Brett Armstrong's Blog, page 11

Pictures of Christmas

The message of Christmas is more potent than we often think about. Christ had to come. Had to die. Had to rise. I think we seldom realize, if Christ hadn’t come no one in all of history would be in Heaven. Not righteous Noah, not Moses, or faith-filled Abraham. Not even David, “a man after God’s own heart” (Acts 13:22). The author of Hebrews says it like this: “These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth… And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.” (Hebrews 11: 13, 39-40, ESV)

 

Part of the problem is we focus a little too much on the division in the Bible between Old and New Testament. We think God worked one way in the old and a different way in the new. But that’s only a partial picture, because it was always God’s intention to deliver mankind from sin. (Genesis 3:15) There was one plan and everyone who ever came to God had to come through the same door (John 10:7-9, 14:6), just from different vantage points. In the Old Testament they had only a picture of what was to come. It’s like a photograph. You can take a picture of the beach and look at it and have a strong sense of what it is like, but until you step out onto the sands and feel the sun-warmed grains grind between your toes and taste the scent of the salty air and feel the rush of the sea breeze as it sweeps over the waves and brings them crashing at your feet… you don’t quite perceive the beach as it is.

 

The Old Testament people didn’t fully grasp what the Messiah was like, having to live in faith. And then, Advent! The first Christmas. Now we know. But lest we become arrogant, we too are living with a picture we don’t yet fully grasp. Not of Christ’s first coming, but His second. Of the land we yearn for with God. (Romans 8:22-25) In life now we have glimmers, pictures of what it will be like, the Apostle Paul called it “seeing in a mirror dimly.” (1 Corinthians 13:12) So we look with hope-filled expectation for the day when our faith is sight and we no longer look to pictures but stand on the proverbial shore and take in the fullness.

 

Christmas is a celebration of the single event in human history upon which all of time hinges and unites all men past, present, and yet to come, in faith that the pictures we have been given through the ages are coming into beautiful realities, which we couldn’t begin to fathom till He came and shone the Light on them.

 

 

Acts 13:22: “And when he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king, of whom he testified and said, ‘I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.’”

 

Genesis 3:15: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring[a] and her offspring; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.”

John 10:7-9: So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.”

 

John 14:6: Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

 

Romans 8:22-25: For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.  And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.  For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees?  But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

 

1 Corinthians 13:12: For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

 

No Throwaways

So, I went to see Rogue One: A Star Wars Story today. As a lo ng-time fan of Star Wars, I have to say it was everything I wanted The Force Awakens to be. That I liked the movie at all came as a surprise, because for a long time I held a healthy level of skepticism about its value as a story. After all, the ultimate outcome of the movie has been known since 1977. I called it a “throw-away story.” As much as the movie helped dispel that notion, it was more so the realization that knowing the outcome of events doesn’t make the work leading to them any less important.

As a Christian, I believe God has already told us the end of all things. In fact, God’s predictive prowess is a hallmark of His incomparability: “I declare the end from the beginning, and from long ago what is not yet done, saying: My plan will take place, and I will do all My will.” (Isaiah 46:10, HCSB)

In keeping with this, He revealed to the Apostle John His plan for the consummation of the millennia of work He had done in bringing mankind back into perfect relationship with Himself. For a brief glimpse, see Revelation 21 and 22 (some excerpts are on this page). So we already know how the story of mankind, the world, all of history ends. God wins and with Him all who acknowledge, seek, and submit to Him. Suffering over. Death at an end. Knowing the end, however, does not diminish every day between now and then. Our suffering, our struggles, our choices matter. Not just for ourselves, but for others.

When we surrender ourselves to God, and allow Him to work in and through us we play the role in God’s story for which we were designed. Jyn, Arno, K2, and the whole cast of Rogue One played a major role in Star Wars, even while being a small part. They only obtained the Death Star plans, whereas Luke, Han, and the other classic characters destroyed it. Likewise, though our part in the story is miniscule compared to Christ’s and we may only provide in our lifetime the groundwork for others to do great things, without the groundwork those things will never come to pass.

Perhaps, in part, my enjoyment of Rogue One is owing to a respect for the quiet, smaller scale heroes. Now I know, no story is a throwaway. Least of all the one God is composing in your life and mine.

