Christmas

Not sure exactly what you mean by doing Christmas. I personally don't go "all out" for Christmas (i.e., decorations, parties, buying lots of gifts), but if someone else wants to that's OK with me too.

 

I come from a RC Background & they certainly do christmas.

However the older folks did the religious things & didnt turn it into a circus. Dinners at home, helping others, making it sacramental......not Blow up Glow in the dark lawn ornaments.

 

I don't do santa either, but Father Christmas does fill the stockings.........I don't celebrate Christmas at home, but have always preached appropriately at church for those who do. The message of Jesus works at any service.

We do the gift thing on Christmas Eve.

Cheers,

Jim

 

My family goes all out for Christmas. It starts the Friday after Thanksgiving and lasts until what my Mom calls "Old Christmas" -- which is the Greek Orthodox Christmas Day. I have no idea why as my mother's people have been Baptist probably since Roger Williams. Maybe it has something to do with the 12 Days of Christmas.

Anyway, since I'm not a kid anymore, the pile of gifts has lost its appeal. But I find a lot of joy in service. Our church has a kiosk at a mall where we offer free gift wrapping, with a suggested donation to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering. I volunteer for 6 hour shifts three times a week. Besides becoming an A-number one gift wrapper, I've also had to become sort of a semi-official historian on Miss Lottie. When I told one lady that we were not charging for gift wrapping, but we would gladly accept a donation to the Lottie Moon Chrismtas offering, responded, "I'm not giving my money to the Moonies!" :laugh:

Growing up half Catholic and half Baptist, as a kid Saint Nicholas Day was always part of my celebration. Not to be outdone, Mom invented a tradition out of whole cloth. According to her it seems that on Old Christmas Santa makes another trip around the world. If you have taken care of your gifts he gives "left overs" (color books, books, jigsaw puzzles, Hot Wheels). But if you haven't taken care of your gifts, he takes them back to give to a boy or girl who will.

Mom especially goes all-out on Christmas. Being a good Baptist since nine months before she was born, she doesn't smoke,drink or chew. But she has found one addiction--Department 57. We have the 50s village in living room, the Bethlehem village in the dining room, and the Dickens village in the the family room. Her birthday is November 8. So if I'm stuck for a thoughtful birthday gift, I just get her one of the new pieces for that year and am sure she'll love it.

She has--at last count--29 Christmas videos and DVDs, including a 5-DVD set of Christmas episodes from classic TV shows. She and I clear one entire day and do nothing but get our fix on Christmas movies. These range from the sacred (The Nativity Story) to the dramatic The Bishop's Wife, to the comedic (We're No Angels), to the innane (8 Crazy Nights).

Mom also becomes a obsessive-compulsive pastry chef right around the end of Thanksgiving. With the cookies, cakes, fudge, brittle, brownies, and confections in all shapes and sizes, it's enough to send a person into a diabetic coma just thinking about it.

Christmas Eve we visit my maternal grandparents and spend the evening fellowshipping with them and on Christmas Day we go to my paternal grandparents and spend the day with them.

Then on January 6, it's over as suddenly as it began.

 

Where's the poll ?

 

I do Christmas as big as I can...... there is the lead up to Christmas with the 4 weeks of Advent which is a penitental period. Christmas Vigil is important and just about everyone is in church...there are carols and the rosary...and the tremendous anticipation for the Mass at midnight. The kiddies see the manger all prepared for the coming of Our Saviour, the church has been titivated with flowers and lots of candles.

The processional of the priests and altar servers bring the baby Jesus to the manger and then the Missa Cantata proceeds. It is an awe inspiring and very beautiful Mass.

Get to bed about 0200hrs .....because I am single I get to totter from one family to another....it is great fun and wonderful. This year I shall go to Oz to be with my family which I am looking forward to.

 

Strange question for August, but I haven't celebrated Christmas in many years. The main reason being that on retirement I can't afford it.

 

Same here.:thumbsup: