In 1954, notable author and Anglican theologian, C.S. Lewis, wrote an essay titled “Exmas and Crissmas: A Lost Chapter from Herodotus.” It concerns the winter customs of the residents of Niatirb, which, as you may have noticed, is Britain spelled backwards. On this fictitious island, during the most dark, foggy and rainy season, the Niatirb hold a great festival they call Exmas. Fifty days before the celebration, every citizen is obligated to send to everyone they know a square piece of hard paper stamped with a picture, which in their speech, is called an Exmas-card. Because all residents are required to send these cards, the market place is filled with crowds searching for the best stamped picture. A great amount of labor and weariness center on this custom.
The Niatirbs also send gifts to one another causing the same problems with the gifts as with the cards, perhaps even worse. Each year the guessing begins – what did my friend send me last year? How much was it worth? I must send a gift of equal or higher value. So whether they can afford it or not, the citizens rush around and buy gifts for others to keep up with their neighbor (undoubtedly of which one neighbor’s last name must be Jones). The retailers herald and trumpet whatever useless and ridiculous gifts they have been unable to sell during the year, now labeled as the perfect Exmas gift. When the day of the festival finally arrives, most citizens, exhausted by the lead in to the festival, lie in bed until noon. But in the evening of the same festival day, they eat and drink five times as much as they do on all other days. The day after Exmas is thus very grave because of the disorder of the supper and drinking and reckoning how much they spent on the gifts and on the wine. Among the Niatirbians are a few who celebrate Crissmas. It is on the same day as Exmas. Those celebrating Crissmas do the opposite of the majority of the citizenry. Whether at night on the day before, or in the morning of the celebration day, they head to temples where they partake of a sacred feast. Most temples have images of a fair woman with a new-born child on her knees. The Crissmas celebration is of joy and thankfulness. The day following is not grave as the result of excessive supper, wine, and Exmas bills, but rather, the more restrained and temperate Crissmas celebrators express joy and thankfulness for a whole twelve days following. Though celebrated on the same day, Exmas and Crissmas in are not the same. Although some stamped cards carry images of the baby, with similar phrases, Crissmasians find it strange that so many Exmasians perform so much labor and accept so much weariness in the name of a god in whom they do not believe. The C. S. Lewis story is a parable, of course, or maybe even an allegory. It is my hope and prayer that everyone at Saint John’s has a clear vision of Exmas and Crissmas in our lives today and joins me in saying, “May you have a very blessed Crissmas” for twelve whole days. - Fr. Dave A friend of mine, Brian, was asked to be the chaplain for the 2004 General Convention of the Episcopal Church. He thought someone was pranking him. After looking behind him, and then back at the delegation across from the small table at a coffee shop, Brian said, “Who, me?” and pointed at his own chest. “Yes,” was the reply, “We believe you have the skills of leadership, patience and prayer that are needed at what is probably going to be a tumultuous convention.”
Taking compliments does not come easy. We have to teach our children how to do it, “Remember to say, ‘thank you.’” Our first instinct seems to be skepticism. Our second is to ignore or brush off the compliment. Mary, the mother of Jesus, was minding her own business one day, I imagine, when suddenly the angel Gabriel appeared. He said, “Rejoice, favored one! The Lord is with you!” Mary’s reaction was confusion and she wondered what kind of greeting this might be. (Luke 1:29) I imagine she thought, “Favored one, me?” Did she look behind her to see if the angel was talking about someone else? After a moment of silence, Gabriel continued, “Don’t be afraid. God is pleased with you. You will have a son. His name will be Jesus. He will be great, will be called Son of God, will rule forever and his kingdom will have no end.” After hearing how great her son would be, she circled back around to becoming pregnant. Her response, “How can this happen? I am not married.” (1:29-34) Like Mary, I too have pondered this whole event. After the first announcement, which was met with silence from Mary, Gabriel’s next assertion was, “Do not be afraid.” Did Gabriel confuse Mary’s silence and pondering with fear? Or, did she immediately fall to her knees in reverence and fear of the Lord… which is what any reasonable person would do. But, on the other hand, the folks I have talked to that have met an angel, did not hit the dirt. Instead, like Mary, they did the same thing – they pondered why they had been singled out by an angel. More to the point, it’s hard to imagine being called “favored one” from God. I wonder if Mary’s two-part response, “How can this be,” and “I am not married,” is first intended for the compliment – favored one – and then second, how can I be pregnant when married I am not. History shows that Mary was the favored one. All generations have called her blessed. Maybe it’s that God sees not what we are currently, but what we are going to be. Mary was called favored, and thus became The Favored One. She was not pregnant, but she became the Mother of Jesus. The so-called magic of Christmas is feeling favored. Whether it is receiving of a gift, or spending time with people who love you for who you are, or being treated with your favorite food, this is a season of feeling favored by God. Yes, God sent Jesus to us; but, more specifically, for us. Why, because we are favored by God. -Fr. Dave Despite what has been in the news, I do not think there has been a war on Christmas. I don’t think that just because Macy’s employees say, “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas,” there is a war on Christmas. If the national holiday is removed, or Christians are barred from entering houses of worship for Christmas, or if there are persecutions of clergy who support it, then I'd say there is a war. Nevertheless, I do believe there is a concerted effort to unseat Christmas as a celebration of the incarnation of God and turn it into a selfish, hectic, gluttonous, and stress-filled season. But that is to make money, not to undercut Christianity. I think we should be much less concerned about who is saying “Happy Holidays” and far more cognizant of what our response is to such tidings. Also, we should be aware of our participation during this season Are we helping it to make it hectic and stress-filled or are we celebrating the joy of Jesus being born for us in this world.
A story from Oceanside about Lighthouse Church in a fight with a homeowners’ association hit the news a few days ago. The Lighthouse nativity scene was removed from their property without their knowledge or consent. The HOA claimed that the nativity scene was on their property, not the church’s. The church has not backed down. They contacted the press, held a vigil, and are keeping pressure on the situation so they can continue with what this author believes is their 1st amendment right. My position, of course, depends on the ownership of the property. Even a church does not have the right to construct a nativity scene on someone else’s land. But it appears when a repair needed to be made, the HOA claimed the disputed territory belonged to the Church. The HOA cannot have it both ways. Do you find it ironic, as I do, that Mary and Joseph were forced to go to Bethlehem because of a government edict and now our local government may get involved in resolving this dispute of a wood cut-out of Mary, Joseph and Jesus in a make-shift stable for a home. Had the original edict not occurred, our nativity scenes would look different. Maybe an edict in Oceanside will have some lasting effect. Lighthouse has done many things right. If this happened to Saint John’s, I would urge the parish to follow Jesus’ parable about being persistent. In it, a widow demanded justice. Every day she’d appear in court and demand justice from an unjust judge. The judge finally gave her what she wanted for no other reason than her persistence. The story is perhaps more distinctive because of the actions the widow did not take, like violence or name calling. I’d like to see Lighthouse make one nativity scene for each day of the season. If one is removed, the next day a new one would arrive. Or how about this: create a living nativity scene with live actors and animals. Persistence can build God’s kingdom. Instead of freaking out about a large, corporate retail company that instructs employees to say Happy Holidays, Christian persistence would simply reply, “Thank you, and may you have a blessed Christmas.” As retailers eat up more and more of the Christmas spirit with consumerism, the persistent Christian reminds him or herself of the true meaning of the season. We will receive peace upon peace and blessings upon blessings when we pause to give glory to God for the birth of the Savior of the World. -Fr. Dave |