 

Our Real Country

I posted the quote from CS Lewis’ The Last Battle for two reasons. One is, Tuesday was CS Lewis’ birthday and of course I’m a fan of his writing. The second is a bit more complicated.

Yesterday, I was visiting my dad in the hospital, where he’s been for the past week after having a major surgery. We talked about things in the news and among them was the horrific fire in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. Towards the end, my dad simply said, “There are some awful things that happen in this world…”

There are awful things in this world and about this world, and knowing what my dad has gone through and having been to Gatlinburg and seen how beautiful it was compared to the devastation there now, the evil of the world seems all the more potent. Some people see it as evidence God can’t be real, but I see it the opposite way. If you take the book of Genesis for truth, then in the beginning, man had a perfect world with God, but still rejected God. Man needs God fundamentally, whatever man’s protests, so why would God leave everything perfect? We would be terminally blinded by hollow substitutes for what we need most.

Which is why I cherish the quote I picked. To me, CS Lewis got it so right. God wants us to come to Him, but He knows doing it in obvious ways all the time won’t be any more effective than it was in Eden. It’s the awful things in this world that force us to look for Him, to seek the Healer in the midst of our hurt. And in counterpoint, He made some of this world to resemble the one we really long for, reminding us of the home we long for. A home to be shared with Him, this time by choice as much as by design.

So, even when beautiful things are destroyed and the things in life that make us feel safe and solid are shaken, we have hope and look for those glimmers of something better. Glimmers of Christ’s country, our country.

DQR Turns 2!

Happy belated Halloween to everyone! October 31st is also a special day for me, as it marks the second anniversary of Destitutio Quod Remissio being published. To celebrate, everyone who likes this post and/or leaves a comment will be entered in a randomized drawing to get a FREE COPY (e-book) of DQR. I’ll be giving away two copies and the drawing winners will be announced on Friday, when I plan to send out my first writer’s newsletter.

I haven’t been as on top of my blog as I should be, but there is some big news on the horizon and hopefully I’ll be getting back to regularly updating things here too. Not to over emphasize Facebook, but I’ve been a bit more on top of it, so for some more timely information, check out my author page there as well: https://www.facebook.com/brettarmstrongwv/

DQR: A Light Undimmed – Part II

I realized for anyone looking for updates to the blog, it might help to post the second and third parts of the DQR companion novella, A Light Undimmed, as individual blog posts, rather than updating the original post over the course of the whole release. And if not, it should at least serve to keep things nicely organized.

DQR: A Light Undimmed – Part II: Gaining the World -Chapter 2 – August 20th

DQR: A Light Undimmed – Part II: Gaining the World – Chapter 1 – August 7th

Something New

 

I’ve had a pretty busy schedule writing wise.  I’m working on four different novels right now, one of them being the frequently requested sequel to DQR, called A Light in the Darkness.  Along the way, I was inspired to do something I’ve never really done before:  I’m writing a novella.

DQR: A Light Undimmed, is set during the events of DQR and really highlights some aspects of the novel which impacted Marcus but couldn’t be explored or even fully discussed because they were beyond his scope of awareness and would have bogged down DQR too much to try to work in.  So, A Light Undimmed starts during a key scene in DQR and follows a group of smaller secondary characters present in the scene and shows those parts of DQR‘s events Marcus could never see, but really help to give a fuller picture.  The novella began as a short story, a means of showing off in short fiction my writing to prospective agents and editors.  However, as is often the case with me, the story wouldn’t stick to a few thousand words.  Rather than try to formally publish it, since this is a corollary to DQR, I thought it would be nice to let everyone who enjoyed DQR have a little more to enjoy while they patiently (very much appreciated) wait on A Light in the Darkness.  So, starting today, every week I’ll release a “chapter” of A Light Undimmed.  There are three parts to the novella and there’ll be a little extra break in between each part’s release.  Part I has four chapters, and the link below is to the first of them.

For those of you who haven’t read DQR, A Light Undimmed is a nice place to get a feel for it, though it will contain indirect spoilers for events in DQR.  For those of you who have read DQR and are as excited about this as I am, thank you for reading and your support.  I hope everyone enjoys this new dimension of DQR, and as always, I pray it will honor the Lord.

