A Doubtful Christmas is a story about the value of hard work. Read this enjoyable, true story and answer the following question: Have we lost the true meaning of Christmas? Choose a side and argue it. Your blog must be AT LEAST 300 words.
I'm not going to lie I LOVE Christmas, and reading A Doubtful Christmas definitely fueled my Christmas spirit. Christmas is truly a time for celebration, joy, spending time with family, and most importantly rejoicing in the birth of Jesus. Although, with this said I can not say that everyone who celebrates Christmas believes in the true meaning of Christmas. I also can not say that the true meaning of Christmas has been lost for these people, but rather they have never been exposed to the truth about Christmas because it's impossible to loose something that was never there. Therefore, it is the duty of the people who have been exposed to the true meaning of Christmas to spread this truth. There are many people that have not been born into a Christian family and with today's social media and marketing, Christ is being excluded from Christmas. Due to these situations, this is why I believe that many individuals have not been exposed to a proper Christmas. One may argue that people get too wrapped up (do you see what I did there... like wrapping paper) in the decorating and the gift giving of this holiday, but those activities are part of the celebration. The whole reason why people decorate their homes is in preparation for the birth of Jesus. Just like how we decorate for a birthday party, we are decorating for Jesus's birthday party: Christmas. Gift giving is also a form of celebration. Although we can not physically hand Jesus a gift for His birthday, we instead give gifts to others because the greatest gift we can give Jesus is to show our love of Him by loving others. In A Doubtful Christmas, the mother worked extremely hard so that her children could have a joyous Christmas. The mother didn't have any money to spend on toys, but this didn't stop her from making the Christmas a success. The oldest son knew what his mother was up to and lowered his expectations for the presents he was going to receive. When it came to be Christmas Day, the son was surprised to see his presents. He saw the beautiful toys his mother carved out of wood, and the intricate details that went into each toy. He realized how much work and love his mother put into the toys. By this act of love through gift giving, the son became one step closer to knowing the true meaning of Christmas.
Marcy, I like how you explained that we cannot lose something if we didn't have it in the first place. That's very true! Anyway, keep up the good work!
the Christmas season is filled with the latest deals on gifts from television sets to microwaves. There was not always a time when we could pull up a chair and order a new cell phone and have it show up on our doorstep the next day. With the increasing availability of these material gifts, many people have started to loose the "reason for the season." They want the latest version of the latest technology as soon as possible. For some people, showing off these possessions is more important for them than focusing on the roots of the holiday season. But of course, I'm not saying everyone who gets a new phone for Christmas is an awful person. Im talking about those people we all know who aren't afraid to show off their new gifts, a little to much. Every year, when Black Friday rolls around, I can't help but wonder what is going through the minds of all the hundreds of people shoving and pushing each other in malls. The reason we give gifts around the Christmas season has been muddied and turned around. Personally, I think many people have lost the true meaning of what Christmas really means. My idea of making and giving gifts was always to represent the joyous gift that was given to us by God, Jesus. For the non-religious out there, true gift giving is still a representation of your love and appreciation for the recipients. The holiday and Christmas season should be a time spent full of joy with family and friends. Last Christmas, I spent weeks in preparation for the gifts I was going to be giving to my closest friends and family. I hand knitted more than ten scarves to give out as gifts. (Ask Mandy, Abby, or Marcy) I love giving gifts that I feel are meaningful for the other person and try to personalize everything I give to someone. My cousin Dino LOVES the Chicago Cubs. So I searched for the coolest design of the Cubs t-shirt online that I thought he would love. His brother Hayden always wears funky socks and loves Star Wars, so my mom found Star Wars storm trooper socks on the Internet. The mother in the story personalized the toys she made for her children and poured her heart and soul into them. The children in the story were more than happy with the toys they received on Christmas morning. They didn't care that they were not the latest and greatest models, they appreciated what they were given and loved them the same. These children in the story, truly knew the meaning of Christmas. I'd like to end this blog with a quote by Mother Teresa, "Its not how much we give, but how much love we put into giving."
Bobbi, I like how you explained that people are losing the true meaning of Christmas, yet you yourself have not lost its true meaning because of sacrifices you make to create presents for others. Good Job!
I like how you sort of brought us in to your celebration of Christmas. I almost felt like I was there when you spdescribed all the people surrounding you. Nice job.
