And Christmas celebrations are banned in Brunei with a five-year jail term for offenders. In an official statement, the Brunei Ministry of Religious Affairs declared, “These enforcement measures are…Intended to control the act of celebrating Christmas excessively and openly, which could damage the beliefs of the Muslim community.” Of course some Brunei residents risked jail time by celebrating Christmas in the open.
This may disturb contemporary Christians that connect the holiday with the birth of Christ. (Early Christians didn’t celebrate birthdays. The remembrance of birth was a pagan practice associated with astrology it was also considered a celebration of the ego a concept Early Christians sought to discourage.) But Christmas was not always accepted within Christianity.
During the Reformation and up to the 1800s Christmas was viewed by many Protestants as an unchristian practice. In England, from the 1640s to 1660s, all Christmas activities were outlawed by the Puritan-dominated Parliament.
The Puritans in Boston and the Plymouth colony made celebrating Christmas a criminal offense Puritans claimed there was no biblical justification for the celebration and Christmas encouraged immorality.
It’s clear Christmas has nothing to do with anyone’s actual birth or with the virgin born character in the Gospel. Most Christians I know have no interest in the historic origins of Christmas, they choose to celebrate Christmas because it’s the day universally accepted to celebrate the birth of their savior.
That’s fine; it’s a harmless choice in the United States.
But why would Christians in countries hostile toward Christmas choose to risk death or jail time to celebrate something that has no biblical basis?
Religious freedom?
That’s a secular assumption based on a political concept. Christians believe in free will not religious freedom. Disagree? I’ll rephrase Christians tolerate religious freedom as it is on earth but not in heaven.
Faith?
But faith in what? Here are two scriptures: “If you suffer for righteousness’ sake, happy are you: and, be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled.” (1 Peter 3:14 KJV) And. “Blessed is the man that endures trial: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the lord has promised.” (James 1:12 KJV)
Is it possible certain Christians have faith in subjecting themselves to suffering because they believe it leads to a divine promise?
But that concept sounds suicidal and frighteningly familiar.
A macro-analysis of the world will report a clash of civilizations, but a micro-analysis of individuals will report a clash between faith and reason.
(J. Pharoah Doss is a contributor to the New Pittsburgh Courier. He blogs at jpharoahdoss@blogspot.com.)
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