MURDER, POLITICS, AND THE END OF THE JAZZ AGE
by Michael Wolraich
Order today at Barnes & Noble / Amazon / Books-A-Million / Bookshop
MURDER, POLITICS, AND THE END OF THE JAZZ AGE by Michael Wolraich Order today at Barnes & Noble / Amazon / Books-A-Million / Bookshop |
The last time I wrote about Christmas I thought I was being pretty polite, considering the message I was getting from my friends and relatives and neighbors at the height of the War on Christmas. To wit: How DARE you even THINK about not wishing me a Merry Christmas! Which, of course, led me to respond by pleading "not guilty"--which caused me to tell a lie at Christmas since I didn't feel the least bit guilty. Why would I?
I say "Merry Christmas" quite a bit at Christmas time. I've been saying "Merry Christmas" and "Happy Holidays" ever since I could say the words, which, I'm guessing, was around December, 1939, when I was just over two years old. Sometimes I say "Have a great holiday!" without mentioning which holiday I mean when I say that. There are times when I say "Happy New Year!", forgetting to say "Merry Christmas", even though it may be several days before Christmas. I can't help it. It just comes out.
For weeks now I've been getting those admonishing Facebook posts and emails about keeping Christ in Christmas by saying "Merry Christmas". (As if, if we don't keep repeating those words, everyone will forget who Christ was.)
I hadn't planned on writing yet another blog about the "war" on Christmas. Even Bill O'Reilly himself is getting bored with it. I can tell. (He has now declared the war is over and he won it.) But today I received the email that was the straw that finally broke it.
It was an email from a dear friend and the subject line read, " MERRY CHRISTMAS!" The picture that topped it was an old fashioned Currier & Ives etching with digital snowflakes falling, falling, falling. A colorful "Merry Christmas" banner arched over the top with a bright red ribbon wreathed with holly and ivy.
So lovely. . .
And this is what it said:
What. On. Earth. Really?? At risk of never receiving another Merry Christmas greeting from any of you ever again, I'm going to say this and I hope you will take it in the spirit in which it is given:
What is wrong with you people?
It's Christmas! Millions of us love this season. We look forward to it, we read about it, we sing about it, we who are parents can't wait to experience it with our children. We plan, we decorate, we bake, we go shopping, we party. We find a million different excuses to hug each other. We hang mistletoe just so we can kiss under it.
We fill food baskets and donate money because it's Christmas and there is nothing sadder than the thought of someone not enjoying the holidays. Our happiness is so acute we smile at perfect strangers and wish them good tidings. Joy, my friends, is busting out all over.
Many of us only go into a church at Christmas time; some of us not at all. I love the story of the baby Jesus. I love Christmas carols. (Last night I watched the St. Olaf Choir Christmas Concert from Norway on PBS. It was beautiful--a mix of the sacred and the secular--like Christmas.) I love the happy faces. The candles. Nice. All nice.
But let's talk about Christmas tradition: The Christmas song "O Tannenbaum" was based on a 16th century tune, put to secular lyrics in 1824.
Charles Dickens wrote "A Christmas Carol" in 1843. While it ends with, "God bless us, every one!", it's a morality tale about the rich holding terrible power over the poor.
Irving Berlin, a Jewish songwriter, wrote "White Christmas" in the late 1930s and it became the most popular Christmas song of all time.
Charles Schultz's "A Charlie Brown Christmas" was released in 1965 and has been shown every year since.
We love "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" and "Let It Snow" and "Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas". We love red and green and silver and gold. We love twinkly lights and Santa and snowmen. And elves. We love elves. WE LOVE CHRISTMAS!
And you're spoiling it for us.
It takes all the fun out of it when you think you get to decide for us how we're supposed to spend Christmas. For you, Jesus is the reason for the season. Amen to that. For us, it's a wonderful, happy holiday that is open to so many interpretations you could get the idea it's mainly about peace on Earth, goodwill toward mankind.
But we would never know it now, what with this sudden ruckus about putting Christ back in Christmas--as if there were sinister factions out there trying to erase him for all eternity, the main weapon being two words: "Happy Holidays".
If Christmas means Christ to you, there is no better time than the Yuletide to celebrate him. But you simply cannot butt into our celebrations, Grinch-like, throwing wet blankets all over our happy days. If there is a war on Christmas, it's a one-sided battle and it's coming from you. You can have it. For me, it's the happiest, happiest time of the year. I feel love in the air and I plan on enjoying every minute of it.
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa, and a joyous New Year.
Comments
A wonderful post, Ramona. Just great. It takes a Virgo to really understand the joy of Christmas.
by Oxy Mora on Sat, 12/20/2014 - 11:31am
Is that what it is? Our being Virgos? Lol, I don't know, but I do love Christmas and I can't remember another time when it has been so politicized. Who would have ever thought?
by Ramona on Sat, 12/20/2014 - 12:27pm
You may find this interesting. Back in the 17th century, Cromwell banned Christmas Carols.
http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20141219-when-christmas-carols-were-banned
The Puritan's also practiced this when they came to New England.
by trkingmomoe on Sun, 12/21/2014 - 5:42am
The promoters of the Christmas war, remind me of the Temple merchants whose tables were overturned by Jesus.
