Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, December 25, 1994 TAG: 9412230118
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CODY LOWE
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Inevitably, there will be a little lull in the day, after the presents have been opened and the flush of giving has faded. That's when we can discover the lasting treasures of Christmas.
Today, many of us who are Christians will take a break from the secular sleigh ride to spend an hour in church listening to a story we can recite by heart. There, in the company of fellow believers, we will take heart anew at the life of the one whose birth transformed not just global history, but our history.
The miracle of Christianity lies not in the birth of a baby in some dusty Middle Eastern town, of course, but in the spread of his adult message to every corner of the Earth.
When you think about it, it really is almost unbelievable. From an insignificant speck of a place, a virtually unknown teacher in an obscure religious sect comes to dominate the religious and political life of much of the planet.
Within a historical blink of an eye, his followers had spread around the world and his philosophy was dominating what we now call Western culture.
Today, I'll think about all the bad marketing involved in the life of this baby. There were the personal questions about his parentage and his relationship to a host of unsavory characters. There was his persistent challenging of the contemporary religious structure. There was his limited exposure to the powerful. There was his execution as a common criminal.
Who would have believed his message would live on?
For some, that's explainable through the declaration that Jesus was the Messiah, the unique son of God.
Remarkably, though, Christmas has been embraced by many people who are not followers of Christ in a religious sense.
Just listen to the secular Christmas carols with their exaltation of values such as love, family and charity. Non-Christians share those values with Christians, and many are not bothered at all celebrating a holiday that always has had secular overtones that came with the adaptation of pagan rites and customs by the early church.
For most practicing Christians, however, the celebration of Jesus' birth is a distinctly religious experience. We may disagree among ourselves about whether the Gospel accounts should be taken literally or mythically, but fundamentally we agree on the recognition of this man Jesus as the manifestation of God among us.
Today, we will be bound by faith in common Scripture and creed, by personal experience, by what we believe is the evidence of our hearts.
A big part of that is the feeling we have when we participate in the primary Christmas ritual of giving. Its roots are in Jesus giving himself to the world, Mary giving herself to God, Magi giving gifts to an unknown babe.
We feel the power of that ritual when we see a face light up with delight when we give just the right gift to a friend, a spouse, or especially a child.
That feeling drives away depression, greed and selfishness in a way almost nothing else can.
I'd guess that's just what Jesus wanted.
by CNB