Articles
The Christmas Spirit
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That they should celebrate yearly the fourteenth and fifteenth days of the month of Adar, as the days on which the Jews had rest from their enemies, as the month which was turned from sorrow to joy for them, and from mourning to a holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and joy, of sending presents to one another and gifts to the poor. (Esther 9:21-22)
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The book of Esther describes the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Purim, observed in late February or March, commemorating the salvation of the Jews from the plot of wicked Haman. Modern readers will recognize in this description details that are very similar to our Christmas traditions: exchanging presents, giving to charities, eating big meals, and an upbeat mood of generosity and happiness. Both days are an occasion when our lives turn "from sorrow to joy, and from mourning to a holiday."
But the two holidays share one other similarity: after the day passes, people soon go back to being their same old selfish, negative selves. The Christmas/Purim spirit doesn't last long.
The fact that both holidays commemorate historical events associated with divine deliverance points to something in the human psyche that cries out for hope. We live with wickedness, injustice, suffering, pain, and disaster on a daily basis. We long for a world free of such burdens, where everyone gets along in a spirit of love and understanding, and gladness is the norm rather than the exception.
These two holidays demonstrate that we're capable of getting at least part-way there, if only for a short time. Why can't the spirit of Christmas and Purim last all year long? What would it take to instill that kind of generosity and joy in our hearts permanently?
Read the opening chapters of Acts, and we learn that the early Christians found the secret to that kind of life. In those early days of the new faith, the believers got together "daily . . . and ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart" (2:46). Everyone was "of one heart and one soul" (4:32), and gave generously "as anyone had need" (4:34-35). For these people, every day was Christmas morning.
What fueled this joyful, optimistic spirit among these people? It was not the story of the baby Jesus, nor the deliverance of the Jews from Haman, but the death and resurrection of the Son of God. When people grasp the significance of that historical event, all the world takes on a new meaning. Those who embrace this hope have a new view of life that sweeps away all the hatred, the selfishness, the disappointment, the despair that once held them captive.
May you have a merry Christmas this day--and every day for the rest of your life!
--David
