“For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6-7

Keeping Christ in Christmas

Walk His Way Revisited

It’s that time of year again. I’m seeing it all over social media, and hearing it in conversations:

  • “I’m not going to say ‘Happy Holidays!’”
  • “When you write X-mas, you’re taking the Christ out of Christmas!”
  • “It’s a Christmas tree, NOT a holiday tree!”

I wonder if these distinctions really make a difference. I decided to do a little research some years back, after Pastor Bryan told us that holiday means holy day. Here’s what I found:

Although Christmas started out as a pagan holiday, look at the etymology of the word Christmas. The word originated as a compound word meaning Christ’s Mass. It is derived from the middle English Christmases and Old English Cristes mÊsse. Cristesis is from Greek, and the symbol is, you guessed it, an “X”! “X” means Chi, which means Christ. So the letter “X” really can stand in for the word Christ.

Now, on to holiday…this one is a bit easier. Simply put, it is derived from the Old English word håligdæg, which I could never hope to pronounce, and it means Holy Day. And, holiday is more inclusive, for, say, our Jewish friends…catch my drift? I also think that “Happy Holidays” is inclusive for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s.

I realize many Christians work in a secular environment and are being told to withhold their faith; thus, they may not have the freedom to even say the name of Christ in any form. You may or may not have strong convictions about the way we express Christmas greetings, but I think we should always show Christ in the most tangible ways possible. Instead of taking offense, ask the Lord to show you how you can reflect Him during this season. Honestly, I don’t think it should look any different than how we should show Christ’s love all year long.

Lord, thank You for putting us in a country where we are still free to worship You. The world wants to take that away from us, and I ask You to remind us that the enemy is our enemy, not people. Thank you for sending us Your Son. Go before us, and direct our paths for Your glory. Your will be done. In Jesus’ name, amen.