THE CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY & OTHERS

[Reformer]

The Christmas Holiday & Others

Our Future Festivals

May all of our future Holidays be cordial and rewarding in the Lord as He leads and guides us into the quiet and soothing pastures of love and grace.—Buff.

FROM A READER—"Buff, I was raised in a spiritual heritage that made a concerted national effort to not give any spiritual acknowledgement or credence to Christmas. I was trained in all the arguments against such an observance and learned to view with disdain those who didn't understand how misguided they were. We did observe Christmas, however, but as a secular holiday, with all the non-Christian decorations, gift giving, excessive eating and parties.

"It strikes me as an extreme irony today that we see those attacking Christmas being 'anti-Christian' while they are essentially doing what we would have had them do all along—that is, regarding Christmas as just a secular Holiday. These people seem to be the allies of illogical thinking. I am embarrassed when I consider some of the places we allowed our human logic and pride to take us."—Name Withheld.

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I was brought up and indoctrinated in the same partisan arena, my brother. And while I can see the extreme elements involved in that partisan province, still I have a problem celebrating it as Heaven's Holiday, with its varied ritualistic trimmings that were devised and promoted by the Hierarchy of the oldest sect among us. I have the same problem with "Easter," another religious Holiday whose origin springs from paganism and the same sect.

I do not consider the honoring and/or dishonoring of the Christmas Holiday and "Easter" a matter of salvation or a condition of Christian acceptance, however. But when I see all of the paganistic components associated with both Holidays, and all of the excessive spending and going into debt, particularly at Christmas time, I grow weary. If there is anything good about both Holidays, it is that many thousands, perhaps even millions, are pointed toward the Cross and its results. And for that, I am delighted.

Do we exchange gifts at Christmas? Yes, we also exchange gifts at various times of the year, but I personally place no more spiritual emphasis upon Christmas and "Easter" than I do any other day. All of my days, 365 a year, are spiritual and special in that I give my Lord the glory and credit for each one.

If our Lord, whose death on a Roman tree made salvation possible, had intended that we set aside special specific days to reverence Him in exceptional ways, as Israel of old was commanded to do, I'm convinced He would have made it clear and precise. If not Him, at least His special envoys, the apostles. But that testimony is absent.

We have twisted, distorted, abused, and mishandled The Way so severely, our "doings" bear little semblance to what our Lord came to initiate and usher in. Christ-time for me is all of the time, not just on special days.

I wish all of you a Happy, Delightful, and
Pleasant Holiday Season.

[Red Baker]

I agree~I refuse to judge men over their participation in Christmas, or Easter~as far as their salvation goes, or even their spirituality.

I have my own convictions, some of which a hard liner could find fault with, but that does not move me. We all must give account unto God not man.

Others are not my servants and my convictions must not be others before I will accept them, that's Phariseeism.

I do not celebrate Christmas, some of my children do, some do not. I buy gifts for those who cannot afford gifts in moderation without spending money wastefully. That's as far as I go. Little children do not yet grasp why we refuse to get caught up in spending money and lying to children about a man that has attributes like God! So, we get gift for the little and tell them where their gifts comes from~from God.

   

[Rella]

I simply do not understand this gift thing at all.

It has been decades that this house has not exchanged a thing because
frankly... "iT IS NOT OUR BIRTHDAY THAT SHOULD BE REGARDED" on that day in December.

When we did it was always getting someone something they would like to have but would not buy for themselves.

To me it has gotten ridiculously out of control when even the garbage man will leave a note with his address for some to send money to
even when there is nothing they have done extra to help you in the year. Not that I need extra help, but

Same for the mailman.

As to actually celebrating the birth of our Lord....

I see nothing wrong with that because if you ever once in your life celebrated the birth of a son, daughter, or baby in a family how terrible one would be to ignore the accepted anniversary date of the birth of our savior.

Was that commanded in the bible?

Nope.

My opinion is because by design God wanted Jesus to grow up under the radar and when he started His ministry it would be the people who heard and believed that would benefit....

To me, to fail to be grateful that God brought His Son into the word
and to not at least have a cursory acknowledgement of the fact just smacks of white privilege no matter what color you are.

But that is just me.

[Texas Conservative]

Buncha grinches.  You all would be happier if you had nicer edifices.

[mommydi]

With all the stuff happening in my life right now, I'm throwing myself more into Christmas this year than ever before. It's a wonderful distraction. I have a sweet toddler granddaughter and it's all about her this year, and I'm having a blast with it. I'm leaving next week to make a run to Texas to give her some cute little pink moccasins and a pink suede cowgirl hat. What a blessing that baby girl is to me and our family right now. Her daddy is full on Asian, so she looks like the prettiest little Asian baby doll ever seen. She's so pleasant, too. So happy, and not fussy or bratty. I can't get enough of her in my life. Thank God - soooo serious about this - thank you Lord for this baby girl. (Writing this with tears in my eyes) 

[Texas Conservative]

[Texas Conservative]

MERRY CHRISTMAS!