“Dashing” Through The Christmas Season

Let me start off by saying that I love Christmas. I really do. While the decorations and tree trimming and family dinners and presents are all fantastic, I love Christmas because it is the birthday of Our Lord, and one of the foremost liturgical feasts of the year.

Having said that, it is often the decorations and tree trimming and other trappings of the season that make Christmastime difficult at times.

One of the challenges that my family has faced is keeping the focus of the season on Jesus. Not Santa. Not presents. Not the Macy’s One-Day-Sale.  While our little one is still fairly young, this is easy to accomplish. He only absorbs what we teach him in terms of celebrating Christmas.  A friend of mine is even choosing to eliminate Santa completely from the equation and only celebrating St. Nicholas Day on December 6.

But still, at times there is so much that “needs” to be done that daily preparations for the secular Christmas often invade the spiritual preparations for the religious feast. For example, earlier today my husband and I were torn.  We were invited to an impromptu Christmas party at our friends’ home, but also wanted to attend Lessons and Carols at our local church.  My husband is rushing out over his lunch hour tomorrow to try to get some shopping done, and I am still trying to finish up some homemade ornaments from our little one to various relatives. On top of that, we are traveling this weekend to do the second of what will end up being three separate Christmas celebrations.

There is almost this constant feeling that there’s never enough time to accomplish everything. The focus is on fleeting time. We have Christmas countdowns, “last minute” sales at stores, and even what are called “no frills” confessions – in and out, no questions asked. How can we stop the clock in our homes and slow down enough to experience the real reason for Christmas?

Advent is a time to prepare our hearts and minds to welcome the Baby Jesus into our homes on Christmas Day. We’ve been making every effort this year to help our little one understand that Christmas is Jesus’ birthday and not just a day to receive presents from Santa. We’ve tried to use a companion book for home prayer during Advent, and we have our own Advent wreath.  We’ve attended Mass faithfully, even while traveling, and are trying to give our little one a sense of the religious aspect of Christmas. We even celebrated St. Nicholas Day with him.

Both my husband and I admire our friend for choosing to focus on St. Nicholas instead of Santa. But, as her child grows older, goes to school, and associates with other children, I wonder how long her parents will be able to ignore the “jolly old elf” in a red suit.

One of the things I wish we had gotten to do was make our own Jesse Tree. It would have been great for our little one to make ornaments rich with religious symbolism, and maybe start a new tradition that he could continue with his future family. Maybe next year we’ll try to make one with him.

During Mass earlier today, the priest made an interesting point during the homily, which sort of inspired this post. He was describing a parishioner who was baking many different batches of Christmas cookies to be exchanged. This parishioner told the priest how stressed she felt because of how much she had to do before the cookie party. The priest explained that he asked her why she was putting herself through so much stress.

At this time of year, it is comforting to know that our Catholic faith is almost a respite from all that stress. The focus for us is still Jesus, and the birth of Christ provides context to all the traditions we hold dear at Christmastime. In sending us his only Son, God shows us the spirit of generosity that should be first and foremost at Christmas. Every time we attend Mass, we once again receive the gifts of Jesus’ body and blood. Even if I don’t receive one single present this year on December 25, I know that I have all already received the most precious Christmas gift of all in Jesus.

In fact, our goal for this year is to keep the Christmas spirit alive until the Feast of the Epiphany. In the past, January 6 was celebrated more then it seems to be nowadays. It’s fairly easy to keep celebrating Christmas past December 25.  You can leave the decorations hanging – no need to take them down the weekend after Christmas. Continue to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ in your home: arrange for a home blessing, exchange gifts of a spiritual nature, keep the Christ candle in your Advent wreath lit, or read the biblical account of the Epiphany.

This Christmas season, why not slow down and meditate on the birth of our Lord, Jesus Christ? Make your home a dwelling place for Him in the year to come. Like the Magi journeying to meet the Infant Jesus, begin a journey in your own life toward a closer relationship with God.