Celebrating Holy Days (revisited)

The Christmas season is a wonderful time of the year, filled with music, goodwill, lots of presents, and if you are lucky, lots of snow.  It is also a time that the church celebrates the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ.  Experience has shown that in many Nazarene churches we do a sufficient job of celebrating the Christmas event.  We have Christmas parties which include the telling of the story of Mary and Joseph's journey to Bethlehem, we have special worship services and musicals that focus on the real meaning of Christmas, and we may even show generosity to our community by working in the food pantry or visiting the local nursing home.  In the midst of all these good activities have we missed the opportunity to celebrate Christmas and the holy season so that they impact our children in ways that change their relationship with God?

The church has always celebrated "holy days."  These are days that the church recognizes as "set apart" and provide the opportunity for special observances and celebrations.  Holy days, or holy seasons, give occasion to help children understand the master story of God from beginning to end and allows for the building of traditions as these days are celebrated from one year to the next.  A listing of the holy days and seasons can be found in the Revised Common Lectionary.  An overview of Advent and Christmas will be the focus of this article

The word "advent" comes from a Latin word that means "to come to" or "coming."  The Advent season celebrates the coming of the birth of Christ and begins four Sundays prior to Christmas.  The purpose of the Advent season is to prepare, anticipate, proclaim, and celebrate the coming of the Messiah.  This can be accomplished in a variety of ways.  Many churches use Advent wreaths as a visible symbol and reminder of the focus of each Sunday.  Each candle that circles the wreath is lit on its given Sunday with the center candle, the Christ candle, being lit on Christmas day or during the Christmas service.  The rehearsal of each candle and what it represents allows children to redefine their understanding of Christmas and allows them to prepare, anticipate, proclaim, and celebrate in ways that bring Christmas to life.

Another tradition that many Christians celebrate is the hanging of Chrismons.  The word "chrismon" is a combination of two words, "Christ" and "monogram."  This tradition, which began with a Lutheran pastor in 1940, replaces the traditional decorations that are found on the Christmas tree with symbols or monograms that point to Jesus.  Many of the symbols are what one would expect to see; a star, an angel, and perhaps even a cross.  Other less expected symbols include Greek characters such as "chi" which is represented by an "X" and is the first letter in the name "Christ, symbols representing the Trinity, the "icthus" (Christian fish), as well as a variety of other symbols.  These symbols provide an opportunity to focus children on the real meaning of Christmas as they are described and then hung on the tree.  The presence of these ornaments keep children's minds focused on the Christ of Christmas.

The advantage of focusing on Advent rather than Christmas is that it helps children to give attention to the real meaning of the holy day.  No longer is Christmas about Santa Claus and presents, although these may have a place in the celebration, the real focus is on the birth of Christ and the events leading up to His coming.  It also provides an opportunity to present Christmas in the context of the whole story of God so children see Christmas not as an individual event but as a part of the metanarrative, God's master story.  Children will begin to see Christmas as a moment in God's story that continues in Easter and Pentecost.  This also allows for Advent to not only be about the coming of Christ as a baby but to also be about his coming again.  Each Sunday of Advent provides an ongoing opportunity to hear the story from a variety of perspectives and prepares the child to better understand the significance of Christmas morning.

Holy days, or holy seasons, provide opportunities for the church to educate both parents and children in the rituals and traditions of the church, not just for knowledge sake, but as a means to more deeply grow in love with God.  Perhaps it is time that we take more seriously these holy days that have been a part of the church from its earliest days and use them to help our families become the disciples they want to be.

Special thanks to Dr. Dennis Bratcher and The Voice for some of the background information used in this article.  For more information on the history and celebration of holy days and seasons see Dr. Dennis Bratcher's website http://www.cresourcei.org/index.html.

Note:  While Chrismons are difficult to find in stores, there are many pattern books available that provide an opportunity for families to make their own ornaments.  Some churches provide opportunities for children to make their own Chrismons and take them home or decorate the church tree.