CONSTANTINE’s the Reason for the Season

My Cat Tig acting out "A Long Winter's Nap...."

“Jesus is the reason for the season”(?)

As followers of Jesus we want the surrounding world, as they party hardy and trim their trees and buy/give gifts, to remember and hopefully comprehend that Jesus is the actual “reason for the season.”  To reinforce this, someone came up with this engaging but somewhat condescending invective as a handy reminder that Christmas is still, after all, about Christ.  There is however enough historical Grinch in me, upon viewing this or hearing someone intone it, to respond with the question, “Is he indeed?” Now before working up a righteous anger, sharing this and consigning me to the netherworld, consider the following about Christmas as it has come down to us.

As an observance (AKA holiday), Christmas was not really even on the church’s radar until around the 3^rd century.  Easter was (is!) the high point in the Christian calendar as the early church saw the resurrection as the primary reason for celebration.  After all it was this climactic event of Jesus’ sojourn that made possible the forgiveness of sin and peace with God. 

The shift came when, in 313 AD, Emperors Constantine and Licinius signed the Edict of Milan granting toleration for religions in the empire.  The empire’s non-interference with religious groups like those of “The Way” was a crucial turning point in the life of the church, both for better and for worse.  This edict ended organized persecution of the church and believers could, for the most part, breath a collective sigh of relief.  Constantine, the church’s newfound friend, and eventually a believer, (though waiting to be baptised until he was on his deathbed), began to have an influence in the church that brought about changes that impacted the way the church, and later, the world would adapt the Christmas narrative, as an excuse for perhaps much more than was intended.

Constantine introduced pagan traditions and “appended” them to a Christian nativity observance.  Whether he simply wanted to make it easier for pagans to convert to Christianity, or as a means of unifying his empire, the emperor capitalized on other popular celebrations and sought to merge them into a single event.  Saturnalia, a pagan festival running from December 17 through the 24^th was coupled with a festival observing the birth of the Mithras, the Persian god of light.  The latter ran from December 25 through January 1.  From its outset, the Christmas celebration was a holiday (or holy day), when gifts were exchanged, families and friends gathered to feast, and a birth was celebrated; just like in the Roman and Persian festivities. Though the actual date of Christ’s birth was never specified, this did not prevent Pope Julius I from proclaiming it to be December 25^th.  The first mention of December 25 as being the date of Jesus' birth is found in an early Roman calendar from A.D. 336. The fact that the celebration of Saturnalia, a pagan Roman holiday, fell at the same time of year should not be lost on the reader.  It was a not so subtle attempt to fuse the nativity observance  to other pagan celebrations.

Of Saturnalia it is said that:

Saturnalia was a hedonistic time, when food and drink were plentiful and the normal Roman social order was turned upside down. For a month, slaves would become masters. Peasants were in command of the city. Business and schools were closed so that everyone could join in the fun.

Obviously, not all of these traditions continued to present day but you can see why many who wanted to retain their traditions and also claim the Christian faith as their own would have welcomed this merging of observances.

Over the centuries, Christmas observance and traditions have increased exponentially. Though it was been decried by colonial Puritans as unscriptural, it continued to be reshaped into to what it has become now; a religious observance tacked onto an ever expanding secular and commercial phenomenon.  The glorification of the day after Thanksgiving as “Black Friday” is a prime example of the on going tweaking of what this season has become.  Just think of it; people leaving their homes, as early as Thanksgiving afternoon to pick up a good buy on sale item.  In its fashion, Black Friday plays the same role as Mardi Gras does to Ash Wednesday; a voracious commercial festival held just prior to the solemn holiday into which Christmas has evolved.

The emergence of Christmas as one of THE major observances of the church was accelerated by the “well-meaning” actions of Constantine and it was apparently accepted, if not welcomed, by the grateful church of his day. By adopting/adapting these contrasting and conflicting visions, the early church began to morph into something very different from what it had been.

So, what of this idea that “Jesus is the Reason for the Season”? As believers we certainly want to make sure that people know that Christmas is about Jesus don’t we?  Shouldn’t we strive to “Keep Christ in Christmas”?  The answer to these questions is an emphatic yes but must we at the same time connect Jesus with the season for what it has become.  What it has become is increasingly less about Jesus and more about the pluralistic society in which we live. Even the  Jesus part of Christmas has been diminished.  Christmas parties have become holiday get-togethers.  Christmas vacation is now winter vacation. Santa is the one to whom people want to talk.

Yes, I know.  This might be viewed as nit picking by some but the question remains; Is Jesus REALLY the reason for what this “season” has become?  Perhaps a new adage is needed; Constantine is the reason for the season.  Jesus’ nativity was just a convenient excuse.

SURPRISED BY KINDNESS

Columns - Savannah

THE POWER OF KINDNESS

Like a calf looking at a new gate, kindness overtakes us and challenges our mental equilibrium.  We often aren’t expecting it but it is always welcome.  Even those who offer it in juxtaposition to the world's values are sometimes caught off guard.

