Walking through the shopping malls and business districts during Christmas is quite an experience. Maybe it's the booming economy this year, but somehow, the usual orgiastic shopping experience that cumulates around Christmas seems to be especially pronounced this year. Being at St. John's on Christmas Eve was especially revealing -- it's always glam at St. John's, but somehow this year seems especially so -- almost everybody is dressed up to the nines, more as if they were going to a party or a dance than going to church.
I wonder -- where is Christ in all of this? It seems that the more blessed we are, the less likely we are to remember God. Maybe it's a hazy memory biased by the nostalgia of childhood, but I remember when I was growing up, and the society as a whole was less prosperous, every Christmas brought hope and joy. Maybe it's because now I am older and more cynical, but I find it hard to recapture those feelings nowadays. Christmas almost seems to bring more pressure than relief.
On a personal level, the closest I felt to God this Christmas was not at a church service, but among the mentally disabled children that we spent Christmas Eve with.
(BTW, this picture above was taken at the Central escalator. I was surprised to see such a strong religious statement in the midst of the business district. It's a good reminder of what Christmas is all about.)
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
The Spirit of Christmas
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3 comments:
So how do you feel now, coming back from Gansu?
Oh -- I still feel much the same way -- that the more blessed we are, the less likely we are to remember God. And, in a perverse twist, the less likely we are to be truly contented with what we have in life.
Since coming back to Hong Kong, I have been struck with how many complaints and unhappy faces I have been seeing. And not from poor people either -- these are from some people whom I think are extremely blessed with their lot. Ironic, isn't it?
I also remember Christmas feeling more full of joy and hope growing up, compared to these days. I agree that increased affluence overall does have a part to play - it seems the more we have, the more we want even more, the more we become fixated on what we don't have...causing more unhappiness than before. Kids these days really get a bad deal. When we were growing up, at least we got to enjoy "childhood" for a bit longer. These days, kids are so desperate to "grow up" (with eager parents only too willing to help them "get ahead") they get short-changed... they lose out on the wonderful years when they can marvel at the wonder of creation, of nature. Sigh...
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