Feeling Christmas

Maybe it's just me, but lately I find Christendom lacking in its ability to dramatically convey the gravity of the Nativity story. That's not to say the well-meaning church plays and musicals aren't good in their own right; but often they fail to bring a unique perspective to the story, a freshness that ideally would be there each year.

'Tis the season? Via

I freely allow that I may not be looking in the right places. And when more and more stories like this one and this one appear this time of year, frankly, you question whether many people even understand what the season is about, much less are able to share it with others. At the least, it makes one urgently seek a fresh perspective, no matter the source.

All of which may help to explain why the two pieces that have most impacted me this Christmas season don't come from the church at all. That fact alone may make some people uncomfortable. But if the season is about "good news for all the people," then perhaps anyone is capable of understanding and re-telling the substance of that news.

Because ultimately, what moves man about the Christmas story is not the historicity of the events - the census, the manger, etc. That is not to say it's unimportant for those events to be factually accurate. It is, and I believe they are. But few are stirred to their core by a history book. It is the implication of the events that boggles the mind and draws our hearts to a different place.

I've never been a theologian. But to me, the Nativity is best encapsulated by two states of man that hopefully are never foreign: the joy of gift-giving, and reconciliation. The following two pieces are two of the best I've seen at conveying those feelings.

The first is an advertisement for a retailer in the UK, the second a music video from a group called The Killers. I don't say anything in posting them other than that they show feelings. I'm not attempting to ascribe to God all the characterstics of a child, for example, nor am I holding up The Killers as a paragon of right-living. For me, each of them offer a unique viewpoint of the Christmas story.

Without further ado:

You feel me?

AF

What he said

This blog started as an attempt at catharsis for the thoughts and perspectives that bounce around in my head. If you've been around here since 2009, you know that there isn't a particular topic or mission to which I confine myself. There are times when I blog because I think a topic needs exposure. Other times a topic is being discussed, but perhaps not in the way I feel it needs to be addressed. Other posts act as commentary on this life and the peculiar behavior some people exhibit in it.

But every so often, every commentator sees the need to step aside and let the pros do what they do best.

Enter Bob Costas, the man who does this sort of thing better than anyone else in the business. His monologue on NFL touchdown dances last week is worth further review.

I've opined about cultural rot in this space a number of times, but I would be flattered to think it was with the same kind of eloquence Costas exhibits here and in each broadcast. And while his focus is on the sports world, I think the correlation to society as a whole is very clear.

Without further ado:

What he said.

You feel me?

AF