On the way home from work in the afternoon I usually listen to the Dan Caplis and Craig Silverman show on KHOW radio. They have an interesting show, Craig Silverman is a prominent Democrat and former Denver DA, and Dan Caplis is a prominent republican trial lawyer and although he has never held public office he is well known in the Denver media. He is married to a former local television news anchor. The show is delightful because, although Craig and Dan disagree with one another on a great number of issues, they are always polite cordial and friendly in their disagreements. What makes the show even more interesting is that Dan Caplis is also one of the more prominent public Catholics in the City, and Craig Silverman is Jewish. Yesterday they had an interesting topic on their program: whether or not we should wish people a Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays, when we don’t know their religion. Dan of course thought that wishing people a Merry Christmas was a good thing. Craig, although not offended by the phrase Merry Christmas, thought we ought to be a little more thoughtful of others and show more respect for their beliefs. This difference was to be expected. However, what was not to be expected was Dan Caplis’ rather lackluster defense of the practice of wishing people a Merry Christmas.

So many callers were afraid of Christian proselytism, and they were also afraid of denying the significant celebrations of other traditions like Chanukah and Solstice. Dan did not confront these issues head on, and he should have. Wishing people a Merry Christmas is an evangelical activity, its function is to celebrate and broadcast the Good News that the Savior was born. As Christians we are commissioned by the Lord to spread the Gospel. One way we do this is by a continual invitation to the rest of the world to share our celebration of Christmas, and the joy we have at the birth of Christ. Wishing people a Merry Christmas really and truly ought to be oriented toward the conversion of all people to Christ, for this is what is best for them. Dan should have talked about this. If this was a source of stress in his relationship with Craig, whom he calls his “brother from another mother”, he should have reflected on the words of the Lord, “Do not think that I have come to bring peace upon the earth. I have come to bring not peace but the sword. For I have come to set a man 'against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and one's enemies will be those of his household’.”

Dan should also have been able to articulate a Christian response when Craig brought up the other holidays of the season, Chanukah and Solstice, which he said were older than the celebration of Christmas, and were not about Christ. This is not true. While both of these holidays were celebrated prior to the birth of Christ, the birth of Christ is ontologically prior to both of them. This is illustrated by the fact that both of these point towards the revelation of Jesus, the name above every other name. Let’s look to Chanukah first. Chanukah is the celebration of a miracle at the rededication of the Temple after it had been defiled by Hellenists. The Jews had only enough oil to burn only one day, but it lasted eight days, the time needed to procure more oil. Now this would seem to have little to do with Christ. However, all we need to remember that Christ is the temple, and then we begin to see a connection. But the real connection to Christ is in the miracle of eight days. The fact that the Chanukah miracle lasted eicght days shows that it points towards Christ. Any time we see the number eight, especially in scripture and tradition, we should pause and think of Christ. It is not for nothing that the solemnities of Christmas and Easter are proclaimed for an Octave, for eight days. Eight is the number of the fullness of creation and the number of days in the Christian week. The week at the center of the universe, the week that gives meaning to time itself, is Holy Week. And this week runs eight days, from Palm Sunday to Easter. Ancient and venerable tradition tells us that on Easter Sunday, the eighth day, Christ finished the work of creation, for in His death and Resurrection all things were made new. For this reason the number eight has long been associated with baptism and regeneration. It is an ancient tradition for baptisteries to have eight sides, and the reason why God would have given the Jews an miracle centered on eight days, so that they would recognize the True Light when He Rose on the eighth day.

Like Christmas and Chanukah, the Winter Solstice is also a festival of light. God designed the world to have signs and meanings that would point towards Christ. From the very beginning God appointed the Winter solstice to point towards and remind us of Christ who is the victory of light over darkness. The Pagan celebration of the coming of longer days and the victory of light, points to Christmas. When they say the Christians copied them by placing Christmas on the Solstice, they have it precisely wrong. God made the Solstice a sign of Christ, in whom creation was perfected.