Something to Think About: The Spirit of Christmas
I love certain aspects of Christmas. In a way, it’s a time when we may catch a glimpse of Paradise restored! There is a palpable different spirit and atmosphere. It is a time of giving and goodwill. Strangers show kindness toward one another — putting the needs of others ahead of their own. Family members travel hundreds or even thousands of miles to be with their loved ones. Even shopping at the local supermarket becomes a special experience — the polite shop attendants extending more than the usual helpfulness. Neighbours pause to chat and take time to extend their Christmas wishes.
At this time of year, I’m also reminded of an unbelievable incident that occurred during World War I, when fighting paused over Christmas in 1914! From their dank, muddy trenches on the Western Front of the War, soldiers came out from both sides and extended goodwill toward one another. This happened not just on one battlefield, but small pockets of French, German, Belgian and British troops held impromptu cease-fires across the Western Front, with reports of some on the Eastern Front as well. One journalist wrote that singing and soccer broke out between British and German forces — and it became known as WWI’s Christmas Truce. It remains one of the most storied and strangest moments of the Great War—or of any war in history. (https://www.history.com/news/christmas-truce-1914-world-war-i-soldier-accounts#)
Despite these facts, each year I am left in a quandary. Why is it that when the lights come down, and the wreaths and decorations get packed up in boxes, our thoughts begin to turn inward again as we get absorbed in our daily routines of the new year? Somehow, that outward focus dissipates — that friendly and helpful attitude toward others shown at Christmas.
As I reflect, the answer to my dilemma occurs through the well-known words of Mahatma Gandhi who stated, “Be the change that you wish to see in the world.” If I simply wait for everyone else to continue conveying a Christmas spirit of goodwill, giving and love, I may wait for a long, long time — indefinitely or forever — aptly expressed in the phrase, “Til the cows come home”. (I grew up in a dairying district in the state of Victoria and this phrase has a lot of meaning for me.)
And so, it is time for me to consciously continue the spirit of Christmas into the new year – to give of myself to others in goodwill, service, and love. In a sense, I can give the gift of Christmas all year — I don’t have to wait till next Christmas to spread goodwill. I can start right now and make it last all year — that would indeed be a gift worth giving! Of course, all this is easier said than done, but definitely worth giving it a try!
Alexander Peck; edited by Eva Peck
December 24, 2023
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This care and compassion we show to others is one of the themes of the Christmas story, especially when Mary and Joseph were offered shelter in their hour of need by strangers, as they waited for Jesus to be born.
Service also lies at the heart of the Christmas story – the birth of Jesus who came to serve the whole world, showing us by his own example how to love our neighbour as ourselves.
Such values are universal, drawing together our Abrahamic family of religions, and other belief systems, across the Commonwealth and wider world. They remind us to imagine ourselves in the shoes of our neighbours, and to seek their good as we would our own.
(King Charles III, Christmas Day Message, 2023)