Want to lose the War on Christmas? Surrender Advent

It's Advent, not Christmas, and losing sight of this fact has cost us Christmas.

Want to lose the War on Christmas? Surrender Advent.

We Christians have gone out of our minds, arguing about Starbucks cups and greeters who (correctly) say "Happy Holidays" in place of "Merry Christmas." In all the bustle of the season, we have forgotten that Advent is a thing. The strangest thing is, we know deep down, how we celebrate the season is fundamentally at odds with our Christian belief --but we just can't stop ourselves. What's going on?

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - It's all over, except the crying. Christians are complaining about how the season preceding Christmas Day has been whitewashed of all religious symbolism. Yet, I say, "good riddance!"

First, we must acknowledge that we Christians are not the only people in the world. Jesus made it clear that we are to have regard for those who are unlike us. He spoke about Gentiles, and he spent time with tax collectors, and told a parable about the good deed of a Samaritan man. As a result, it is appropriate to say things like "Happy Holidays" during this season. The Jews celebrate Hanukah, the atheists now have Festivus, and others have Kwanza. We may not appreciate the significance of these holidays, but to those who celebrate them, they're important for reasons we may not appreciate. And that's okay, we're not here to judge.

Furthermore, we have people saying "Merry Christmas" well before Thanksgiving, and stores now set out Christmas displays even before Halloween! The most curious thing of all, is that it's not even Christmas. It's ordinary time, or at best, Advent. Can I get a Happy Advent, just once?

Advent isn't a season of merry making either. But because we Christians have surrendered Advent, we've lost the War on Christmas. We're fighting absurd battles against cups and holiday greetings when we've already surrendered the war.

As Christians, we should spend the four Sundays and the weeks before Christmas preparing ourselves for the return of Jesus Christ. Advent is supposed to be a form of mini-Lent, a time of prayer and fasting and purification. We need to be willing to listen to and obey God's will for us, so as the Virgin Mary replied to Gabriel, we too can answer, "Let it be done according to thy will."

We surrendered Advent a long time ago, relegating it to the prison of Sunday Mass alone. A few of us still observe Advent traditions in the house, but they invariably compete with Christmas decorations, rituals and activities. And of course, the irrational exuberance of commercialism. We have Christmas parades, but no Advent processions. We spend more time on choosing wrapping paper than we do in prayerful devotion.

In the United States, Advent is virtually extinct. We killed it ourselves by participating in the early Christmas madness. We party when we should be fasting. We obnoxiously insist people say "Merry Christmas" around us, when it isn't even Christmas yet. Then, when Christmas arrives, we box everything up and act like it's ordinary time. How many people say Merry Christmas until January 6?

Because we have allowed retailers to set the tone for the season and to influence our daily behavior, we have surrendered Advent. As a result, we have lost the War on Christmas. Welcome to post-Christian America, where the last few of us live as exiles in our own nation. We flex our emaciated muscles by boycotting Starbucks and saying "Marry Christmas" during Advent. This is what the public sees instead of devoted people trying to grow closer to Christ. No wonder we're losing respect in the public forum.

If we want to take back Christmas and to keep Christ in Christmas, we need to retake Advent first. The good news, is that Advent is a time of individual preparation, so nobody can stop us from having an amazing Advent. Nobody can stop us from paying, fasting, and from using our time to prepare for the coming of Jesus Christ, except ourselves.

Perhaps if we step away from the absurdity of the secular world and into the reason of the spiritual world, we will find we are less stressed and more at peace, and we won't care about Starbucks cups and holiday greetings, we'll be too focused on Jesus Christ for that! It's worked for me, and maybe the advice will work for you too. Good luck out there, and Happy Advent!

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