DQR: A Light Undimmed – Part I – Chapter I

 

Celebrating Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow

 

Today is a special day for me. Two years ago today I found out DQR had won the CrossBooks writing contest! It’s been a wonderful two years filled with some highs and lows personally as well as in the realm of writing. I got to see God doing some amazing things with the book and bringing opportunities to me I never would have found on my own.

I’ve learned a lot along the way. Much of it about the nature of marketing and publishing, even more about the relationship between the writer and reader. I haven’t gotten an agent or had any publishers accept the new books I’ve been working on, but I know the Lord will take care of everything. He’s provided a tremendous amount of new stories for me to work on; so many I’m struggling to juggle all of them at the same time, but it’s a good challenge to face.

Reflecting on the contest and DQR, I’ve been thinking a lot about what the book means to me, and about the message at the heart of the story, which shaped the characters. While in my contemplative mood, I came across an article about Christians suffering violent persecution abroad. Not long after I also encountered a handful of articles throwing into sharp relief the disparity between the core of Christianity and the prevailing worldviews of Western society.   That’s why I chose to include the picture above.  I drew it while imagining what I wanted the book’s cover to look like. Through the complications of publishing I didn’t get to have this as the cover, but the current cover and this picture carry the same message: sincere love. It’s the kind of love Christ showed from the cross towards those who deserved the punishment He paid on their behalf. Forgiving even as He suffered for choosing to forgive.

In the concept cover, one of DQR’s characters is being led out into the Coliseum to face death. On his back is a scar seared into his back by a heated iron cross his tormentors laid upon him, along with the scars of a scourging. When he enters the arena on Saturnalia, one of the biggest pagan festivals of ancient Rome and a key day to hold gladiatorial games; he does so without wavering in his faith. This character was willing to suffer all of it and more in order to be sincere in his love for Christ, which compelled him to proclaim that love before others.

My heartfelt hope while writing Destitutio Quod Remissio remains today. The hope that whatever this world may wield against me, I will not waver in my faith or sincere love for the One Who forgave me knowing it would only bring Him undue hurt and suffering. And, whether two years or twenty, I will not forget He is the reason and source for my writing. Whatever the Lord chooses to do with the things He inspires me to write, I will always be thankful for the privilege to write and be a part of His working in this world.

Dreaming About Today and Tomorrow

 

You would think, having written Destitutio Quod Remissio, which is so thoroughly about and filled with being bold and faithful to Christ knowing persecution will come, but showing love, even to enemies, to whatever end, is something I’d have a firm grasp on. This is one reason I feel God sometimes leads us to write things even before we fully understand them. I had an intellectual understanding of persecution and even some heartfelt convictions, but this was different. Last night, though I had a very vivid dream, and was living it.

 

A lot of my dreams have seemingly intricate details and can become pretty complicated, but this was vivid in its emotional content. In the dream, my wife and I were out of town for a few weeks having fun on a vacation. In the interim, a group very similar to Boko Haram moved into our city and began to violently oppress and persecute my friends and family just for knowing us as Christians. When we returned, everyone was different. Wary, hardened to us.  A friend may have betrayed us into the terrorists’ hands towards the end of the dream.

It was impossible not to be shaken by the dream and notice some very difficult realities.  One being, in the dream, my wife was terrified and begged me not to post anything Christian (or at all really) online after we discovered the price others paid. My dream-self held her as she sobbed uncontrollably, afraid for us and others. The request was fair, after all, I don’t ever want to cause harm to my wife or family or friends or anyone for that matter. The possibility my choices could lead to others suffering was a staggering thing to face. Of course, it isn’t really us choosing to hurt people when we follow Christ. Those who oppose the Lord Jesus Christ choose to hate and harm others and probably would do so irrespective of our committed faith in the Lord.

 

A second torturous element was the bitterness and anxiety my surviving friends and family showed me because of my faith. I was shunned, hated really. The same kind of rejection faced by believers in some of the darkest places in this world. It’s always easy to imagine dealing with it in stride. Just taking what happens and pressing forward in faith, because it is for the Lord. I’m sure the Lord does give us grace to make it through such hardship, He promised to never leave us or forsake us. Seeing the disgust in my friend’s eyes though, the fear in my family’s, and knowing they wished they didn’t know me because of it or I hadn’t become a Christian because of it, that hurt in ways I could never have imagined.

