ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, December 15, 1996 TAG: 9612140006
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: COMMERCIALISM
SOURCE: JOHN LEVIN
Probably about now, a clergyman I know is giving his perennial sermon on commercialism. It's always a complaint about how early the merchants put up holiday decorations and pipe carols through their stores.
His point is that emphasis on shopping tarnishes the religious meaning of Christmas. Forcing us to focus on buying gifts and decorating homes diminishes concentration on the true nature of the holiday, he says.
What's it like for a retailer to sit through such a sermon? Is it possible for a merchant to justify personal religious beliefs and a vocation during a season where both may seem intense?
"On a personal level, I'd probably agree that having to endure all the commercialism associated with Christmas can be overwhelming," said Richard Lynn, former chairman of the Roanoke-based Heironimus department store chain. "But if that's the business you're in, you have no choice."
Lynn's family owned controlling interest in Heironimus for three generations before selling to The Dunlap Co. of Fort Worth, Texas, nearly three years ago.
During his years in business, what bothered Lynn most was that his employees had to work long hours, often on Sundays, when they would rather have been in church or with their families.
"It's an overwhelmingly busy time, when everyone has to pitch in," he said. "You're open longer hours and still go home with work undone."
But unlike many of us who have weeks to prepare for Christmas, retail workers delay that and enjoy a sense of "relief and euphoria when Christmas finally gets there," Lynn said. "For people in the retail business, it comes at the end when you can sit back and relax and focus on the holiday."
Consumer spending accounts for two-thirds of the annual U.S. economy, and its momentum in the final two months of the year has become a financial necessity for many retailers.
"It's important to us, especially for small merchants," said Pauline Wood, operator of Shades Boutique, a Roanoke shop specializing in imported art and clothing for women.
Diane Rosenberg intentionally tried to maintain a calmer pace this time of year at RSVP Limited, her Roanoke gift and stationery shop. She's aware that the frantic nature of the season can force Jewish families to make elaborate plans for Hanukkah, often doing more than is warranted by the holiday's religious significance.
"A lot of Jewish parents make a bigger holiday of it because they don't want their children to feel left out" of the enthusiasm for Christmas giving.
In her home, Hanukkah is observed quietly, with gifts reserved for grandchildren, Rosenberg said.
"I personally hate putting Christmas [decorations] out before Halloween," Rosenberg said of her shop. "But I'm competing with other retailers, and it's really motivated by customers who want to shop early."
And she said those who start Christmas shopping early generally are in better moods, giving them time to think about religious meaning of the holiday or simply have more fun.
Personal beliefs aside, the merchants note that some of the secular benefits of the season's spirit may be closer to religious tenets than the critics of commercialism admit.
Consider that the motivation of all that frantic shopping may be generosity and tolerance. And while the commercial aspects of the holiday can be demanding of our resources - financial, physical and emotional - they also can be reminders of religious beliefs that help many people deal with those pressures.
"It's a time of year when families get together and give - it's a gesture that shows warmth," Wood said. "Sentimental feelings at this time of year come from within."
"If you just look at Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, you see people in churches who don't regularly go to church," Lynn said. Just maybe the jingle and jangle of the season "brings out some goodness to more people."
LENGTH: Medium: 81 linesby CNB