Let me start by saying Merry Christmas. If I had written this post last week days ago, as I originally intended, it would have been my usually critical rambling. It was going to be directed at what we've come to call Fundamental (or "Born-Again") Christians. It was going to be called "The True Miracle of Christmas," and it was going to (for the second entry in a row) discuss what we choose to believe about God. It was going to say that, for a population that believes every last word in the Bible and every last dogmatic principle that is held by the church as if it came from God (ok, so it did, but that's not the point...) and that context doesn't matter, it's amazing that we celebrate the Immaculate Conception and the Birth of Christ on consecutive weeks. If anything, that (from Mary's standpoint at least) should be considered the true miracle of Christmas. It was going to conitue from there...
It's not going to do that though. Some how, in the last few days befopre Christmas, between last minute shopping, a few late night conversations with good friends, an email debate about replacing Merry Christmas with Happy Holidays, reading Brian Oliu's Christmas diatribe, Christmas Eve Mass at Loyola, some good old fashioned soul searching, and a Christmas baby for a close family friend, I stumbled upon the Christmas Spirit (and this year saying I "stumbled upon" it is being kind to what it took to get me here).
In all of this, I suppose I still could have easily called this entry "The True Miracle of Christmas." I am, as you all know, a great critic of society and a going pundit for the application of common sense. In this role, my intial reaction to the Christmas season, especially this year, was disgust at material America (another "IT" item to purchase for children who don't appreciate what it took to get), frustration with people who care a little too much about how and why people greet them as they enter a department store (the aforementioned Happy Holidays fiasco), and a bit of self-loathing for letting all of this affect the way I felt about the whole holiday (see: my late encounter with the Christmas spirit).
So, for the past few weeks, I've been wandering around, bitter and cynical (and taking a little too much joy in making the point of saying "Merry Christmas" as much as possible to anyone who gave me the chance, just to turn the screws on society). Then it hit me. Somewhere along the line, I stopped saying "Merry Christmas" out of spite for the PC Nazis (*note ironic oxymoron) and started to actually mean it.
It's easy to write about how materialized American society has become and how the month of shopping before Christmas take the focus off of Jesus. It's easy to see how we try to "fill the holes" in our lives, in our self image, in ourselves with all this "stuff" at Christmas. What's harder to say is what this is all about--what it all really means. I mean, sure, we all put the emphasis on the gifts, on buying just the right thing for just the right person. We all want to get certain things at this time of year and maybe in the back of our minds we hope that by getting everyone else what they want, then perhaps karma will repay us and someone will give up what we truly want. Maybe it's not even that. Maybe we just give gifts out of a social obligation, out of the tradition which says that we must exchange gifts at this time of year, for this particular holiday.
But even if all this is true, what I ask this Christmas is simple: "So what?" So what if we march around that malls angry at the guy who took the last Playstation 360, or Tickle-Me-Elmo, or upside down Christmas tree that we were going to get for our kids. So what if we only give because there's a voice in the back of our heads telling us that we'll get what we want, too? So what if we only give out of obligation?
Th point is that, we're out there searching for the perfect gifts for the people we love, and sure we're angry if we think we're not going to have the opportunity to give them. Sure we hope to get something in return for all our hard work and money spent. Sure we have this obligation to give to those we love at this time of year. That's what this season is all about...
It's about Jesus' Birthday. That was God's gift. He went out of His way to give all of us (the people he loved) the greatest gift he could fathom. His Son. And did He give with the hopes of receiving something in return? Of course He did. He gave His Son so that we would all learn how to love him, to "give him thanks and praise," and so that we could all see the life he hoped we would lead, for Him and for each other. Do you think he was a bit frustrated that some of His other gifts hadn't proved effective? Sure. Don't you think He's a bit disappointed that, in many ways, the gift of His Son has also been largely unreturned, or that so many of the attempted returns are so often misguided? Absolutely. Was it a gift out of obligation? Sure it was, which is why, just before He was crucified, Jesus asked out, but was told there was no other way. But it's an obligation on our end, too. We're obligated to retrun the love that He has shown us. We're obligated to give in kind to what we have received.
That's what this season is all about. Sure, many people (myself included) think that much of what we put into this season is misplaced. But the Spirit is there, I think (if not the actions). And at this time of year, especially, that should count for something. So when we see frustrated shoppers and huge numbers of people out in droves, we should remember why they're there, and why they're frustrated. They're only trying to give the best gift possible, to the people they love. And that's what this holiday is all about.
Sunday, December 25, 2005
Thursday, December 15, 2005
Thoughts on Katrina
I've been postponing this entry for quite a while now, mainly because, criticism in the immediate aftermath of a catastrophe like the one we experienced with Hurricane Katrina is simply not empathetic. That being said, I feel that sufficient time has passed to allow me to offer a few thoughts and comments on the matter. The second comment will be a bit more serious than the first, and is related to our relationship with God and what we expect from Him (as people, as believers, as Christians, etc.)
The first, however, is simply a story that I found flew directly in the face of common sense and made me really question the connection that some people have with reality. In the "aftermath" (a word which I despise as a mathematician, and self-appointed logistician, because it sheds a rather dark and dismal light on the practice of logical analysis) of hurricane Katrina, one new station was doing a special where they came back to New Orleans with families who had evacuated and filmed them as they took account of the devastation that Katrina had imparted on their lives.
