By Pastor Leah Fintel Krotz, Trinity Lutheran Church, Bruning
Every year around this time, some people get worried that Christ will be taken out of Christmas. They are upset if someone wishes them “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas,” and share social media posts about the dangers of abbreviating Christmas as “X-mas.”
But did you know that the word, “holiday” is actually a shortened form of “holy day?” And what day could be more holy than Christmas, the day we celebrate God choosing to come down to become one of us, in order to personally save us from the mess we’ve made of our lives and the world?
“X-mas,” too, is not a concern for me, since I know that this shortened form of Christmas uses “X,” which is the Greek letter “Chi” that stands for Christ. “X” has been a sacred shorthand for Christ in Christian manuscripts and inscriptions since the very early days of the Christian church.
Recently, a pastor friend of mine mentioned that we often seem to think we need to “rescue” Jesus. We act as if he can’t do his saving work unless WE make sure the cultural and political climate is right or the perfect Christmas moment is staged. But actually, nothing could be farther from the truth. We don’t rescue Jesus—he rescues US!
Jesus is God, and God acts when and where and how he chooses. And he chose to be born, not in a perfect situation that was fitting for his royal status, but in a lowly barn to poor parents. He chose to come, not during the golden age of Israel’s power and status, but when they were an oppressed people under the rule of a tyrannical regime. He chose not to call down fire from heaven or armies of angels to save his life, but to be a stranger and refugee.
And ultimately, Jesus chose not to defeat sin and death with power, but with humble, sacrificial love and mercy. May we all follow his example, at Christmastime and always.
“She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” –Matthew 1:21
