On Christmas

An old friend of mine let me know he attended a Christmas Eve service this year. He jokingly asked if I would approve. And overwhelmingly I do!! I am glad he had a chance to join with people gathered on Christmas Eve and participate in the shared rituals of this season.

He and I had a long conversation over Thanksgiving, and he’s going through a number of life transitions. While he attended the service alone on Christmas Eve, he was spending Christmas Day with friends. It’s my hope for him, and for all of us, that gathering together for Christmas gives us a sense of connection and at least a little joy and hope for the future. Community is hard, and also wonderful – especially at this time of year.

What surprised me the most is that while he doesn’t go to church, he noted “It was nice.” And that he knew “all of the hymns passively by living in America… Silent night, etc.” I hadn’t realized Christmas songs were that pervasive in our culture, and it gives me a flicker of hope that we haven’t lost that as a culture yet.

Because we desperately need something to bring us back together again. And maybe part of what brings us back together will be Christmas music, sung together in a stunningly beautiful building, surrounded by art and artistry that resonates within our hearts, that points towards something higher than all of us, even while taking a position lower than all of us.

It used to be what brought us together, and perhaps it can again.

The story of Jesus Christ is a story that used to unite us. It was something we could all relate to in some form or fashion, because while none of us was born in as lowly a state as he was, all of us have experienced hardships and difficulty. And through that suffering and through sacrifice, one man changed the whole world. And that should give you hope, that your life too has meaning and purpose, and like that one man, you too can change the world for the better; that what you do in this life matters and will outlive you, even if no one remembers your name, because there is a man who lived 2000 years ago about whom we still sing stories every year for Christmas. And, at least in this country, even those who don’t go to church know the stories that are sung about him.

Let’s look for the things that can bring us back together again. The things that can bind us together with one another in love and friendship. What do youbelieve can do this? What do you believe can reunite us with one another, despite all our differences, our disagreements, and our failings?

Whatever you believe, and whatever greeting you use in this season, I hope you’ve had a very Merry Christmas!