My Take: Why Christmas is so magical
The German sociologist Max Weber coined a term in 1919 that still resonates, "The disenchantment of the world." He was writing in the wake of World War I and the secularization of Western culture. I think one reason Christmas is so magical is because between Thanksgiving and Jan. 6 — epiphany — we feel the enchantment of Christmas music and seasonal decorations, and we look forward to church services and gatherings with family and friends. For one short period in our lives, we see the world through the eyes of our children, and relive our own memories of being children. Our world is enchanted once again!
Due to our recent November snowstorms, I extended the Christmas season several weeks before Thanksgiving, by putting up my tree and wreath and peppering my house with Santa's, wise men and candles. I dusted off my Christmas vinyl albums and dug out from my basement my seasonal CDs and tried to bring some Christmas cheer into the pall of gloom that has settled upon our world. The war in Ukraine has shown us both the bravery of the people of that country and the unspeakable evil of Russia and the devil who rules there with an iron fist. When I think of the Ukrainians, especially the children, tears come to my eyes, and probably to yours as well. Think of what Christmas will be like over there with Russian missiles raining down each day.
Then, turning to our own country, this pall of gloom includes our mass murders — over 600 this year and counting. I think of those families which, as President Biden often says, will have empty chairs at the dining table this Christmas. The loss of a child, especially in the Christmas season, is simply too horrifying to think about. So hug your children as often as you can and tell them how much you love them.
Let us also not forget the poor in our midst, and the homeless. How can a country as rich as ours have so many homeless people? Our pall of gloom has a long litany. Which is why the enchantment of the world once again in December is so important for those of us who feel this enchantment and enjoy some healing. If we are lucky, we awaken once again a sense of wonder in a heart that is too often cold.
Do you get sad in the Christmas and holiday season? For many people this season reminds them of loss, and perhaps the death of those they have loved. Some families have experienced loss through divorce, and find the holidays agonizing as they try to figure out which child spends Christmas with which parent. Some ask themselves, am I going to be alone?
Many of us can not afford to buy the gifts our children long for. Some of us have lost their jobs and wonder how they are going to buy food or pay the heating bill. Giving to St. John's Episcopal Church's food pantry and soup kitchen is the best spent money of all my charitable giving. Each dollar goes to help the needy. If you need food or a hot meal, contact the church on 524 Washington, Grand Haven.
So Christmas stirs up a variety of emotions, memories and concerns.
But what is the true meaning of the season of Christmas? Certainly not the stuff we accumulate! The church's message often gets lost in all the chaos of the season, a message of hope, and faith, that we are not alone in the universe, that our creator sent a son to save us from sin and death and from our own violence towards each other or inflict upon ourselves. As God loves us, we should love each other and do acts of kindness on a daily basis. That is the simple message of Christmas as I see it.
One of Elvis Presley's Christmas songs contains the question, "why can't every day be like Christmas, why can't that feeling go on endlessly, for if every day could be just like Christmas, what a wonderful world this would be" (the name of the song, unsurprisingly is "If Every Day Was Like Christmas"). Elvis is singing about the hope that the magic of Christmas will continue to enchant us every day of the year. Maybe this year I will keep my tree up after Jan. 6, and give even more to our food pantry, and keep the Christmas candles in my windows a bit longer, just to prolong the magic before once again fully recognizing and coming to terms with the horrors of war, the evil of men like Putin and mass murderers, and the plight of our homeless.
The way to preserve the enchantment of Christmas once the decorations do come down is to make a vow to ourselves and to each other to do at least one act of kindness each day, whether that is giving to a food pantry or visiting a lonely friend or supporting our local YMCA or a church we feel welcomed in. That is how we can make every day be just like Christmas.
— Henry Idema lives in Grand Haven. He can be reached at henryidema3@yahoo.com.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: My Take: Why Christmas is so magical
