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It is actually Thursday, but I was thinking about making this post yesterday. Christmas actually turned out not to be quite as humdrum as I expected it to be early in the day. I gave my dad a jar of locally-produced, seedless blackberry jam. I also gave my mom a pair of glass earrings that are like that same material blown-glass is made from but not blown out. Tempered glass, I guess?
My mom gave me some clothes: a pair of boots, a couple of tunic-y shirts, and a coat that is very similar to one I already have but a slightly different color. Maybe a bit more lightweight, too.
Earlier in the day, my dad kept sort of dryly saying it wasn't Christmas, it was Wednesday. "Wednesday off."
My family has always been kind of iconoclastic about Christmas. I know that culturally speaking it is a "Christian" holiday, but my family has always held the stance that as Christians it would be better to keep Christ out of Christmas. We know that historically Jesus was almost certainly not born in December, that this is a time period to observe the winter solstice across cultures, and that there is no biblical mandate or suggestion that we should celebrate Jesus's birth religiously. You might be surprised about how risky a position that is to hold with my dad as a pastor.
It is sort of alienating because while I agree with this position and tend to just observe the winter solstice with some reverence for the seasons and nature, most other Christians vehemently defend a position of celebrating Christ on Christmas because tradition. It doesn't really matter a lot, but yesterday my parents and I discussed a fair bit about how they have basically convinced themselves that there is no real point in celebrating anything with particular fervor. No day is much different than the other in that way. Later in the day, my dad cooked dinner and invited our neighbor over. He's dad's friend more than anything, but it at least led to us being a bit more "on" and talking to each other rather than just an everyday thing.
It wasn't a bad day, but it is a reminder of how it isn't just me who's kind of numb to my culture.
My mom gave me some clothes: a pair of boots, a couple of tunic-y shirts, and a coat that is very similar to one I already have but a slightly different color. Maybe a bit more lightweight, too.
Earlier in the day, my dad kept sort of dryly saying it wasn't Christmas, it was Wednesday. "Wednesday off."
My family has always been kind of iconoclastic about Christmas. I know that culturally speaking it is a "Christian" holiday, but my family has always held the stance that as Christians it would be better to keep Christ out of Christmas. We know that historically Jesus was almost certainly not born in December, that this is a time period to observe the winter solstice across cultures, and that there is no biblical mandate or suggestion that we should celebrate Jesus's birth religiously. You might be surprised about how risky a position that is to hold with my dad as a pastor.
It is sort of alienating because while I agree with this position and tend to just observe the winter solstice with some reverence for the seasons and nature, most other Christians vehemently defend a position of celebrating Christ on Christmas because tradition. It doesn't really matter a lot, but yesterday my parents and I discussed a fair bit about how they have basically convinced themselves that there is no real point in celebrating anything with particular fervor. No day is much different than the other in that way. Later in the day, my dad cooked dinner and invited our neighbor over. He's dad's friend more than anything, but it at least led to us being a bit more "on" and talking to each other rather than just an everyday thing.
It wasn't a bad day, but it is a reminder of how it isn't just me who's kind of numb to my culture.
