Of the Arrival of Christmas and the Return of the Christ

Christmas came this year.  Nothing could stop it.  People could and did choose to ignore it, with varying success, but their efforts made no difference to Christmas’ arrival.  Neither poverty nor wealth could hold it back.  Merchants lamented the shortened shopping season.  Early wintry weather interfered with many transportation plans.  Irreligionists of many stripes raised their usual objections to the public symbols of Christmas and in some places succeeded in suppressing those symbols.  Wars and rumors of wars exerted their perennial presence to mock sentiments of peace on earth all the while proving its need.  On personal levels, challenges at work, demanding academic schedules, unexpected as well as chronic illness, the death of loved ones, and many other matters and intrusions of varying importance fought for the precedence of our attention. 

Many causes large and small could easily leave the feeling that there was no time for Christmas, this year or other years.  The distractions of life can all too easily make the sources of lasting value appear as distractions.

I am again reminded of the words of Charles Dickens.  He spoke through the mouth of young, idealistic Fred, in answer to his Uncle Ebenezer’s rodomontade against Christmas.  The not yet but soon to be converted miser thought his daily work focused on important matters, all the while missing out on the sources of joy in life.  Fred reminded his Uncle, as a prelude to a change of heart, how Christmas symbolized humanity’s worth in life’s lasting values, to which worldly wealth can serve as a facilitator but never a replacement.

There are many things from which I might have derived good, by which I have not profited, I dare say, . . . Christmas among the rest.  But I am sure I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round—apart from the veneration due to its sacred name and origin, if anything belonging to it can be apart from that—as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut up hearts freely, and to think of those people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys.  And therefore, uncle, though it has never put a scrap of gold or silver in my pocket, I believe that it has done me good, and will do me good; and I say, God bless it!  (Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol)

And so this year, in 2013 Christmas came, inevitably, inexorably, as it has for some two thousand years, and many blessings with it.  The good and bad and indifferent that hitched along for the ride could not affect the driving core of Christmas, its fundamental, joyful message of hope of salvation for all, to one degree or another as each opens up—or not—to receive it.

It is in the driving arriving context of Christmas and the mission of Christ that it is appropriate to look to one of my favorite Christmas carols.  I confess that this is difficult to do without the music, essential to the power of the carol’s message.  I refer to the “Carol of the Bells,” a joyful Christmas message woven by Peter J. Wilhousky into the driving music of Mykola Leontovych’s Ukrainian song of Winter and the approaching Spring. 

I love this carol for many reasons.  One is that its origin of uniting Winter with Spring embodies the message that Christmas derives its meaning from Easter.  Jesus was the Christ, the Anointed One, because of His ultimate sacrifice and victory over death and hell, a mission for which He was chosen before the world was created.  Having fully accomplished His mission, as a resurrected God, Jesus declared, “I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me, and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world” (3 Nephi 11:11).  That is the reason for and fulfilment of our Christmas joy.

Here are the lyrics.  Importantly, as you read the words, feel their rhythm, central to the message:

Carol of the Bells

 

Hark how the bells,

sweet silver bells,

all seem to say,

throw cares away.

 

Christmas is here,

bringing good cheer,

to young and old,

meek and the bold.

 

Ding dong ding dong,

that is their song

with joyful ring

all caroling.

 

One seems to hear

words of good cheer

from ev’rywhere

filling the air.

 

Oh how they pound,

raising the sound,

o’er hill and dale,

telling their tale,

 

gaily they ring

while people sing

songs of good cheer,

Christmas is here.

 

Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas,

Merry, merry, merry, merry Christmas,

 

On, on they send,

on without end,

their joyful tone

to ev’ry home.

 

Ding dong ding dong. . . dong!

The lyrics, like the tune, are repetitive, incessant, and by that technique insistent in rhythm.  On, on they come.  They demand attention.  Like bells, they are loud and piercing.  As someone knocking at the door, their message—and presumably the messengers—will not be denied.  The tune is joyful, but not light and airy.  Rather announcing a joy that comes from the soul, heartfelt, it is not the celebration of a party, but the celebration of a triumph, lasting and permanent, ever reaching out to more people, to every home.

So each year, onward Christmas comes, no holding it back, even as Jesus came into the world, as prophesied for thousands of years.  There was nothing to hold Him back or deter His mortal mission of redemption, not the jealousy of Herod “the Great,” the pusillanimity of Pilate, the hatred of the leaders of the Sanhedrin, nor the darkness of priestcraft and its traditions.  All was turned by God to assist in achieving the mission of the Christ.

