Christmas Contradictions

 Christmas Contradictions An anonymous quotation that makes the rounds on the Internet at this time of year runs, "Christmasis weird. What other time of year do you sit in front of a dead tree and eat candy out of your socks?" Though it may induce a chuckle from its readers, most people either miss or ignore the larger point: Christmas is a bundle of contradictions, inanities,and outright lies. The astounding fact is that most people are aware of this. On a Christmas Eve radio show, a local preacher substituted for the regular host. His topic of discussion centered on the greeting "Merry Christmas!" and he asked if, in our multicultural,multi-religious society, this was offensive. One caller said no, Christianity was still the majority religion in America, but what really troubled her was the fact that Christians promoted the traditional lie that Jesus was born on December 25. The preacher/talk-show host then explained to the audience that his caller was correct: Jesus could not have been born around the winter solstice, and moreover, in the early fourth century, the Catholic Church had combinedthe Roman winter solstice festival, the Saturnalia, with a celebration of Jesus' birth to help new converts adjust to Christianity. He treated these facts as common knowledge. His "resolution" to the conundrum, however, was revealing. The gist of his answer to the troubled caller was, "If Christians would live according to the teachings of Jesus, these contradictions would not matter." Yet, neither the host nor the caller could see the self-contradictory nature of his answer. Did not Jesus teach that we are to be honest? Certainly, He did! He tells the rich young ruler in Matthew 19:16-18 that, to have eternal life, he should not bear false witness, which is the ninth commandment (Exodus20:16). In the Sermon on the Mount, He says, "But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.' For whatever is more than these is from the evil one" (Matthew5:37). We could say, then, that keeping a celebration to Christ on a day that is not His birthday with customs and traditions that derive from paganism is from the evil one. It is a lie, and the Devil is the father of it (John8:44). This is what makes the oft-heard phrase, "Let's put Christ back into Christmas!" so laughable. It is another self-contradictory statement. How can we put Christ back into something He was never in to begin with? Search the Bible from Genesisto Revelation, and no command—not even a suggestion—to commemorate the Savior's birth will be found. It is amazing to consider that Christians around the world keep days and festivals never once enjoined on them in God's Word (Sunday, Good Friday, Easter, Halloween, Christmas), yet the ones God tells them to keep (the Sabbath, Passover, God's holy days), they ignore! What about the real central character of Christmas, Santa Claus? Today's jolly old elf—a roly-poly old man in a red suit trimmed in white; big, black boots; spectacles; long, white beard; and a "ho-ho-ho"—was the brainchild of Coca-Cola's marketingdepartment early in the last century. He was based loosely on the English Father Christmas and the German Kris Kringle. This figure, in turn, has blended with the early Catholic Saint Nicholas, a churchman known for spreading the wealth to needy members ofhis community, sometimes throwing sacks of coins through open windows and down chimneys. Where is the biblical basis for such a character? He may be present in the modern Christmas crèche, but no one like him appears in the gospel narratives of Jesus' birth. Then there is the season's alternate name, Yule. Where does that come from? Check the origin in the dictionary: "a pagan midwinter festival." Another contradiction! The preacher/talk-show host mentioned this point, too, laughing about how somany people do not realize that their Yule log hearkens back to the heathen practice of driving away evil spirits with bonfires on the night of the winter solstice! Now, however, it is just another way we stir up our Christmas cheer! No harm in that, right? If these pagan, unbiblical elements are so commonly known, why does the Christmas tradition continue? Three reasons come to the fore: 1. "Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be" (Romans8:7). 2. "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?" (Jeremiah17:9). 3. "The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule by their own power; and My people love to have it so. But what will you do in the end?" (Jeremiah5:31). In a word, Christmas continues because human nature deceives itself into practicing things that are not right because they are enjoyable. Human nature allows people to justify self-contradictory things because they appear to benefit them. Insuch a case, truth does not matter. All that matters is that a person receives presents and has a good time. And if a religious significance—real or imagined—can be attached to it, all the better. We should not expect people anytime soon to give up Christmas just because it has pagan origins. Human nature has a long history of explaining such pesky details away. - Richard T. Ritenbaugh