Editor's Desk: Welcome the Christ Child

By Michael F. Flach
Herald Columnist
(From the issue of 12/23/04)

For years the Knights of Columbus has sponsored a campaign entitled "Keep Christ in Christmas" in an attempt to stem the secular tide that threatens to obliterate any mention of the Christ Child during the Christmas season.

This local effort takes various forms. The Ambrose Council sold religious Christmas cards following Saturday and Sunday Masses at St. Ambrose Catholic Church in Annandale from Columbus Day through Thanksgiving. The council designated Christ House in Alexandria as the beneficiary of its "Keep Christ in Christmas" campaign. Christ House is using the donation to help feed the hungry during the Christmas season.

Similar charitable efforts are conducted by councils across the diocese. An estimated 1,000 Christmas trees will be sold by Knights at St. Mary of Sorrows Church in Fairfax Station between Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve. Proceeds from the tree sale support 90 percent of the Knights’ charities during the coming year.

Efforts by the Knights and other Catholic groups to preserve the religious dimension of the Christmas season are met with hostility at every turn.

Radio talk show host Michael Graham last week called attention to a poll being conducted by NBC’s "Today Show" that listed the top 10 Christmas songs of all time. The only restriction, Graham noted, was that the nominated songs could not contain religious references. "Silent Night" and "O Little Town of Bethlehem" were excluded. "Jingle Bell Rock" and "Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer" were permitted.

Graham also observed that Mel Gibson’s blockbuster movie, "The Passion of the Christ," which grossed more than $350 million worldwide during its theatrical release earlier this year, did not receive a single nomination from the Golden Globe Awards committee. Gibson, who by now should be used to the anti-Christian attitude of movie industry members, can expect similar rejection from Hollywood early next year when Oscar nominations are announced. I’ll wager that garbage like "Kinsey" and "Alexander" — both of which failed miserably at the box office — will garner several nominations because of their permissive attitude toward sexual morality.

Graham concluded his segment by saying that more people (especially media executives) are frightened by the Baby Jesus than they are of Osama Bin Laden and Sadaam Hussein. "Even if you’re an atheist," Graham said, "what can you find objectionable about the message ‘peace on earth and goodwill toward men?’"

Catholic League President William Donohue addressed the issue of what is happening to Christmas parties in the workplace. For decades, he said, employees at Time magazine held a Christmas party and looked forward to receiving a Christmas bonus. But starting three years ago, the party was banned and so were the Christmas bonuses.

The mayor of Somerville, Mass., recently apologized for calling the city’s Christmas party a "Christmas party." It’s now a "holiday party." Simma Lieberman Associates bluntly advises, "make sure your holiday party isn’t a Christmas party in disguise."

The two poster boys for anti-Christmas sentiment — Ebenezer Scrooge and the Grinch — had conversion experiences that continue to inspire generation after generation. You can’t watch television this time of year without stumbling upon some version of their stories.

At the risk of being politically incorrect, let’s prepare a place of honor in our homes for the Prince of Peace. Let’s continue to give public witness to His message in our schools and places of work. We wish all our readers a blessed Christmas and a safe and healthy new year. — M.F.F.

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