The Band is easily one of Canada's all-time great rock groups. I always enjoyed "Christmas must be tonight." The lyrics are especially poignant - they seem to come from a distant past given the attacks the Christian religion face.
Come down to the manger, see the little stranger
Wrapped in swaddling clothes, the prince of peace
Wheels start turning, torches start burning
And the old wise men journey from the East
How a little baby boy bring the people so much joy
Son of a carpenter, Mary carried the light
This must be Christmas, must be tonight
A shepherd on a hillside, while over my flock I bide
Oh a cold winter night a band of angels sing
In a dream I heard a voice saying "fear not, come rejoice"
How a little baby boy bring the people so much joy
Son of a carpenter, Mary carried the light
This must be Christmas, must be tonight
I saw it with my own eyes, written up in the skies
But why a simple herdsmen such as I
And then it came to pass, he was born at last
Right below the star that shines on high
How a little baby boy bring the people so much joy
Son of a carpenter, Mary carried the light
This must be Christmas, must be tonight
I admit, as I've always done, I'm not the most religious guy. I even have problems with certain aspects of Catholicism and Christianity. However, I keep things in proper historical perspective and choose to not be reactionary when it comes to challenging it. To me, more good than harm has come from this religion. Demeaning it makes not sense to me.
I purposely made sure I have a Manger under my Christmas tree. My wife and I are careful to explain the subtle messages in the Bible to my four year old daughter for the message within it is inherently good. We don't take it literally but we find value and enjoy in the moral tales, parables and fables.
The point is to ensure love and respect for all mankind, and Christmas, through the arrival of Jesus, is meant to remind us of this universal and powerful belief.
I'll be damned if someone attempts to coax and belittle me into denying this part of our heritage. I respect those who have chosen a different route. But if they go out of their way to prevent people the right to draw Crucifixes, say Merry Christmas and perform Nativity scenes, then I'm afraid I'll have to respectfully disagree and ask them to get out of the way.
I've actually come around to seeing much of the good in Christianity myself, rather than the bad (and there is much of that, to be sure).
ReplyDeleteChristianity is at the center of Western culture, and it is questionable whether the West would be what it is today, or hold the values it does, if it were not for our Christian heritage.
Exactly, SE, exactly.
ReplyDeleteIt drives me crazy how people insert the Crusades as some proof that Christianity is rotten. That shows me they know squat about Medieval history.
Religion was a component of it but economics and politics made an equal if not greater part.
Anyway, without Christianity, in my view and I've written this in the past, there is no Renaissance, Reformation, Scientific and Industrial Revolution, Age of Exploration etc. Why? Because, as you say, it was the CENTER of our thinking. Our history revolved and evolved from this point.
That's why I'm of the opinion religion/theology has a place at the table of public discourse.
That we've ignored it, behind the wall of secularism, has led (again in my opinion) to a drop off in substantial philosophical and spiritual thinking.