Christmas, to know if we have lost its true meaning, we must first uncover what its true meaning is. The etymology of the word "Christmas" roughly means "Christ's Mass" or "Honoring Christ." In other words, Christmas is about celebrating Jesus Christ's birth. Why? Because of his love for us, and the sacrifice he made for us on the cross. I do think we are on the path to losing the true meaning of Christmas if we haven't lost it already. An example of this would be the commercialization of Christmas. Does gift giving automatically make us lose the true meaning of Christmas? No! Even the three wise men gave gifts to Jesus. Giving gifts allows us to show our love to others. It becomes a problem though when the focus of Christmas is on the gifts themselves and not on Jesus. The people giving and receiving the gifts ought to know that the reasoning for it is to symbolize God's love for mankind I.e. Jesus Christ. If that is taken out of the equation, than Christmas becomes more like a "Giftmas". In 1st world countries such as North America, a good part of people are greedy for "goods" such as more money or the latest tech, and this want is going to start to be passed on from generation to generation if nothing is going to stop it. Today it's easier to halfheartedly buy a new xBox One for your child than it is to make a homemade gift he'd appreciate. There ought to be some sort of sacrifice made other than money in the gift for the gift giver and receiver to sincerely get the most out of Christmas. I say if a family can have a great Christmas with only homemade presents like in the "Doubtful Christmas" story, then they are truly celebrating Christmas.
I like how you approached this. The wisemen gave Jesus presents in respect of his birth. I do have to add that it's through the obsession of gift giving and receiving that create problems. Society has its own descriptions of a true Christmas celebration, we just need to find one that fulfills our faith and family relations. Overall, great job!
Christmas is a very joyous holiday to celebrate and it brings family together every year to eat and just be together. We always hear stories of how people hate Christmas then they fall in love with someone and end up loving Christmas again. These stories are found in Hallmark movies where there's always a happy ending or a couple always gets together. This story however, didn't end with a new couple getting together, it started with tragedy and showed the ways that someone without much money can make the most out of Christmas for their family. Now the main question is are we losing the true meaning of Christmas? I would sadly like to say I think that we are losing the real meaning of what makes Christmas truly Christmas. I believe that in our society the only thing people are worried about now is the gifts they are receiving or how much money they have gotten in their cards from family or their bosses at work. Money has become a major part of our society today, they say we cannot live without money or without our phones with us. This has brought on a standard that is not true at all. There are people out there that don't need money to be able to enjoy Christmas so much that some say it's their best Christmas they have ever had. Family and faith is all that someone needs to enjoy Christmas. With those two things Christmas will never lose its purpose to money or fancy presents. Our faith truly shows how lucky we are and how Christmas is such a wonderful holiday because of our saviors birth into the world all those years ago. Our family allows us to smile and laugh on Christmas and let us know we are loved. Those are the true gifts for Christmas that we all deserve.
Even though I hate hallmark Christmas movies, this was a very good example to describe what Christmas is today. The ending is very strong and really showed me what you think Christmas is!
I like how optimistic you were concerning whether or not the holiday will ever loose its meaning. I also liked how you included the Christmas card statements. I know my family gets an onslaught of them every year. Nicely written.
I believe most people today have lost the true meaning of Christmas. In my eyes the first true meaning of Christmas is to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. The second most important thing to me is to spend time with family and friends, and to give as well. But now most people forget those things and just look forward to receiving gifts. Yeah, getting presents is nice but that's not the purpose of Christmas, as many people overlook the true meaning. There are a lot of people that do attend church on Christmas morning or midnight mass but it's also not enough. Especially as people get older, and into their teens they should care more about worshiping Jesus's birth than sitting around doing nothing or opening gifts. Even as a child, I still attended mass every year. I still remember it all, I remember waking up around 7 on Christmas morning and running down to open Christmas presents. Usually my grandma and grandpa came down to see what we got then we had some time to play with our new toys. As about 9:15-9:30 approached we got ready and went to meet our aunt then went to church with her. It had always been a tradition to go to church on Christmas and that was one of my moms first priorities. As for a lot of other people though, it isn't a priority and hasn't been. Another thing we're guilty of today is taking advantage of being around friends and family and just enjoying their company. I have a large family and to most of the kids, even the ones as old as 13, just care about the food and gift exchange. Most of them eat then try to rush the parents to finish eating so they can open gifts instead of sitting around talking and having fun with the other cousins they have. Most of us take advantage of everyone else's presence, and I'm guilty of it too in a way. Last year I wasn't all about the gifts but I did use my phone a lot, and took advantage of many people's presences, especially my grandmas. I don't think I sat down and had a conversation with her, and now looking back on it, knowing I'll never have another Christmas with her, I wish I had.
