Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year, even though I, as a convinced if not observant Jew, do not accept the divinity of Jesus. Without the birth of the Messiah, what does a Jew find to love about Christmas?
It is, of course, the fact that the holiday involves so much love--love for one's family and love for the human family. Or, to put it in mundane terms, the Christmas spirit. Christmas is a time for thinking of others--the holiday when we learn that it really is better to give than to receive. (After all, when you are giving, you can spend days, weeks, even months [or in the case of a large number of guys, hours] thinking of how much the recipient will enjoy his or her gift. As the recipient, you get to unwrap the gift, look at it and, with the best will you can summon, say, "Oh, just what I wanted! Mittens.")
True, for Jews Christmas day can be an anti-climax, especially if you do not celebrate with Christian friends. On Christmas itself, all of that bothersome theology comes to the fore; it may remind us of the separation from our brothers and sisters that still exists. But I try to hold on to that Christmas spirit just a little longer, and hope that next year we may all be just a bit closer.
And so, to all of our readers--Christian, Jew, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, Bahai, agnostic, atheist or whatever you faith or lack of faith in which you believe, a heartfelt Merry Christmas!
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1 comment:
Thanks for your personal, universal and ecumenical message.
As a friend of mine,an editor of important books about getting along in different cultures, told me, upon reading some of my poetry, "These will travel".
I will send your message along to my friends an relatives.
I continue to enjoy what you write and look forward to reading your future thoughts, feelings, and ideas.
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