A6 - Wednesday, December 24, 1980 - North Shore News WE editorial page ce MOE owe Vv ‘wasn _NEWS VIEWPOINT The love lives on Much is spoken and written about the commercialization of Christmas. There are many, like the writer elsewhere on this page, who contend the spirit of Christ's birthday has been destroyed by an orgy of material greed and wild spending. In the case of the great majority of nor- mat, decent people we beg to differ. ; the scale of Christmas testivities has increased greatly compared to “the good old days”. But so, too, has the scale of almost all other social activity, Christmas has merely kept pace. True, the religious observance of the festival has also declined, again in step with— an overall trend in today’s society — though Christmas still draws more people into church than any other occasion save Easter. But surely the ultimate essence of Christmas is love and there's still a tremendous lot of it around at this season. The love of parents who work hard and long to make Christmas joyous for their children. The love (and toil!) that goes into seeking gifts for others. The love that brings people together, often for the only time in the year, purely to enjoy each other's company. The love expressed by cards, letters and phone calls between distant friends. The love that prompts us to help total strangers less fortunate than ourselves, whether in person or via the collecting box. If Christmas means love, it’s still there in abundance in the department store and shopping mall crowds. After nearly 2,000 years that says a lot about the Child whose birthday we celebrate tomorrow. Ancient wisdom New Westminster MP Pauline Jewett ts pressing for the appointment of women judges. A male judiciary, she argues, fs incapable of making impartial decisions in cases involving women’s issues. The thought may shock those who believe our present judges are endowed with the wisdom of Solomon. That may be true -- but don't forget Solomon died some years before the ladies dreamed up Women's Lib. TO0E VOROR OF PERT AN? WEST VANCOUVER sunday news north shore news 1139 Lonsdale Ave North Vancouver BC V7M 2H4 (604) 986-2131 NEWS ADVERTISING CLASSIFIED CIRCULATION 086-2131 080-0611 986-6222 086-1337 Publisher Peter Speck Associate Publisher Editor-in-Chief Robert Graham Noel Wright Advertising Director Erk Cardwett Classified Manager & Office Administrator Berni Hithard Creative Olrector Tim Francis Productiaqn Rich Stonehouse Faye McCrae News Editor Photography Chrie Woyd Monegine Editor t Haworth Dic Khan faser Accounting Supervisor Barbara Keen North Shore Newe founded in 1960 as an Independent «oman ty Newspaper: and qualified under Schedule Ih Part I Paragraph it ot the Excioe Tax Act 18 pubtianed each Wednesday and Sunday by North Shore Froe Prose Utd and dletributed to every door on the North Bnore Second Clase Mai Reyistation Number 3886 Subscriptions $20 per yea Ente cor tents TABOO North Store Froe Prene Lid Ailbrnights esa ved No ‘eapoNneibity acc oplod tor Boh Hod ManUB pla And pu tures whieh phiht bee oa Blamnped add essed i eturn envelope ryasleor ial weve Nae Dara) a PNG RE me! bry n VERIFIED CIRCULATION 60,870 Wednesday 49,913 Sunday £ f Ge =, Sn . % THIS PAPER 18 RECYCLABLE By DOUGLAS KNOLL Recently I heard someone say, “We should put Christ back into Christmas.” While I knew what was meant it did seem strange that one should dwell on the negative regarding such a glorious occasion. In fact it is because of Jesus Christ that we even celebrate Christmas. However, like everything else, man has not only polluted our water, air and land but has also been successful in contaminating our Christian heritage. Christmas has come to be known as just = another holiday — a time to ex- change gifts — a time to eal. drink and be merry. Commercialism has bought the rights to this special holy day — one of the most important days on the Christian calendar, next to Easter. The modern wise man has settled for the neon lights rather than the all-important star that points to the eternal Son of God known as the “Light of the World”. As it was with the busy innkeeper in Bethlehem so long ago, the busy merchant today has “no room” for Jesus, the Christ Child. Instead he has filled every “There's only one way out— You've got to declare yourself a phil- anthropy as a tax shelter and epply for a federal grant.” By way of a brief Yuletide holiday from politics BRUNCH offers you all the useless things you ever wanted to know about Christmas been told umpteen times .. remember precisely. Such as the fact that it's not what it's supposed to be. that it isn't even -one of the three most important church occasions, and that it was largely ignored for 1.300 years or so in the parts where most Canadians come from Por starters, December 25 of course. , is not Christ's birthday which, in turn, makes AD (Year of the Lord) 1980 all wrong, too Scholars now reckon Jesus (a Greek translation of the Hebrew name Joshua. meaning savior) was born sometime between the years 8 and 4 BC That puts us already at some between 1984 and 1988 The month and day Nowever, remain unknown December 25 was purely arbttranly. and only several centuries