david/til

title: Merry Christmas slug: merry-christmas description: Today I learned more about Christmas <!--- authors:

name: David Windham title: Something Else url: https://davidawindham.com image_url: https://davidawindham.com/wp-content/themes/daw/img/opengraph_image.jpg --> tags: [computers, business] image: https://davidawindham.com/wp-content/themes/daw/img/opengraph_image.jpg hide_table_of_contents: true ---

Let’s go ahead and get personal on this one, which is always fun. I often find myself building upon things I’ve previously discussed or written. I feel like anything worth sharing is personal in some way and I’d never publish something that I wouldn’t say in person. It’s nice that the holidays always bring about a certain amount of reflection. And in that tradition, let me reflect on what Christmas means to me.

Let’s get right to the heart of the matter. I’m a Christian who, admittedly and willfully eschews some of the literal interpretations of the Old Testament including the core tenets from God in Exodus[^1]. I‘ve found myself unable to reconcile some of them and generally like to point out the literal fallacies alongside not trimming your beard or wearing multiple fabrics. I could dig deep into theological debate, but I wouldn’t find myself on the same side of the podium as the presuppositional apologetics or the modern, while mostly unaware, acolytes thereof who largely compose the new evangelicals. I’ll just say that I admittedly find myself moved by the spirit not just as intellectual exercise and there I find faith. I recently read a submitted essay in an email from my church about Advent which hit the spot.

Advent, to me, is a season of hopeful anticipation and reflection. It’s a time when I take a step back from the busy pace of life to focus on inner preparation—welcoming peace, love, and joy into my heart. Each candle on the Advent wreath symbolizes something I strive to embody more deeply, from hope and joy to love and peace. Lighting each one is a gentle reminder to let go of distractions and center myself, embracing this season with gratitude and renewed faith.

I just like the symbolism and meaning. Why yes I’d like to welcome peace, love, and joy into my heart but first I gotta avoid getting wrapped up in general malaise that is the panic to make sure we’ve got all the holiday plans in order. I find the conspicuous consumption this time of year obnoxious and of course I’m certainly guilty of buying shit I don’t need and overeating. I just find a lot of the contemporary messaging conflicting so I think that I mostly still try to frame it all inside of my pleasant memories — family gatherings, travel, pajama-laden days of toys, and food on call. My family would usually do the adjourning Sunday service but not nearly as much as egg nog on Christmas eve. I wasn’t introduced to the ritual of the midnight mass until later and I now will duck out of egg nog early to make it even if I haven’t seen the inside of a church for months.

There isn’t any consensus on eschatology[^2] amongst any religion or divisions thereof, although they seem to strive for and proclaim it so. And so I also find myself at peace with Yule[^3], Hanukkah, Sol Invectus[^4], and Bodhi[^5] which also revolve around the darkest days of the year at winter solstice. The symbolism in each of them can be just important to me as a midnight service. Since I don’t know of group of locals people organizing worship in a heated location, I try to find my own little traditions to remind me without the cynicism of lit-up plastic baby Jesus’ ( how do I pluralize Jesus... you can't ) along the country roadsides.

I think what most people really value are the traditions themselves and what we’re really celebrating is the cyclical nature of life. It’s why folks dig out the old recipes and pull down the same decor from the attic. I mean… for a child was born. We always put up all of our old family ornaments on our tree the day after Thanksgiving. Every time I pull one out of the box, I’m immediately reminded of when I was staring at it on a tree at eye level, under four feet tall. That’s literally all it takes for me to be reminded.

I try not to get tangled up in any of the other nonsense. I didn’t make any shopping lists this year, unless you count the time I spent looking for a new toilet for our renovation. We always give the same gifts to everyone and this year we’re back to food baskets because they’re always a hit and perfectly symbolic of us saying ‘here, we hope you can survive the winter too ’. We pack em with our favorite things and we go out of our way to try to visit everyone we’re able which kinda makes me feel like Santa Claus.

I‘m sure like everyone else, I dig out my favorite Christmas movies and music too. I like the genre. I've had an ongoing text thread going about films and listed comedies like Mixed Nuts, Trading Places, and Planes Trains & Automobiles as my favorites. My buddy insisted we watch Kirk Cameron’s Saving Christmas[^6].

I'm 100% serious about the Kirk Cameron movie. It's such a wonderfully weird intersection of consumerism, evangelism and delusion. It's genuinely bizarre. I honestly dislike all Christmas movies but I find this one entertaining

So I watched it. And while it’s a whole essay in itself, the synopsis is that Jesus is the reason. Meanwhile non-Christians are still having quite a time. In China, where about 7% are Christian, it’s all about apple giving[^7]. Christmas remains a time to spend with friends and family as the vast majority of the secular world also celebrates the season in some way or another. And it's not some sort of affront as Mr. Cameron might have been inspired enough to share his filmmaking acuity. Despite the kitsch, I loved the message and Kirk knew he couldn't blow it on facts given that he was inspired enough to share his filmmaking acuity.

Since 85% of non-Christians celebrate Christmas[^8], it’s as much a cultural holiday as a religious one. The 70% of American’s who are Christian seem to go all in on some of the least religious parts. I certainly can’t can blame them… it’s gotta be more fun than celebrating Saint Nicholas’ miracle of resurrecting pickled children[^9]. I’m also down with the pre-Christian ritual of celebrating Sol Invictus, the birth of sun, given the dark days of winter. And since Jesus’ first miracle was turning water into wine, I couldn't recommend refraining. Persecution is not something anyone should espouse and even the most staunch atheist like Nietzsche and Marx thought it beneficial that folks celebrate on[^10].

Twelve days of celebration should happen several more times during the year[^11]. The magic is in the seasons and stories themselves. Magic is from magi, the fellas bearing gifts on the twelfth night and not a gateway drug to demonic possession[^12]. I don’t need to celebrate the circumcision instead of the new year[^13] to find myself in awe. Despite the legacy of the council of Nicaea[^14], what we’re also celebrating throughout the holiday is the cyclical nature of life itself. Epiphany[^15] is supernatural and it’s the perfect time to reflect and remember. And since I find myself in awe of life itself, it’s a joyous occasion.

And if I could put just one wish on everyone’s list along the usual suspects of charity, kindness, and peace and it'd go something like this: My wish to you other folks out there is that you just make an effort to focus on the small things that bring you and others around you joy. Peace in our own hearts is how we find goodwill. Go forth, have some nuts, drink some egg nog, buy some stuff, share some gifts, and most importantly just give it your best effort to be merry this Christmas 🎄

2024-12-21-posts.md 9.0 KB History Raw

2024-12-21-posts.md 9.0 KB

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