On one of my last posts I referred to North American adoration of celebrities and used (unwisely) Taylor Swift as an example. I received much feedback on that choice, through Facebook, messaging and texts. Clearly, a wise person does not discuss politics, religion, sex or Taylor Swift.
Since my raising Taylor Swift in a post worked so well for me, I thought I would venture into yet one more of the taboo topics . Today I thought I would venture into religion. Perhaps in the next week I will venture into politics, considering the current state of the world. Sex I know nothing about so I will studiously avoid that topic. There is something about the Christmas season that causes reflection about faith. But first let me talk about emotion and Lady Gaga. I am not an emotional person. I have worked hard to contain my emotions as I was taught to by my parents of English ancestry. I think that I learned that showing emotion displayed weakness, and I don't think I've actually cried about anything since I was 17. But I think that as we get older, we become more open to emotion. I can only think back to seeing tears in the eyes of my hard-as-nails father when he was 80 and was surprised by a visit from Ontario by my brother and his late wife. Those tears absolutely amazed me. This morning I took a fast look at Facebook, and on one of the reels it had part of a recording from Lady Gaga and Brad Cooper of their award winning song, Shallow. I cannot hear that song without having a catch in my throat. I am what would probably best be described as a liberal Christian. I believe in a God of love, but not of judgment. My United church background has taught me to take the Bible seriously but not literally. My faith is mixed with science and rationality. But I understand the importance of emotion in spirituality. And perhaps it's because of the preponderance of rationality and less emotionality that my church, the United church is declining in numbers. People want emotion just as they want black and white answers and truths. But the United church does fit my family' s general view of spiritualty and the world. We must all follow the path that our faith or lack of faith takes us. One of my favorite authors, that I read in one of our United Church Book Studies, was Marcus Borg. A theologian who focused on looking for Thin Spots. Places where we feel closer to the spirit whatever we may name that entity. Some find it in nature some find it in family love. I find it strongest in music. I find standing in church badly singing a hymn with thirty, fifty, or two hundred other people badly singing is a thin spot for me. And it may not be a hymn. It can be a choir or perhaps even "Shallow" by Lady Gaga. But at those moments my thin spot tells me that I am part of something greater. And it reminds me that I must contribute to my world positively and with love. Faith should never be a source of hatred or judgment. Or exploitation. Many of the presentations of Christmas music, choral music, and productions like Handel's Messiah, will provide people with those thin spots that most of us crave. As I get older, I am more intentional in my seeking of thin spots. Christmas season is a time rich with such thin spots, whatever your faith or worldview. What are your thin spots? Yesterday was Christmas in November. Almost every community had various Christmas markets going on, Harrison Hot Springs had its opening night of Lights on the Lake with entertainment and fireworks and historic Downtown Abbotsford had it's Winter Jubilee, complete with Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus, and the Grinch. I raced back from Harrison Hot Springs to Abbotsford yesterday afternoon for the opening of the Winter Jubilee at 4 PM so that I could welcome visitors from the stage as president of the Downtown Abbotsford Business Association. The crowd was small, my welcome was brief. Are people afraid of the rain that was predicted, I asked myself. But then the crowd started growing. And growing. Perhaps they delayed to intentionally miss my welcome speech. But then the crowds grew. And grew. And soon the streets were filled with booths, vendors, children's activities, music from various venues, including the main stage, and people. Lots of people. The lineup to see Santa was immense. I considered entering the lineup to once again ask Santa for what I have asked for my entire life . Charm and good looks. But Santa has always failed to deliver and this time the lineup was way too long. And it just seems wrong to sit on Santa's lap at this time of my life. As I left early to head back to an event in the Agassiz area, I walked against the flood of people who were still entering the downtown. In my estimation, the event was a massive success. We provided a Christmas experience to thousands of people in The Abbotsford area and an opportunity to showcase our businesses, both new and old. I have been involved in the downtown Abbotsford Business Association for about 23 years and president for several of those years and I am immensely proud of the professionalism of last nights event. I have only gratitude for our staff, volunteers, sponsors, and businesses that took part. The only downside of the evening was that in order to play my very small role in the Abbotsford event I missed the opening of Lights on the Lake in Harrison, which apparently brought thousands of people, a phenomenal firework show, and the entertainment of such great musicians as Todd Richard and the TR band If only there were two of me . There's a thought that will give my wife nightmares. This post from two years ago still seems appropriate today. We have just finished morning gift opening. Each year there are less presents and significantly less waste (wrapping paper, package containers, etc) than the previous year. The joy is in seeing the four kids buy better and more thoughtful gifts for each other and in some cases use their own Christmas gift money to pay for gifts for their siblings. With three of them going to Christmas Eve church service last night , I think that they are all learning the many meanings of Christmas.
Merry Christmas to all.
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