Earlier this evening, I watched How the Grinch Stole Christmas with my family. During the first part of that movie, the film-makers go to great lengths to highlight the commercialism of Christmas, even going so far as to have one of the characters, Cindy-Lou's father, say that buying gifts for people "is what Christmas is all about." At another point in the film, the Grinch says something similar. But by the end of the story, both characters had had a change of heart. After the Grinch steals all the gifts, and before he returns them, Cindy-Lou's father says that he's glad that the Grinch stole all the commercial trappings of Christmas, and that he didn't need anything more for Christmas than time with his family.
Christmas isn't really about the gifts we give and receive, even though some people might have us believe that that's what it's about. Christmas is a time for celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ; a time to spend with family, and while gift-giving has long been a Christmas tradition, it's not the most central, defining element of the holiday. Gift-giving isn't what Christmas is all about. Jesus Christ and families are.
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