Over the years, Christmas has become a worldwide festival. Interestingly, it is in many places no longer seen as a religious festival but as a general celebration of good times and good cheer. This gives it a universal appeal that is infectious. Joy to the world, says the Christmas carol and although the second line says “The Lord has come”, we are happy to just stay with the joy.
Of course, Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ in a stable in Bethlehem 2009 years ago and to that effect, is a Christian festival. But for a number of reasons that go beyond Christianity, Christmas hastaken on many forms.
One is the winter festivals of Europe, which are as appealing for their beauty as for their spirit. Crisp snow, green conifers, lights, green and red decorations all make for a very pretty picture. Across the world — even in those parts where there is no winter — this image is recreated. It might be cotton wool and tinsel but it still looks delightful.
Then there is the legend of Santa Claus. Born as he was Saint Nicholas in Europe in medieval times and adjusted as he was by the Coca-Coal company a few centuries later, he is now the most enduring and endearing symbol of Christmas. The very idea of a jolly, laughing, large man in a red suit dashing around on a sleigh pulled by reindeer, handing out presents makes Christmas a hit with children and adults both.
There are of course both political and commercial implications to Christmas and many find these intolerable. The colonisation of large parts of the world by European nations and the imposition of Christianity on various peopleshave led to the familiarisation of Christmas.
But it is also true that many people now choose to celebrate it anyway. Conversely, in these times of politically correct multiculturalism, in parts of America and Great Britain, Christmas is referred to as a “winter festival” or even a bland, generic, “the holidays”.
With gift-giving at the centre point of the celebrations, the retail industry cannot be far behind. In fact, some might feel that commerce runs Christmas. But for tomorrow, as the sun rises on one more Christmas Day and Santa Clause has delivered his presents and returned to the North Pole, it might be a good idea to forget all the negatives and get into the spirit of joy and love for all humankind. After all, we have so few opportunities for something so simple. Merry Christmas!
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