Closed Minds

I am so sick and tired of hearing some Christians try to tell other Christians that we can’t or shouldn’t celebrate Christmas. I’ve heard all the arguments. It’s a pagan holiday. It’s based on Saturnalia. It’s not really the birthday of Jesus. Blah blah blah! And yes, I’ve even done the research, so I know where all these arguments come from. While there is a grain of truth to what they’re saying, it’s not the whole truth, nor is it the end-all be-all of Christmas.

I’m fully aware of the pagan worship of the false god Saturn. I’m familiar with the rituals that involves. Yes, some of those practices were co-opted and changed to fit with what we know as Christmas today. But that doesn’t automatically make celebrating Christmas evil. In point of fact, taking what was meant for evil and turning it for good is one of the most wholesome traits of God Himself. If a few pagan practices were taken and CHANGED to be used in celebrating something Holy, what of it? Besides, those pagan rituals weren’t original anyway. Everything evil is a perversion of something good. Evil has absolutely ZERO ORIGINALITY.

Are you forgetting that God also looks at the heart? Do you think that people will reach the afterlife and be turned away from heaven because they dared to celebrate Christmas? Like, Saint Peter is gonna say, “Nope, sorry. I know you thought you were celebrating the first arrival of the Savior, but you were actually unknowingly worshiping a demon. So, off to hell with you!” Are you seriously that closed minded? Do you claim to know the attitude of my heart? I don’t think you truly comprehend the freedom we have in Jesus.

Now I understand the commercialization of Christmas tends to take a lot away from what most of us intend. But consider this: When I observe Christmas, I do so in gratefulness for Christ’s advent. When I give gifts, I do so out of a spirit of love. The entire experience for me is holy and done in reverence to God. Can you really tell me that’s somehow wrong or evil? I don’t believe that for a second.

As far as when the actual birth of Jesus is, give me a break. I know he wasn’t born on December 25th. I’m not certain when His literal birth took place, but that is the day we’ve set aside to celebrate it. If anyone wants to nitpick about that, whatever. I’m not gonna waste my time with such nonsense.

While I will grant that many people celebrate Christmas without giving any thought to Jesus or Christianity, that’s not true of me nor of many other Christians like me. Often times, we come across information that makes us re-examine things. I get that. I understand wanting to make sure others are informed about the origins of certain practices, especially if they are tied to anything evil. But don’t get so caught up in “explaining” things to people that you end up completely missing the point. Even unclean things can be made clean by God, and who are we to visit the intentions of others?

None of the arguments against Christians observing Christmas matter to someone who loves the Lord and wants to celebrate every aspect of His gift of salvation to us. The angels proclaimed His birth, so I will celebrate it. The blood of Jesus paid for all my sins, so I will celebrate that with a grateful heart. His death and subsequent resurrection to life again paved the way for me to have eternal life with Him, so I will celebrate that as well. An argument that tells me to refrain from observing these immeasurably important and HOLY events – well, the argument itself sounds like a trick of satan to me.

I said what I said. Be blessed. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!