The War on Christmas: Review and Giveaway!
Quick preface: I was scheduled to have this review up on December 4th as part of the blog tour…so I am late. That lateness was the result of an unexpected trip back to northcentral Montana for my grandma’s funeral (a 12+ hour drive each way, non-stop, during good weather…which it was not). Now onto the review…
The chapters I get to focus on are two of my favorites that were presented: What is Christmas About? and The Origin of Christmas: Isn’t Christmas a Pagan Holiday? Both are questions that we’ve heard, if not ones we’ve asked at some point. And both deserve a thoughtful, response.
What is Christmas About? focuses on the actual origins of the holiday and how we’ve distorted much of it (the ‘we’ being our culture, of course). But it also discusses some of the elements that have no actual relation to the origin of the holiday (for instance, the Christmas tree) and asks:
“Why not take the distorted pagan elements of Christmas and change them to biblical elements to honor Christ?”
The question, of course, is how far can we realistically stretch this? The tree, sure. The giving of presents, absolutely. The book gives plenty of food for thought in this chapter, but falls short of prescribing what things can and cannot fit such a construct. Frankly, it’s fitting, since it is a personal decision.
The Origin of Christmas: Isn’t Christmas a Pagan Holiday? delves a little deeper into the origins of the holiday by responding to one of the most common questions. And by a little deeper, I mean substantially. But I love this part:
“Whether Christmas happens to occur at the same time (or close to the same time) as a pagan holiday is irrelevant. There is nothing inherently wrong with celebrating a Christian holiday at the same time pagans celebrate. Do Christians refuse to take communion if it falls on a predominantly pagan holiday like Halloween? Absolutely not.” (emphasis mine)
But the chapter concludes with a rather pointed–and mostly correct–criticism of the Church, that’s it has often failed during Christmas time because we talk about the birth of Jesus without talking about WHY he came…and THAT is reason to celebrate!
Full list of the blog tour schedule related to the book here. Definitely check them out…several others also have giveaways.
More on the book:
…and the giveaway. Enter to win a copy of the book and a T-shirt below!
Quick preface: I was scheduled to have this review up on December 4th as part of the blog tour…so I am late. That lateness was the result of an unexpected trip back to northcentral Montana for my grandma’s funeral (a 12+ hour drive each way, non-stop, during good weather…which it was not). Now onto the…
We need to focus on the reason Christ was born, just not the simple fact that he was born. I believe we don't in part to a sort or commercialism in the church itself.