ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, December 15, 1996 TAG: 9612130033
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: the back pew
SOURCE: CODY LOWE
Every generation brings a new perspective and leaves its own stamp on Christmas.
Sometimes we forget that it has been little more than a century since our popular conception of a red-robed, fur-trimmed Santa Claus was developed. That Charles Dickens' love of the holiday is often credited with bringing it back to a place of prominence in popular culture.
Though some traditions associated with the holiday date back hundreds, indeed thousands, of years, some are brand new.
For the latest generation, the innovation is cyber-Christmas.
Those hooked up to the Internet have a whole new world of Christmas - traditions and all - at their fingertips.
Search the Internet for sites related to Christmas and you'll find tens of thousands of stops.
Can't remember the words to your favorite carol? They're here. Want to reread Dickens' "A Christmas Carol"? It's here, too. Biblical passages? Christmas gifts - from trees to ornaments to beer? Recipes? All here.
Recently, I took the trip.
For those who don't want secular notions mixed in with the religious aspects of the holiday, there is "Christmas in Cyberspace" (http://members.aol.com/churchweb/christmas/index.html).
This site begins with the declaration that browsers will find "no Santas" and "no Frostys" on this page in the World Wide Web. This is a purely Christian perspective on the holiday.
It includes more than 60 links to other sites similarly religious. It includes clip art, scripts for church pageants, Christmas carol lyrics, prayers, information on the Magi, the origins and traditions of Christmas, even a French-language site from Quebec.
Most sites are a bit more inclusive - allowing references to Santa, his elves, Rudolph and Frosty the Snowman.
"Holiday Links to the Internet World" (www.dct.com/%7-Ermeeuwsen/hollinks.html) has tree-trimming ideas, homebrewing tips, the soundtrack from "How the Grinch Stole Christmas!," dozens of cyber-stores from which to purchase Christmas gifts and cards.
On "Santa's Homepage," (www.gdoc.com/santa.html) adults are encouraged to send for a "personalized letter from Santa" for their "little loved ones." They are "only $5 U.S. per letter." Hmmm. A fairly pricey "advantage" from the Net.
"Christmas! Christmas! Christmas! From Not Just for Kids" (www.night.net/christmas/) focuses a bit more on one of the real pleasures of Christmas - eating - than many others.
It has numerous recipes available - as well as a telephone reference guide to all those holiday help lines - Butterball, Reynolds aluminum, Land O'Lakes, Pillsbury, as well as the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
This one also provides the text of the second chapter of the Gospel of Luke - one of two places in the New Testament where the birth of Christ is described. There also is a link to the text of the famous "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus" editorial.
Remember "Zuzu" from "It's a Wonderful Life"? (How could you forget that darling, sniffling child at this time of year?) Well, she has her own "Eternal Christmas Page."
It has two - count 'em, two - e-mail addresses for Santa. It also includes links to information on Hanukkah and Kwanzaa - two other seasonal holidays.
Alas, a page called "A Ross Perot Christmas" apparently is no longer available, though links to it still show up on some other pages. Just the thought is enough for a good laugh.
Want to see the Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular? Check out the theater's home page (www.radiocity.com/press/xnews.htm) for ticket availability. They're $24 to $54 and the show runs through Jan. 5.
The list could go on and on.
Hundreds of individuals have created their own Web pages with links to their personal favorite Christmas sites, many of which are available all year round.
This proliferation of holiday hoopla is just the kind of thing that could make some Christians even more depressed about the co-opting of the season by the marketplace.
But a close look tells a different story.
Sure, there are plenty of sites whose primary concern is selling you something over the Internet. Often enough, that includes junk that cheapens the holiday.
But it is surprising how much of "Christmas on the Internet" is devoted to presenting the best of the season. There are efforts to preserve traditions in ways a new generation might read and absorb. There are obvious commitments to the religious significance of Christmas - and refusals to use the secular "Xmas" abbreviation for the holiday.
Who knows, this may be the primary place where a future generation learns Tiny Tim's benediction: "God bless us, every one."
LENGTH: Medium: 90 linesby CNB