Musings

As we come to celebrate Christmas we may wonder what the Christmas message is about or indeed is.  For the culture it is about peace, joy, hope, goodwill to all humanity, alongside the giving and receiving of presents.  It seeks to be a message of hope that stands in contrast to the strife, greed, famine, abuse of power and oppression that is the nature of our day to day existence in the world.  In fact for many, because of the state of the world, both politically and economically, the message of Christmas is all too obscured.

One of the traditions in my family is watching older Christmas movies such as The Miracle on 34^th Street, It’s a Wonderful Life, as well as among others, The Bishop’s Wife.  In The Bishop’s Wife, David Niven plays Bishop Brougham who is praying for guidance regarding the building of a cathedral, when in answer to his prayer an angel by the name of Dudley is sent, played by Cary Grant.  Dudley is admired by everyone because he makes all who come in contact with him feel special and appreciated, filled with hope, all except for Bishop Brougham, who is too busy with the work of what he perceives as necessary ministry that he becomes resentful of Dudley’s demeanor and presence.

In the film, Dudley expresses something that may seem like a mere sentiment regarding goodwill to all persons, but is indeed more fundamentally the underlying message of Christmas, the purpose of Jesus’ incarnation (Jesus becoming a human being) – in fact, it expresses the Jesus Message.  It is an exchange between Dudley and the bishop’s wife.  She expresses to Dudley, “You’re able to make me feel as if everything’s going to be all right.”  Dudley responds, “Well, it could be if . . . ,” to which she responds, “If what?”  To which Dudley responds, “If people could only learn to behave like human beings.”

The real message of Christmas, the Jesus message, is not about making the world Christian, though much of the history of Christianity since the 4^th Century has demonstrated such a colonial empire mindset.  No, the real message about Christmas, the reason for Jesus becoming human and dwelling among us (John 1:14) has nothing to do with a colonial empire mindset, but is a message of the humanization of humanity – “if people could only learn to behave like human beings.”

A theologian I have become indebted to over the years is Ray S. Anderson.  In his book, The Shape of Practical Theology (p. 138), he expresses that “incarnation is the embodiment of God as the true form of humanity.”  Anderson further clarifies the nature or kind of the humanity that Jesus reveals.  He states, “the incarnation does not produce another form of humanity but can be understood as the ‘humanization’ of humanity.’” In Jesus there is the revealing of real humanity, what being human, what being humane looks like, acts like, is like. The message of Christmas, the message of Jesus is not about being Christian, it is about being human. 

But the reality is that in our own humanity we too often act in inhumane ways, treating others less than ourselves, being preoccupied with ourselves, putting our own interests first, living and loving conditionally – in short, we struggle with learning how to behave like human beings. In reflecting on Christmas, in reflecting on the message of Jesus, we are invited to come to the realization that to identify with Jesus is to take on the humanity that he demonstrated, that he lived out.  The love he demonstrated is not in a category by itself as “Christian love,” it is rather to love as he loved, humanly and humanely – it is just Love! – unselfish, unconditional, sacrificing, humane (see 1 Corinthians 13: 4-7).

Therefore, the message of Christmas, indeed the message of Jesus is universal – it is a message for all humanity, for every human being on this planet – be they religious or non-religious, be they agnostic or atheist, be they Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim, Jewish, or even Christian.  The sad thing is that Jesus has been made exclusive, and though he took on Jewish humanity in becoming human, his focus was on the re-creation or re-humanization of all humanity. 

The message of Christmas, the message and actions of Jesus is that in identifying with him we “learn to behave like human beings.”  In fact, Jesus invites us to follow him so that we might learn and be empowered to become  humane human beings to one another.  Indeed, salvation is about setting us free from the principalities and powers that overpower us so that we act/live in inhumane ways, becoming less preoccupied with ourselves.  It is in identifying with Jesus that we become open to the breathe of God/the Spirit of God in our lives and as a result we are set free to be human in the same way that Jesus expressed and demonstrated being human.

May we discover Jesus as the source of our being humanely human to one another this Christmas season.