You used really good pathos in this blog! I love the beginning as well as the ending. What you thought about the true meaning of Christmas was very clear! Good job!
Christmas is a time that every little kid looks forward to and every family celebrates. The meaning of Christmas is to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ! In the true story Doubtful Christmas the boy talked about his family struggles and how his mother tried very hard to provide for him and his brothers. Very few times does this story mention anything about Jesus. "On Christmas Eve, we sang carols, and grandpa read aloud from his Bible." When Doyle says this it is the only time anything about Jesus is mentioned. In the rest of the story he talks about how hard his mother worked to make sure him and his brothers weren't disappointed with the presents they got. So have we lost the true meaning of Christmas? In my opinion, the answer will different for every family. For my family the meaning of true Christmas is still celebrated each and every year. On Christmas Eve, all of my cousins go to my uncles house after church to eat dinner and celebrate. when the clock hits 12:00am everyone lights a cake and sings happy birthday to Jesus and then everyone leaves. On Christmas Morning at my house, we all eat breakfast and go around the table saying why we are thankful for Jesus before we open any presents. We also add baby Jesus to the manger. Then once again everyone gathers at my uncles house and we sing to baby Jesus again and exchange presents under 10 dollars. Many family's have some kind of tradition that celebrates the coming of Jesus. Christmas has always been my favorite time of the year and I don't think that will ever change! I don't believe that the true meaning of Christmas is completely lost but I do believe that some families need to be reminded that Christmas isn't about what presents you get or how many you get, but that it's about Jesus coming so that he could save us from sin.
Like many other people, I really enjoy Christmas. It's a ridiculously powerful holiday. It's bring people of all backgrounds together and was even significant enough to halt World War I. It's just a really peaceful time (for most) and I can't think of many people living around due who don't enjoy it. Despite that, many people don't see the holiday for what it really is, even Christians. In fact, many Christians don't actually realize that Christmas wasn't even a Christian holiday to begin with. It began as a pagan celebration that brought people together to share in thanksgiving and care for one another. After read no the story of a Doubtful Christmas, it gave me hope that people still see Christmas for what it should be. Christmas has become so commercialized that I doubt many people see it as what it's supposed to be. Christmas is a time to be with family, share in each other's company, and watch those poorly animated specials we've all grown up with. It's a time to be with one another and just share a common love for one another. People used to go all of the country to visit relatives this time of year, but it doesn't seem like that anymore. Even though I'm an atheist, I cherish this time of year because I'm able to see my family all at once for one time a year. I have an aunt in Maryland, aunts and uncles from Chicago and Harrisburg, and a cousin in the Air Force. This is the only season I can look forward to when it comes to seeing them. My family is so widespread that we don't get to see each other much at all, and I'm sure many of you can relate to that. In recent years, it hasn't been that way. I haven't been able to see them all at once for the past few years because of their work schedules. I have an uncle in the Capitol Building, for example, and he's hard to catch up with. I miss seeing my family so much, and I seem to blame the commercialization of Christmas. It's become such a business- and work-oriented time that I can't see them all as much as I'd want to. I hope that, in the future, people will realize what they've done to this holiday, and hopefully it becomes equally as cherished as it was before. It's gotten to the point where I actually miss going to the seemingly endless Christmas mass with my extended family. That being said, I still can't get enough of his holiday. I will see many relatives, but I miss the days when it was all of us.
