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| "He's coming to your neighborhood!" |
The holiday season always reminds me of that interesting
matter called, "belief." When I was a kid, I believed that, once a year, a jolly, bearded, magical man from
somewhere up north who was constantly taking note of my behavior would find his
way through our heating vents (we didn't have a fireplace) and deliver a good
measure of toys and gifts as a return for my conscientious living. I knew these
gifts were from Santa because they said my name really big on the wrapping
paper as opposed to the gifts from my parents, which came with gift tags. Sure!
I couldn't explain how he might get around to every home in the world, but I
continued to believe all the same.
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| "Yay! We love Santa!" |
Now, I'm 30 years old, married, and live in an apartment. An
extremely well lit and decorated apartment, I might add, thanks to the good
people at the Christmas section of Target. It was with this wife and in this
apartment that I had explained to me the concept that Christmas presents from
Santa are the ones that are unwrapped under the tree. To this I responded, in
all the maturity my 30 years could offer me, with "That's stupid! He
writes you name really big on a wrapped package!"
As you can probably guess, this argument could have raged
for hours. Maybe you even wish to weigh in with your doctrinal stance on
Santa's gifting methods, but isn't it interesting how quickly our belief becomes complicated and loaded.
Somehow, my belief in Santa became nuanced and different from my wife's belief
in Santa. Now, how did we respond to these differences? ... We argued. I didn't
want to have a conversation because I didn't want to allow for the possibility
that I was wrong... because I'm not wrong... right?
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| Santa ain't afraid to throw down. |
Belief can be
stressful. So much for peace on earth and goodwill to all mankind.
But wait! Hold on a second! That's not the Christmas spirit.
It is not our beliefs in Santa that leave presents under our tree; it's Santa
who leaves the presents under our tree. We may not be able to understand all
his ways and probably never will, but this should not lead to conflict and
frustration. There is much good in gaining knowledge and formulating opinions,
but if we have lost the wonder, the awe, the magic of Santa and Christmas... well... we might have lost the
whole thing.
It reminds me of this wise saying from a very old book.
"Unless you accept God’s kingdom in the simplicity of a child, you’ll
never get in.” He obviously wasn't talking about Santa... but he was talking
about something. Something that kids get and adults forget. Something we old
folks make complicated and void of magic. No wonder we can argue about
"wrapping paper" vs. "no wrapping paper". There is not
enough magic and awe to distract us and make us the kind of people who are
infectious with joy and belief.
Maybe it's time we revisit the old stories and ancient songs
as we hunker down in front of the tree and get caught up in it. It's time to
marvel with goofy grins and starry eyes. Tis the season!
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| "We've got a little holiday spirits right here. Heyo!" |
I never remember believing in Santa, Brad did - thus started a very slightly heated discussion as to whether or not we will tell our children (that we do not have) about Santa Clause....'Tis the Season! :)
ReplyDeleteI see a slippery slope down either side of a mountain here. I would love to hear anybody else's thoughts on this...
ReplyDeleteIf I hold onto my beliefs too tightly and dogmatically, I end up becoming an ass who argues about how Santa's elves wrap gifts (obviously his elves wrap or don't wrap them, you idiots).
On the other side; however, if I allow awe and magic to direct my belief formation, I will end up becoming a relativistic hippy, swayed to and fro by each new idea (at least this is what my attendance at Biola apologetics events has taught me).
What does everybody else think about this tension?
RW
Great question, Ricky. As I posted this article I wondered how many would write this blog off as universalist hogwash. Most of the time, rather than be considered a universalist, people will err on the other side, which leads to the combative lack of conversation situations as described above.
DeleteI honestly think we have to always stay in the tension. Maybe this is part of the hard work of belief. Not that we figure it out, but that we constantly have to ask am I leaning too far this way or that.
I would seriously love to have more "conversation" on this. What does everyone else think?
This is indeed a tough question, and I think Greg is right in saying that place to be is right in the middle of the tension. This is really quite difficult, however, because it is a place that is uncomfortable, and it is a place that can easily invoke emotion.
ReplyDeleteMy personal struggle in this situation is that I have the hardest time holding on tightly to my beliefs while simultaneously loosening grip on my pride. I find that when the desire to be right supersedes the desire for legitimate discussion feelings end up being hurt or people end up tuning out. It is a delicate balance, and it feels unnatural most of the time.
I know for me personally I need to get myself out of the spotlight and allow the truth to shine through.
Thank you, Jake. Some good thoughts here.
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