Okay. Now.
Something has been done and it has colors and sometimes connections. Yes.
So.
It seems that we are locked, embattled if you will, in a struggle between what we stand for.
We have two myths we put forth, one only for children (because they certainly require irreverent entertainment to keep them from breaking our precious cookie jars) and the other for the inner-longing of "us" all. Right? Both tales state specific values of goodness and reverence. They both, however, run into the realms of paradox when faced with each other.
Is it not bizarre that we put so much effort into annually re-telling the two stories separate yet equal? Jesus is the reason for the season. But what about Santa?
Sure, one is real, we're told, while the other is fake. Whatever. It appears to me as a moral dilemma, not a technical one. The story of Jesus has to do with selflessness and transcendence while the tale of Santa Claus carries with it an ironic dogma: Be good and you'll get stuff. Also, believe.
And what strikes me particularly, is that I've come to recognize the innate shallowness of the Santa myth as the prevalent foundation of all institutionalized religion. The story of the baby Jesus being born and the circumstances surrounding the entire legend, are rife with metaphor and a profound sense of the miraculous that we can truly learn from and use to apply to our lives. Yet, Religion asks very little of us: Carry around this book, memorize it's' passages, worship this particular saint, deity, element etc. But whatever you do, don't THINK for yourself because that might be The Devil. This is closer to the Santa story.
Here's part of the end of the Gospel of Thomas:
"111) Jesus said, "The heavens and the earth will be rolled up in your presence. And the one who lives from the living one will not see death." Does not Jesus say, "Whoever finds himself is superior to the world?"
(112) Jesus said, "Woe to the flesh that depends on the soul; woe to the soul that depends on the flesh."
(113) His disciples said to him, "When will the kingdom come?"
-The Gospel According to Thomas
This is indeed a powerful testament to what I think the story of Jesus is about.
I feel like I'm losing my original point. I only want to note that it's kind of weird that we have these two conflicting stories and we don't acknowledge what effect that has on us or why we do it. The quest for meaning got lost somewhere between the candy canes and the manger.
Yeah, I know it's the sentiment that counts.
Well, Merry Christmas anyway.