 

Last, and most painful, when the terrorists came for me in the dream, there was no fighting back or fighting them off. No magical dream heroics or even a pitiful defense- none of that carried the powerful testimony needed to change lives and make a difference.  So, in the dream I faced being martyred with those I care about most for our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. It was clear in the dream, whatever I may have hoped about it, no one was going to emerge unscathed or untouched.  There was a moment where I had to decide, was it really worth losing my life in this world to continue to be a follower of Christ? To have all the world around me, everything I’ve touched and experienced and am comfortable with, to have it all ripped away in one moment and allow myself to be flung into eternity, trusting my Lord Who I’ve never seen to ferry me to His side in the land He promised awaits. A moment after I decided I could do nothing else, I woke up.

 

You can guess I was a little shaken up afterwards. The whole thing felt so real, the emotions and events almost palpable. Of course, it hit me thereafter, what I’d just experienced is just a taste of how it is abroad in so many places.  For local believers and converts, but also for the missionaries who chose to follow Christ’s command to make disciples of all nations and go.

 

The choice to follow Christ is all or nothing, whether it costs you every relationship you have, your livelihood, and even your life, or not, the decision is still the same and must be made.  The helplessness, the sorrow for my loved ones was so acute, and the pain of how real it all felt made me realize we are so blessed in our country to have freedom to choose right now and we ought to pray fervently for our brothers and sisters in Christ who make that incredible commitment irrespective of the cost and try to emulate that passion, faith, and zeal. I’ve always wanted my life to count for something and believed that if I wasn’t blessed to go to the Lord in the rapture, I’d want to give my life in service to Christ. Facing a shadow of it, I can say it cannot be any easy thing. It is worth it though. Because as real as the dream felt and as real as the sense of loss I faced felt, what we have waiting for us is so much better, is so much more than what we leave behind. The Apostle Peter called our hope of eternity with the Lord:

“Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. According to His great mercy, He has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that is imperishable, uncorrupted, and unfading, kept in heaven for you. You are being protected by God’s power through faith for a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. You rejoice in this, though now for a short time you have had to struggle in various trials so that the genuineness of your faith—more valuable than gold, which perishes though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. You love Him, though you have not seen Him. And though not seeing Him now, you believe in Him and rejoice with inexpressible and glorious joy, because you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”  (1 Peter 1:3-9, HCSB)

 

I think if we can focus more on the aspect of being with the Lord, which Paul said is far better than being here (Philippians 1:21, 23), it will help us hold on to our hope for eternity more sincerely. Because eternity isn’t about us living forever. Mankind had that in the Garden of Eden, and still craved something else more. Eternity is about getting to have our selves desires supplanted, because our spirits are sated with the goodness of honoring God as we always should have, and letting Him take His rightful place in our hearts. The beauty and pleasure of such an existence, where we’ll want nothing more than what we’ve always needed, and to have that desire of our hearts fulfilled; I think that can help give us courage not just to face the end, but also to face what we live through now. If dying for the Lord isn’t easy, living is at least and even harder. The Apostle Paul, while saying being with Christ was better than life in this world added, that even so, he was torn, because he also wanted to stay on, to be useful to the Lord in this life (Philippians 1:23-26), and I think keeping God in the right perspective and His promise for eternity in the right perspective is key to living out our calling in this life as we should as well.

Some Winter Wonderings

 

Something hit me pretty hard with the crazy snow we got the past few days.  The things you go out for in bad weather really show what matters to you… and it hurt for a while to realize that church was not something I would have ventured out for over this weekend.  Because of the snowfall I would really have been forced to walk (trudge really) through the snow for about five miles to get to church.  Needless to say it is cold outside and with about 1.5 feet of snow it would not be a pleasant experience.  Totally understandable to not go out in those conditions, right?  Except, there are people, Christians who believe in the same God, who accepted the same Lord, Jesus Christ, and yet are willing to risk ostracization, torture and prison, and death to attend one church service.  OUCH.  Do they belong to our Lord more, or are somehow asked to be more committed because that’s just how things are in some places? 

It’s more though than not risking injury or discomfort to attend a church gathering.  We don’t have to physically meet in our modern world, some members of my church talked over Facebook on the church’s Facebook page since services were cancelled.  That’s fine, and was nice. 

