WordVixen December 16th, 2009

Is it wrong that I prefer the Maccabees Are Coming To Town to the original? Probably.

I didn't realize that Hanukkah is/was considered a minor holiday, but it's one that I've been fascinated with for years. Maybe it's time that I dig down and learn more about it.

In any case, any tradition has a tendency to change over time. The farther you are from the originating event, the harder it is to focus on, or even understand the meaning behind the traditions. And when you no longer know why you do something, what you do begins to change and new meanings take place of the old.

As for political implications, I often wonder why when one person starts a tradition, that the next person to take over must equal or beat their predecessor's efforts, even though the new person may have a totally different outlook or agenda. It seems to me that when you elect a politically correct president, you should assume that he'll perform his office in a politically correct way (in other words, a way that offends everyone, but equally so which makes it alright).

Obed December 17th, 2009

While not Jewish, I spent most of my adult life worshiping in a Messianic congregation. Hanukkah was always HUGE there. Too huge for my tastes, to be honest. It always felt like it was being sold as an alternative to Christmas, which bothered me because my studies had taught me what it was really about.

A family member of mine is a convert to Judaism and lives in Israel with his Jewish wife and their children. For a few years, when their children were very young, they had come to the States. I remember him telling me about how they felt pressure to make a bigger deal out of Hanukkah because of of how it's become a rival to Christmas among much of American Jewry. I.e. they didn't want their kids to feel bad because all the other kids in their Jewish preschool were getting tons of presents, etc. Apparently, in Israel, things are done differently.

Anyway, those are some thoughts I had reading this article. It also reminds me how among some of my Christian friends we're using the Advent season to try and bring Christmas back to a less commercially-crazy place where Jesus is the focus. Don't get me wrong, I have no (theoretical) problem with presents and the other secular elements of the season. They are what they are. But as I've gone back to some of my Christian Liturgical roots, I've come to find that I actually enjoy Christmas when I'm not worried as much about that. Now Christmas more means going to Church late one night to sing along with the bass line in the hymnal, then coming home with my jacket smelling like wood fire and incense while the taste of communion wine lingers in my mouth.

Chemical Erik December 17th, 2009

Is what has happened to Hanukkah any different than what we Christians have done by making Christmas bigger than Easter?
That's a serious question lest anyone think I'm being snide or irreverent.

WordVixen December 17th, 2009

Erik- To be honest, I'm not totally convinced that the meaning of a holiday actually has any meaning at all. As Christians, we say Jesus is the "reason for the season". I think that's only really true because He's the reason for everything. After all, the Apostles not only didn't celebrate Christmas, only two of the four Gospels even mention Jesus' birth! Supposedly Christmas as a holiday only came about from trying to convert pagans and giving them an alternative to their Yule celebrations.

Personally, I think Jesus' birth is reason enough for celebrating, though I agree that as far as meaning, Easter should be at the top. Christmas is still my favorite holiday, and will probably always be so. I just don't bother much about how other people focus on Santa Claus, presents, etc. I enjoy all of that, and I think I'd really miss it all if we stripped Christmas down to the basics. If other people don't believe in Jesus, or God at all, then why should I spoil their enjoyment of the day? Does the Bible say to only celebrate events in Jesus' life? No. In fact, the Jewish culture at the time was packed with feasts and festivals. The Bible doesn't tell us what each one was about, and I believe many of them were simply because celebrating and time off from work (our modern 2 week vacations are nothing on the multiple week long festivals and feasts they had!) is good for the psyche. Somewhere in the New Testament, it even says that you can't earn your salvation with religious observances. A lot of people are downright fanatical about keeping holidays pure. If it works for them, great, but trying to push off our beliefs on everyone else is exactly the same thing as them trying to prevent our celebrating it! Anti-nativity groups and laws, anyone?

I'm not saying that holidays are all about how they make you feel, but I do think that we try to read way too much into our celebrations. Possibly because we feel guilty over only remembering Christ's birth, death, and resurrection around the holidays celebrating those events? Or maybe over fear that we're losing ground in our communities? I don't think that we just need to follow blindly wherever the world wants to go, but I also think that it's not such a bad thing when our holidays change. It's our responsibility to remember what counts even when there are no Christmas lights, Easter eggs, or a Menorah around to remind us.

Obed December 18th, 2009

I think one of the reasons why so many Christians feel that Christmas and Easter have become artificial or meaningless even when we're focusing on Jesus rather than on the secular stuff is that they've been divorced from their contexts as so many protestants have become unfamiliar with the "Christian Year."

E.g. Christmas is not just a celebration of Jesus' birth, but it is the celebration of the Incarnation after a four-week season of repentance and anticipation when we focus on our NEED for the redeemer (i.e. Advent) and the beginning of a two-week season that celebrates God revealing himself in Christ (i.e Epiphany).

Similarly, Easter is not only the celebration of the Resurrection, but is also the culmination of a season of introspection, repentance, fasting, etc. where we again focus on our NEED for Jesus' sacrifice (i.e. Lent & Holy Week), and the beginning of season of joy the culminates in the giving of the Holy Spirt at Pentecost.

Also, through these seasons, we're cycling through the events of Jesus' life and participating in what we read in the Gospels. To me, that's neat stuff. And I'm not saying we all need to be "high church" about any of this. But I am saying that the seasons of the Christian Year can be helpful in establishing rythms that give us a greater connectedness to the bible.

BTW, this is the same thing that happens with the Jewish liturgical year as proscribed in Leviticus, only the events cycle around the Exodus and Wilderness experience (which really is the "Gospel" of OT life).

As far as taking unbelievers' fun away or taking away the secular fun, I agree with WordVixen. It's just not necessary. If I wanna focus on the Incarnation at this season, what's that to them? If they wanna focus on parties, family, and vacation, what's that to me? I don't see a war here. I just see two different worldviews that should be able to coexist in our society without ire on either part.

WordVixen December 18th, 2009

Obed- I totally get what you mean about connecting to the Bible. Even though people don't really change much where it counts from generation to generation, our lifestyles do. It can be difficult to really receive the Gospel without knowing and understanding the background of how people lived during the time it was written. That's why I'm currently reading the So That's Why Bible (out of print but still available on eBay- each section of scripture has one or more sections describing life/politics/technology/etc during the time frame), and I'm eyeing up a Bible that's supposed to show modern people what the Jewish people knew at the time, remembering that Jesus, all of his disciples, the apostles, the Sadducees and Pharisees, and all the common people had a very rich history that most of them knew inside and out, but which we tend to gloss over as we read parts that we don't understand.

Even the message of freedom doesn't grab hold of us like it should. Growing up in North America, Europe, and many other areas, people have a political and religious freedom that we never had before, but because we grew up with it, it's a matter of course for us. "I came to bring you freedom" doesn't have the same power behind it when our response is "Ok, and? We've already got that!"

I think the first time I ever "got" that freedom message was reading Veiled Freedom by Jeanette Windle (Sorry Steve) which is a suspense novel, written by a Christian woman and set in Afghanistan. Modern Islam is actually very similar to Judaism during Jesus' time on Earth. It's a good book on its own, but for opening my eyes to the difference between loving Christ, and worshiping a faceless god out of fear… well, it's priceless.

And now that I've totally lost sight of the topic again…

Chemical Erik December 21st, 2009

I do agree the liturgical seasons have a great beauty and attend a liturgical (LCMS Lutheran) church. Yet, the majority of Christians in the USA are not liturgical and make Christmas the biggest event of the year at church. I'm thinking even more after the last few comments that what has happened to Hanukkah recently is just a following by the Jewish culture of what Christian culture has done with Christmas.