“Tis the season to be jolly...”
Or is it?
The dictionary defines “jolly” as “in good spirits; gay; merry; cheerfully festive or convivial.” So, yes, it is the jolly season for children and grandchildren with holidays and presents galore.
But what about the rest of us?
In many ways ‘tis the season to be thankful. Access to COVID-19 vaccines is at hand, giving us hope for a virus-free normalcy soon. Interests rates are low, gas prices are low, and the stock market is at record levels. Most of us still have our jobs and our homes. Congress nears agreement for another round of stimulus to help those who are struggling. The nasty 2020 political season is coming to an end, though the nastiness will linger.
But, thankful is not jolly, reflecting the sober events we have endured this year.
The hope of Christmas spurs us to hope for more joy this coming year. But that hope must confront some cheerless realities.
The notion that we are “one nation, under God, indivisible” continues to unravel as bitterness and antagonism toward each other sever the ties that bind us together. As we clash with one another, we grow insensitive to mounting worldwide displacement and victimization of millions from famine, disease, natural disasters, ethnic cleansing, regional conflicts, and human trafficking. We also pay inadequate attention to state sponsored cyber wars and fractured alliances.
History suggests the underlying aggression of all this creates psychic kindling easy to ignite into major conflicts.
The “Preacher” told us in Ecclesiastes “for everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.” So, you might say the season to be jolly has passed and the time to be thankful and sober has come.
That shouldn’t be unexpected. The Christmas season itself has a history of bouncing between periods of jolly festivity and sober ceremony. The early church celebrated the death and resurrection of Jesus, but did not celebrate his birth. As a result, secular festivities for this season appeared before holy ceremonies. The ensuing competition for ascendancy between the two has continued since the Fourth Century.
The Preacher concluded his poetic series in Ecclesiastes 3 saying there is “a time for war, and a time for peace.”
Some say the season of peace enforced by a strong America is passing as America corrodes from discord within. If so, the time for major conflict may soon be upon us.
Those who do celebrate the true meaning of Christmas know something else. The holy birthday heralded peace on earth to people of good will. So long as there are sufficient men and women of good will, we can avoid major conflict at home as well as abroad.
That’s the real gift we need this Christmas, more good souls who will keep the peace among us so we can keep the peace for the world. Growing and nurturing such peacemakers is our greatest challenge.
This sober Christmas season as we give the Lord thanks and praise, let us also pray that He will touch more souls to multiply the peacemakers among us.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God” – Matthew 5:9.
Crawford is a syndicated columnist from Jackson.
10 comments:
Good article.
So many of us have it it so good for so long we think we actually deserve it and whine when there is a call for sacrifice in our lives. Yes, it is indeed a time to be thankful.
Peace on Earth, Good Will Toward Men...
One would think the first message delivered was important
Somehow though, these days, there's little New Testament and passages about loving thy neighbor and treating others as you want to be treated and turning the other cheek and the entire Sermon on the Mount get little focus.
I guess those parts of the Bible are pretty inconvenient to the politics of hate especially if you want to claim God is on your side and the other side is evil.
Being limp wristed, milquetoast centrists is how Evangelical Replublicans have allowed the demonic left to gain so much control. Enough is enough! I will not stand by why they (lacking any rules of engagement) turn this nation into a Democratic Peoples' Republic. Thank God for patriots like the Proud Boys who are taking the fight to the militant leftists!
Good article. Thanks. Hope you all have a great and blessed New Year! J.
@9:00 AM
The New Testament is so pacifist that it is almost as of the Romans (actually Flavius Josephus) cooked up the entire religion in order to quell rebellious messianic insurrectionists in occupied Judea. And the conspiracy worked so well that Ancient Rome still lives on through that creation to this day!
Ever wonder why the pagan holidays are all included in Christianity, but were merely renamed?
Pontifex Maximus was the name of the High Priest of the Imperial Cult of Jupiter before it was the title of the head of Holy Roman Catholic Church.
Weed is already legal in 4:05's community.
@4:45
Have you ever stopped to think why, after centuries of Christendom, our days and months are still named after Roman Gods or God Emperors?
Why, no, I have not 5:01. But will give your suggestion careful consideration - Next time I have absolutely nothing else to do.
Meanwhile.....don't tell me.....hold on....You're a member of the cancel-culture-club and want the names of months changed to Disney characters. Hold that thought.
12:45
Seek help. You have some sort of neurosis.
Also, turn off the retard box and read some history.
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