Today’s merchants of Christmas, religious and commercial interests, don’t want anything to overturn their money making plans.
It isn’t about the Sacred teachings of Jesus; these new merchants really care about; just as it wasn’t for the ancient merchants who defiled the Sacredness of the Temple when Jesus showed his disgust over their greediness.
The Church leaders and their Christmas supporters , putting financial gain, ahead of pure worship.
Churches benefit from promoting this war because their parishioners thinking they are rendering a Sacred obligation, never understanding the true nature of Christmas.
The commercial interests whose only concern is capitalizing on the ignorance. Not caring about it, other than it's profitableness.
There are people who make money in war and this is just another cause to fight for monetary gain.
Be safe Ramona and may God bless us everyday.
by Resistance on Sat, 12/20/2014 - 1:31pm
Very thoughtful, Resistance. Thank you. More than anything, Christmas has always been a time for sharing love. I think Jesus would find that a worthy use of his day. May your holidays be joyful. Merry Christmas.
by Ramona on Sat, 12/20/2014 - 1:34pm
There never was a war on Christmas. That's just a strawman set up by the right wing to rile up the base. For example as long as Christians have been celebrating Christmas by sending cards Christians have been sending cards that say, "Happy Holidays." Now its suddenly not ok. Then the politicians get voted in based on the faux outrage they created and create legislation that gives Christmas gifts to all their rich buddies. And its Ho Ho Ho all the way to the bank. The sheer stupidity of the conservative base is astonishing.
by ocean-kat on Sat, 12/20/2014 - 2:28pm
When I was a child, someone taught me to crochet. I loved doing it, but I only knew the barest minimum of how, so my efforts were pretty sad. I decided to make a shawl for my mother for Christmas. So I did ... I couldn't do corners, so it was more or less a big, holey scallop shaped thing with two pieces of yarn to tie it around the neck. I couldn't wait to give it to her, I just knew it was the best present ever!
My mother wore that incredibly ugly thing to church that Christmas morning. I can still see her standing beside me, smiling proudly as we sang. I remember the look in her eyes when she told friends I'd made it for her.
That's love. And that's what this season will always mean to me -- it doesn't cost a thing to give someone the greatest gift they'll ever receive.
Merry Christmas, everyone! I wish you love.
by barefooted on Sat, 12/20/2014 - 3:10pm
Too nice to clutter up with a comment, but I will anyway. Just Lovely.
by Oxy Mora on Sat, 12/20/2014 - 7:20pm
Salon did a 2 articles on the author and professor Reza Aslan. Very interesting read, if you have not read them yet. The articles was published last month. He talks about how Christianity historically began and the start of Evangelical Fundamentalism. I think it ties in with the war on Christmas. It also gave me lots to think about.
http://www.salon.com/2014/11/17/reza_aslan_destroys_biblical_literalism_the_gospels_are_absolutely_replete_with_historical_errors_and_with_contradictions/
http://www.salon.com/2014/11/13/reza_aslan_shatters_gop_beliefs_jesus_from_history_was_the_nightmare_of_bill_o%E2%80%99reilly/
by trkingmomoe on Sun, 12/21/2014 - 8:01am
This about sums it up for me.
Lyrics from Jackson Browne.
THE REBEL JESUS
All the streets are filled with laughter and light
And the music of the season
And the merchants' windows are all bright
With the faces of the children
And the families hurrying to their homes
While the sky darkens and freezes
Will be gathering around the hearths and tables
Giving thanks for God's graces
And the birth of the rebel Jesus
Well they call him by 'the Prince of Peace'
And they call him by 'the Savior'
And they pray to him upon the seas
And in every bold endeavor
And they fill his churches with their pride and gold
As their faith in him increases
But they've turned the nature that I worship in
From a temple to a robber's den
In the words of the rebel Jesus
Well we guard our world with locks and guns
And we guard our fine possessions
And once a year when Christmas comes
We give to our relations
And perhaps we give a little to the poor
If the generosity should seize us
But if any one of us should interfere
In the business of why there are poor
They get the same as the rebel Jesus
Now pardon me if I have seemed
To take the tone of judgment
For I've no wish to come between
This day and your enjoyment
In a life of hardship and of earthly toil
There's a need for anything that frees us
So I bid you pleasure
And I bid you cheer
From a heathen and a pagan
On the side of the rebel Jesus
Merry Christmas, Ramona. Merry Christmas Everyone.
by wabby on Sun, 12/21/2014 - 8:45am
Brilliant! Merry Christmas, Flowerchild.
by Ramona on Sun, 12/21/2014 - 9:58am
As an anecdote, when I was in Japan in November, I heard Christmas music playing in the stores (including a very kawaii version of We Wish You a Merry Christmas), and Christmas trees in hotels and in the main lobby of the headquarters of the Japanese company I was working with there.
As only about 1-2% of the Japanese are Christians, these were obviously not religiously inspired.
by Verified Atheist on Mon, 12/22/2014 - 11:41am
Interesting. Before the Chinese took over, the Japanese were manufacturing our Christmas decorations. Maybe they took a liking to them?
by Ramona on Tue, 12/23/2014 - 7:46am