later as the date to celebrate There apparently two reasons for the choice One was that December 25 follows closely after the shortest day The thought of only point chosen were two oof three more months of winter had long made an cacclient excuse for 4 party among the Romans and other ancient cullures The second reason for choosing December 25 was is logical closeness to Rptphany of Twelfth Night on January 6 have . but never manage to Epiphany, which marks the baptism of Jesus, is an older Christian feast than Christmas itself. In fact. the eastern Orthodox Church still observes Chnstmas on January 6 OUTRANKED In the pecking order of Chnstian feasts Chnstmas (an abbreviation of Christ's Mass) actually relatively lowly According to the church calendar it only fourth in importance outranked = by Pentecost ithe birth of the church following the Resurrection) and Epiphany Christmas isn't as old as you might tmagine§ either Its) formal observance started in A [) 354 by order of Bishop Libertus of Rome as @ way of Competing with the Romans longstanding pagan feast celebrating the victory of hght over darkness that occupies a position official comes order of being Easter shortest day thing again But in) western burope Yulende (Old) English for Christmas) didnt gel under way an a festival greal until popular nearly a thousand years later in the Middle Ages Fora majyonty of; Canadians and = thei forebears the colebration has Po eS eS fe ee j Can Christmas be saved nook and cranny with numerous delights that make the cash register ring. The angelic heavenly choir that sang the Good News of Peace on Earth has been replaced by the latest rock group shouting out their unintelligible lyrics in quadrophonic sound — anything but “peace on earth”. The humble unobtrusive entrance of Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem fades into obscunty as Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer takes over the stage, front and centre. Our busy, hectic and frantic jet-propelled hustle and bustle makes our modern day celebrauons seem hollow and_ useless compared to the serene, quiet and peaceful adoration enjoyed by the shepherds in the field some 1980 years ago. Can we ever get back to that awe-inspiring event? Is it possible to really enjoy the meaning of Chnstmas? The answer to both these questions 1s, yes. However. it can not be accomplished by accepting man’s idea of Did you know? Cheerful sprigs of holly had an attraction for man long before the — first Chistmas. The shrub was distributed by the ancient -rate feast! Noel Wright been estabhshed for a mere six centumes For the Mac 5 amongst us Wseven more recent Following the loth century Reformation in Britain) Christmas revelry became a bone of contention between Anglicans (who were all for ath and more dour Protestant sects In Scotland Christmas celebrations were sup pressed altogether until the 1800s and ocrven today many Scots have a well known preference for New Year oot Hogmany as thet big winter party Apart from the ¢ hristinas tree 6 tradition in Crermany from the Muiddle Ages on Christmas — we must accept the centre of which is Himself. To those who have ac- cepted this Jesus as the centre of their lives, the celebration of Christmas has become a literal “Peace on Earth”. They have found by accepting the “Prince of Peace”, as their Lord and Saviour, there is a new joy,a new happiness, a new meaning to the celebration of Christmas. John the Apostle said in Revelation 3:20 “Behold Jesus stands at the door and knocks, if any man will hear his voice and will open the door he will come in”. According to this scnpture this is a personal invitation for each of us to “make room” for Jesus by opening our lives to Him. When we have _ found room for Christ in our heart then He will become the centre of everything ... even Christmas! . Christmas Jesus Christ - (Rev. Douglas Knoll is Pastor of Canyon Heights Chapel in North Van- couver) Greeks to bring luck. Superstitious Romans planted it to protect their property from lightning. ward, most of the outward trappings of Chnstmas have come from the Enghish. HIJACKED SAINT It was the Enghsh who introduced gift-giving, decorating with holly and mistletoe, the Yule log, carol-singing and (around 1846) Chnstmas cards. But the carly Amencans of Enghsh ongin got quite heavily into the act. too. For the tme-honored Enghsh Chnstmas menu of boar's head and goose they substituted the turkey Most important of all, 1 was the Enghsh Amencans in New York who hiyacked Saint Nicholas from the original Dutch settlers and translated him into Santa Claus - ad- ding Rudolph for good measure To round off this litany of trivia on a personal note, the answer for the curious 18 80 - not born on Chnstmas Day Not by seven long weeks I was My name came about solely because mother had a warm (albeit entirely Platonic) admiration for the who expedited my into the world - another Noel long since | departed for the Big Turkey Banguctin the Sky doctor entry I discovered later AIS © birthday wasnt Decembet 2s cither Hang went another Yuletide myth Never mind A very happy Chnstmas to you one & all and to those who prefer. uo Joyeus Noel!