Christmas: "the annual Christian festival commemorating Jesus Christ's birth, held on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration I'm on billions of people around the world." According to google, Christmas still holds the importance of faith as a religious holiday. In Doyle Suit's piece, A Doubtful Christmas, it displays family disownment in a time that is meant for family and faith driven celebration. During this time, he and his family could have forgot the true meaning, but through his mother, she kept the family together in health, community, morals, and faith. Throughout the world, society has its standards of this holiday being a time of family, friends, the joy of giving and togetherness. For those are quite important, but the real importance is the birth of our Lord and Savior. Saying everyone puts materialistic happiness over that of family and faith is irreverent to those who do. However, a good majority of families struggle with the remembrance of why this holiday even came about. It is through my opinion that we are losing the true meaning of Christmas is about. It is fun to wake up in the morning and see presents magically appear over night, but how would society react if there was no wrapped presents under the tree? The moods of children and families would most likely become irritable with the absence of their beloved presents. So if the presents were taken away, there is a good possibility that the celebration of Christ's birth would not be much of a celebration at all, but rather a disappointment. As a child, my parents would always have me set up our nativity sets; it was my job. I had the privilege as a child to get to know the nativity story through my parents assigning me the setup of the scene. I encourage parents to get their parents involved with the meaning behind Christmas, the birth of baby boy, the shepherds, the wisemen, the star of Bethlehem, and the barn full of animals that was the hospital for Mary And Jospeh. Create a generation who applies f
What is true meaning of Christmas? Is it giving, or working hard in order to give? Is it about family? How can we know if we lost it if we don't know what it is? I know Mrs. Messineo doesn't like to hear about the during Christmas, but why would Jesus' birth be so important without it? Its not that we've lost the true meaning of Christmas; we've just put more importance into other aspects. Enjoying time with family, telling the Christmas story, and giving to each other (especially the less fortunate) are all important aspects of Christmas, but NOT the most important and too many people think they are. I love all of these activities, but often times We sacrifice going to church or talking about the reason for the season in order to do all these things. The most important part if remembering what the point of this season really is. Without Jesus' birth, our lives, if they even happened, would be so much different and so much worth. On Friday, at mass, the song It's About the Cross was sang. It describes my point perfectly. It claims that it's not just about all of the things previously mentioned. Instead, "Its about the cross. It's about my sin. It's about how Jesus game to be born once so we could be born again. It's about the stone, that was rolled away so that you and I may have real life some day." The true meaning of Christmas is to be thankful for our biggest blessing: Jesus. It is to be thankful for God sending his Son to be born human, suffer, and die for our sake. The link to this song is below. Please listen to it because it will remind you what is really most important this year and what is not. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nwwwOW8eyj0
I'm not going to lie I LOVE Christmas, and reading A Doubtful Christmas definitely fueled my Christmas spirit. Christmas is truly a time for celebration, joy, spending time with family, and most importantly rejoicing in the birth of Jesus. Although, with this said I can not say that everyone who celebrates Christmas believes in the true meaning of Christmas. I also can not say that the true meaning of Christmas has been lost for these people, but rather they have never been exposed to the truth about Christmas because it's impossible to loose something that was never there. Therefore, it is the duty of the people who have been exposed to the true meaning of Christmas to spread this truth. There are many people that have not been born into a Christian family and with today's social media and marketing, Christ is being excluded from Christmas. Due to these situations, this is why I believe that many individuals have not been exposed to a proper Christmas.
ReplyDeleteOne may argue that people get too wrapped up (do you see what I did there... like wrapping paper) in the decorating and the gift giving of this holiday, but those activities are part of the celebration. The whole reason why people decorate their homes is in preparation for the birth of Jesus. Just like how we decorate for a birthday party, we are decorating for Jesus's birthday party: Christmas. Gift giving is also a form of celebration. Although we can not physically hand Jesus a gift for His birthday, we instead give gifts to others because the greatest gift we can give Jesus is to show our love of Him by loving others.
In A Doubtful Christmas, the mother worked extremely hard so that her children could have a joyous Christmas. The mother didn't have any money to spend on toys, but this didn't stop her from making the Christmas a success. The oldest son knew what his mother was up to and lowered his expectations for the presents he was going to receive. When it came to be Christmas Day, the son was surprised to see his presents. He saw the beautiful toys his mother carved out of wood, and the intricate details that went into each toy. He realized how much work and love his mother put into the toys. By this act of love through gift giving, the son became one step closer to knowing the true meaning of Christmas.
Marcy, I like how you explained that we cannot lose something if we didn't have it in the first place. That's very true! Anyway, keep up the good work!