The problem is even when absolutely NOTHING hinders us physically, our attitudes towards church tend to be rather poor and disinterested, distracted at best.  Not always, of course, and not everyone, but I’m certainly guilty of showing up with lackluster enthusiasm and respect for the sacred and precious event of meeting as one body to express a fraction of the thanksgiving and reverent awe the God Who spoke the universe into existence deserves.  How absurd the attitudes we can get must seem to those believers risking their lives to attend one service. Our infinite God cares enough to number the hairs on our head and meet the very creatures who rebelled from the beginning and rebel against Him daily, to speak to our hearts and hear our words and we treat it like a chore. Like it’s an obligation or we’re doing God a favor showing up.  We can’t say we understand God, the God of the Bible, and accept Jesus Christ as Lord, just like those believers risking everything, and then not be invested, surrendered, enthralled 100% in every opportunity He gives us to meet with Him and His people.

 

Keeping Christ Daily

 

At the start of December, I had intended to write a post about “keeping Christ in Christmas” and discussing the conflict between Christians who say this and unbelievers who say Christmas is more or less a secularized rip off of pagan traditions anyway. As you can guess, there was a certain amount of contentiousness in such an article, though you can read short summaries of my discoveries from preparing that post at the end of this one. I kept putting off finishing it and posting it and the other day I read an article that helped me refocus my own thoughts.

It is sufficient to summarize my overall findings to say Christmas as we know it today wasn’t solidified and celebrated in western culture until right around the turn of the 20th century. The earliest references to celebrations of Christ’s first coming/birth can be found in the early church fathers’ writings and did not carry most of the traditions we now associate with the holiday. In fact, through the many centuries and millennia plus of its celebration Christmas was at times a somber time of reflection and nothing more. Gift giving was really only popularized around the 1850’s in America, and quickly seized upon by us businesses and gifts from older traditions were much less emphasized than now.

This leads me back to my original post. We keep shouting to the obstinate unbelievers, pagans of our day, to keep Christ in Christmas. I believe that is problematic. For a couple of reasons that reduce down to simply observing that we Christians tend to barely keep Christ in Christmas, why would they? Worse still, I fear the greatest deficit in our culture isn’t our failure to keep Christ in Christmas, that is merely a symptom, but rather our utter failure to keep Christ in every day of the year. To live our lives in this passing world as strangers looking to a better land ahead. Our love, our fellowship, our words and our deeds all need to reflect that we belong to Christ today tomorrow and forever. We are His ambassadors and if we fail to live as such each day of the year otherwise we will fail at Christmas and poorly represent our Master to those on the outside looking in who are already looking for a cause to be dubious of our faith.

This is not to say we cannot or should not celebrate Christmas. Or even enjoy the traditions we’ve grown accustomed to, which, whatever their origins, have now for us a deep symbolism of Christ’s coming. After all, we are to take captive every thought for Christ and if anything is excellent or praiseworthy to think on such things. As the article I read pointed out, it is important to have days of remembrance, to pass on lessons to the next generation. In these capacities Christmas is vitally important, but we have to get past our cultures definition of what Christmas is and how it is to be celebrated. This is as much a task for me as anyone. It is growing painfully apparent that our culture is morally regressing to a state not all that different from 1st century Rome. If we are to share our faith as commanded and give it a reasoned defense and represent our great God, Jesus Christ, to a world perishing for want of knowing and embracing Him, then we have to come out from among the unbelievers and be separate. It is painful and invites criticism but Christ was mocked, beaten and executed because of His adherence to the truth. If we could even marginally reduce the corrupting influences creeping into our homes what kind of marvelous difference would all the nation see? Perhaps none. Perhaps all that would happen is we would be ridiculed and reviled our entire lives in this world, but I cannot imagine God would forever look on the sincerity of our faith and love for Him with indifference. In short, if we want the world to respect the real meaning behind Christmas and embrace its message, we must first do so ourselves with all sincerity and do so every day of the year. The most marvelous part of Christmas isn’t just that God came as a man and walked among us for a time, but that because of His brief time with us, we can likewise part from our temporary home here with certainty of the hope we shall get to walk with Him where He is ever after. That I believe is keeping Christ in Christmas.