My wife and I were teaching preschoolers in Vacation Bible School some time ago and there was one little boy named Matthew who was always seeking "attention" but the ways he chose to do so usually did not endear himself to others.  Towards the end of the week, we were working with the group at one of the VBS disciplines (bible story, crafts, recreation, etc.) when I looked up to see Matthew intently looking at me.  With a questioning expression he said "Why are you so kind?"  I don’t really recall exactly how I replied to his question but I believe I told him of the kindness Jesus showed and how he wanted each of us to be kind to others in the same way.  With that, Matthew was off and the class continued.

That encounter set me to thinking about how often when we show kindness we are surprised when someone actually notices it.  Our personal histories have too many instances when people do things to us and we write it off to human nature and people being unrepentant sinners.  We also know how we have done those same things only to later confess our guilt for having done so.  Perhaps a consistency of kindness on our part would spur more people to ask, as did my young friend Matthew, where that gift of kindness originates.  I believe it was Apostle Peter in I Peter 3:16 who told us:

"But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;"

There are two passages at the close of Matthew 5 that call us to a conspiracy of kindness as to how we treat others.  The first is found in Matthew 5:38-42:

38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39 But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. 40 If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. 41 And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. 42 Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.

We are glad at first to hear Jesus, in his dismissive way talking about the demise of the eye and tooth scenario.  As we feel a wave of relief pass over us we, shortly thereafter, hear something; it’s the other shoe dropping.  His teaching calls us to a higher plain of understanding regarding relationships and our own initial response is to balk. We immediately begin to assess what we have to lose by following through with these new teachings while missing the real intent of what Jesus is trying to say.

We are taught to steel our hearts against riches and power.  We are taught to be proactive in our relationships with others so that confrontation will not occur due to our unwillingness to do the right thing and/or the righteousness thing.  Or when it does occur, we are taught to suffer the loss of rights rather than to damage another’s opportunity hear the good news.  In all these, Jesus reminds us of the surprising capacity of proactive behavior to disarm and defuse situations.

Which brings me back to my VBS charge, Matthew.  Could it be that the key to discovering open doors into other’s lives has to do with our capacity to consistently practice Jesus’ methodology in our treatment of them?  It would have been easy to have been easy to show impatience or an ill temper with Matthew in response to his childish antics but would that had made the impact that patience and kindness appear to have made?  Perhaps that is why they are a part of the Spirit’s fruit assortment.  Patience and kindness, along with the others itemized in Galatians provide a framework of reference for Jesus followers to practice “second-mile” thinking without a second thought.  These are just the assets we need when facing the challenging moments in life when responding to those “Matthews” when they come our way.

OATHS - “If you have to swear on a stack of bibles, don’t bother; you’re probably untrustworthy.”

The Gorge at Watkins Glen Park, New York

“No one, by swearing, makes themselves an ounce more honest; any more than a man makes himself wealthy by counting his gold. Oaths may make a liar a liar yet again, having lied about the oath as well. But it cannot alter the worth of an honest man's word.”                                             

Jake Yaniak

The Punishment of the Gods

“I swear on my mother’s grave!” 

Perhaps it was the earnestness with which it was said; or the desperation; or the gravity of the object or the oath.  Yet, if we were thinking clearly, we would recognize the futility of relying on external objects in their attempt to shore up the veracity of their honesty.

Listen to what Jesus has to say regarding using oaths to bolster individual believability.

33 “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.’ 34 But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.

Jesus tells us here that oath taking is not something to be taken lightly and warns of the dangers of taking oaths:

1.  There was a time when oaths were sworn and carried out.  This had been the way it was done.  If someone vowed to the Lord to carry out some action, it was expected that they would do so.  There came a time however when swearing an oath in and of itself was not enough.

2.  There came a time when domains (heaven, earth, Jerusalem) were used as a way of backing up oaths and leveraging power to ensure that a favorable response would be received.

3.  It was then that self was an acceptable object to use, as if the one who swore would make surer the validity of the vow by vouching for his own self.

The historical background for this teaching is one where conversations were full of vows and oaths to the point that they meant little or nothing.  Because of this, those who wanted to make their vow more believable would then begin to call others to witness for him, in this case things that couldn’t say much to prevent him from abusing them in this way.  Thus heaven, earth and Jerusalem became unwilling parties to foolish, false and imprudent oaths.

This oath taking was at the heart of the dishonesty, subterfuge, and misleading promises made every day in 1^st century Israel.  It was for this reason that Jesus provides in vs 37 a simple guideline for avoiding the pitfalls of oath taking/making/breaking:

"Let your no BE no and your yes BE yes."

Herein is advice that would serve us well in so many other of life’s scenarios.  To make it work requires:

1.  We be willing to tell the truth without relying on externals to serve as ethical collateral for our dealings:  When we make it clear where we stand and what we will do, others can feel confident that they can trust our decisions without fear of chicanery or subterfuge.

2.  We be willing to let stand our decisions:  So often those who are looking for ways to make themselves look more honest than they believe themselves to be are simply looking for a way of getting their yes to be no and their no to be yes if things don’t work out.

3.  We be willing to NOT enter into an agreement with the devil so that we can use that escape hatch when we think things are going south.  Trusting our decisions to God will help us to listen to him when he speaks and avoid making bad follow up decisions

So even though the life situation that Jesus was addressing in this passage was 1^st century, the advice about plain speaking can be used in the 21^st as well.  Since this is an election year, I believe my point is made!

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