Dec.05,2002
CHRISTMAS ”“ POINTER TO PEACE
Christmas is the time to be merry and be with our family and friends. Every year we celebrate Christmas. Lots of gifts are exchanged with our near and dears ones. The shopkeepers are happy as the cash registers are jingling and profits are realized. Christmas cards are sent and those received are displayed with pride and joy.
The Christmas holidays are secularized with decorated Christmas tree, artful display of lights and Santa Clause doing his Ho! Ho! Ho! Even those of us who are not Christians by faith are also celebrating Christmas with gusto. Christmas is celebrated around the world in many countries with or without large Christian population.
The real reason for celebrating Christmas is the birth of Lord Jesus Christ. The reason Lord Jesus”™ birthday is celebrated needs to be understood and digested intellectually and spiritually for deriving the most benefit from this celebration. It is not celebrated to give us holiday from work and go for extravagant display of our wealth and being critical of our near ones for not remembering with expensive gifts and greeting cards. In these days of commercial needs and circus-like merry making, the theme and reason for celebrating the birth of Lord Jesus Christ is lost.
The birth of Jesus is divine and changed the paradigm of living in many countries. Lord Jesus Christ brought the message of non-violence and peace in the world where violence, human misery and slavery were perpetrated by the powerful. The human dignity and freedoms were in short supply. Lord Jesus understood the God”™s message and articulated this in a very loving and purposeful way. He was the personification and example of fearless pursuit of his mission of love and peace and for which he sacrificed his comfort and life. The teachings of Lord Jesus Christ eventually led to civil societies, democracy, freedom and respect for human beings (with no prejudice for color, race, ethnicity and cultures).
When cruelly crucified on the cross, he begged the God for forgiving those who carried out this act, as “they do not know what they are doing”. This is the message we seem to have forgotten. In my ancestral culture (and religions of Jainism and Buddhism), the message of non-violence to all living beings is paramount and to forgive and forget the slights done to us is very important.
In modern life this message of forgiving seems to have been forgotten and each one of us (of whatever background) is becoming competitive to the extent that violence is spreading and selfish nature is taking over without a thought to damage we are directly or indirectly causing to our peace and tranquility. Arrogance with concomitant jealousy and greed is a vice that is having a stranglehold on our spiritual growth. We need a rejuvenation of Christ”™s message of love and respect.
In the current conflict in Afghanistan, we note the existence of many warlords and also many angry hurt populations. The society there is violence-prone and with a consequence of lot of pain and suffering. In Israel/Palestine, there is a similar situation. In other areas of the world, much anger and stored vengeance is wreaking havoc.
The civilization is said to have moved forward since the birth of Lord Jesus Christ but really this is not visible in many societies. We may have progressed materially but spiritually the message of Lord Jesus and others in Eastern religions (such as Jainism and Buddhism) seems to have been forgotten very conveniently. In past century, we were fortunate to have witnessed the presence of Mahatma Gandhi in India, Martin Luther King in U.S.A., Mother Teresa of Calcutta, and Nelson Mandela (who is still amongst us) whose adoption of the message of love and respect (with a lot of personal sacrifice on their part) have resulted in those societies a measurable human respect and healthy interplay and happiness.
I do want to submit that at the Christmas time, may we have strength to remember the central message of Lord Jesus Christ to forgive those who carry out despicable acts in their ignorance and let Christmas remind us the message of respect and love for every one. I would like to humbly request all to join me in a prayer that people in Afghanistan would forgive and forget their past injustices and move forward in their society for peace and progress. So is with Middle East, Northern Ireland, Kashmir, Sri Lanka, Rwanda and Burundi, Yugoslavia and many other lands.
Let yearly Christmas celebration become a pointer to peace and a reminder that there is more to life than fights and arrogation of power and wealth. When we meet our family and friends (during Christmas holidays) let us seek forgiveness for any misdeeds done to them by us and forgive them for any perceived or real misdeeds done by them to us. This will be a gift par excellence! Pass it on and see the magic!
I wish you all a very uplifting Christmas.
Pravin Shah
Note: Originally written on December 08 2001.