DeleteI really enjoyed your blog, it was informative yet positive in the way you argued your opinion. Good job
DeleteYou did I very good job explaining your point fully- sometimes it's difficult to find the right words but you did a great job
Deletethe Christmas season is filled with the latest deals on gifts from television sets to microwaves. There was not always a time when we could pull up a chair and order a new cell phone and have it show up on our doorstep the next day. With the increasing availability of these material gifts, many people have started to loose the "reason for the season." They want the latest version of the latest technology as soon as possible. For some people, showing off these possessions is more important for them than focusing on the roots of the holiday season. But of course, I'm not saying everyone who gets a new phone for Christmas is an awful person. Im talking about those people we all know who aren't afraid to show off their new gifts, a little to much. Every year, when Black Friday rolls around, I can't help but wonder what is going through the minds of all the hundreds of people shoving and pushing each other in malls. The reason we give gifts around the Christmas season has been muddied and turned around. Personally, I think many people have lost the true meaning of what Christmas really means. My idea of making and giving gifts was always to represent the joyous gift that was given to us by God, Jesus. For the non-religious out there, true gift giving is still a representation of your love and appreciation for the recipients. The holiday and Christmas season should be a time spent full of joy with family and friends. Last Christmas, I spent weeks in preparation for the gifts I was going to be giving to my closest friends and family. I hand knitted more than ten scarves to give out as gifts. (Ask Mandy, Abby, or Marcy) I love giving gifts that I feel are meaningful for the other person and try to personalize everything I give to someone. My cousin Dino LOVES the Chicago Cubs. So I searched for the coolest design of the Cubs t-shirt online that I thought he would love. His brother Hayden always wears funky socks and loves Star Wars, so my mom found Star Wars storm trooper socks on the Internet. The mother in the story personalized the toys she made for her children and poured her heart and soul into them. The children in the story were more than happy with the toys they received on Christmas morning. They didn't care that they were not the latest and greatest models, they appreciated what they were given and loved them the same. These children in the story, truly knew the meaning of Christmas. I'd like to end this blog with a quote by Mother Teresa, "Its not how much we give, but how much love we put into giving."
ReplyDeleteBobbi, I like how you explained that people are losing the true meaning of Christmas, yet you yourself have not lost its true meaning because of sacrifices you make to create presents for others. Good Job!
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteI really loved your blog this week! I can't agree more that handmade gifts mean more than store bought ones.
DeleteAwweeee!!! I love your blog! You made it so personal and you truly do make your gifts special:) I also loved your quote to end the blog! Nice work!
DeleteI like how you sort of brought us in to your celebration of Christmas. I almost felt like I was there when you spdescribed all the people surrounding you. Nice job.
DeleteChristmas, to know if we have lost its true meaning, we must first uncover what its true meaning is. The etymology of the word "Christmas" roughly means "Christ's Mass" or "Honoring Christ." In other words, Christmas is about celebrating Jesus Christ's birth. Why? Because of his love for us, and the sacrifice he made for us on the cross. I do think we are on the path to losing the true meaning of Christmas if we haven't lost it already. An example of this would be the commercialization of Christmas. Does gift giving automatically make us lose the true meaning of Christmas? No! Even the three wise men gave gifts to Jesus. Giving gifts allows us to show our love to others. It becomes a problem though when the focus of Christmas is on the gifts themselves and not on Jesus. The people giving and receiving the gifts ought to know that the reasoning for it is to symbolize God's love for mankind I.e. Jesus Christ. If that is taken out of the equation, than Christmas becomes more like a "Giftmas". In 1st world countries such as North America, a good part of people are greedy for "goods" such as more money or the latest tech, and this want is going to start to be passed on from generation to generation if nothing is going to stop it. Today it's easier to halfheartedly buy a new xBox One for your child than it is to make a homemade gift he'd appreciate. There ought to be some sort of sacrifice made other than money in the gift for the gift giver and receiver to sincerely get the most out of Christmas. I say if a family can have a great Christmas with only homemade presents like in the "Doubtful Christmas" story, then they are truly celebrating Christmas.
ReplyDeleteTim, I agree with your argument and I like how you started off your blog!
DeleteTim, I really enjoyed you "Giftmas" analogy! I think that you thoroughly explained your point and you did a great job!
DeleteI like how you approached this. The wisemen gave Jesus presents in respect of his birth. I do have to add that it's through the obsession of gift giving and receiving that create problems. Society has its own descriptions of a true Christmas celebration, we just need to find one that fulfills our faith and family relations. Overall, great job!
