Christmas should be smelly

A message from Bishop Leo Frade

Christmas 2006

One of the wonderful Christmas traditions that I grew up with in Latin America was to always have a crèche under the Christmas tree. My sister and I were pretty much in charge of setting it up and had some good discussions on where this or that shepherd belonged, and of course the order of the Magi approaching the manger or the appropriateness of having a few of my toy soldiers to protect the perimeter from intruders.

As a young boy I was fascinated with the different pieces that made up the crèche. Jesus, the manger, Mary and Joseph, angels and shepherds with their sheep, the star of Bethlehem, camels and magi and of course a donkey and a cow. Tradition had it that you had to place the donkey near the manger so he could eat some of the hay that served as a mattress for baby Jesus’ crib. The cow just laid there probably wondering what was all the commotion taking place in her customary abode.

That first Christmas day should be a model to guide our celebrations. The same way that we need to have all the pieces to make a complete set for a crèche, we also must have all the pieces that make up a Christmas with meaning and purpose.

I have no problem with all the glamour and glitz that tends to surround this holiday season. Maybe I have just become accustomed to all the Christmas hype that tends to invade our lives from the Friday after Thanksgiving.

I love Christmas parties, and the joy of getting a gift has not diminished since my infancy. Yes, I do rejoice in Christmas--in its renewed contacts with friends and family close and faraway, in Christmas carols, beautiful decorations all around, Christmas trees glowing in the dark, turkey and stuffing with all the trimmings at a table surrounded by those we love. Yes, those are wonderful parts of our Christmas celebrations. But wait! What is missing?

Let me see, I’ve got Mary and Joseph, baby Jesus, the manger, the three Magi with their camels, the angels and shepherds. Yeah, I have all of that-- but something is still missing.

I know--where are the donkey and the cow? I can’t see them in my stable. I was leaving them out. Well, that’s understandable, you see. If I bring a cow and a donkey into my celebration in the stable where Jesus is lying next to Mary and Joseph, things are going to be quite messy--and probably quite smelly too. That will be a problem indeed. I prefer sanitized Christmas where everything is done in an orderly way. The ambiance should be comfortable and secure.

But I believe that it is probably impossible to have a true Christmas if you keep the donkey and the cow out of the picture. They are as essential a part of the nativity scene as any of the other more central participants. You see, the stable was probably smelly. It was not the most appropriate place for our Savior to be born, but it was the only place available at the time. Instead of insisting on a suite, his parents chose to bring the infant into this world in the lowliest place at the Bethlehem Inn. Let’s make sure that we place the donkey near the manger so he can eat some straw, because he has been carrying the pregnant Mary on her long journey. Let’s also keep the cow around, because we may need some milk.

So, if you want to assure yourself that you have all the pieces that make up a true Christmas, make sure you don’t leave anyone out. Angels and kings are nice, even the shepherds with their little white sheep, and of course Jesus, Mary and Joseph. But to have a true Christmas, we must let in people and things around us that probably won’t sparkle like all the holiday glitz but are also real parts of the meaning of Christmas.

Before you sit down to eat your wonderful meal be sure that those tables where the homeless will sit will also have food. Before you begin to pass around gifts to those you love and are familiar with, make sure that you pass out the gifts to the children who are less fortunate than yours. There are many community groups who will help you with that.

Who wants to remember the conflicts of war? It is difficult to digest the numbers of dead and wounded that are coming out of the Iraq conflict, but let us not forget those who are serving in the military. We need to reach out to them and to the families who have been left behind worrying about or grieving for their loved ones.

The list of those who wait to be invited into our Christmas stable could be endless, because there are more people around us lonely and suffering than those whose cups are running over. Senior citizens in retirement and nursing homes, recent immigrants in our midst living in fear of our newly acquired xenophobia, minorities suffering discrimination--and let us not forget our gay friends and family members whom we prefer to condemn to the closet.

Yes, Christmas can be quite smelly if we bring all of these inside our celebrations. We will have less time and less money if we give it to others in need, but only then we will be able to celebrate the full meaning of Christmas.

I dare you to seek a true—and messy—Christmas; the smell won’t kill you!

updated 12/20/06