And since then, onward marches the calendar, each year Christmas arrives, symbolic that the day of the Savior’s return, as prophesied by Himself and His prophets, inexorably approaches.  As Christ announced, only He and the Father know the precise day and time, but it is certain and each day closer.  The arrival of Christmas each year is a reminder to me, that the time of rejoicing is coming, the hope and assurance of which justifies rejoicing today, and every day.

Christmas will come again next year.  Ready or not, I am glad of it and will welcome it.

Of Minorities and Society

The saddest chapters of history chronicle the breakdown of human society.  Rights are abused, the innocent—if innocence is allowed to exist—are trampled.  Poverty, hatred, violence, and uncontrolled human passion prevail.  Destruction and degradation, physical and moral, replace human progress.

All society, except that of master to slave, relies upon an element of free association.  Societies may have more or less elements of coercion as well, but it is the element of free association that allows the society to continue, that motivates its members to acquiesce in or even encourage the society’s continuation.  Free, voluntary association is what gives a society its legitimacy.  Without it, there is no society, just a group of people ruled by one coterie of thugs or another. 

Cooperation in society cannot be taken for granted.  When it is, when free cooperation, instead of being nurtured and encouraged, is replaced by coercive rules and compulsion, particularly rules and compulsion designed to benefit some at the expense of others, society declines, people interact more by will of others than by their own volition.  With time either the situation is redressed or the society disintegrates, often to be conquered from the outside when its internal strength has turned to weakness.

In its latter years imperial China was prey to numerous foreign incursions because its society was a mighty empty shell, old traditions surrounding an empire of competing warlords.  Ancient Greece, which twice when united proved too much for the Persian empire, became relatively easy prey to the Romans after the ties of Greek society had become tired and weak.  Rome, in its turn, after a thousand years, was enormously wealthy but mightily weak in the internal strength to repel the roaming barbarians, vibrant societies powerful in their own internal cohesion.  Much of Africa, Asia, and Latin America today remains mired in poverty from the inability of relatively young countries to develop cooperative societies that encourage the generation of wealth and its application to promote prosperity for the present and for the future.

With cooperation at the core of successful society, one would think that democracies must be the most successful.  History records otherwise.  There are no historical examples of a successful democracy, at least not one that lasted for long enough to matter.  Like a match set to paper, democracies flare up brightly into power and glory but all too soon die away to ashes. 

The problem with democracies has been that all too quickly the majority in the democracy learns that it can become wealthy by robbing the minority, under camouflage of statutes and government.  That only lasts until either the minority successfully rebels, becomes a majority in its turn, or the wealth of the minority is exhausted.  In reaction, the majority may seek to preserve its advantages by yielding to a dictator—a “mouth” for the majority—to govern in the name of the majority to discern and express its will.  Few of these dictators have resisted the temptation to wear the mask of the majority to govern for the benefit of themselves and their cronies.  That has been the case for every communist government, without exception.   

 

But, is it not right and just for the majority to prevail?  Perhaps, but to prevail over what?  Everything?  Consider:  if majority rule is applied to deprive the minority of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, why should the minority cooperate?  All that such society offers them is slavery, unrequited labor and service to fill another’s belly and pockets.  In a pure democracy, there is no check on majority avarice, no refuge for the minority.  The majority must always have its way.

Republics, however, are built upon a foundation of minority rights.  Republican governments are granted only limited powers, exercised by representatives of the people, within boundaries beyond which the government may not go.  A written constitution serves to enshrine and strengthen those rights against violation by the majority.  The system gives a stake to all—not just the current rulers—in the continuation and strengthening of the society.  No democracy, hereditary monarchy, or dictatorship can provide that.

In a nation as great and diverse as the United States everyone is part of a minority.  Whether we consider age, ethnic background, religion, geography, culture, profession, or a multitude of other distinctions, we are a host of minorities.  We can only come together and remain as a nation, strong and vibrant, if we are confident of protection in our minority rights, for protecting minority rights in America means protecting everyone’s rights.  That is why the Founders proposed and the nation embraced a Republic formed on a federal structure of divided and limited government.

In that context, what are we to make of the current direction of American society?  Are we preserving the Republic?  Does our society feel like it is coming together?  Recent public opinion polls find that more than 60% of Americans believe the nation to be going in the wrong direction.  In another poll, a mere 22% believe that the current government rules with the consent of the governed. 