DeleteChristmas is a very joyous holiday to celebrate and it brings family together every year to eat and just be together. We always hear stories of how people hate Christmas then they fall in love with someone and end up loving Christmas again. These stories are found in Hallmark movies where there's always a happy ending or a couple always gets together. This story however, didn't end with a new couple getting together, it started with tragedy and showed the ways that someone without much money can make the most out of Christmas for their family. Now the main question is are we losing the true meaning of Christmas? I would sadly like to say I think that we are losing the real meaning of what makes Christmas truly Christmas. I believe that in our society the only thing people are worried about now is the gifts they are receiving or how much money they have gotten in their cards from family or their bosses at work. Money has become a major part of our society today, they say we cannot live without money or without our phones with us. This has brought on a standard that is not true at all. There are people out there that don't need money to be able to enjoy Christmas so much that some say it's their best Christmas they have ever had. Family and faith is all that someone needs to enjoy Christmas. With those two things Christmas will never lose its purpose to money or fancy presents. Our faith truly shows how lucky we are and how Christmas is such a wonderful holiday because of our saviors birth into the world all those years ago. Our family allows us to smile and laugh on Christmas and let us know we are loved. Those are the true gifts for Christmas that we all deserve.
ReplyDeleteEven though I hate hallmark Christmas movies, this was a very good example to describe what Christmas is today. The ending is very strong and really showed me what you think Christmas is!
DeleteI like how optimistic you were concerning whether or not the holiday will ever loose its meaning. I also liked how you included the Christmas card statements. I know my family gets an onslaught of them every year. Nicely written.
DeleteI believe most people today have lost the true meaning of Christmas. In my eyes the first true meaning of Christmas is to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. The second most important thing to me is to spend time with family and friends, and to give as well. But now most people forget those things and just look forward to receiving gifts. Yeah, getting presents is nice but that's not the purpose of Christmas, as many people overlook the true meaning. There are a lot of people that do attend church on Christmas morning or midnight mass but it's also not enough. Especially as people get older, and into their teens they should care more about worshiping Jesus's birth than sitting around doing nothing or opening gifts. Even as a child, I still attended mass every year. I still remember it all, I remember waking up around 7 on Christmas morning and running down to open Christmas presents. Usually my grandma and grandpa came down to see what we got then we had some time to play with our new toys. As about 9:15-9:30 approached we got ready and went to meet our aunt then went to church with her. It had always been a tradition to go to church on Christmas and that was one of my moms first priorities. As for a lot of other people though, it isn't a priority and hasn't been. Another thing we're guilty of today is taking advantage of being around friends and family and just enjoying their company. I have a large family and to most of the kids, even the ones as old as 13, just care about the food and gift exchange. Most of them eat then try to rush the parents to finish eating so they can open gifts instead of sitting around talking and having fun with the other cousins they have. Most of us take advantage of everyone else's presence, and I'm guilty of it too in a way. Last year I wasn't all about the gifts but I did use my phone a lot, and took advantage of many people's presences, especially my grandmas. I don't think I sat down and had a conversation with her, and now looking back on it, knowing I'll never have another Christmas with her, I wish I had.
ReplyDeleteYou used really good pathos in this blog! I love the beginning as well as the ending. What you thought about the true meaning of Christmas was very clear! Good job!
DeleteChristmas is a time that every little kid looks forward to and every family celebrates. The meaning of Christmas is to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ! In the true story Doubtful Christmas the boy talked about his family struggles and how his mother tried very hard to provide for him and his brothers. Very few times does this story mention anything about Jesus. "On Christmas Eve, we sang carols, and grandpa read aloud from his Bible." When Doyle says this it is the only time anything about Jesus is mentioned. In the rest of the story he talks about how hard his mother worked to make sure him and his brothers weren't disappointed with the presents they got. So have we lost the true meaning of Christmas? In my opinion, the answer will different for every family. For my family the meaning of true Christmas is still celebrated each and every year. On Christmas Eve, all of my cousins go to my uncles house after church to eat dinner and celebrate. when the clock hits 12:00am everyone lights a cake and sings happy birthday to Jesus and then everyone leaves. On Christmas Morning at my house, we all eat breakfast and go around the table saying why we are thankful for Jesus before we open any presents. We also add baby Jesus to the manger. Then once again everyone gathers at my uncles house and we sing to baby Jesus again and exchange presents under 10 dollars. Many family's have some kind of tradition that celebrates the coming of Jesus. Christmas has always been my favorite time of the year and I don't think that will ever change! I don't believe that the true meaning of Christmas is completely lost but I do believe that some families need to be reminded that Christmas isn't about what presents you get or how many you get, but that it's about Jesus coming so that he could save us from sin.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you know the true meaning while realizing there are other good aspects as well! It's not about the presents it's about his presence!