One story aroused in me a state of "shock and awe" (in the parlance of our times). One woman returned to location where her house once existed, and was dismayed that she was unable to find her wedding ring amidst the rubble. Prior to evacuating she had, she explained, taken her ring off and placed it on top of her tallest dresser, reasoning that "the water wouldn't get it there." This amazed me...you are leaving, and yet you place your ring on top of a dresser for "safe keeping" as it were. Why not keep it on your finger? This seems like a much safer place for it, ya know, since you're leaving and all. Ok, that's all I have to say about that (you can fill in the rest).
Now for part B, our relationship with God in regards to this whole disaster. By now most people have heard the stories...Some Christians were praying that God would spare the city of New Orleans from the Hurricane, that he would help to make the dams strong. Others (Pat Robertson) were praying that the Hurricane would hit New Orleans, and rain down righteous retribution on the den of iniquity, and haven for homosexuals, prostitutes, and the dreaded French-American (the likes of which hadn't been seen since Sodom and Gomorrah). Some of those who stayed behind and refused to evacuate the city said that they were waiting for a "sign from God" that trouble was coming, or that they trusted God would save them from suffering.
My response to all of this is simple. I believe that, on the whole, God works in subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) ways. Let's presume for just a second that the Bible is a synopsis of the "big stuff" God has done since the beginning of human history (creation, transfiguration, incarnation, reincarnation, pillars of salt or smoke, burning bushes, sight to the blind, etc etc etc). It comes to a few thousand pages (many of which were spent on tracing David's lineage back to Adam). I don't presume for a second that for the remainder of human history God has been inactive, but perhaps more subtle. Maybe God's messengers aren't always profits with mystical powers and visions of the promised land. Maybe sometimes God sends a weatherman. And that weatherman says, "hey y'all, a big one's comin', ya might wanna leave--I know I am." Is it so hard to believe that the weatherman is speaking God's message, that the map of the enormous hurricane is a "vision from God"? Sure it's subtle, it's secular, it's obvious and blunt. But maybe that's the point.
It's not always big and obvious when God sends a message, most of the time it's subtle. The voice of God isn't always loud and booming. Sometimes (most of the time) it's your mom telling you to be careful walking home, it's a friend telling you everything will be alright after you've had your heart broken, or it's a weatherman telling you to "Get the hell out of New Orleans!!"
The first, however, is simply a story that I found flew directly in the face of common sense and made me really question the connection that some people have with reality. In the "aftermath" (a word which I despise as a mathematician, and self-appointed logistician, because it sheds a rather dark and dismal light on the practice of logical analysis) of hurricane Katrina, one new station was doing a special where they came back to New Orleans with families who had evacuated and filmed them as they took account of the devastation that Katrina had imparted on their lives.
One story aroused in me a state of "shock and awe" (in the parlance of our times). One woman returned to location where her house once existed, and was dismayed that she was unable to find her wedding ring amidst the rubble. Prior to evacuating she had, she explained, taken her ring off and placed it on top of her tallest dresser, reasoning that "the water wouldn't get it there." This amazed me...you are leaving, and yet you place your ring on top of a dresser for "safe keeping" as it were. Why not keep it on your finger? This seems like a much safer place for it, ya know, since you're leaving and all. Ok, that's all I have to say about that (you can fill in the rest).
Now for part B, our relationship with God in regards to this whole disaster. By now most people have heard the stories...Some Christians were praying that God would spare the city of New Orleans from the Hurricane, that he would help to make the dams strong. Others (Pat Robertson) were praying that the Hurricane would hit New Orleans, and rain down righteous retribution on the den of iniquity, and haven for homosexuals, prostitutes, and the dreaded French-American (the likes of which hadn't been seen since Sodom and Gomorrah). Some of those who stayed behind and refused to evacuate the city said that they were waiting for a "sign from God" that trouble was coming, or that they trusted God would save them from suffering.
My response to all of this is simple. I believe that, on the whole, God works in subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) ways. Let's presume for just a second that the Bible is a synopsis of the "big stuff" God has done since the beginning of human history (creation, transfiguration, incarnation, reincarnation, pillars of salt or smoke, burning bushes, sight to the blind, etc etc etc). It comes to a few thousand pages (many of which were spent on tracing David's lineage back to Adam). I don't presume for a second that for the remainder of human history God has been inactive, but perhaps more subtle. Maybe God's messengers aren't always profits with mystical powers and visions of the promised land. Maybe sometimes God sends a weatherman. And that weatherman says, "hey y'all, a big one's comin', ya might wanna leave--I know I am." Is it so hard to believe that the weatherman is speaking God's message, that the map of the enormous hurricane is a "vision from God"? Sure it's subtle, it's secular, it's obvious and blunt. But maybe that's the point.
It's not always big and obvious when God sends a message, most of the time it's subtle. The voice of God isn't always loud and booming. Sometimes (most of the time) it's your mom telling you to be careful walking home, it's a friend telling you everything will be alright after you've had your heart broken, or it's a weatherman telling you to "Get the hell out of New Orleans!!"
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