ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, December 14, 1996 TAG: 9612160003
SECTION: RELIGION PAGE: A-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DAVID BRIGGS ASSOCIATED PRESS
In ``Jingle All the Way,'' the would-be Christmas blockbuster starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, the spirit of the season is tethered to a father getting his son a favorite toy.
The moral is that you can buy your way to a merry Christmas, and it plays well in a secular culture that depends on holiday gift-giving to keep the retail fires burning.
Now, just before the first Sunday of Advent, a poll has been released that confirms the fears of Christian clergy who long have found fertile sermon material in the difficulties of paying attention to the ``reason for the season'' - the birth of Christ.
Asked what makes Christmas important to them, only one-third of adults in the national survey said the birth of Jesus. Forty-four percent said family time is the most important part of one of the three most sacred days - along with Good Friday and Easter - on the Christian calendar.
``I guess it demonstrates what preachers have been wringing their hands over for some time: Christ has been evacuated from Christmas,'' said the Rev. William Willimon, a theologian and Duke University chaplain. ``It's good to know where we are. Christmas has been a co-opted holiday.''
Still, the results surprised pollster George Barna, whose Barna Research Group Ltd. of Oxnard, Calif., conducted the survey for Lutheran Hour Ministries.
``Even all that I know about how secularized our culture has become, I would have thought that more people would say Christmas, the birth of Jesus,'' Barna said.
The random telephone survey of 1,006 adults was conducted in July, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent.
Almost 9 in 10 Americans identify themselves as Christians. But even among that group, only 37 percent said the birth of Jesus - the Son of God sent from heaven to offer salvation to humanity, according to Christian teachings - was the most important aspect of Christmas Day for them.
Among respondents who held strict evangelical beliefs, more than three in four placed Jesus' birthday first. Those who described themselves as theological liberals were the least likely to place Jesus first, with only 24 percent saying the birth of Christ was what made Christmas an important day for them.
There also were significant age differences, with 26 percent of respondents ages 18 to 34 saying the birth of Jesus was the most important aspect of Christmas. That percentage rose to 39 percent among respondents 65 and older.
``Americans are more likely to correctly recall the significance of April 15 than they are to connect Christmas with the birth of Jesus. As America becomes increasingly anesthetized to Christian principles and practices, it seems only fitting that we have contracted acute amnesia regarding the spiritual significance of December 25,'' Barna said.
Dale Meyer, spokesman for Lutheran Hour Ministries, said the results also can be interpreted in a hopeful manner, since together family time and the birth of Christ were the most important aspects of Christmas for more than three-quarters of the population.
Only 3 percent said presents or parties were the most important part of Christmas, the same percentage that said the best thing about Christmas was that it represented a day off or a holiday.
``We were encouraged to find that the majority of Americans view Christmas as a time to be with their families and celebrate the birth of Christ,'' Meyer said.
Willimon, however, said the results show churches need to more actively teach their members the true meaning of Christmas, and help them avoid turning the birth of Jesus into ``sentimental gunk.''
``We're finding it important to say, `You really don't know what Christmas is about, do you?''' Willimon said. ```The studies show you really have no idea why we're singing `Joy to the World.'''
LENGTH: Medium: 74 lines ILLUSTRATION: GRAPHIC: Chart by AP.by CNB