 

—————————————CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS——————————————————-

December 25th– There is a persistent argument floating around in popular culture that Christmas is just a retooled pagan holiday and that secularizing Christmas is reasonable, because Christians ripped off the original meaning of the holiday from the start. To be generous, that is a bit misleading. It is true, Christmas falling on December 25th does not in fact coincide with the time Scriptures suggest the Lord Christ was born. From contextual evidence in the relevant passages we know it was more likely Spring. There are a couple interesting things at play here though that make it a bit unfair to say Christmas was totally ripped off. First, the Roman (pagan) holiday usually cited as being the repurposed celebration is Saturnalia. For those who have read Destitutio Quod Remissio, you will remember a very large edition of the games was held on that day and ended in a very sorrowful way for one of the characters. Besides boasting some of the more elaborate and important ludi (games), Saturnalia was a time of gift giving to others and general merrymaking. Which sounds a bit like Christmas. However, Christmas, in its earliest references (hinted at by early church fathers but textually established in the 4th Century AD) did not necessarily include gift giving. Nor does history explicitly record the day being a practice of syncretism (taking something and giving it a new meaning which previously was not inherent to that thing). What is recorded is the conviction by some early church fathers that Christ was conceived on March 25th, or 14 Nissan in Jewish reckoning, which coincides with the date rabbis believed was the day God began His creative work and the day Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt (the latter being more solid as it is the day of preparation for Passover). Thus, nine months from March 25th on the Gregorian calendar is December 25th. Again, this isn’t accurate to what we know about Christ’s birth narratives, though it does remove the need to fret over how pagan the selection of December 25th is for Christmas. And though it’s best not to give tremendous stock to rabbinic traditions without a strong basis in Scripture, it is interesting to think that Christ was born in the Spring and that does potentially coincide with 14 Nissan/March 25th. Incidentally, 14 Nissan as the day of preparation for the Passover was important in the Passion narratives as well.

Christmas Tree – A more popular target for secularization than the date of Christmas is the Christmas tree. People insist on calling it a holiday tree. In all fairness that is still a poor choice of terminology for the tree, given the idea is distancing the holiday from religious connotations and holiday is literally “holy day.” It is fair to point out, however, that many pagan religions venerated trees. Since the practice of using Christmas trees really comes out of Germany – even the modern era, Christmas trees weren’t popular in the US and Britain until after German-born Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, put up a Christmas tree in Windsor Castle in 1841. There is some folklore about the Hessians Washington faced when crossing the Delaware in the Battle of Trenton being so caught up in festive feelings because of Christmas tree present that they made merry and thus were caught unprepared, but no one is certain there was a Christmas tree and in any case, it was popularized until the 19th Century. But I digress, the early origins of Christmas trees, as the story goes, involves Saint Boniface, a Christian missionary to Germany in the 7th and 8th Centuries, interrupting a pagan festival involving an oak tree, which was a symbol sacred to the Norse god Odin. Boniface is said to have cut down the oak and a fir tree sprouted from the hewn trunk. Boniface then used the fir tree’s evergreen nature and triangular shape to evangelize the pagans; teaching them about God’s eternal nature and everlasting life in Christ, as well as the triune nature of God. Whether one accepts this origin story or not, it isn’t a clear case of syncretism, though I will allow the argument is better there. This all is immaterial, however, if Christmas tree usage arose from Medieval mystery plays, which featured recreations of biblical scenes (such as the fall of man with the tree of the knowledge of good and evil) which were sometimes held on Christmas day.

 

Candy Cane -The candy cane is one surprising source of controversy. This is because it is widely held, even by reputable sources and possible church history that candy canes originated in Cologne, Germany in 1670. A choirmaster is said to have given them to his young charges to keep them from idle mischief. He hooked the pure white sugary sticks to remind them of the shepherds who visited Christ. However, because there is no literary evidence of this before much later, some reject this story outright. In fact, the candy cane is very mysterious. It appears suddenly in literature in the early 1800’s as being white hooks used on trees (a practice originating in Germany as one might expect) and just as suddenly appeared at the start of the 20th Century to have three red stripes and have its current peppermint flavor. In absence of evidence, speculation and bitter dissension seem to be the alternatives to the origination of the candy cane. Like Christmas itself and the Christmas tree, the candy cane seems to be a point of conflict over Christian symbolism and a push to secure secularization. So, simply put, we aren’t entirely certain when or where or how candy canes came about. Only that they have a remarkable number of Christian symbols readily identifiable and a tradition tying them to origins in emphasizing the fundamental source of Christmas. Whether its purpose was truly such, is unknown.

