Christmas 2012

As always, just a reminder that I don’t consider Christmas a biblical holiday. It’s a cultural holiday passed through several pagan filters, and was never a part of the church until the political establishment hijacked Christian religion. The church leadership decided it was okay to adopt the mythology — to lie about it — for the sake of political favor. Two significant points: (1) Hebrew culture didn’t make much of birthdays and (2) Jesus wasn’t born in any part of the winter months. The main point is I don’t invest any significant religious fervor in the Winter Festival.
Sadly, it has become a secularist commercial exploitation opportunity, and little more. Watch how the kids whine, scream and fight over material possessions during this time of year. I’ve come to hate that part of it, because it guarantees they’ll grow up whiny and insecure.
To the degree I give any gifts this year, I wish for you this one thing: emotional security. The thing is, no one can give that to you. It lies entirely in your own soul to make it happen. People do tend to develop it if you give them a chance, encourage it, put it within their reach and draw attention to it.
I’m not blaming anybody, but no one tried very hard to help me with it, so I was well into adult life before I got anywhere close to the kind of internal security it takes to face the world as it ought to be faced. That is, I don’t take it too seriously. This is one of the few things the Laws of God offer to any human regardless of spiritual condition. You don’t have to let this fallen world drag you down into insanity. You can have a pretty firm grip on things and not sweat the small stuff.
That would be a symptom, so instead of wishing you didn’t take the world seriously, I’m hoping you’ll think about what’s involved and reach for the one thing you can give yourself.