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I am a religious Jew who simply loves Christmas. In fact, any Jew
or non
Christian who somehow gets "offended" because the majority
religion in
America makes such a big public splash about their biggest holiday
is a
total fool. A crèche on a public or private lawn is a beautiful
sight.
It means that people have gone to the trouble of sharing lovely
visuals
with all of America, expressing the beauty of their heritage and
its
spiritual message to humanity.
The Jews who keep "kvetching" (complaining) about manger
scenes at city
halls and Christmas carols in public school are more than likely
to be
the ones "uncomfortable" with their own Jewishness. These
are the same
malcontents who were so disturbed with the Mel Gibson film, predicting
pogroms in New York and Los Angeles.
Even otherwise fine men like Rabbi Marvin Hier, Abe Foxman and
Rabbi
Shmuley Boteach reacted incorrectly and contributed to "The
Passion's"
success with their buffoonery and ridiculous public relations tactics,
all of which truly embarrassed God and Torah Judaism. Mel Gibson
probably blesses them with "Hail Mary's" each week as
he counts the
profits from his film's $500 million gross.
The band of Christmas complainers are an example of the leftover
'60's
generation of selfish narcissists who are constantly offended by
everything from the God word in school to anyone holding the ideal
of
heterosexual marriage. What this anti-God crowd does not realize
is that
the more one believes that a divine Creator monitors our behavior
and
judges us, the less we will need the courts and judges to do so.
Personally, I sang religious Christmas carols in my classroom in
PS 164
in Brooklyn, which included the word, ready for this folks, "Jesus."
Amazingly, I did not convert and am probably more Jewish today than
most
people who attended full time Jewish day schools. Remarkably, saying
the
"J" word did not affect me.
Attention all Christians. I would like to publicly thank all of
you for
the gorgeous Christmas decorations on lawns, the powerful Christmas
music and spirit, the beautiful Christmas trees in our White House,
and
those incredible Christmas windows along Fifth Avenue. If not for
your
brilliant religious marketing skills, Chanukah would probably have
gone
the way of Shavuot, a more significant Jewish holiday which few
Jews
celebrate because there is no popular Christian holiday surrounding
it.
In all probability, it is the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree
that has
made the large Chanukah menorah near Central Park even possible.
American Christians have taught Jews the valuable lesson that it
is ok
to be public with your religion as long as it is not coercive or
obnoxious. The secret is making it into a beautiful event that can
be
shared by all Americans, where you are truly "lighting up"
the lives of
so many individuals.
Of course the government should not favor any one specific religion.
The
Founders wanted a secular government, as per the Constitution, but
longed for a religious society. The concept of separation of church
and
state, which is not even mentioned in the Constitution, has come
to
mean the removal of God from every area except home and place of
worship. Now isn't that a stupid idea!
While American Christians have learned the importance of promoting
God,
it is non-Jewish Jews and atheists who are at the forefront of the
campaign to remove the "G" word from our classrooms and
the public
sphere. What has become important to these so-called progressives
is
that fifth graders know how to place a condom on a banana.
Although America's money says In God We Trust and the president
is sworn
in on a bible, there are some secularists and atheists who still
wish to
hold onto their sophisticated scientific belief that hydrogen and
oxygen
actually created the world. I say God bless them!
Making a religious holiday into a spectacle is the American Christian
forte. Walk down any Main Street or shopping mall during this holiday
season and you will see more smiles on children and adult faces
than at
any other time. However, we can certainly go overboard when a "Holy
Day"
becomes exclusively a "shopping holiday." That is the
danger in removing
Christ from Christmas.
There are Christians all over America who spend a tremendous amount
of
time and money putting up decorations for the public to enjoy. Wouldn't
it be a great idea for Jews and other fellow Americans to knock
on their
doors and thank them; or even give them a bottle of wine or small
gift
of appreciation. That is the spirit of America where we truly share
our
multiculturalism.
American Christianity is quite different from any other Christianity
in
history. Without it, Judaism and Israel could pretty much close
its
doors for business. Jews should be saying a daily blessing for American
Christians, especially Evangelicals aka the Christian Right. The
Judeo-Christian partnership upon which America is founded is a critical
bond for both groups.
But the rootless aka the secular left, hate the rooted with a passion.
They would like everyone to be rootless just like the ACLU, university
professors and themselves. Secularism is selfish because it means
that
the government has a duty to you, whereas religious means you have
a
duty to society. Look around and see that it is mostly Jewish Jews
who
honor Christians and non-Jewish Jews (ignorant of Judaism) who fear
and
complain about them.
So on December 24th, this Jew will think of that wonderful song,
"I'm
Dreaming of A White Christmas." This simple tune should conjure
up
untold pleasures in the hearts and minds of most thinking people.
Therefore, I say thank you to every American Christian for sharing
your
passions and may I wish each of you, "A Merry Christmas...and
to all a
good night!"
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