Christmas is a holiday for families. Some holidays remember battles, some recall the anniversaries of famous events in history. Others remind us of the great leaders of our nation. But Christmas has become the day for families.
Some Scrooge-like types complain that the holiday has lost its way today. Every once in a while you will hear someone suggest that is it time to “put Christ back into
Christmas.” But when one looks deeply into the dynamics of Christmas, one finds an understanding about life and human relationships that is very near what theologians suggest God intended when He sent the Christ Child into our world — simple, really!
The theological language about Christmas uses words like incarnation and messiah and hope. These words mean rather simple ideas. The Incarnation suggests that the most cosmic event, the coming of God into the world, has taken place in the most simple and natural event imaginable, the birth of a child. The child is declared to be the Messiah, the messenger of the rule of God in human events. And the message is simple – the message is hope, that even in the worst of times the best of things can happen to people to look for strength in one another.
Unwrap the gift of Christmas from its theological language, and you have the family Christmas celebration. The family is the metaphor of God’s intention for the world. Bound each to the other by flesh and love, and nurtured in the hope that sustains its members through a crisis, the family is drawn together in this profoundly religious way. During the Adult Discussions at 9:30 A.M. each Sunday, we’re discussing what the holiday might look like: “Christmas in the Four Gospel Homes.” Celebrate in events that draw us together as a family of faith at Covenant Church. Worship and enjoy food and fellowship on Wednesday evenings at 5:45 P.M. during Advent. Eat, drink, and enjoy the Nativity Story as the young people present “A Nursery Rhyme Christmas” pageant during our Christmas Celebration on December 15th at 5:00 P.M. Hold candles high as we softly sing Silent Night on Christmas Eve, either at 4:00 P.M. or 10:00 P.M. Pause during the four weeks of Advent to simply “be” . . . and reflect on the meaning of God’s great gift in Jesus Christ.
Blessings and Peace,
