Xmas Passed

THE TRUE MEANING OF WHAT?

I write this on 25th December, a date known in the UK as Christmas Day, and by similar appellations in most countries in Europe, and in those colonised, and still largely occupied, by the descendants of Europeans. It is, supposedly, about the birth of Jesus Christ and all the attendant myths. But it is also now a time when a certain type of Christian will bemoan the loss of the 'true meaning of Xmas' to commercialisation and secularism. Which immediately identifies somebody who has little idea of the true meaning of 'true meaning'.

So is there such a thing as a 'true meaning'? Does it matter? What of the traditions and common practices that surround this festival? Just how much of it is actually Christian, or indeed 'traditional', whatever that means?

It's probable that somebody who became the basis for the Jesus myth did exist historically. It's certain that nobody has a clue when his birth date was. So why choose 25 December to mark it? It all makes sense when considered as part of the christianisation of existing pagan calendars.

Human beings have celebrated the Winter Solstice for millennia. It has gone by many names in various cultures, but the Scandinavian Yule is one that remains familiar to us today. The turn of winter, where the days begin to get longer yet the hardest weather (if in Northern Europe) is yet to come, was a special time for most societies. An acknowledgement that improvement in their lives lay ahead, but before it came there would be the greatest hardship too. It is the birth of a new cycle of nature, with hope following on from adversity, abundance to come from scarcity. Celebrations, communal feasting and exchange of gifts all formed part of the festivities.

The Christ nativity story is also one of birth and hope, of children being the future of the community. The early Christians recognised that their new religion would not take hold if it was seen to do away with the high points of most people's lives, the annual festivals and revelries they loved and worked towards. So instead of condemning these pagan celebrations they simply hijacked them, twisting the underlying stories to suit their own ideology, but retaining the convivial and carousing aspects - at least to begin with. So it was that the two most important moments in the pagan year became the two most important Christian festivals. The Spring Solstice, which heralds the reawakening of the land, became Easter, whilst Christmas replaced that for winter. It was as near a perfect match as they could hope for.

Unsurprisingly, for all cultures and their belief systems share broadly similar myths. The importance of the changing seasons and their impact on the availability of food form the underlying rhythm of all societies, until the very recent advent of globalisation. It is at its strongest in those regions which have the greatest variations in climate across the seasons, because the difference between good living and simple survival is at its clearest.

So what is the true meaning? It depends on which period(s) of history you want to turn to. In a Europe where seasonal famine is now almost unknown the real origins of the festival have little meaning. For the same reason the Christian message has limited impact. We are left with jubilant aspects - the extended eating and drinking, the party going and communal gatherings - and the exchange of gifts, but without the ritual meanings which once accompanied these events. Instead there is the general message of 'the season of goodwill', a watered down sentiment that has no linking philosophy to underpin it.

I am not suggesting that this is necessarily a good or a bad thing. It is what it is. That we no longer have to fear food shortages (at least in our cosy First World) and are largely unaffected by the impact of the seasons (road and rail closures notwithstanding....) is a positive and the loss of those motivators is a mark of progress. The fact that the holiday is celebrated on the same date in much of the southern hemisphere is a reflection of how far the 'true meaning' has become divorced from the way we live our lives. There is little sense of rebirth about Xmas.

Of course it still has cultural importance, but of a different nature. There remains an emphasis on family, which is largely missing in other aspects of our culture. It encourages social bonding, even if only in the form of the oft-dreaded office party. There is a nod towards thoughtfulness, with gifts having to be selected for each person as an individual. We could no more abandon the festivities than the early Christians could do. And there are still links to the proper origins of the festival if we look for them. The Yule Log, the tree, the presents are all traditions rooted in the actions of our pagan ancestors who were more in touch with their surroundings than we city dwellers can mange to be. Perhaps this is the aspect which needs to be rediscovered? As a means of bringing some meaning to the time which everyone can share in?

Meanwhile that sense of the birth of the future has largely gone from today. But it will be with us in few days time. New Year. A chance to look back and plan forward. Of regrets and fears, but also of achievements and hopes. The birth of another year. Irrespective of where you are in the world the conceptual calendar, rather than the one imposed by your local seasons, may now have more genuine meaning for most of us. It marks the passing of time, the ageing process, the chance to live life anew.

As a Scot I have always viewed New Year as the most important time in the holiday period, without really having thought about why. I did it because that's what Scots did, it was a part of our culture that marked us out as other. We did it because the English didn't. But maybe there is more to it than that. Has the time come for New Year to be the most essential shared experience? One that clearly has a 'true meaning'?