It's Just Christmas!

A friend of mine posted this on his Facebook wall a few days ago: "reasons why i hate december in general and christmas in particular: 1.) people are feigning to be good just because it's supposed to be all that time-of-giving bs. 2.) you spend to much money because of number one. 3.) all those lights, decors and whatnot are so cliche and fake."

Again, it's the time of year when the world of Christendom seems to slow down as its people savor & celebrate Christ's birth--a time of year when everything seems brighter, redder, & greener! It's Christmas time.

It's melancholic to conceive that what happens during this time of year annoys some, if not a lot of people just because all seem to change their color from black to white. The setting in of December seem to paint faces and behaviors with beaming colors that's almost incredible to believe. On the other side of the spectrum, there are new & more expensive decors in the market. Houses & buildings are adorned with new "Christmas" concepts that are hardly recognizable as related to Jesus' birth. People become so creative that they can shove Santa Claus into the toilet bowl, take a picture & call it a Christmas decor. New does not necessarily mean meaningful. In most cases, new means weird and non-sense--often taking the connotation away from what the season is all about.

Almost a year ago I wrote a piece about people taking down their good attitudes together with their physical Christmas ornamentations after the celebration. I want to revisit that article and hope that I, in my own little way, be an instrument of reminding you about what this season is all about.

Here's part of that article:

The Christmas season seemed to have become an excuse for not being deleterious. It has become a habit to think that once a year we become extra kind, helpful, & generous, and that we can only “allow” ourselves “some happiness” during Christmas time. What makes Christmas a time to place our misbehaviors on hold? What sets it apart from any other occasion throughout the year? What’s Christmas all about?

Over 2000 years ago, a child was born of Mary and Joseph. This child and event was seen & prophesied by a prophet named Isaiah long before it happened. It was declared by an angel (Gabriel) that this child will be called Jesus, and that he will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. His birth was a manifestation of God’s love: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

Isaiah declared: “Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: …
“… He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed” (Isa. 53:4–5).

This is the lifeblood of Christmas. We all know the story, but sometimes the purpose of which becomes trifling.

The “reason for the season”, as the saying goes, is Christ. It is the time of year when Christians celebrate his birth. He is the personification of all uprightness & the source of goodness & love in the world. He has taught: “Love one another, as I have loved you…” (John 13: 34-35). “Whoever strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other to him, as well.” When the woman taken in adultery was set before Jesus and the Pharisees ought to have her stoned, he reminded: “Whoever among you is guiltless may be the first to throw a stone at her” (John 8:7). It was He who also taught in parables.

Who has not become acquainted with Parables such as the “Good Samaritan” & the “Prodigal Son”? When it was time for him to be taken in by Roman soldiers, preparatory to his crucifixion, he restored a soldier’s ear which was severed by one of his followers, in his defense. Such act of mercy was culminated on the cross when he said: “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34). His ministry and life were replete with acts of kindness & forgiveness: “If your brother sins, rebuke him. If he repents, forgive him. Even if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times returns to you saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him”.

In the great Plan of Happiness, we must be saved from our sins. The perfect and sinless offering for sin was none other than Christ. He is the Son of God and the only Begotten of the Father, in the flesh. There was none other who could have possibly taken our sins upon him and suffered the way Jesus did. There had to be an atonement made.

Amulek, a prophet of the new world has spoken about this: “And now, behold, I will testify unto you of myself that these things are true. Behold, I say unto you, that I do know that Christ shall come among the children of men, to take upon him the transgressions of his people, and that he shall atone for the sins of the world; for the Lord God hath spoken it.

“For it is expedient that an atonement should be made; for according to the great plan of the Eternal God there must be an atonement made, or else all mankind must unavoidably perish; yea, all are hardened; yea, all are fallen and are lost, and must perish except it be through the atonement which it is expedient should be made” (Book of Mormon, Alma 34: 8-9).

Christmas should remind us of the mission and role of Jesus Christ in our lives. It is set apart from all other events & celebrations because it is by him and through him that we are saved and can receive eternal life.

“And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among people by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). Christ has underscored the significance of his role when he said: “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).

For us who believe and follow Christ, Christmas should just be another ordinary day in being the kind of people we ought to be. When he visited the Americas, Christ taught that we ought to be like him: “Therefore, what manner of men [& women] ought ye to be? Verily I say unto you, even as I am” (Book of Mormon, 3 Nephi 27:27).