DeleteLike many other people, I really enjoy Christmas. It's a ridiculously powerful holiday. It's bring people of all backgrounds together and was even significant enough to halt World War I. It's just a really peaceful time (for most) and I can't think of many people living around due who don't enjoy it. Despite that, many people don't see the holiday for what it really is, even Christians. In fact, many Christians don't actually realize that Christmas wasn't even a Christian holiday to begin with. It began as a pagan celebration that brought people together to share in thanksgiving and care for one another. After read no the story of a Doubtful Christmas, it gave me hope that people still see Christmas for what it should be. Christmas has become so commercialized that I doubt many people see it as what it's supposed to be. Christmas is a time to be with family, share in each other's company, and watch those poorly animated specials we've all grown up with. It's a time to be with one another and just share a common love for one another. People used to go all of the country to visit relatives this time of year, but it doesn't seem like that anymore. Even though I'm an atheist, I cherish this time of year because I'm able to see my family all at once for one time a year. I have an aunt in Maryland, aunts and uncles from Chicago and Harrisburg, and a cousin in the Air Force. This is the only season I can look forward to when it comes to seeing them. My family is so widespread that we don't get to see each other much at all, and I'm sure many of you can relate to that. In recent years, it hasn't been that way. I haven't been able to see them all at once for the past few years because of their work schedules. I have an uncle in the Capitol Building, for example, and he's hard to catch up with. I miss seeing my family so much, and I seem to blame the commercialization of Christmas. It's become such a business- and work-oriented time that I can't see them all as much as I'd want to. I hope that, in the future, people will realize what they've done to this holiday, and hopefully it becomes equally as cherished as it was before. It's gotten to the point where I actually miss going to the seemingly endless Christmas mass with my extended family. That being said, I still can't get enough of his holiday. I will see many relatives, but I miss the days when it was all of us.
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ReplyDeleteChristmas: "the annual Christian festival commemorating Jesus Christ's birth, held on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration I'm on billions of people around the world." According to google, Christmas still holds the importance of faith as a religious holiday. In Doyle Suit's piece, A Doubtful Christmas, it displays family disownment in a time that is meant for family and faith driven celebration. During this time, he and his family could have forgot the true meaning, but through his mother, she kept the family together in health, community, morals, and faith. Throughout the world, society has its standards of this holiday being a time of family, friends, the joy of giving and togetherness. For those are quite important, but the real importance is the birth of our Lord and Savior. Saying everyone puts materialistic happiness over that of family and faith is irreverent to those who do. However, a good majority of families struggle with the remembrance of why this holiday even came about. It is through my opinion that we are losing the true meaning of Christmas is about. It is fun to wake up in the morning and see presents magically appear over night, but how would society react if there was no wrapped presents under the tree? The moods of children and families would most likely become irritable with the absence of their beloved presents. So if the presents were taken away, there is a good possibility that the celebration of Christ's birth would not be much of a celebration at all, but rather a disappointment. As a child, my parents would always have me set up our nativity sets; it was my job. I had the privilege as a child to get to know the nativity story through my parents assigning me the setup of the scene. I encourage parents to get their parents involved with the meaning behind Christmas, the birth of baby boy, the shepherds, the wisemen, the star of Bethlehem, and the barn full of animals that was the hospital for Mary And Jospeh. Create a generation who applies f
ReplyDeleteWhat is true meaning of Christmas? Is it giving, or working hard in order to give? Is it about family? How can we know if we lost it if we don't know what it is? I know Mrs. Messineo doesn't like to hear about the during Christmas, but why would Jesus' birth be so important without it? Its not that we've lost the true meaning of Christmas; we've just put more importance into other aspects. Enjoying time with family, telling the Christmas story, and giving to each other (especially the less fortunate) are all important aspects of Christmas, but NOT the most important and too many people think they are. I love all of these activities, but often times We sacrifice going to church or talking about the reason for the season in order to do all these things. The most important part if remembering what the point of this season really is. Without Jesus' birth, our lives, if they even happened, would be so much different and so much worth. On Friday, at mass, the song It's About the Cross was sang. It describes my point perfectly. It claims that it's not just about all of the things previously mentioned. Instead, "Its about the cross. It's about my sin. It's about how Jesus game to be born once so we could be born again. It's about the stone, that was rolled away so that you and I may have real life some day." The true meaning of Christmas is to be thankful for our biggest blessing: Jesus. It is to be thankful for God sending his Son to be born human, suffer, and die for our sake. The link to this song is below. Please listen to it because it will remind you what is really most important this year and what is not.
ReplyDeletehttps://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nwwwOW8eyj0