.png)
Our celebration of Christmas employs a number of different traditions. We decorate Christmas trees, string lights, hang mistletoe and sing carols to name just a few. Many of our Christmas traditions originated in pre-Christian cultures. Perceptive Christian missionaries saw the connection between their common usage and the message of the gospel. These missionaries “baptized” the old practices and gave them new meaning, relating them to the meaning of God’s gift of Jesus Christ. This year, during Advent, each sermon will reflect on the history of one particular Christmas tradition and then share how that tradition shares the good news of the gift of Jesus.
We begin with the Christmas tree. Ever wonder why we bring evergreen trees into our homes each December? The tradition of using non-deciduous trees reaches back thousands of years—from Egyptian palm branches, Roman Saturnalia celebrations and Viking legends. Christian missionaries, seeking to explain the meaning of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus moved beyond these ancient practices to something deeper. For them, the evergreen tree pointed towards the promise of eternal hope.
In the bleakness of northern hemisphere Christmases, when the ground is frozen, flora is dormant and the landscape seems largely dead, the evergreen tree is a powerful example of life. Even the harshness of a winter environment cannot take away the symbol of ongoing life of a fir tree. So, also, the gift of Jesus reminds us that God is with us in the midst of seasons of barrenness in our lives. With Jesus, new beginnings are always possible. Even when we face the darkness of death, Jesus promises us the gift of eternal life.