What then is the substance of being nice, forgiving, more loving, more kind, & more generous during Christmas season when these attributes should become natural to us and should be demonstrated at all times, in whatever season of the year. The adorning of the Christmas tree, and the setting up of lights and other Christmas decors had become symbolic of our behaviors in life, in that we always take them down after the holiday. We tend to go back being unforgiving, unkind, impatient, irritable, selfish, hateful, & miserable. The good things that adorn in the Christmas season are taken down together with the material ornamentations we set up for the celebration.

A modern prophet, Howard Hunter once said: “When we take Christ into our lives as a moving, dynamic, vitalizing force, the real Christmas comes”. When we accept Christ and His teachings, and when we repent of our sins, we are baptized into His fold. That is the time when we start adorning ourselves with His (Christlike) attributes. We become living trees with ornaments such as humility, charity & love, obedience & diligence, faith and hope. These become a part of us and do not need to be taken down or suspended for another year. We grow into living examples of the Savior.

It's just sad to note that for some people, they start their change process on December as preparatory for an alleged New Year's resolution. This explains the somewhat superficial shift of behaviors. They do it because they expect something "good" in return. Blame it to the song "Santa Clause is Coming to Town". The naughty become nice just so they get a gift from Santa this Christmas. The change is brought about for the wrong reason, that's why come January, they all go back to being "naughty".

Well, these are just my thoughts. I hope that in a way, I turned your thoughts toward the real reason for the season.

Merry Christmas!

My Misty Refuge

Image taken from meridianmagazine.com

Sometimes I dream and see myself in a mist—not in a mist of darkness, but in a mist somewhat similar to the image above. There is an aura of beauty & serenity.

One reason why I was heavily drawn to come live in Cebu is its beauty. That sounds trivial don’t you think? There must be a more profound reason. It sounds literally simple to say that Cebu is beautiful and I want to live there. It is subjective, in a way that in like manner, the same can be said of any other place.

In the Book of Mormon, Alma was a prophet who taught about the Savior—his sacrifice, his promises, his divinity, and most importantly his role in our lives. The people then believed in the teachings of Alma. They have come to know the Savior and decided to follow him. "All this was done in Mormon, yea, by the waters of Mormon, in the forest that was near the waters of Mormon; yea, the place of Mormon, the waters of Mormon, the forest of Mormon, how beautiful are they to the eyes of them who there came to the knowledge of their Redeemer; yea, and how blessed are they, for they shall sing to his praise forever". (Mosiah 18:30).

If we think about it, we are inclined to look at places and associate them with events, particularly special/important events that transpired in our life. The place becomes beautiful. People in loved, for instance, consider a certain place beautiful because that’s where a proposal was made for engagement, or even marriage.

Cebu is where I was called by the Lord to serve Him, as a missionary. Here is where I had fully developed my testimony of the Savior and of a loving Heavenly Father. I had come to know them on a personal level because I was literally serving Them. Here is where I learned humility, love, and patience—among other good things. Here is where I made friendships, eternal in nature because of the bond of the Gospel. I can say, as the Nephites of old in Alma’s time, that Cebu is as beautiful as the place called Mormon.

I’ve always looked forward to returning to Cebu and experience afresh its beauty in relation to what occurred in my 2-yr mission. Now that I’m here, it’s different that I no longer find the primary link to my mission—my companions, missionary friends, and my mission president. However, the oasis remained the same. The member-friends I made continue in the friendships borne of my missionary beginnings. I find it conversely distressing that since I set foot in Cebu in October of last year, I have not fully recognized that I’m now in my mist which I deem as refuge. Every day I pass by the same road, & places which we use to traverse as “Elders” of Cebu 1st (my last area in the mission), yet I had not been able to stopover & see how it is now.

Regardless of how Cebu is literally placed in circumstances both good and bad, it is a place of beauty and serenity to me—my beautiful mist, my refuge, my Mormon. I feel good here. However, sooner or later I’d have to get revived & put to life my purpose as to why I’m here, the 2nd time around.

It’s good to imagine myself in a beautiful misty place, and that should be a source of strength as my Lord walks with me in it. Then again, I must reciprocate as I’ve been standing still for a long time.