Carols/Caroling— The word “carol” is derived from the French “carole,” which refers to singing and circle-dancing. Carols, as we know them, have a storied past. The first recorded Christian hymns are found from the 2nd Century AD on, and were more focused on teaching doctrines to prevent heresies like Arianism. Over time, these songs were kept in Latin by the Catholic Church and fell out of favor, though 9th and 10th Century writers introduced a familiar pattern of rhyming lyrics. By the 12th Century, St. Francis of Assisi began pushing for festive music in local languages. Some carols like “Good King Wenceslas” are direct products of the Middle Ages and others like “Adestes Fidelis” (O Come All Ye Faithful) may have 13th Century roots but was finalized in form in the 18th Century. The majority of familiar carols are the products of the 18th and 19th Centuries, though a few in more recent times have gained popularity (like “Mary, Did You Know?” – 1984). Caroling itself has some pagan parallels, but began in earnest during the Middle Ages and has corollary practices tied to other major Catholic feast days. Though it is just as likely to have arisen of its own in response to restrictions on singing of songs in local languages in medieval churches, which propounded Latin exclusivity.   Either way, it became cemented as a tradition in Britain during the 19th Century.

Plum/Figgy Pudding—Again uncertain, but pudding making originated with meat preservation practices in Medieval Europe which by necessity happened at the end of fall. Gradually, as meat preservation improved the puddings became more fruit and dessert centric until in 1830 the figgy pudding such as is known became widely popular in Britain. Traditions of making it on the 25th day of December, stirring 13 times for Christ and His apostles, and from east to west in honor of the Magi, also circulate with the making of the dish.

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire—Chestnuts have been eaten in the Mediterranean for thousands of years, but eating them around Christmas is a byproduct of the season of the nut, which has a short shelf life, and its sweet flavor and healthful benefits in areas that could not grow comparable sustenance. Though it also has ties to symbolizing chastity for Christianity and may have become popular in Renaissance Italy as a snack on Catholic feast days like St. Simon or St. Martin’s Days. The Christmas Song bearing the famous like was written by Mel Torme and Bob Wells in 1945 and first performed by Nat King Cole in 1946. Ironically, Torme says he came up with the four famous lines of at the song’s start during a blisteringly hot summer, and composed the lyrics to help focus on a cooler more festive time.

Cards—Giving Christmas cards started in Great Britain with Sir Henry Cole and John Horsley releasing the first commercial cards in 1843. The practice caught on there and in other English speaking areas quickly and is a practice perpetuated around the world today.

Rudolph—Robert May created him in 1939 for Chicago company Montgomery Ward coloring book. There was some concern that a red nose would signify alcoholism (which it tended to in artwork at the time) but the deer drawn by Denver Gillen was so cute it remained. Beginning as a poem, Rudolph was made into a song in by Johnny Marks, May’s brother-in-law, and made popular by Gene Autry’s rendition in 1949.

Frosty—Written by Walter Rollins and Steve Nelson for Gene Autry as a follow up to Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer for Christmas 1950. It was made into a Little Gold Book the same year and a TV special in 1969.

12 Days of Christmas—Unknown, it may be a secular children’s game of forfeit and memory or a derivation of the French prompt and response tune “A New Dial” (“In Those Twelves Days”) from 1625. The latter fits best with the popularized false origin for the song as being a Catholic catechism for English Catholics living between AD 1558 and 1829. Regardless, the “Twelve Days of Christmas” refers in a literal sense to the twelve days between Christmas Day (December 25th) and Epiphany (January 6th). The first being a celebration of Christ’s birth and the latter of the Magi’s visit and Christ’s baptism at the start of His ministry.

A Christmas Carol– Charles Dickens composed his novella as an attempt to galvanize sympathy for the poor. Written in 1843 it was meant to harken back to a more congenial time and bring awareness to the plight of the poor displaced in the Industrial Revolution. Its chapters, called staves, or stanzas, is a throwback to the title.