Whilst the Vatican mounts the Nativity scene, another beautiful life-size crib in St Peter’s Square, announcing to the world once more the sublime mystery that God, Creator of Heaven and Earth, became Man to redeem us from our sins, I had a few thoughts about our Catholic public display of this most wondrous event and those who are trying to take Christ out of Christmas.
Have you ever realised that Christmas is the only feast in the entire calendar that has the name of God marking it? Yet as Christmas approaches through the season of Advent, and Christians the world over begin to prepare themselves for the celebration of Our Saviour’s birth, both within the cloister of our hearts and also as an external demonstration of our Holy Faith, the worldly tides of Secularism start to flow against us.
Even in countries like Spain, where Catholics are greatly in the majority, loud angry voices of radical feminists, anarchists and atheists, shouting louder with every passing year, are attempting to take Christ out of Christmas. Their argument? Bethlehem scenes (known as “belenes” here) and cribs, cards and banners displaying Gospel passages of the Nativity, Christmas carols, bells joyously ringing out the call for Holy Mass, etc., are considered “offensive” to non-believers and those of other faiths! Or so we are told.
Personally speaking though, I have never heard the Muslim population in Spain complain about any of these public demonstrations of Christmas celebrations, and not even ordinary agnostics either! Only the increasingly militant left-wing groups of radicalised atheistic-secularists rage against Christians joyfully giving a public demonstration of their Faith, and this opposition in a continent that was taken out of the Dark Ages thanks to its Christian heritage!
However, everyone celebrates Christmas of course, in their own way. This often takes the form of drunken revelleries and a frantic consumerism that, if you think about it, without the faith, is all simply meaningless. What are they celebrating? They may even send cards and greet friends, hailing them with “Seasons Greetings”, or “Happy Holidays”, in order to avoid having to mention the Sacred Name of Christ. But it is the aggressive resistance from the radical groups of anti-Christians to any mention of Christmas being about Christ, who are trying their utmost to secularise the feast, that is something strangely bizarre and even rather sinister.
Our Lord Jesus Christ still touches the hearts of many people at this time of year among a large group of indifferents, who blow neither hot nor cold over faith matters. In some inexplicable way, at a time of falling birthrates and the horror of liberalised abortion, the Birth of a Baby in a stable in a little unknown village called Bethlehem, Who was to suffer and die to save us from our sins, still has the power to bring joy and wonder to many lukewarm hearts.
May we prayerfully resist attempts to turn Christmas into nothing more than a secular fiesta. May we always keep Christ in Christmas and never fail to proclaim Christ’s rightful Kingship to the whole world.
Catholicism Pure & Simple 
Personally speaking though, I have never heard the Muslim population in Spain complain about any of these public demonstrations of Christmas celebrations, and not even ordinary agnostics either! Only the increasingly militant left-wing groups of radicalised atheistic-secularists rage against Christians joyfully giving a public demonstration of their Faith, and this opposition in a continent that was taken out of the Dark Ages thanks to its Christian heritage!
Absolutely. I have had the same experience as well – I have never encountered anyone of another faith that is offended by, or even made uncomfortable by Christmas. In fact, I think most people of other religions (or none) living in the UK not only respect its celebration, but actually rather like it and what it stands for. Moreover, I think a lot of non-Christians resent the militant secularist brigade trying to remove any mention of Christ from Christmas* ‘on their behalf’, as they find it patronising, and know full well that there is really another agenda motivating their rage against Christmas.
*I was in the cinema the other day and saw a trailer which began by asking the question ‘what is Christmas really all about?’ and then proceeded to instruct the audience that it was about spending time together and preparing food (bought at the particular supermarket being advertised of course) surrounded by tinsel. Or something to that effect. As soon as the question was asked though, my immediate response was that the clue is in the name! Amazing that people manage to ignore what Christmas is really all about when it is right there in the name of the festival, but there you go…
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Agnostics , as Kathleen says, have no problem with Christmas. Why should they? The lunatic fringe that gets mad and try to bully us are just that – a tiny, lunatic, intolerant, fringe that tries to limit other folk’s behaviour – simply because they think it’s wrong.
I once heard the following exchange:
Her: “Why was the no room at the inn for Jesus?”
Him:“Because it was Christmas, of course. All booked up months in advance.”
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So the Vatican has a Christmas crib? And the Pope said that Christmas is a farce. And the Pope’s Year of Mercy is going to start with a presentation about global warming.
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The faithful will wisely ensure they have ample sunscreen.
…When did Francis ever call Xmas “a farce,” Felix?
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@ Felix Moore
No Pope would ever call Christmas “a farce” exactly! Perhaps you are referring to some words about the crazy consumerism surrounding the festivities and in which even faithful Christians find themselves ensnared? Please enlighten us. 🙂
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Michael @ 11:29 yesterday (re the advert you saw at the cinema asking the meaning of Christmas)
Last night I went to a lovely vigil in the Church for the Immaculate Conception. Afterwards, I decided to walk back through the town square to view the annual crib that is always first exhibited on the eve of Our Lady’s feast beside the decorated Christmas tree.
No crib this year beside the tree!! What a disappointment! Instead there was a kitsch display of some sparkly things that looked a bit like reindeer. No Holy Family, shepherds, angels…. nothing.
BUT, above the ‘reindeer’ was a banner announcing to the public: “FELIZ NAVIDAD” !!
Well, in my dictionary, the only meaning given for “Navidad” is “Nacimiento de Jesucristo” (Birth of Jesus Christ)… so how do the left-wing radicals currently in power in our little town here, work that one out??
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Kathleen @ 09:02:
Oh dear – sad, but unfortunately not that sort of thing is not much of a surprise anymore. But yes, I know, how they can continue using the name(s) for the festival, given their very clear association with the Birth of Christ, and simultaneously undermine that same essential meaning in every other respect, is beyond me. But then I think the groups behind these sort of decisions tend to prize ‘tactics’ over logic – as long as its effective in achieving the overall goal of undermining any memory of Christian traditions amongst the general public, then reason be damned. In the long-term though, I think this method will backfire (and already is to a certain extent), but that’s their basic game-plan I think.
On a similar note, have you seen this ridiculous report?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/12036287/Britain-is-no-longer-a-Christian-country-and-should-stop-acting-as-if-it-is-says-judge.html
Admittedly Britain is very much a post-Christian country in many ways, but the recommendations that we enshrine our cultural confusion and decline in new laws, and basically hand over our the future direction of the country lock, stock and barrel to a secular humanist agenda is not only absurd but deeply counter-intuitive. The whole thing has been well-satirised by Bruvver Eccles here (which I recommend reading after the news article itself, as you’ll probably need some laughter therapy from reading the actual news!):
http://ecclesandbosco.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/britain-is-going-to-hell-so-lets-help.html
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Thanks Michael for bringing even more craziness to our notice, re your first link.
And thank Goodness for Bruvver Eccles, who with his outstanding satyr and sense of humour “therapy”, keeps us all from jumping off the cliff in despair! 🙂
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Haha – yes, thank you Eccles indeed! He has softened the blow of many a madness in the past as well 🙂
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Indeed – a very Merry, yet sober, Xmas to Our Dear Bruv.
His colourful West Indian patois is a delight to sophisticated ears – not that Toad has any ears at all – let alone sophisticated ones.
When we read Bruv, the only recourse open to us is to laugh hysterically.
Which is a wonderful, and healing thought – in a world full of hate.
Hate of sin, of course. (and gays, and transgender people, natch.)
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