Nicholas Reid reflects in essay form on general matters and ideas related to literature, history, popular culture and the arts, or just life in general. You are free to agree or disagree with him.
SO WHAT IS CHRISTMAS?
So what is Christmas?
For the sceptic, it could mean just another gimmick to sell goods and make profits for corporations – all that tinsel, those cheap toys that will be forgotten in a few days, the schmaltzy sentimental music played in shops and malls, people making money, the fat man dressed as Santa saying Ho Ho Ho and asking children what they want for Christmas. Noise.
For parents with young children it could mean the anxiety of wondering if you bought the right thing for this child or that, and didn’t it cost too much for this child and not so much for that, and won’t they start squabbling? And for poorer parents, how can we afford the money to make a special Christmas dinner for all those in-laws who might be expected to turn up.
Could it mean loneliness? Grandma is now in a “home”. Sorry grandma. I hope you liked the card we sent, but we couldn’t see you at Christmas because we promised the kids that we’d go to Surfers Paradise at Christmas. We’ll try to ring you.
What is it for the pedant? You do know, don’t you, that nobody knows when Jesus Christ was born and the early Christians simply took over the pagan Roman festival of Saturnalia for the ending of the year. Really you should read some more books about this. And what about all that snow nonsense at Christmas? Look, if Jesus lived at all, he would have been born in the Middle East, which is pretty dry at the best of times. So all that stuff about snow was made up in the northern part of Europe and now we are stuck with snow and jingle bells; and anyway in Europe it is only a version of old pagan rituals that were around before Christians were around.
What is Christmas for the English? It is mince pies and and plum pudding and Dickens’ story of Scrooge and its all good for the kiddies and - well – we don’t really go to church but it’s part of our heritage… and even England’s number-one atheist Richard Dawkins got upset when stores in London had images of Islamic ideas but no Christmas images. Well, I mean, he said he likes carols and Christmas trees [that German invention] but of course he does not believe in Jesus… well it’s just our heritage.
And yes, it is true, that in other countries in Europe they too now have similar attitudes now, whether they say Joyeux Noel or Frohe Weihnochten, Feliz Navidad, Buon Natale or as many other countries as you can name.
So after all this, what does Christmas mean? The name itself means Christ’s Mass, a ceremony gathering believers. That it happens sometime in December is not important. What is important to believers is that Christ was born and so here is a date on which it can be celebrated. Yes, of course good will and generosity are abundant among non- believers, but without this essential idea there would be no one day in which much of the world would be able to celebrate, enjoy company, get together with family and friends and sometimes neighbours, and put aside quarrels… at least that is what we hope. And it’s okay to have a Christmas tree.
HAVE A HAPPY CHRISTMAS
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