During the mid-nineties, I was preaching for a congregation in a town near the Smokey Mountains. Prior to the days of Matthew, Taylor was a small girl and Jonathan was a baby. In the community where Cile and I bought our first home, a neighbor set out a nativity scene in their front yard. The house was close enough to walk to and easy access to drive by on the way home from church. Taylor passionately asked each time we neared the home for us to drive by and see Baby Jesus. Most of the time, we complied with her wishes.
I never owned an outdoor nativity scene, and I was taught that displaying such a scene (nearly?) violated Scripture. Cile did collect, piece-by-piece, the Willow Tree Nativity Scene which she displays in our home year round. I do own an inexpensive Peanuts Gang nativity scene. But in the mid-nineties we had neither.
About this time a rumor was circling through town that the local principalities were talking about banning all nativity scenes and Christmas messages. Some were saying that the ban only applied to public properties while others believed it was going to be mandated to personal homes as well. The rumors were fueling the discussions. The topic was so strong that one Sunday evening, I stood before the congregation and proclaimed, “I may not care whether or not a nativity scene is displayed, but if they ban them, I will be the first to display one in my yard.” I was bold in drawing my line in the sand, almost as brave as Don Quixote fighting his windmills.
The truth is no local or State legislation was coming down the pipeline to curtail religious decorations at Christmas time. Sure, the prayer before football games were being challenged in courts. True, some of the retail giants began marketing “traditional Christmas” items as “Holiday” items. But to my knowledge, no one was legislating such changes. The debate and controversy seemed to have risen as if someone created a conflict just so they could prop themselves up as a “voice of reason.”
Enter the debate between “Merry Christmas” and “Happy Holidays,” and let the battle lines be drawn.
For people of faith, this has been a contentious topic of conversation. Some believe that “Merry Christmas” should always be used over “Happy Holidays” since Christmas is about Christ. Others are concerned about the secularization of the season and its drive for consumerism; “holiday” sounds like consumers on a vacation. An informed Biblical approach may actually surprise you.
First, neither “Christmas” nor “Holiday” is mentioned in the Bible. Obviously, Christ is in the Bible, especially as Matthew and Luke spend considerable amount of time exploring his birth (by the way John goes straight to incarnational theology, “The Word became flesh and lived among us” [Jn.1:14]). As far as holiday goes, every feast in the Bible is placed in a context of dedication to God. From Sabbath to Passover to Jubilee to Hanukkah (see Jn. 10:22-23) each feast was set aside as holy for God. So while “Christmas” and “Holiday” are not in the Bible, their presence casts a long shadow on the Biblical narrative.
Secondly, the meaning of the words, “Christmas” and “Holiday” are rooted in the religious only to sprout secularized meaning over time. Crowding into the stores (prior to COVID) to get the best deals for Christmas presents doesn’t sound very sanctifying, but does look like a sellout to marketing and consumerism (no matter which phrase is used). Forgotten is that the Christ-Mas was originally a specific church service to honor Jesus with a feast (i.e., communion). On the other hand Holiday wasn’t a vacation by the Brits or a marketing ploy for American consumers, but a Holy-Day set aside for God. Thus, Christmas is a holiday or the Christ-Mas is a Holy-Day.
So if we really want to redeem Christmas and transform it from the secular into the sacred, let’s stop arguing over words/phrases not found in the Bible. Be at peace with either phrase. Instead, let’s honor Christ on this holy day and do what Jesus did best. Let’s forsake the power grab and serve our neighbors. Let’s feed the hungry, heal the sick, free the captives, calm the (inner) storms, instill hope for the hopeless and forgive the debts. And in our kindness, wish warmly the people we encounter, whoever they are, “Merry Christmas” or “Happy Holy-days,” because as Christians, that’s what we do best.
Soli Deo Gloria!
(i.e., only God is glorified!)