This Thing Called Christmas


As I awake from sleep at 4:37 AM, my mind wanders to this thing we experience between Thanksgiving Day and New Years Day called Christmas. Sometimes I will hear “Christmas Carols” on the radio and think about the lyrics and whether they are telling an accurate story of what this season is all about.

The ones that talk about St. Nicholas or Santa Claus are an aspect of this season. But, why then don’t we call it St. Nicholas Day? How did the term St. Nicholas come to be and how did the term Christmas come to be? Which came first (the chicken or the egg?)?
Could you have a St. Nicholas Day without first having a Christ-mass day (it‘s not that I don‘t know how to spell, I‘m trying to get you to think “outside the box”)?

St Nicholas… if you type St. Nicholas into your web browser and click “go”, it will take you to all kinds of information on St. Nicholas. He was a real man who lived in the his adult years in A.D. 300’s and is reported to have died in A.D. 343. This should be your first clue as to “Who” came first. A.D. simply means, Anno Domini, in the year of our Lord. So… you have to have a Lord first. St. Nicholas lived in the area of Turkey on the south-west tip in an area called Myra. His life was dedicated to helping the poor, from the commandment that Jesus himself gave, “sell what you have and give to the poor”. Again, “Who” came first? The St. Nicholas celebration was held on December 6, to honor the death of St. Nicholas and help preserve the day of Christmas to focus on the Christ Child. St Nicholas’ life became legend and his mission became that of many, many people throughout the world. That is why St. Nicholas or Santa Claus is celebrated throughout the world. Much more can be said of St. Nicholas, but if you need that information, search it out for yourself.

Jesus Christ…again, if you type the name Jesus Christ into your web browser and click “go”, you will have a lot of information. He was a man who lived at a certain time in history. That time is what we now understand as the separation of B.C. and A.D., the actual date is uncertain, but his life is not. Jesus had many, many wonderful teachings such as, sell what you have and give it to the poor, turn the other cheek, honor your father and mother, and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength.

But… it was more than His life and teachings that make Him different from any other man. It was His death and resurrection that set Him apart from any other man or religious leader in all of history. To have death and resurrection, you must have a birth. Many, many religions follow the essence of Christianity without taking the person of Christianity.

The real teaching of Christmas is that Jesus was God who was born of a virgin, a miracle. That’s what we celebrate on December, 25th.