Finding the Spirit of Christmas

Shannon Whitmore meditates on finding the spirit of Christmas as busy moms.

One of my all-time favorite Christmas movies is A Charlie Brown Christmas. It’s probably one of the most honest classics regarding Christmas, particularly here in America. While Charlie Brown goes about town trying to figure out the true meaning of Christmas, his friends try to convince him that Christmas is about gifts, Christmas trees, having a good time at holiday parties, and in Lucy’s case, attaining extra real estate. In the end, it’s Charlie Brown’s friend Linus, immature and yet wise beyond his years, who teaches him the true meaning of Christmas as he recites the biblical account of the birth of Jesus Christ.

For moms, it can be easy to get wrapped up in all the prep work for Christmas. We have presents to buy and wrap, cookies to bake, and Elves on the Shelf to move around every night. We have Christmas outfits to buy, trees to decorate, and Christmas cards to write. And we still have our regular duties to maintain: laundry to fold, dishes to wash, homework to correct.

As moms, we have to juggle it all, preferably while singing Christmas carols at the same time. It’s a lot, but if we won’t do it, who will? We are responsible for creating the Christmas magic, but it’s easy to forget about the spirit of Christmas with all our responsibilities. We might forget that while all these Advent and Christmas traditions are beautiful and magical, they are not the reason for the season in and of themselves. Jesus is the reason for the season.

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Linus, despite being young and childish, knows what Christmas is all about. Christmas is not about trees, or presents, or cookies. It’s about a person. It’s about God becoming man, and being born to a poor, but holy, family, in Bethlehem, in a stable, because there was no room for them at the inn. It’s about the coming Messiah, born to save us from sin and death. It’s about worshipping the newborn king.

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While all these Advent and Christmas traditions are beautiful and magical, they are not the reason for the season in and of themselves. #catholicmom

Linus is probably best known for his blue blanket, the comfort item that is always with him. He does not go anywhere without it, yet as he recounts to story of Christmas, he casts it aside in his passion for the tale. He finds the spirit of Christmas, and with it, he finds courage.

What might we discover when we find the spirit of Christmas? Maybe we will find peace amidst all the craziness of Christmas preparations. Maybe we will find joy as we share a cup of hot cocoa with our daughter and sing Christmas carols. Maybe we will find generosity as we use some of our present money to buy gifts for the less fortunate. And hopefully we will find love: the love of God for man, the love of our Savior for his people, the love of the Christ child for every human heart that comes to worship him. Oh, come let us adore him, Christ the Lord.