Bah Humbug
Okay, time for what is an annual grump for
me.One thing you can't seem to escape,
even in Orthodoxy is the unfortunate impact of the secular Christmas on the
parish. Historically, the Orthodox Church fasts throughout the period leading
up to the Nativity (that is from November 15th until the 25th of December) as a
means of both preparing for incarnation of the Lord and for his second coming.
Realistically, the big feast is the Epiphany/Theophany on January 6th. If
you're Old Calendar, Christmas doesn't even happen until January 7th - so there
is probably a little bit less
confusion.So, what did we do today
during the preseason of the Nativity (known in the West as Advent)? Well,
pretty much the same thing that we would do at our last Church - have a
Christmas Pageant. To make matters worse, the Church was decorated with
Poinsettias and red ribbons adorned the outside. Then, they were to have a
Christmas luncheon, complete with Santa
Claus!This is likely the result of
Greek immigrants a long time ago, seeking to fit in with the American culture.
Unlike with Lent and Pascha, where there is a significant number of special
services etc, the Nativity was never so significant that anything like it sprung
up around it to offset the crass commercialism of America. I don't begrudge
people the desire to celebrate and have fun, but frankly the loss of the
penitential period before the Nativity reflects the protestant notion that we
need do nothing with respect to our salvation. The concept of the ascetical
struggle, and of Christianity as a process of cure , is missing entirely from the protestant
tradition, so there is no point in periods of preparation. What was most
upsetting of all, was that this pageant was taken from some protestant source,
and so the concluding speech had the usual heresies about just accepting Jesus
in your heart and you'll live with him in heaven
forever.Well, its a good thing that I
have my own collection of faults and sins that far outweigh this unfortunate
event. I should really not be so much angry as disappointed because this habit
of ignoring the preparation period will lead so many astray. Perhaps our new
priest will slowly make changes in this custom. We can only pray.
Posted: Sunday - December 10, 2006 at 02:30 PM
