Mark's Notebook


	I never came upon any of my discoveries through the process of rational thinking. - Albert Einstein

Away with the manger

Lawrence Journal-World

Wednesday 22 December 2004, 3:25 pm
Keywords: Christian Topics , News Articles

By Jim Baker

As Dec. 25 approaches, many Americans find themselves amidst the annual, frenzied season of marathon shopping, endless gift giving and compulsive overeating -- in other words, overindulgence in all things Christmas.

Except, it would seem, for one thing: Jesus Christ.

Which raises an important question: Is the inherent religious message of this holiday -- the birth of a savior, the Prince of Peace -- drowned out more than ever in the swirl of marketing hype, commercialization and supporting the fourth-quarter profits of big business?

"We need some time to be reminded of what we actually are celebrating: the birth of Jesus Christ, the gift of God to mankind. Many people forget that and get lost in the parties and the gift giving."

And the drumbeat of consumption seems to pick up the pace every year, agree some members of the clergy in Lawrence and other Christians. "There seems to be just a gargantuan need to spend money and buy gifts, and that agenda is set by Alan Greenspan (chairman of the Federal Reserve) and the Wal-Mart specials more than by a spiritual aspect," says the Rev. Marcus McFaul, senior pastor of First Baptist Church. "As a result, we max out the credit card, and when we open our credit-card statement we ask, ‘Now, why did we do this?'"

Bill Browning, a student at the Washburn University School of Law and a Lawrence resident, sees much the same trend. "I would say that our contact with the holiday, as Americans, is necessarily commercial. You're reminded by commercials on TV that it's Christmas and that we're supposed to buy things. They've been marketing Christmas in October since long before I was born," says Browning, 39.

McFaul urges Christians to let their religious convictions and deepest beliefs guide their choice of gifts to others, such as donating money in a person's name to a charity that works to provide for basic human needs. "That's a gift that's a little bit more meaningful than a Salad Shooter or another Jessica Simpson CD," he says.

http://www.ljworld.com/section/satliving/story/190755