do? How can I explain to her that presents aren’t at the center of Christmas?

What if we leave the tree out of our own Christmas decorating, and make the nativity the focal point of our home? What if we cut the Santa songs out of our Christmas playlists? What if we give our children a single, inexpensive gift for Christmas and take them shopping for toys to donate to needy families instead? What better way to celebrate? Christ calls us to help those who have less than we do – shouldn’t we show our kids that we value that teaching? Shouldn’t that account for the overwhelming majority of our Christmas spending? After all, it’s His birthday. Shouldn’t the gifts we get just be the party favors?

Why is this day different from all other days? Because unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.

Why Obama?

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My letter was printed this week, and I've had some interesting responses so far.

Many of my friends are wondering why I steadfastly support Barack Obama for president. I’m not going to start spouting misleading statements and falsities about John McCain or Sarah Palin to justify my support. I support Obama not because he isn’t John McCain, but because he is Barack Obama.

I don’t watch cable news. I don’t believe anything I read without checking sources I trust first. I can smell political propaganda, and I have grieved over the number of my dear friends who have become lost in it. I get my information from proven, responsible media outlets. I have been inundated with e-mails and notices accusing Barack Obama of ridiculous sins, and interpreting the fact that he is a black man who doesn’t pretend to be otherwise as racial militancy.

I, for one, am sick of being lied to. I am of a generation whose political views have been formed by lies, and I am so weary of distrust. I am weary of feeling that my leaders are contributing to collapses across the world and across the country, and that no matter how loudly I scream, they’ll continue to cover their ears while they press red button after red button after red button.

Why do I support Barack Obama? Because for the first time in years, I’m excited.

People of my generation, from my neck of the woods—we’re not used to feeling that. We don’t get excited. We get angry. We get snarky. We don’t feel hopeful. We feel threatened. We feel overlooked. When Barack Obama speaks, I get excited. I feel hope. I am beginning to trust this gentleman who says he wants better things for me and for my country, and to believe he will work through any difficulty to get us those things. So I fight for him.

I don’t agree with everything he says. But I believe in him, and I believe that he believes in us. I believe he has the temperament, the judgment and the discernment to make the right choices under pressure and in peace. This country is broken. Many of our spirits are broken. Somebody has to fix it. I truly think he can.

My Letter to the Editor

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Usually my local paper won't print a letter to the editor unless it involves secession, atheists, or some other sort of crazy. But we're getting an earful of Palin support around here, and it really bothers me. I'm not going to stand by this election and silently watch the people around me be duped by the GOP ticket's refusal to retract the bald-faced lies they've been telling, and I'm sick of the tone of their attacks. So I decided to give the letter to the editor a shot:

I am dismayed by the exuberance with which so many good, Christian men and women stand and cheer the venomous and mocking remarks uttered by Governor Sarah Palin in her rallies since the Republican National Convention. Of course in a political race the candidates will point out what they perceive to be one another’s faults. But Christians who agree with the statements Governor Palin is making about her opponents should consider the tone of these attacks before they yell out their support.

The Sermon on the Mount makes clear that Jesus wishes us to grow as Christians by changing from the inside out, beginning with a clean heart that then becomes outwardly apparent in our attitude and actions. In Matthew 5:21-22, Christ aligns anger and mockery with murder in the eyes of God. Matthew 5:43-44 tells us to not only love our neighbors but to love our enemies. Governor Palin has made a talking point of her faith since joining the McCain campaign, but a clean heart is not shining through in her attitude. In fact, the tone of anger, mockery and disrespect that has accompanied her is damaging to the testimony of every Christian. I’m pleased to see that Senator Barack Obama, who has also discussed his faith during the campaign, has generally rebuffed her attacks with a measured and respectful tone.

I cannot and would not question Governor Palin’s faith; I fail in my faith every day. But I would like to see more Christians thinking twice before so loudly and publically cheering a display that shows perhaps her heart isn’t quite where it should be.

The Old People Are After Me

I turned 30 last month. It wasn't a cathartic experience for me, because I've felt pretty old for the past year. I didn't get depressed or go out binging to prove I can still take it. I just chilled. 30 didn't bother me.

Then yesterday, I got this in the mail:



Now I'm being asked to join the League of the Elderly. You have got to be kidding me.

The Joys of Working at Home

Me: What are you working on?

Hubby: Stupid Blackboard. What are you working on?

Me: Workplace Violence.

Hubby: ... but this is your workplace.

Me: ...

Hubby: Are you going to hit me?

Meatless Independence Day

Choosing what to bring to the family Fourth barbeque is usually sort of tough. I always look around for that wonderdish, the vegan recipe that will be adored and embraced by any carnivore - but I think I'm coming to accept that I'm not going to find it. Now I just look for something I think looks really tasty. This year I'm putting together grilled tofu for my nephew and me, a cold veggie pasta salad, and this berry terrine that I found on the Fat-Free Vegan Kitchen blog. Of course, I have to pick up all my ingredients in Birmingham on Thursday, but it will be worth it.

Vega-Oprah

This afternoon I saw a news blurb that celebrated Oprah Winfrey's survival of a 21-day stint without caffeine, sugar, alcohol, gluten or animal products. "Yipee!" I thought. I bet myself that she had spent a good portion of her trial telling her viewers how very hard that was on her. So I checked out her "21-Day Cleanse" blog.

I was happy to find that Ophra - as she's inexplicably called by just about everybody here in my adopted home state - actually had a lot of positive things to say about her temporary lifestyle change, particularly about the flavor and variety of food she was allowed to eat. Then I realized why.

Ophra had a cook. A creative, talented cook who could make soy chicken sumptuous and who could do amazing things with berries. She didn't have to know where he got his ingredients or how much time it took him to put together and delicately plate her entrees. She just had to eat up.

Needless to say, this voided any complaining allowance she may have otherwise had. If I had a cook, being a pesci-ovo-vegetarian would be a breeze. I think I speak for a big ole bunch of vegetarians when I say it's not the flavor or variety of food options that makes vegetarian eating difficult. It's the buying, the planning, and the preparation.

This is especially true for those of us in areas that are light on vegetarians. There is no tempeh in my town. If I want a Boca brats, I have to leave the tri-city area. Nobody sells Bob's Red Mill. I've been a vegetarian for two years and I can't cook good tofu to save my life. I've got a ton of cookbooks, but I've also got an eight-month-old daughter who isn't interested in letting Mommy spend an hour making delicious vegan dishes every night. I guess it just doesn't taste the same second-hand.

So I won't be throwing any parties for Ophra. Unless she wants to send that chef my way...