Our society forgot about the Christ in Christmas spirit
Christopher Emmick
Kernel Columnist
I am currently making a tradition on Sunday nights.Every night my roommate and I sit down for a quality hour of television programming called "Touched by an Angel."I'm not the type of person who usually watches these warm-hearted programs, but this show is really special.
This is just about the only show on television where each episode displays the kindness and compassion of a forgiving God in a real and personal way.
No preachers screaming verses at the top of their lungs, and no sugary-sweet ministers asking for money every five minutes.
This show is truly quality television.
However, last Sunday, this show hit a snag.
It was the Christmas episode of "Touched by an Angel," and regular cast of angels were helping out a Christmas church pageant.
The show did a very good job (as usual) of showing the kindness of God.
But the show never mentioned the whole purpose of the holiday: The birth of Jesus Christ.
There was no description of the baby Jesus in the manger, nor a mention of the Son of God at all, even though this upcoming holiday celebrates Christ's birth in Bethlehem.
In fact, take a more general look at TV's representation of Christmas.
The most predominate figure associated with Christmas on TV is Santa Claus, a lovable character that brings good little boys and girls (or for that matter, good little college students) presents. Santa is cool, don't get me wrong.
The big guy brought me an awesome electric guitar and amp on my 13th birthday.
Still, Santa is not the reason why Christmas is celebrated. Santa was not born by the Virgin Mary.
Santa didn't have a bright light to guide wise men to his crib. Santa didn't grow up to be crucified for the sins of the world. Santa is not Jesus Christ.
In the eyes of the advertiser, Santa is the perfect icon for Christmas.
Santa gives gifts to people for a living, so he is the person who you should trust when picking out a gift.
Santa becomes the perfect commercial: there is no one to copyright him (or his likeness), and Santa just likes giving out everything and everything.
This new Santa has traded in his sleigh for a four-wheeler, his reindeer for Coca-Cola and his elves for cellular phones.
Jesus and the whole nativity scene, on the other hand, is not a good marketing strategy.
You won't find a Norelco baby Jesus sliding down snowy slopes on your TVs. The wise men will not give the baby Jesus gold, frankincense and a pager. It's not going to happen. Advertisers don't want to invest in a strategy that will not make them money, and the television stations would rather not talk about the whole purpose of the holiday at all just to make a few measly bucks with another lousy Santa-pitches-Cinemax commercial.
As a society who lives during the so-called "Information Age," we may get caught up in the media's creation of Santa, the Christmas icon.
Every channel you turn to anymore shows Santa Claus doing this and Santa pitching that.
Although Santa is a wonderful character that best displays the spirit of giving, he is not the reason why Christmas is celebrated.
Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus, the Savior of the world.
In an ideal world, the television would be just like a mirror: a pure non-distorted reflection of how the world works.
This is not an ideal world, of course, and there are bills to be paid by the television station.
So more often than not, something on the television will be there to make a profit for the TV station and their sponsors.
Because the true story of Christmas is not a profitable story, you do not see it currently on the TV - not even on "Touched by an Angel," a television show that, above all shows, should show the story about God's only Son.
So this Christmas, enjoy all the television Christmas specials that you can.
Most are very entertaining and touching. However, don't get wrapped up in television's version of this holiday.
No matter what they say or do on the TV, Jesus is the reason for the season.
Kernel Columnist Christopher Emmick is a computer science sophomore; his views do not necessarily represent those of the Kentucky Kernel.
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