It starts in early November, slowly, quietly. I am hardly aware of the fact that I have tuned my iPod exclusively to John Rutter’s Christmas music. Then it’s on to the DVDs that have been hibernating the past 11 months, usually starting with Cary Grant, Loretta Young, and David Niven in “The Bishop’s Wife”, followed by “Miracle on 34th Street”, and then my newest favorite “The Polar Express”. By the third week in November the plastic tubs that hold our Christmas decorations begin to grow restless in the basement. Is it my imagination, or could those be voices coming from the storeroom calling, “Christmas is coming – let me out!”
And then it’s here: the first Sunday of Advent, the start of the Christmas season. Retailers launch into the season right after Halloween, of course, but even I will admit that’s too soon. As soon as Thanksgiving is past, though, it’s time. Time to get ready for Advent; time to get ready for Christmas; time to prepare to celebrate the birth of our Lord.
Christmas brings with it the push to buy gifts for everyone on our lists. Advertisements fill newspapers and catalogs overflow in our mailboxes, all screaming for attention: BUY! For some months I have been trying to slow the torrent of catalogs that come to our house using the catalogchoice.com website. It was when I entered the one-hundredth catalog that I realized how absurd our consumerism has become.
So this year, Pat and I will give no gifts to each other. Instead, we will do as my sisters and I have been doing the past few years: we’ll make donations in one another’s name to various charitable organizations. It was the 13th century German theologian Meister Eckhart who put it so simply when he said, “To be full of things is to be empty of God.” With more than 100 catalog merchants knocking on our door, and endless choices in local stores, still, they are only things.
Which charities to choose, that’s the difficult part. There are so many to choose from and the needs are so great. Feeding hungry children or providing much-needed medicine or health supplies leads to, among others, UNICEF, Doctors Without Borders, the American Cancer Society, or Capital Hospice. Caring for our environment and the creatures who all came from God’s hand: the Natural Resources Defense Council, Nature Conservancy, or the Humane Society. Make a donation to the World Wildlife Fund’s gift center and in return you can choose to receive the best re-usable shopping bag we’ve found. Education and learning have always been at the top of my list.
This Christmas why not give back as you give? Choices are as unique as each individual on your gift list, so you are sure to find the perfect match. This Christmas set aside gifts that are empty of God, and instead find gifts that shout out, “Glory to God in highest heaven!”
Grace & peace in this joyous Season,
Pastor Skip
