In spirit of Christ, keep celebration going

“Unto you is born this day a Savior, and this shall be a sign unto you; You shall find the Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger” (Luke 2).

Some may think that this is no great sign, for every new child is born in swaddling clothes. Possibly, if the angels wanted to prove to the shepherds that Christ was born, they may have revealed some unusual sign such as the star that appeared to the Magi in the East. Unfortunately, for some, this was just another baby born 2,000 years ago. However, to those with spiritual eyes, that Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes exemplifies a wondrous mystery.

When an ordinary child is born, he knows nothing. Everything is learned and developed as he grows older. However, the Child who was born in Bethlehem some 2,000 years ago was very different. From the hour of his birth, this child possessed wisdom as well as strength, for it is written: “Great is our Lord and great is His strength and of His understanding there is no measure” (Psalm 146).

Christmas is a wonderful time of the year. For many, it is a time we spend with friends and family. It is a time when we open presents, exchange gifts of good cheer and tidings of comfort and joy. Truly there is a different feeling at this time of year apart from all other seasons and celebrations.

There is an entire genre of music dedicated to this Christmas season. During this season, people are more generous and want to give to others as expressions of their love. It is unfortunate, however, that the real message of Christmas can be drowned out among the clearance sales, gifts cards and commercialism of these “Happy Holidays.” It is hard not to be affected by the commercialism of our times today.

I remember a few years ago, as I celebrated Christmas with my family, we opened our presents together under the tree. It seemed that the excitement of the presents consumed us so much that the day went by without us paying the proper respect to our Lord and Savior. At the end of the day, we felt empty and that something was missing. We did not honor the great Feast of the Nativity as it should have been.

From that time on, my wife and I decided that this was never to happen again. How can one celebrate Christmas without Christ? It did not take us very long to decide what to do.

Since my wife and I are both of Greek descent and actually lived in Greece for a period of time, we decided to follow the traditions held in Greece and exchange gifts on Jan. 1, the feast day of Saint Basil the Great — a very philanthropic saint. This freed us from distraction and allowed us to celebrate Christmas to the full extent of its true meaning.

Now that our gift exchange is on New Year’s Day, I find it easier for us as a family to honor Christmas as it should be. I still see our children just as excited as before, but I notice a difference in them. They look to this day as the celebration of the birth of our Lord.

They can see that God became incarnate in this world to save us. God became man to give us hope. By ourselves, we are doomed, but with God, all things are possible. He came to help us and to give us a chance to overcome the difficulties of this world with our Lord and Savior by our side. Christmas affords us all the opportunity to worship our newborn king and to thank God for the wonderful gift that he gave us.

When we think back, we see that all came to worship this newborn king. Even the wise men came from afar to worship Christ. As tradition teaches, the wise men actually came upon Christ 12 days after He was born. It was then that they displayed their gifts to the Infant Messiah.

The popular song, “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” actually speaks to the 12 days after Christmas, not before. It is after Christmas when all the parties and celebrations should be. So when my family exchanges gifts on Jan. 1, we are keeping in this same Christmas spirit.

Christmas will be here in just a few days. I pray we all take time to stop and dedicate ourselves to celebrate this season in the true spirit of Christ.

I pray you all have a most blessed Christ-filled Christmas and a joyous and prosperous New Year 2009. Merry Christmas!

XThe Rev. Thomas M. Constantine is pastor of St. John the Forerunner Greek Orthodox Church in Boardman.