What is the national political leadership doing about this?  We have a President who aggressively pursues a variety of programs that have in common the taking of wealth from one minority segment of the nation to reward others.  These wealth transfers are lionized for the undenied purpose of political and electoral advantage for the President and his supporters. 

You will recognize the pattern.  A crisis is discovered by the President, and an industry or group is demonized in public speeches and echoed in the establishment media as causing the problem and/or standing in the way of its solution.  A plan is announced that involves confiscations from the demonized industry or group to fund benefices bestowed on Administration favorites.

Consider a few examples of many.  Global warming is hailed as an imminent crisis with disastrous consequences; the coal, oil, and gas industries are identified as the foes of progress; and a variety of taxes and other restrictive policies are proposed, together with planned subsidies for businesses and companies favored by the White House.  Banks are declared to be the nefarious forces behind the recent recession, new laws and regulations are applied that confiscate billions of dollars from the industry, much of which is then channeled to hedge funds and other political allies of the administration.  Some millions of people are discovered to be without health insurance, doctors and the health insurance industry—among others—are fingered as being at the root of the problem, so a major overhaul of the entire structure of the health system is enacted that favors some at the expense of others.  Administration cronies receive lucrative contracts to develop and administer the new system.  There are many other examples, large and small, in education, welfare, housing, transportation, law enforcement, and many other government programs.

Is there any wonder that there is gridlock in the national government, when policy after policy is aimed at transferring wealth from some to reward others?  Where is the room for cooperation and compromise, when the issue is how much of your family’s wealth is to be taken and given to someone else?  The Roman Republic fell into gridlock after decades of appeals to mass acclaim for schemes of popular distribution of public plunder.  It ended in the triumph of the Caesars, and later their eventual fall to the barbarians.  It is perilous to abuse social comity. 

President Obama has announced the transfer of wealth to be the chief focus for the remaining three years of his administration.  Can our society weather that?

Of Christmas Experiment and Joyful Merriment

This weekend we undertook an experiment.  Like other people, we love to celebrate Christmas with friends and family.  Joy and merriment have long claimed a place at Christmastide.  Can merriment detract from or reinforce the heart of our Christmas celebration?  Can merriment be part of rejoicing in the life and mission of the Savior, Jesus Christ, gathering in the joy?  Are worship and merriment compatible?  This is not a theoretical question.  It is a practical one.  Try this experiment.

We brought together a roomful of our friends, giving to each just one request:  come prepared to choose a favorite Christmas carol, and briefly explain what makes it a favorite of yours, what it means to you, what it speaks to you.  Our plan was then to sing each carol as it was suggested and its meaning described. 

That was the core. Not complicated, but it was wonderful.  We had refreshments, of course, and there were some instruments (piano, violin, and a ukulele) to add a touch of variety.  There were just about a dozen of us, limited by the size of the room.   

There were few fancy singers in our group (we did, though, have three music teachers, by chance), still the hardiest and most resilient carols over time seem to lend themselves to voices of all qualities.  In the course of two hours we had a memorable mix of worship and merriment that produced a glowing joy in each of us.

For my choice I hearkened back to a theme that I discussed in a blog post three years ago (which you can find here).  The “Coventry Carol” is a heart-wrenchingly sad lament of a mother for her baby murdered by the soldiers of the cruel King Herod, jealous of the very rumor of a child born to be King of the Jews.  I picked that carol, because to me it reaches directly to the meaning of Christmas, a meaning that was prophesied for thousands of years that would soon have its fulfillment. 

Some more foolish than perceptive have complained that God warned Joseph to take his family to Egypt and out of Herod’s reach but did not save the other little children of Bethlehem.  They little reflect that the Father did not spare His son, but just postponed the day of His murder.  Even more, they miss that by that sacrifice of Jesus on the cross—as innocent then as He was as a baby—He did save all of those little children, and all of us who would receive Him and His sacrifice.

There were other moving stories that evening, briefly told, happily sung.  One woman related a carol connected to a letter recently uncovered, authored by the man who would become her father, written in a foxhole at the Battle of the Bulge, sent to the woman who would become his wife and her mother.  We sang, “O Come, O Come, Immanuel, and ransom captive Israel.”

There was a note from our son, serving a mission in Brazil, who offered a requested carol with a beautiful expression of its meaning, read by his mother.  We sang, at his request, “What Child Is This?”

I consider the experiment successful.  The influence of the Holy Ghost was present.  We experienced the fusion of joy and merriment.  To verify the success the experiment needs to be repeated by others.  You try it, too, and see whether you can replicate and confirm the results.