Christmas is quickly approaching, and for many people, it’s nothing more than a winter holiday where they get to open presents, drink eggnog and eat turkey, or watch the kids get into Santa and all of the presents and events around the holiday.
What often gets lost, or ignored, is the real message behind Christmas. Granted, there are many people who are not believers in the First Christmas story, including those of other religions and cultures — but nonetheless, there is a valuable principle that can be accepted by all peoples, believers or not.
The message is one of peace, and it is a message that is still needed today, more than ever in some parts of the world, and in many of our homes and communities.
An old song from the 1950s goes, “Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me …”
This goes along with the proclamation by the angels on that first Christmas night, who told the shepherds, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will towards all men.”
There are two parts to this proclamation, and the latter half is most quoted as it pertains to those on earth, for there to be peace and good will to everyone. (The line says “men”, but it’s a generic reference, as in “all mankind”.)
This was in relation to the birth of Jesus, whose messages included what is termed the “Golden Rule”, to treat everyone the way you wish to be treated yourself. He also taught us to love one another, and to pray for your enemy.
There were a great many other things that he spoke of, but these relate to the peace spoken of at his birth, and in a real sense brings it to the here and now of each person, each community, and each nation.
We need to live peacefully and to treat each other with respect, and to think of the needs of others ahead of our own. We don’t have to “get religious” to live like this, it’s a matter of being kind and generous, and thinking of others.
The RAK movement is one example of how this can work in a practical way: random acts of kindness. Step out and do something nice for a neighbour or your family or your community, and see how people respond to that.
The basic principles behind this are far more meaningful than filling Christmas with Santa stories and getting more and more presents under the tree. What is important, really, is to give to others in a meaningful way.
“... Let there be peace on earth, the peace that was meant to be.”
